This isn’t the first time a tropical system has devastated Canton, North Carolina, but Mayor Zeb Smathers said there is a major difference between Hurricane Helene’s aftermath today and three years ago, when flooding from Tropical Storm Fred destroyed his city.
“We are facing search and rescue and recovery from a storm in 2024 with 1990s technology. At best,” a frustrated Smathers told CNN, referring to the total collapse of cellular communications in Canton and Haywood County.
“The number one issue is lack of communication. In the beginning, before the worst parts of the storm on Friday, we lost all cellular communications. And that is across the region. And it has crippled every aspect of our ability to respond and to recover. That goes from the storm through even still today. It is unacceptable and it is dangerous,” Mayor Smathers said, speaking with CNN from the Canton Police Department, where a Starlink is located in Haywood County.
“If I am not physically at the police station, and someone needs me, a police officer has to go out on the road and find me. We can’t respond to needs,” Smathers said. “There are families living in turmoil because they can’t make a simple cell phone call 72 hours after this storm. We can’t communicate with crisis management to deliver supplies, because we don’t know what we have and what people need.”
Smathers told CNN there is aid arriving into Canton but the connectivity issues have prevented smooth coordination and he fears it has likely led to the people who might need it the most not getting the help they need. He noted, days later, sometimes there is “spotty service” early in the morning but most cell phones still don’t work “even trying the new iPhone satellite connection technology.”
“I have witnessed with my own eyes, FEMA and state assistance on the ground but due to communication issues I can’t tell you to what degree they are here. I can’t reach my own police officers and firefighters unless I see them in person at the station and town hall. I am literally passing notes to our water department to coordinate with the energy company to help turn the water back on. I am passing notes. It’s 2024. It’s unacceptable.”
Smathers said his community is in desperate need of additional Starlink capabilities or even mobile communication towers.
“I am hearing rumors there are mobile communications towers but I don’t know. I’ve heard they have some in Asheville, we need them too. Bring us connections. Help us get service. This was the moment we needed our cell phones most. We have been crippled by the inability of the telecommunications companies to service our basic emergency needs,” Smathers said.
Canton faced extreme destruction in 2021 due to flooding from Tropical Storm Fred. Mayor Smathers said the lessons they learned helped the town prepare this time around but it wasn’t enough.
“Three years ago, in Haywood County, we went through flooding after Tropical Storm Fred. So I think we were better prepared than anybody. But when you have a 28-foot crest of your river, preparation only takes you so far,” said Smathers. “It was apocalyptic here. Creeks became streams, streams became rivers, rivers became oceans. Businesses, restaurants, houses, they’re gone. My sister lost her home. Roads and bridges, just washed out and gone. I see the anguish on the faces of everyone I meet, they are going through this again three years later. The idea that Western North Carolina seems to be Hurricane Row is a story in itself.”
“No disrespect to our friends down east but I think this will go down as the worst natural disaster in North Carolina history. When it’s all said and done,” Smathers told CNN, with sadness in his voice.
