I’m an aircrew member with the NC Army National Guard. We began flying rescue missions in this area on the morning of Saturday the 28th. The amount of destruction is absolutely unbelievable. We spent several days landing our aircraft at the Bat Cave fire department and Bat Cave Baptist Church, which are both located roughly where all of the points of the “cross” come together. Essentially all of the roads in that gorge were completely wiped out and many of the bridges were also. I was in complete shock at the amount of downed power lines everywhere. The amount of debris flow areas was mind blowing as well. Just this past spring we had conducted rescue hoist training with North Carolina Emergency Management’s Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team in Chimney Rock, and it was absolutely devastating to see the area like this. Thank for making this video, I will most certainly share this.
Thank you for all the help. Thank you for serving . I could hardly stay here in Ms, but was unable to travel up there. So I did the next best thing, prayed and rallied the church. We joined with a number of churches and the supplies began to roll . I thank God for the chance to make a difference. Once again thank you and all the people with you who had boots on the ground. May God bless you and keep all of you
I hope we all realize that many young people pay thousands of dollars a semester for presentations of this exceptional quality in a place we refer to as "college." We just got it for free... Thank you for sharing your talent with us, Phillip!
Thanks! Given plenty of such presentations in the college setting as well back at Va Tech years ago. Tried to tune up my illustration style up there. Thanks for the watch and the comment!
The one good thing that stems from disasters is getting to know the geology or a region. Hard way to teach but good information nonetheless. I hope everyone affected gets the help they need.
@@TheGeoModels I was curious if glaciation had any role to play in the formation of the gorge? The shape of it, with the broader portion downstream, made me think that. Thank you so much for all the information that you provide.
I got lots of colored diagrams in other videos, but they are pre-Helene structural geology stuff. Black and white does best for the landscape stuff. Glad you got something out of it.
Things were explained like this 25 and even 40 years ago and longer. This is all well know stuff. You just need good teachers and students who want to listen.
Good educators are precious. It's amazing when they can not only convey their passion for the subject, but also make ideas easier to grasp for relative beginners.
My grandmother was born in 1902 in the foothills WNC. I had heard, and read about the “1916 Flood”. I asked her years ago, if she remembered it as a young 14yr old girl, and she said yes I do. She grew up at the foot of the South Mountains west of Casar, NC. This was near the Cleveland/Rutherford County Line, and the (1st Broad River basin)… out of Golden Valley. She said Her family rode in a old covered wagon, to see the Great Flood of the River. She said it was like a huge lake between the valley. She said she would never forget that, even in her ‘90s. I’m so glad I thought to ask her about it before she passed. I love Geology, Topography and history. I’ve been an amateur self taught geology/rockhound my whole life. You do an Awesome job with your graphics and explaining Geology. So glad I found your channel. I own 28 acres in the area… My parents are in their 80s and they still live in the same beautiful area of the South Mountains. Helene, washed out a bridge a mile from my parents home.. on the 1st Broad River, We had extreme damage to trees, covering all the roads, water everywhere, and damage to homes from falling trees, we were out of power for a week. It will take a long time to get things back to normal. It’s so sad, I love the mountains. Prayers for WNC!🙏🇺🇸
Fascinating to read your grandma's account of the 1916 Flood. I also came across this video account of it, you might find it interesting if you haven't seen it yet: ruclips.net/video/jUOeMFG9WBQ/видео.html
Philip hands down does the best job of outlining a strictly science based approach to what happened in our mountains. Thank you for this! A very interesting comparison is to physically see it from the ground and air which I captured on my channel's videos. I walked the entire river from Bat Cave to Chimney Rock and it is EXTREME what happened to the landscape. In some area, you can't tell anything was ever built (not joking!). Philip's knowledge of the area is absolutely awesome and interesting to see for a native
My heart and prayers go out to all affected . Do you have any credible knowledge of what will happen to those areas and especially the people ,in the area’s of complete destruction. 😭 I honestly don’t know what I would do .
@MIMI-D rebuild slowly, I suppose. A lot will need help because they don't have flood insurance and are not covered for land slides. Homes and all belongings gone in an instant. This is not a good scenario for anyone but especially not for people with small cash reserves.
