Asheville Watchdog is bringing you the stories behind the staggering loss of life from Helene, the children, parents, grandparents, multiple generations of a single family, all gone in one of the worst natural disasters to hit the mountains of western North Carolina. This is the fourth installment.
Sarah Moore describes the sensation she felt that afternoon, shortly after Tropical Storm Helene passed through, of her skin crawling, an uneasy feeling that something was amiss.
She searched the basement of the Woodfin home they shared and then checked with her grandmother, who lived in a trailer behind the house. No sign of him.
She ventured onto the concrete foundation where her father planned to build a garage. It was the last place she’d seen him after he ventured out with a chainsaw to clear a fallen tree.
As she got closer, her mind struggled to process the sight before her. Another tree had fallen, trapping her father.
“All I could see were his legs and his feet,” said Sarah, 31.
Sarah sped to a nearby fire station. “I just screamed for somebody to help me, and within five minutes of me finding him, they were down there cutting the tree, trying to get it off,” she said. “I was just waiting to hear…and then they told me that he passed, that he was gone.
“I can’t get that picture out of my mind.”
Timothy Moore died Sept. 27 after a tree fell on him at his Woodfin home. // Credit: obituary
Timothy Moore, 60, had been a deliveryman for Pepsi for 30 years. He was a year from retirement, his daughter said, and planned to use the garage to house his prized motorcycle, his truck and a classic car he hoped to buy and restore.
“My daddy was a strong person, redneck as hell, but he was a good person,” Sarah said. “He loved to help people. He loved kids. He used to do the Toy Run on his motorcycle.”
Moore also loved the rock band AC/DC.
“He used to work out and put in an AC/DC or Kiss album. It was usually Back in Black or Highway to Hell…and he’d blare the music throughout the house,” Sarah said. “And when the CD was over, his workout was done.”
Timothy Moore’s father had left his family when he was a young boy, and he made sure to be there for his two daughters, Sarah said.
When she was a child he would surprise her with porcelain dolls and would buy food to feed stray cats in the neighborhood.
Timothy Lee Moore with daughters Sarah, left, and Julie. // Courtesy of Sarah Moore
“He didn’t like cats,” Sarah said. “He would make sure the cats would continue to come back to me just because he saw it made me happy.”
After Sarah, who was facing medical bills, moved in with her dad about a year ago he left money around the house so that she wouldn’t have to ask if she needed a little extra cash.
“He always made sure that we had what we needed and worked his ass off to try to get us the stuff that we wanted as well,” she said. “He was just always there for us.”
Lisa Plemmons
Lisa Plemmons was due at her job cooking for residents of River Bend Health and Rehabilitation the morning Helene roared through. She never made it.
Lisa Plemmons’ car was swept away by the rising Swannanoa River. // Courtesy of Plemmons’ family
Plemmons had been staying at a campground along the Swannanoa River after a relative sold the house she was living in last year.
“Her boyfriend called and said that he was on the roof at the bathhouse at the KOA [Campground], and his van, like a full conversion camper van, and her Honda Civic car got swept away in the river,” said her son, Jackson Presnell.
For days, Presnell called the American Red Cross and authorities who were tracking those missing from the storm.
“My cousin, Mitchell, was actually out there in Swannanoa, just sitting on the bridge with all the water raging,” looking for her car, Presnell said. “He sat there for a whole day or two.”
Plemmons’ body was found six days later more than a mile from the campground. The cause of death was drowning.
Her son believes she was asleep and did not notice the river rising.
Plemmons, 52, had been a cook at nursing homes for years, her family said.
“This was her calling,” said Presnell’s grandmother, Mary. “She loved the cooking, and the people there loved her because of her cooking.”
Plemmons took time off from work to care for sick relatives and loved preparing meals for her extended family.
“She cooked seven Thanksgiving dinners on Thanksgiving,” her son said.
“She had a very caring heart,” Mary Presnell said. “She was family-oriented. You don’t see that much anymore. She really cared about her family, everybody in it. She looked after them.”
