Submitted by Jackson County Emergency Management
Jackson County Emergency Management Director Todd Dillard is urging all residents to stay off the roads and stay at home due to Hurricane Helene.
In the early morning hours of Friday, Sept. 27, Hurricane Helene made its way into Jackson County from the southeastern part of the county. The storm has made things extremely dangerous in the southern part of the county, including Cashiers, Sapphire Valley, Glenville and into the Highlands area in Macon County. The storm is currently inching its way into the northern side of Jackson County (Sylva, Webster, Whittier, Dillsboro and Cherokee.)
“We have numerous creeks coming out of their banks and the Tuckaseegee River has come out of its banks in various locations,” said Dillard. “There are approximately 10,000 power outages and at least 40 road closures. We have all of our emergency management crews working diligently on the situation, including our Jackson County Emergency Management staff, all rescue squads, fire departments, the N.C. National Guard, statewide mutual aid services, volunteers and sheriff’s office officials.”
The National Weather Service is estimating up to two inches of rain an hour will fall for the next few hours and that winds could reach 50-60 mph levels. The US National Weather Service is predicting that winds and rains will start to recede by 11 a.m., however Dillard advises river and creek situations could worsen after that time for the next 24 hours or more.
Shelters are open in Jackson County for anyone needing to evacuate for safety. There is one setup for the southern end at the Cashiers Recreation Center at 355 Frank Allen Rd., in Cashiers and another on the northern end at the Department on Aging Center at 100 County Services Park in Sylva.
Duke Energy estimated at 9:06 a.m., that there were 10,000 power outages in the county. To report a power outage, call 800-769-3766 or visit https://outagereport.duke-energy.com/#/report-outage/home/find-account.
If you need any assistance or have an emergency, please call 911 or 818-631-HELP. Please stay tuned to the Jackson County Emergency Management social media pages for more information. The Jackson County Emergency Management staff is utilizing the CodeRED system to deliver emergency notifications for the area. To sign up, visit https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/6D00FECE19AA.
