Mayor on Duty

This is my immediate journal and recollections as mayor during a storm and state of emergency. It begins last week. 

At the start of last week I and our staff became aware and started tracking the disturbance in the Caribbean. By Wednesday the governor, county and town declared a state of emergency. We followed the projected track of Hurricane Helene. Our crews and staff began preparations for the storm. 

Governor Cooper actually called me Wednesday afternoon to discuss state storm preparedness.  He told me the national guard was on alert as well a swift water rescue teams. 

Zeb Smathers, Mayor of Canton, sent me Wednesday night a forecast that Highlands would receive 20” of rain from Hurricane Helene. Zeb was right about the amount for Highlands,  but unfortunately his town also received heavy rain causing massive flooding. 

Wednesday and Thursday Lamar Nix was contacting private electric crews to be ready to come to Highlands to help repair the electrical grid after the storm. He could get no commitments since many companies had contracted with large electrical providers. 

Wednesday and Thursday staff checked and prepared equipment for storm response. Crews were on notice and call. 

Late Thursday night the storm hit Highlands and inflicted major damage to roads and the utility grid. Access roads to Highlands were blocked and closed by fallen trees.

I arrived at town hall at 7:15 a.m. on Friday morning to take calls and assess the storm damage. Francis Beck of our administrative staff was already there taking calls. Internet and communications were for the most part totally down. I couldn’t contact the town manager nor the public works director. 

Critical staff could not reach Highlands from their homes due to road closures. Some on call road crews and electrical crews went through the town initially responding and assessing the damage. The Police Chief Holland had positioned a double shift of officers  that had spent the night at the department . They began managing traffic, checking on people and identifying hazards and damage. 

Some restoration of services began after weather conditions improved Friday afternoon. Town hall remained open late into the afternoon. 

With continuing bad weather Friday night, more trees fell on power lines and blocked roads. Crews continued clearing roads Friday through Saturday.

After hours of travel Francis Beck was again manning the front counter of townhall before 8am on Saturday. Lamar Nix, our public works director and Josh Ward, the town manager, made it to town hall. They implemented a utility restoration response. 

Saturday and Sunday staff kept town hall open and answer citizen questions. Public WiFi was provided at townhall and the recreation department. Lester Norris, our director of recreation, kept the recreation department open all Saturday night and all day Sunday. 

Lamar Nix began requesting outside electrical crew assistance all Saturday and Sunday. Representative Karl Gillespie helped secure crews from Connecticut. They arrived along with other crews on Tuesday.  They will help town crews erect fallen lines and utility poles until full restoration. 

Lamar Nix worked with Joey Wilson of Duke Energy in rebuilding the transmission lines feeding Highlands. Duke got power back to the highlands substation Monday afternoon. The downtown and some neighborhoods were back on line. Outlying areas will continue to be restored. 

The water and sewer plant continued operations throughout the disaster. Water crews made repairs to numerous leaks in the system during this period. 

The Highlands Cashiers Hospital and emergency department remained operative during the state of emergency. An emergency corridor from Highlands to the hospital was opened early Friday morning. The hospital and HCA brought in work crews to help keep roads open and the hospital accessible. 

Fire fighters and EMTs remained on duty throughout the emergency. The fire department served as a hub for emergency workers. 

With communications down I began WHLC updates on Friday. On Sunday I began updates on AskMayorPat from my home after activating a small generator. My updates were linked to the town website on Monday afternoon. I and staff member spent time responding to claims and rumors on Facebook about roads closures and other events. We talked at town hall with many tourists about the best way for them to leave Highlands using open corridor roads. 

Recovery will continue. After full restoration a performance review will be conducted focusing on improvements for future emergencies. 

I want to thank our staff, commissioners and community organizations who have responded to the emergency. Specific thanks to follow. 

I’m tired but like our town staff and volunteers, we will continue to remain on duty. So many people love our town and one another. 

• Town of Highlands Mayor Pat Taylor