Hurricane Helene Devastates Tennessee Farmland: Farmers Struggle to Rebuild After Historic Flooding

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Will Runion’s 736-acre cattle and hay farm is tucked into a horseshoe bend of the Nolichucky River in northeast Tennessee. On the morning of Friday, September 27, 2024, he was working on two major projects: building a riverfront campground to attract tourists and income, and harvesting the last of the season’s hay.

Hurricane Helene had been moving north from Florida toward the Appalachian Mountains, bringing heavy rain. The river was already high when Runion decided to relocate some of his cows and equipment to higher ground as a precaution. But the river continued to rise rapidly.

Around 11 a.m., the brown water breached its banks. Runion, his fiancée, his son-in-law’s parents, and neighbors rushed to save farm equipment, but they were nearly trapped when the expanding river cut off their access to dry land. By afternoon, the river had swollen to approximately 1,200 feet wide—nearly 10 times its normal width. Runion described the scene as looking "just like a lake."

Trees snapped in the swift current, and debris from neighbors’ barns, roofs, hay bales, and household items swirled past. The floodwaters destroyed Runion’s hay equipment and swept his little white house—a planned campground office—across a field. By around 8 p.m., the Nolichucky River finally crested and began to recede.

When the waters subsided, Runion found a third of his fields buried under debris, dead fish, and tomatoes washed downstream from upstream vegetable growers. The flood had carved two football field-sized craters in his hay pastures, each 12 feet deep. Other sections of the farm were covered in up to 8 feet of sand or silt.

Flooding from Hurricane Helene brought massive damage to Will Runion’s farm, eroding the land in some places and washing up feet of sand on agricultural fields in other sections. Courtesy of Bryan LeBarre, via Grist

Hurricane Helene’s Widespread Impact on Southern Appalachia

Hurricane Helene dropped up to 30 inches of rain on southern Appalachia, triggering historic flooding and landslides across parts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky, and Virginia. This largely rural region relies on agriculture as both an economic driver and cultural cornerstone.

The mountainous terrain makes it difficult to expand farmland, so growers often use flood-prone bottomlands for their flat and fertile soil. However, floods of this magnitude had not struck the area in generations.

In North Carolina alone, Helene caused an estimated $4.9 billion in agricultural damage. Tennessee reported agricultural losses of approximately $1.3 billion. Thousands of farmers lost crops, tools, machinery, barns, buildings, livestock, and fences.

"When you see 4 feet of sandy soils on top of your topsoil, you know that’s going to be a challenge. That was overwhelming."

Farmers Face Long Road to Recovery

More than a year after Hurricane Helene’s devastation, farmers like Runion are still working to rebuild their land and livelihoods. The storm stripped away topsoil, buried fields in sand, and left deep scars in the earth—challenges that will take years to overcome.

For growers in the region, the recovery process involves not only repairing infrastructure but also restoring soil health and preventing future erosion. The path to full recovery remains uncertain as farmers navigate financial strain and the lingering effects of the disaster.