Jane Sartwell

1 week ago | carolinapublicpress.org | Jane Sartwell

Less than 1% of people affected by Tropical Storm Helene in Western North Carolina had flood insurance. That means that most of the personal property and business property losses incurred as a result of the costliest disaster in North Carolina history will not be reimbursed by insurers. While the numbers of flood insurance holders may increase in the mountains after Helene, the future of flood insurance in America is rife with uncertainty.

2 weeks ago | carolinapublicpress.org | Jane Sartwell

Two months after sudden cuts to federal public health funding for North Carolina, the impact on local health departments is just beginning to come into focus. But there’s no time to sit back and assess the damage. A slew of separate program eliminations and administrative delays means that even less money is coming to these departments — dismantling programs related to HIV, tobacco cessation, and testing well water.

2 weeks ago | mountainx.com | Jane Sartwell

by Jane Winik Sartwell, Carolina Public PressJune 10, 2025Asheville’s train has come. Norfolk Southern, Western North Carolina’s primary rail carrier, resumed rail service from Tennessee into Asheville on May 20. Those trains are the first the mountains have seen since Tropical Storm Helene left tracks utterly destroyed last year. Plus, plans for a passenger rail line to Asheville are back on the table. The repair work on the region’s rail network is far from over.

2 weeks ago | carolinapublicpress.org | Jane Sartwell

Asheville’s train has come. Norfolk Southern, Western North Carolina’s primary rail carrier, resumed rail service from Tennessee into Asheville on May 20. Those trains are the first the mountains have seen since Tropical Storm Helene left tracks utterly destroyed last year. Plus, plans for a passenger rail line to Asheville are back on the table. The repair work on the region’s rail network is far from over.

3 weeks ago | mountainx.com | Jane Sartwell

by Jane Winik Sartwell, Carolina Public PressJune 6, 2025Hunger and a lack of access to healthy food continues to plague parts of Western North Carolina, eight months since Tropical Storm Helene tore through the mountains. The storm ripped apart bridges, roads and farmland. Even now, some cannot easily access grocery stores — the ones that are open, that is. And without farms running at full capacity, less healthy local food is available to stock the shelves.