By BROOKLYN BROWN
One Feather Reporter
SWANNANOA, N.C. – Amidst the horror of Hurricane Helene, Artiss Barbour was stunned awake by a sound he described as two transfer trucks crashing. He would soon discover the sound to be an onslaught of water and mud flooding his room and the home of his landlord, Stevie Brown, in Swannanoa.
Barbour acted quickly, helping Brown, who has a physical disability, escape the ruin. “If you would have seen the water and the mud that came in the house all at once, it was unbelievable. The water was so strong; it was really hard for her to get out. She’s still upset,” he said.
Artiss Barbour, pictured in the lobby of the Drama Inn in Cherokee, N.C., shares his harrowing story of surviving Hurricane Helene. (BROOKLYN BROWN/One Feather photo)
“We just got in the car, went up the street, and both of us just started crying.”
Barbour and Brown are lodging temporarily at the Drama Inn in Cherokee, N.C. Brown is planning to stay with her son. Barbour is searching for shelter and a new form of income. Barbour credits John Bubacz, Drama Inn, with providing much needed assistance.
“The people here are so awesome. They’ve been giving us so much food, a place to stay. We paid for two nights, and then [John Bubacz] knocked on the door one morning and said, ‘I have some good news.’ He said that he was going to give us three more extra nights for free. That was awesome.”
Barbour said he personally knows three or four people who died because of the hurricane, and his place of employment is completely wiped out.
“I’m originally from Raleigh, but I came up here to start life over, and was doing pretty good. Had a little decent job as a cook’s helper at a restaurant. It swiped my job all out. Tore it all to pieces. I had just started, too, then all this came up,” he said.
“I don’t have anything. I lost everything. All of my clothes, all of my food, all of my furniture. The only thing I had left was a little bit of cosmetics. Everything else was gone. I’m a diabetic, and I’ve lost most of my medicine. I have a little bit left until I can find a doctor or clinic and get some more medicine.”
Barbour said Brown’s home is destroyed. “It’s just awful. She’s a real nice woman. Awesome landlord. She was renting me a room until I could get an apartment. I loved my little room. My little furniture, my TV, my boombox.”
Despite an extreme amount of loss, Barbour is staying positive through his faith in God. “The man upstairs. He’s pushing me. He’s like, ‘Some things happen for a reason.’ I don’t know what the outcome is. We’re just here, and I have to start over again.”
Barbour has one request for neighboring communities. “Just pray.”
