As the Catawba River began to swell Friday, water flooded several streets in Mount Holly, just west of Charlotte. But the restaurants and stores in its downtown remained mostly dry.
“There’s been some flooding, and I’m sure there’s a lot of people who were upset that they didn’t have power,” said Brent Bickel, an insurance agent who works downtown. “But something like that, we can handle compared to what Asheville, North Carolina, has had.”
For many residents, that meant they lost a refrigerator full of food. But for a few living close to the water, the loss was serious.
When Dutchman’s Creek overflowed, it flooded the 28 at Mount Holly apartment complex near downtown. Trinity McMillan was just preparing to move out with her two children.
“I lost everything that I packed. My couch, my sofa, my TVs. My kid's brand-new bedroom set was in boxes and not assembled,” said McMillan. “I was working toward a fresh start. Before I moved into this apartment, I was homeless, with my two children living in my car. This was my rebrand, and now it’s gone. Now, I have to restart all over again, so it’s very devasting for me because I don’t know how I’m even going to start.”
A few miles southwest of Mount Holly in Cramerton, the South Fork of the Catawba River was still high Monday. Several restaurants overlook the river, but none had any flooding and it was business as usual. The water came close to Floyd & Blackies, where Kinley Kpacha works. The restaurant closed early on Friday as the river rose, but opened on Saturday.
Kapcha says a lot of people have been stopping in from nearby towns.
“They were kind of going a little bit crazy because a lot of people that were in here were from out of town. We just had a lady come in from South Carolina because she had no power,” said Kapcha.
As Helene rolled through on Friday, nearly 70% of Gaston County lost power. But the lights remained on at Floyd & Blackies.
