On Saturday, disaster relief volunteer organization AeroBridge was activated to support people affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in the Asheville, North Carolina area. Volunteer pilots are asked to register with AeroBridge and check on available missions, and donations and purchases of Amazon supplies are welcomed.
Through Friday, AeroBridge was standing by to activate, according to board member and field director of emergency services Charley Valera. At the time, he wrote on the AeroBridge Facebook page, “Our mission is to deliver emergency supplies by air when road closures prevent ground transport. Thankfully, most major roads remain open, allowing relief efforts to move forward on the ground.”
However, on Saturday, the dire situation resulted in the immediate activation of the AeroBridge network in Asheville. Commenters on the AeroBridge Facebook post are notifying the organization of people who had been impacted by the storm and needed assistance. One comment reported that a family with a four-year-old son and two dogs was stuck at an Airbnb home in Banner Elk, North Carolina, and running out of food, with no way to escape. “We have only a day or two of food left,” the family reported.
Another comment reported: “100 people stuck on a mountain in Black Mountain, North Carolina…They need immediate rescuing. There is a lady giving birth and they will run out of food in the next day or two.”
Among other volunteer organizations helping with rescue and supply efforts is Operation Airdrop, which launched Operation Helene to provide disaster relief. “If you have access to an aircraft,” the organization requested, “you can help deliver critical supplies to areas that are hard to reach by ground.” It is also seeking volunteers on the ground to help with preparing supplies for delivery by aircraft.