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Mitchell County’s miners and farmers struggling in the aftermath of Helene [Video]

EXTRAORDINARY. WELL, IN MITCHELL COUNTY, THINGS ARE SO BAD THAT PEOPLE THERE ARE THRILLED THAT THE SHELTER AT THE LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL IS ABOUT TO GET SOLAR POWERED SHOWERS. PEOPLE THERE ARE REALLY STRUGGLING, AND THE ANIMALS ARE AS WELL. ABOUT 15,000 PEOPLE LIVE IN MITCHELL COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA BY POPULATION. ITS ONE OF THE SMALLEST COUNTIES IN THE ENTIRE STATE. BUT IN THE AFTERMATH OF HELENE, THESE FOLKS ARE HURTING JUST AS MUCH AS EVERYONE ELSE. JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE CAN GET OUR CITIZENS THAT HAVE LOST NOT ONLY THEIR HOMES, BUT THEIR JOBS. SO YOU KNOW, ITS JUST I DONT KNOW WHAT WE CAN DO, BUT WERE JUST TAKING IT ONE DAY AT A TIME. COUNTY COMMISSION CHAIR HARLEY MASTERS SAYS TRANSPORTATION HAS IMPROVED SOME SINCE FRIDAY, BUT THERE ARE STILL PLACES THAT ARE INACCESSIBLE BY CAR OR TRUCK, AND THIS IS A CRITICAL PART OF THE COUNTRY FOR TECHNOLOGY. MITCHELL COUNTY IS SMALL, BUT WE DO HAVE THE HIGHEST PURITY COURTS IN THE WORLD HERE, AND SO FROM, YOU KNOW, THE UNITED STATES STANDPOINT, ITS VERY IMPORTANT. IT GOES INTO YOUR CELL PHONE, MY CELL PHONE. IT GOES INTO VEHICLES. SO YOU KNOW, ITS KIND OF A BIG DEAL. AND SO WERE JUST GOING TO TRY TO WORK AND GET EVERYTHING UP AND GOING SO THAT WE DONT HAVE A DELAY IN ANYTHING. OTHERS HERE MAKE THEIR LIVING FROM AGRICULTURE. EMILY YOUNG OWNS HAPPY HANDS AND HIGHLANDS FARM IN THE TOWN OF BURNSVILLE, WHICH IS ABOUT 25 MILES SOUTHEAST OF THE TENNESSEE BORDER. SHE HAS ABOUT 400,000 FOLLOWERS BETWEEN INSTAGRAM AND FACEBOOK, AND HAS BEEN USING HER SOCIAL MEDIA REACH TO MAKE PEOPLE AWARE OF THIS SMALL TOWNS EXTRAORDINARY NEEDS, LIKE TEMPORARY FENCING. ANIMALS ARE DYING, AND YOU KNOW, IN HUMAN LIFE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT NEED. BUT YOU KNOW, IM GOOD WITH COWS. THATS THE ONLY THING I THINK I HAVE A TALENT WITH IS POSTING ON THE INTERNET AND TALKING ABOUT COWS. SO I THINK THATS ONE THING I CAN DO TO HELP. BUT THIS IS THEIR LIVELIHOOD. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SEVERAL FARMERS UP HERE IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. SO THATS A LOT OF THATS OUR LIVELIHOODS. WE FARM AND YOU KNOW, WE WE CANT FORGET THAT. BOTH HARLEY AND EMILY SAY THEYRE BEGINNING TO SEE SOME HELP FROM THE LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. BUT A LOT OF THE ASSISTANCE IN THE EARLY STAGES HAS COME AT THE GRASSROOTS LEVEL. EMILY STARTED A GOFUNDME WHERE PEOPLE CAN DONATE, AND THEN SHE TAKES THE MONEY AND GIVES IT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE ABLE TO GET OUT OF TOWN TO BUY SUPPLIES AND THEN BRING IT BACK. WEVE LINKED TO THAT GOFUND