Months after Helene, Carolinas suffer from ‘disaster fatigue’

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — “We’re going to be in this for quite some time,” says Travis Frizsell.

“Don’t forget about western North Carolina.”

That’s the message Frizsell has for anyone who will listen nearly four months after Helene rolled through his hometown. Born and raised in Buncombe County, Frizsell co-founded the Valley Hope Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to helping his neighbors recover from the devastation. But he – and many others trying to help – are running into a problem.

“As time’s going on, we’ve watched the numbers decrease,” Frizsell laments.

It’s a classic case of ‘disaster fatigue,’ Jason Gudzunas with the American Red Cross explains.

“When it happens time after time after time is you kind of get the fatigue of the excitement and urgency of an emergency that wears off a little bit,” says Gudzunas.

“It’s still an emergency. You still need those funds.”

And that’s exactly what Frizsell is dealing with.

“In the beginning, it was almost like we had unlimited resources and your phone’s ringing off the hook 24/7,” says Frizsell, “And we had a pile of volunteers this big, and as time goes on, you just see it shrink.”

But then there are people like Al Rorabeck. He made the 2,000-mile drive from Idaho to be here – and if you ask him why, you’ll get a simple answer.

“I wanted to do it, so I did it,” Rorabeck beams.

Rorabeck has been in Buncombe County with his truck and an excavator since October – he’s been using funds raised from TikTok and odd jobs across the area to stick around. He says he’ll stay as long as he can – but he doesn’t want to be called a hero.

“At the end of the day, it’s not like I needed a motivation,” Rorabeck explains, “People who need motivation run out of motivation. I don’t. I just keep going because I can.”

And people like Rorabeck mean the world to people like Frizsell.

“There are so many people still here, and I’m amazed and baffled by it because there are folks from out of state that put their entire lives on pause just to show up and help the cause,” says Frizsell.

It will take years for this region to fully recover. But, with your help, western North Carolina will heal – one step at a time.

“If you donate blood, we’d love it. If you could donate money, we’d love that. If you could donate time, we’d love that.” says Gudzunas.

“If you could do all three, you’re one of our favorite people.”