Wind and flooding from Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina on September 27, 2024, primarily in its western Appalachian region, causing at least 108 reported deaths and major destruction of infrastructure and residential areas across several settlements. After making landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida on September 27, the hurricane traveled overland across Georgia as a Category 2 hurricane and into the Appalachian mountain range as a tropical storm, depositing record-breaking amounts of rainfall across several towns in western North Carolina, including Asheville, Swannanoa, Black Mountain, Montreat, Spruce Pine, Fairview, Chimney Rock, Lake Lure, and several others.
As a result of the historic rainfall, several rivers in the region overflowed and inundated multiple settlements, destroying houses and infrastructure and cutting off power, transportation, and communications to many towns for prolonged periods. In addition, several mudslides occurred across the region, significantly worsening the damage. Helene was the costliest natural disaster in North Carolina history, surpassing Hurricane Florence from 2018.