SWANNANOA, N.C. (828newsNOW) — One year after Tropical Storm Helene ripped through the mountains of Western North Carolina, the community of Swannanoa gathered in solemn remembrance Saturday evening, honoring the 43 Buncombe County residents who lost their lives and reflecting on how far neighbors have come since.
The candlelight ceremony at Bee Tree Fire Station drew survivors, families of the fallen, first responders and volunteers who worked side by side in the storm’s aftermath. Under a dusky September sky, names were read aloud — each followed by the lighting of a candle, until the parking lot glowed with soft light in tribute to those gone but not forgotten.
“This day a year ago was one we all wish we could take back,” Swannanoa Fire Chief AJ Penland told the crowd. “Forty-three families, friends and neighbors lost loved ones. Our responsibility is to keep their memory alive — and to keep standing together as a community.”
‘We will come back’
The evening mixed grief with gratitude. Steve Senn, a local woodworker whose shop along U.S. 70 was destroyed, shared how he had looked across the flood-swollen river and remembered playing there…