@@MarkHuneycuttit’s heartbreaking. Federal money needs to be funneled into the area, much like it is funneled to those in need outside of our country. No one can plan for this kind of devastation.
I live in the N.E. Ga. foothills. I dont't know how many times I have told my oldest daughter, "I just can't seem to wrap my head around how something like this could have happened where it did." The last time I said it was this evening after having watched more videos of pictures & drone footage of the areas hardest hit. Shortly after, I find this video which has immensely helped me understand just how this could have taken place & anwered that lingering question I've asked so many times since the devastation occurred. Excellent video & thank you so much for taking the time to do this for those trying to understand how this could have happened. I kept hearing my favorite weather guy, Ryan Hall Y'all, keep talking about the "escarpment" & how seriously Helene would effect that area. I had even tried to find out by googling it to try to see an approximate location, to no avail. I was concerned about my area because it was listed as in a high risk area but even more concerned about the people in that area, wherever that was above where I live. Now I know & I thank you, immensely! My heart & prayers goes out to all affected by Helene & Milton but especially Helene.
And yet after the 1916 flood in the same area, they built it all back again. Even bigger, with greater obvious consequences. Never build and live in a "Gorge".
Hello Phillip. When I first started watching this, I almost clicked off simply because it's so far over my head. I decided to stick around anyway. I have to say sir, you are one of the best and most articulate human beings I've ever listened to. Not only did I grasp exactly what you were saying as you said it, but the further you got into it, I was fully understanding most of it. This is, for me at least, the best YT video I've watched this year. If I would have had teachers like you in high school, I'm sure I would have enjoyed it a lot more than I did. Mark Huneycutt, a paramotor channel in that direct area is a channel I've followed on and off for years under my various user names. He said it best in one of his first videos covering the damage and the vastness of the area damaged. He called it unimaginable. I can't think of a more fitting word for it. Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video. Thank you even more for making it in a way that the everyday average person can understand it. It's terribly sad and so tragic, but also quite interesting to see how and why such an event could happen. I'm subbed and plan on digging into your older uploads over the next several weeks I continue to send thoughts and prayers to everyone affected by this disaster and of course to those helping in the recovery and cleanup. Cheers from Chicago
honored friend, truly. very glad you stuck around and got something out of it. Huneycutt’s videos are the best resource to see what this looks like in person
@@TheGeoModelsHuneycutt did a video filmed from the air over Chimney Rock a few days ago that showed perfectly several debris flows that went directly into Chimney Rock.
His latest video is him and two others flying around the area with engines that were underwater as they hung in the rafters of his storage unit at the airport. That's nuts.
@@TheGeoModelsagreed to huneycutt. would love to see a breakdown of how the nolichuky pipes through poplar and washed out in Erwin, Tn. there's a new outwash plain and yesterday watched a good video of a whitewater kayaker going through - the maps will need to be redrawn. it's just crazy!
If there was any flood plain planning effort, All this info would be available to guide development. Given history of flooding in area, I am shocked that the drainage was not better understood.
@@dennisgregoire7706 It was very well understood. But who wants to listen? Who wants to give up property for something that only happens every 100 years.
I’m from Hendersonville nc. I work all over wnc. I look forward to your analysis videos. Please keep it going. It’s very horrific what happened. But we are doomed to repeat what we do not understand. The beauty of this land got that way through many of upending years of being alive. It’s part of why I love the subject of geology. These mtns made me appreciate our lives as humans on this earth. A lot of collateral beauty in these mountains.
well said. understanding is key, and it's important to remember the mountains look so good because they were sculpted that way, and it takes something pretty big to shape up a mountain or a gorge.
@@TheGeoModelsit's my perception that what we've witnessed is a continuation of the evolutionary forces that formed the Appalachian mountains. We must learn how to stay out of the way.
Very well and beautifully said! A native from Hendersonville as well, my family helped start the town and other towns in the area. Bless you whoever you are, in everything you do.
@@iahelcathartesaura3887 I’m so happy to see the beauty of character. That our little part of the world seems to have an artisan well bursting at the seams to help thy neighbor. It’s so sad this happened. But to see everyone helping everyone. It’s just amazing. Brings tears to my eyes. I’m an electrician. So right now. I’m the blessing. Lucky for me. I learned a trade that would go on to help fill my cup so it runs over. Never had any money. Always had skills. Nobody wants your money here. They want your time and effort. It just goes to show me how special where I come from is. I monumentally blessed beyond words just to have been raised here. This event has deepens that love for these old blue mountains and the ppl that made it possible for us to experience it. The good with the bad. Come hell or high water. We will rebuild.
