FCC Chairwoman Heads To Storm-Battered North Carolina

It has been seven days since Western North Carolina began to experience catastrophic flooding and extensive infrastructure damage from Hurricane Helene. Many locales still lack basic services, and reliable internet and cell phone services, as broadcast radio and TV have shown their resiliency while delivering important life-saving information to the region.

To gain a firsthand account of communications recovery efforts in the aftermath of the storm, which cut a swath through the Florida “Big Bend” area before barreling through eastern Georgia and Western North Carolina, the Chairwoman of the FCC planned to visit both Charlotte and Asheville.

Jessica Rosenworcel‘s schedule had her traveling to both cities on Friday (10/4), meeting with FCC Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau staff deployed to North Carolina to assess and support communications recovery efforts.

Rosenworcel’s visit featured planned stops at a federal assistance center, a drop-in on an emergency operations center, and visit to a local library serving as a community Wi-Fi hub. It was not known if a visit to a radio or television station was on the Chairwoman’s itinerary.

Access to Asheville from Charlotte as of Friday morning was largely restored, although Interstate 40 was experiencing various lane closures and exit access restrictions closer to I-240 and the Asheville metropolitan area.

To the north and northwest of Asheville, road closures are still in effect.

To help with relief efforts in the region, Beasley Media Group‘s Charlotte radio stations will host an event to collect supplies for those affected by Hurricane Helene in the Carolinas.

The supply drive will take place on Tuesday, October 8, beginning at 6am from the Beasley Media Group facilities at 1520 South Blvd in Charlotte. The supplies will be donated to the Lincolnton-Lincoln County Airport, who will then make deliveries to those in need, the company shared on Friday.

For many, Radio remains the lone information source. Denise Potter, a Hendersonville, N.C., resident, shared with Streamline Publishing’s Radio Ink how AM and FM radio is making a difference in Western North Carolina.

Read Denise Potter’s full interview with Radio Ink Online Editor Cameron Coats by clicking here.