Communities across East Tennessee, Western North Carolina and surrounding areas rally to recover from Helene’s wrath. Mountain folks are often characterized as rugged individualists used to fighting to eke out a living, battling against rocky soil; tough economic situations; marginalizing government entities; and sometimes even each other to do so. Appalachians are used to operating independently to achieve their goals, though they also are known to be fiercely loyal to family, friends and neighbors.