Hurricane Helene came into North Carolina on Sept. 27, 2024, changing the lives and landscape of western North Carolina. Water records were broken, rivers changed course, and many people were at a loss, without words to describe what had just happened, but not at a loss for what to do.
Neighbors were cutting trees for each other, liberating driveways and roads. Friends hiked through freshly broken forests to set eyes on their loved ones. People shared finite resources like they were unlimited. It was overwhelming to see, and still to think about.
These neighbors and friends are also some of our first responders and essential workers — those who are trained to answer your calls for help.
In October of 2024, Dr. John Gossett, president of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College, said, “Think about who went running. It was our law enforcement, EMTs, fire, rescue, all these people we have trained — they were the ones who ran immediately into the storm.”
It was Gossett’s words that stuck with me and inspired the title of this series. You are about to hear from residents of your state who are public servants, trained to serve and save, and have been educated at a community college.
Each episode will lift up first-person perspectives of those who lived through and helped in the aftermath of Helene. There will be a new episode each day next week, and they will all be listed below as they are released.
In episode 6, EdNC features conversations with Dr. Gossett and A-B Tech's resident fire chief, John Wilson. Wilson is the director of fire services for the college, and his students, or cadets as they are called, worked at fire stations around the region the Friday after the storm hit and beyond.
Published in EducationNC on May 15 and May 23, 2025.