SOUTH TOE, N.C. \u2014For people in Western North Carolina, the sound of helicopter blades fill their memories, not only of Helene, but the hope that came in the days and weeks after the storm.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, without those private citizens bringing those supplies in, really early on, I think we would have been where we were seeing more mortality,\u201d said Zac O\u2019Donnell.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Donnell is a firefighter at the South Toe Fire Department. He says it\u2019s still hard to think of how cut off their community was from the outside world.<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
\u00a0When Helene hit Western North Carolina, entire communities were cut off from the outside world
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\u00a0By day two, Greg Biffle got in his private helicopter and started delivering aid across the mountains
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\u00a0First responders say he brought medical supplies, chainsaws, generators, food and water to the most remote cut off communities
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Biffle continued to return back over the last year to check on the small communities and continue to bring them aid<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was blocked off at the one in between here and and the main municipality, Burnsville,\u201d said O\u2019Donnell. \u201cJust about 15 miles away. And then the other direction, too, we couldn’t go down the mountain, so we were truly cut off for, you know, that first day.\u201d<\/p>\n
But by day two, help had arrived. Thanks to NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m pretty sure Greg dropped off these helmets, actually, these chainsaw helmets,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Donnell says Biffle and his crew continued bringing aid to the rural mountain community.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was very clear that, you know, he just wanted to assist his fellow North Carolinians,\u201d said O\u2019Donnell. \u201cHe wanted to be on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t just South Toe and Yancey County. Biffle stopped his helicopter all over Western North Carolina.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had a big crew come in and take notes on, you know, what was needed in the areas. And then they just flooded our area with all kinds of necessities that everyone needed,\u201d said Fairview Fire Battalion Chief TJ Hill. \u201cNot just for us, but stuff for us to hand out as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fairview engineer Samuel Lightle grew up a huge NASCAR fan, and recognized Biffle immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike I say, I mean, I love the sport and seeing somebody given in the position he’s in, given what he gave and the time he gave,\u201d said Lightle. \u201cJust so selfless, I mean, it meant a lot to this community and all the communities in western North Carolina.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the aid didn\u2019t stop after October. Stephanie Johnson with Rebuilding Hollers says he continued to deliver aid, visiting multiple times to check on how recovery efforts were going.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe personal resources that he used and his connections to bring awareness to what happened here. I don’t think people would have known how bad it was, and how much we desperately needed help. If it wasn’t for him telling the whole world,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n
The news of his death has been absolutely devastating for the people in the mountains.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe touched so many lives and, you know, I just pray that he knows how thankful we are that he advocated for us,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cBecause when other people forgot and when other people had moved on, he did it. He kept coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Losing not only a racing legend, but a community hero in the mountains.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should learn from, from Greg’s example and, and really help out when we can,\u201d said O\u2019Donnell. “You know, make sure that the people in our communities are taken care of, when, when there is struggle and when there’s, you know, hard times. Especially whether it’s a hurricane or, or anything else, that’s really important.\u201d<\/p>\n
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