Last Updated on October 8, 2024 8:52 pm
Asheville, N.C. – The entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway remains closed as emergency stabilization efforts and damage assessments continue in the wake of significant, and in some areas catastrophic, damage from Hurricane Helene. Blue Ridge Parkway crews and National Park Service employees from around the country are working on initial damage assessments and actions that will restore critical communications and re-establish safe access to facilities in need of repair.
However, considerable work remains, especially in North Carolina, where crews have so far encountered tens of thousands of trees across the roadway and nearly three dozen rock and mud slides. The slides have occurred above and below the road and have also severely damaged or swept away the roadbed in numerous places. Damage in Virginia is less severe but work still remains to clear roads of trees and brush to make the parkway safe for use.
The National Park Service reminds the public that the full closure of the Blue Ridge Parkway and associated park trails applies to all vehicles and uses – motor vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Hazards both seen and unseen endanger unauthorized users and some threats may not be obvious, such as weakened road structures or hanging limbs, which are subject to falling in changing weather conditions. The parkway is also an active work area, with vehicles and heavy equipment moving through the area.
Unauthorized public access not only endangers those entering closed areas but also slows recovery efforts, as crews must stop their work when individuals are present. One crew in North Carolina was forced to stop work over the weekend to evacuate an unauthorized user who was injured while in the park.
“The damage left behind by the storm has created dangerous conditions, some of which are not immediately visible from the road itself,” said Tracy Swartout, superintendent of the Blue Ridge Parkway. “We thank the public for their cooperation in respecting closures for their safety and to allow crews to complete their work.”
The National Park Service is working diligently to assess and mitigate these hazards, but until the parkway has been reopened, entering closed sections is not only dangerous to visitors and recovery crews, but also illegal and subject to enforcement under Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations. No schedule has been established for reopening the parkway in North Carolina. Once assessments are completed, the National Park Service will be better equipped to project timelines and costs for restoration of North Carolina.
Due to the significantly lighter impacts in Virginia, the National Park Service is finishing up damage assessments and the clearing of debris there and are targeting a phased reopening of most of the parkway in Virginia within the next week.
Updates will be posted on the Blue Ridge Parkway website at www.nps.gov/blri and on the park’s social media platforms at @BlueRidgeParkwayNPS (Facebook, X and Instagram).