Brian Carter
Brian Carter died at his home in Asheville Oct. 2 of complications from cancer.
“Inability to attend chemotherapy session” and Helene are listed as contributing conditions, according to his death certificate.
Carter, 78, originally from Guyana, was a self-employed janitor, the death certificate said. His widow, Cynthia, declined an interview.
“Let us continue to keep the Carter and connected families in our thoughts and prayers,” his obituary said.
Jessica Kirby
Jessica Kirby, 36, died of “landslide/flooding injuries,” according to her death certificate.
Her body was found Oct. 4 near the Swannanoa River in Asheville.
Kirby, a home health aide, lived in Black Mountain, the death certificate said. She had two children, who lived in Boone, according to an obituary.
Attempts to reach her family were unsuccessful.
Investigative reporter Victoria A. Ifatusin contributed to this report.
Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. Sally Kestin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. Email skestin@avlwatchdog.org. The Watchdog’s reporting is made possible by donations from the community. To show your support for this vital public service go to avlwatchdog.org/support-our-publication/.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-28 12:56:00
(The Center Square) – Persistent dry and windy conditions, along with downed trees from Hurricane Helene six months ago, remain troublesome for wildfires in the Carolinas.
The Table Rock Fire, largest of several, has crossed from Pickens County in South Carolina to Transylvania County in North Carolina.
In an update from the South Carolina Forestry Commission on Thursday evening, the Tabe Rock fire grew significantly during the day and the Persimmon Ridge fire only modestly. The Table Rock fire is estimated 8,679 acres and the Persimmon Ridge fire 1,992 acres.
Three counties are home to four other significant size fires in the Tarheel State: Deep Woods and Black Cove in Polk County, Alarka in Swain County, and Rattlesnake Branch in Haywood County.
“Excessive storm debris and timber damage from Hurricane Helene has created many challenges for firefighting efforts,” a release from the North Carolina Forest Service said Friday morning. “One factor is the loss of tree canopy. More ground cover is receiving direct sunlight, accelerating the rate in which fuels dry out.”
The Black Cove fire that originated March 19 is 3,288 acres in size and 17% contained, the Forest Service says. It is approximately 2 miles northeast of Saluda in the Green River Gorge.
The Deep Woods fire, also a March 19 start, is 3,373 acres in size and 30% contained, the Forest Service says. It is about 5 miles northwest of Columbus in the Green River Gorge and the adjacent Holbert Cove community.
The Fish Hook fire that began March 20 is 199 acres in size and 95% contained, the Forest Service says. This fire is about 5 miles northwest of Mill Spring near Lake Adger.
Other fires of size are burning near Sylva and Leicester.
Burning bans are in effect throughout North and South Carolina.
SUMMARY: A wildfire in Western North Carolina has become the highest priority in the U.S. The Black Cove Complex fire near Saluda has burned over 6,500 acres, with over 500 firefighters working to contain it. Authorities warn residents in mountain communities, like Buncombe County, to prepare evacuation bags in case orders are issued. The fire has triggered statewide concerns, with varying levels of fire danger across the state. A statewide burn ban is in effect, and officials are hopeful that rain expected this weekend will help control the blaze. Aircraft are being used to drop water and fire retardant to assist firefighting efforts.
More firefighters are arriving in Western North Carolina now that the Fire Service says a fire burning there is now the highest priority in the U.S.
SUMMARY: In late March 1963, Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller *The Birds* premiered, and in honor of its anniversary, Scott Mason revisits Elm City’s own bird phenomenon. Every afternoon, flocks of hundreds of thousands of starlings and blackbirds gather, creating a stunning, synchronized spectacle. The birds swarm the same fields at the same time, a behavior observed for over 20 years. Local residents are captivated by the sight, though some remain curious about the birds’ nature. Experts believe the birds flock for food and protection. This “bird ballet” continues to awe those lucky enough to witness it each day.
It was around this time in March 1963 when the movie “The Birds” premiered. The Tar Heel Traveler revisits Elm City’s very own thrilling version of the birds.