Thanks to the West Virginia boys that cleared and moved debris/rocks to create a new road for trapped residents for Chimney Rock. ❤❤❤❤ from West Virginia
Fascinating. Long time resident of Lake Lure. Thank you so much for this incredibly informative geological explanation of the area and why things happened the way they did.
I wish I had been able to do it under better circumstances. One way or another, the place looks so remarkable because it's more dynamic than the "average" landscape in the region. I had never actually been out on Lake Lure til this August (more of a Rumbling Bald and Chimney Rock kind of guy), but it was incredible to look back up the gorge from the water. I'm hopeful for what folks may be able to do to bring it back, because lots of folks get a lot out of being there!
I myself I'm from appalachia, I was born and raised in travelers rest which goes all the way up to North Carolina line which got hit pretty hard too. I am one of the few people that believes and what is real and I know mother nature will always be and I appreciate what you are trying to teach and what you are trying to show to prevent people from going through this in the future. Thank you sir and I will be a follower and I am also a veteran.but people need to actually think before talking and put people down. I'm not the smartest person on this earth but I have common sense (which is also learned) the way you explained it made sense to me so thank you very much for putting this video out
Thank you Sir, for your service to our country. I am a civilian and can never appreciate what you have done enough. I am from Boone, NC myself and even though I don't live there right now it will always be where I think of as home.
I'm glad you are putting this out. I'm just a random guy that was a hot tub and pool service guy operating out of Asheville in the late 2000's. I also was a caver prior to that with more than a passing interest in geology and hydrology. I used to drive 9 out of Black Mountain down into those drainages as well as 74 through Fairview and over the divide down into the gorge; Bat Cave, Chimney Rock and Lake Lure to service hot tubs. I've seen and countered a couple of different 'theory's' I've seen on FB about how there 'MUST HAVE BEEN A BIG FAILURE UPSTREAM' to have resulted in what happened. And one moron who was trying to assert that all the water that fell on Mt. Mitchell ended up in Lake Lure. (no one seems to understand how the Continental Divides work?) Simply put, as you describe, it's a huge drainage system that people have ignored the worst possible outcome of an extreme weather event. You spoke in another video regarding the tragic loss of family in Fairview, about how people forget. I've been chastised for pointing out the science/math of it all because 'now is not the time'. I think now is EXACTLY the time to try and teach the facts about the land so people don't forget and prepare both strategically and tactically. I'm glad someone like you with the degree and most capable ability to demonstrate in common sense terms what happened. And, not for nothing, those are some real Jedi level skills with Paint! Subbed and liking every vid I see from you.
Maybe people get annoyed with the way you phrase it “ignored common sense”. There are still almost a 1000 people missing that we know of. People who lost loved ones, their homes, and their whole communities, probably don’t want to hear that their pain and trauma is due to their “lack of sense”. I don’t think anyone predicted that 30 inches of rain was going to fall over 24 hours. These people are at no fault of being in cross roads of mother natures fury. Maybe if you explain using words that are more sensitive to the situation instead saying it in a way that makes it seem like you are victim blaming people will be more receptive to it. Just saying because I’ve seen a lot of people relish in the fact these people were affected because of assumed political opinions of the victims. That’s probably why they are more sensitive, I would be too if people were celebrating the death and destruction my community experienced.
@@AstraLuna-o9iplease be wary of social media accounts expressing such sentiments. A friend told me she was seeing the same and shared a video with me of what I can best describe as a demonic shape shifter but, after consideration, strongly suspect high level AI production likely from foreign interests. The real people I know have a wide range of political beliefs and none are anything but compassionate towards those who are suffering. I'm much more suspicious of manipulation.
