The Road to Recovery on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Since Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc across southern Appalachia in late September of 2024, the National Park Service (NPS) has cleared mountains of debris, conducted hundreds of facility and resource assessments, and reopened over 310 miles of the 469-mile Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia and North Carolina. In both states, widespread treefall, erosion, trail, and culvert damage occurred and many structures, both historic and non-historic, were heavily damaged. Critical drainage features that support public infrastructure were also compromised and many significant cultural and natural landscapes were impacted. The work to restore the Parkway is complex and some areas will take years to repair and fully reopen.

Scope of Damage

Some of the most significant damage to the Parkway’s primary roadway occurred in North Carolina. The NPS has identified landslides across approximately 200 miles of Parkway in North Carolina, stretching from the Virginia-North Carolina boundary to beyond Mount Pisgah, south of Asheville. The landslides range in scale and scope, as some slides occurred above the parkway, some below, some taking out portions of the road, and some less obvious, but compromising the integrity of the road or drainage systems.

 The highest concentration of overall damage occurred from the Linville Falls area near milepost 317 south to Mount Mitchell State Park near milepost 349. Along with the destruction of park facilities near Linville Falls, including the visitor center, picnic area comfort station, and portions of the campground, park teams have documented over four dozen landslides and other storm-related natural and cultural resource damage in those 38 miles of Parkway alone.

While the road is open in all 217 miles of the Parkway in Virginia, additional repair and clean up work remains. In the coming months recovery work in Virginia will focus on roadway and drainage repairs, hazard tree work, woody debris removal, culvert cleaning, removing siltation from mill ponds, repairing damage to historic and non-historic structures, trail clearing, and cultural landscape and natural resource restoration.

Funding

Funding for storm recovery will be available from multiple sources, including a portion of the more than $2 billion in supplemental disaster funding Congress recently allocated to the NPS. The park has already benefited in $25 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)  emergency relief funds. The NPS is working closely with FHWA to perform emergency stabilization and repair work at several slide locations near critical transportation networks, and to complete debris removal and roadway guardrail repairs. Contracts have been awarded for a portion of this work, with an initial round of emergency repairs expected to begin in the coming weeks and continue across the summer.

A Phased Approach (updated, June 2025)

As a result of Hurricane Helene, the Parkway identified at least 57 landslides of varying complexity across nearly 200 miles in North Carolina. Work to restore road access, repair road damage, and stabilize slide areas began in the fall of 2024, and is planned in three phases, as outlined:

• PHASE 1 – This initial round of projects addresses 12 repairs in eight geographic areas. Once complete, across the summer and into the fall of 2025, over 48 miles of the Parkway will be restored for public use in various locations across western North Carolina.
• PHASE 2 – Projects included in this phase will repair 21 landslide areas primarily between milepost 318.2 and 323.4, in the area south of Linville Falls. Contracting is currently underway for projects included in this phase, and work is expected to be complete by fall of 2026.
• PHASE 3 – Planning is underway for this phase, which addresses repairs to over 23 sites primarily between milepost 336.7 and 351.9, in the area between Little Switzerland and the Mount Mitchell.

This phased system provides both public access to newly opened areas as soon as possible, and access to previously unreachable areas by contractors. Parkway construction activity is complex and highly technical, including factors such as remoteness, challenging terrain, and reduced construction seasons due to ice and winter weather at higher elevations.

Recreating Responsibly

• Due to the severity of the storm, conditions on park roads and trails are evolving. Visitors should plan carefully for any trip along the Parkway, consult the park’s online road status and share travel plans with others in advance.

• For safety reasons, the park asks that people continue to be patient and respect remaining closures. Multiple seen and unseen hazards exist in closed areas, and crews and heavy equipment at work make areas unsafe. Visitors should also be aware that trail assessments are still underway, and caution should be exercised as hikers could encounter hazards on trails such as landslides, tree debris, and washed-out sections or bridges.