Part of Blue Ridge Drive closed as work crews continue recovery efforts in Columbia County [Video]

EVANS, Ga. (WJBF)- People living in Columbia County are still cleaning up from Helene, and for many of them it could be months before things are even close to normal.

Lakeside High School was in the middle of getting important renovations before the storm hit.

While the school didn’t see any major damages, it’s a different story for hundreds of homeowners nearby.

Keith Waters and his family will be out of their house for at least the next 6-8 months after a large tree fell through his home.

“It was traumatic at first, as you would imagine it would be,” Waters said. “The only rooms that have sheetrock in the ceiling are the living room, bathroom, and guest bathroom. Everything else—no ceilings, no insulation, the walls on front and back are detached and leaning outward.”

Just a few houses down, this family’s home is covered head to toe with trees—even one falling on …