@@AstraLuna-o9i When we have discussions like this, nobody is trying to place blame on missing/dead people. Those people aren't missing/dead because they made a bad decision, nobody expects Joe Welderson to understand the watersheds of every place he ever buys a house. The people who are "ignoring common sense" are our elected officials. It's THEIR job to hire experts to consult on things like geology and hydrology when deciding on zoning and issuing building permits. The people who are missing and dead are not missing/dead because they didn't understand the geology of the Blue Ridge Mountains, they're missing/dead because someone at the Town/City Council or County Building/Zoning failed to learn that geology and make good policy decisions based on it.
@@ShuRugal in a perfect world politicians would be educated on these type of threats, and always act with their constituents best interests. Unfortunately from the local to federal level, politics is a popularity contest usually motivated by whomever has the most money and not an actual decision based on who is more qualified for the job. This was a failure on the local, state, and federal level.
@AstraLuna-o9i yep, and we need to be calling out those who made it possible. state government should be consulting with geology and hydrology consultants to identify watershed characteristics across the state and provide guidance that local government can use that information when issuing building permits. federal government should be providing guidance and oversight to state governments to ensure that this is happening. and since politics is a popularity contest, we, the voting public, need to be pointing at disasters like this while they are still fresh and saying to our politicians "this is on you. what are you going to do to prevent our children from falling victim to your errors?"
I live on Flat Creek Rd. My property was flooded but fortunately I was spared the worst of it. It’s fascinating learning about my exact area from a RUclipsr. I uploaded a video showing the flat creek debris flow for those that haven’t seen it. Thank you for your time and knowledge!
I’m on Ridge Road, just above Chimney Rock. I walked down in to town to help at about 12:15pm after the rain had started to subside a bit. I knew it wasn’t gonna be good, but it was a fucking hellscape. The things I’ve seen there, I will never forget. 20+ years of search and rescue never prepared me for this. The only thing I can compare it to is the 2011 tsunami Japan endured after that massive earthquake.
Your video is unbelievable. I’m very sorry it was so bad up there. It’s crazy how in some places you can’t even tell there was a storm and then some look like that. I’m glad you’re ok.
Thank you!!! Somebody who could answer my questions! Nobody could tell me why what happened with hurricane Helene happened now. Perfect storm scenario. I love geology!! Wish I was beginning my life, instead of being 70.
I live in Fairview, NC (right on the other side of Gerton). THANK YOU for making these videos. People need access to approachable ways to understand the science behind what happened here and you are providing exactly that. Helene was just one example of how the Hickory Nut Gorge responds when the forces of nature are directly applied to it. Climate change will not spare Appalachia and I (age 32) fear that we are not unlikely to see another "1 in 1000 year" storm again in my lifetime.
Two years ago, my wife and I were actually considering buying a house in Bat Cave. It was a beautiful little cottage right beside the creek on NC 9. That didn't work out, so we ended buying a place on top of a hill in Hendersonville. In retrospect, that now feels VERY fortunate.
@@TheGeoModelsit’s possible to build a home that would survive but you would need to spend 25% more to hire an engineer and drive reinforced concrete pylon down 20ft with a tear away foundation and build your home 20 ft above ground on the pylon. 2 guys build a vacation home on the water in Mexico Beach Florida that took a direct hit and their home survived while most didn’t because the engineering worked as planned. They literally hired an engineer to build a hurricane resistant house. I’d imagine that an imagine could do the same for this situation though no one can ever make any guarantees.
This is SO HELPFUL to better ASSESS our RISKS and PREPLAN, intentionally locating our infrastructure to mitigate losses from low probability/high impact events like this storm Helene and conditions leading up to it. Thank you so much for taking the time to do these very understandable videos.
@@jasonbare3472 You could do all that ... do without the power and resevoirs ... and still end up with the same results under the right set of circumstances in the future ... that is one of the biggest points made in these videos 🤔
As if 1916 didnt show us… they just continued building right where they were. Should’ve never happened because they shouldve relocated the towns like they did up in virginia.
Why did so much water flow to Chimney Rock during the Helene flood? I think your words and illustration, at timestamp 21:09, answers the question. "...So a big, big piece of the landscape was funneling 25-30, maybe more, inches of cumulative rainfall over those days out through that pretty restrictive gorge and that's going to produce a destructive flood." I hope you publish your conclusions and illustrations in book form for historical reference. This video was very interesting!
I'm 36, in college, and I sit in the tub and watch these all the time. You teach me so good... 12:14 should be the most replayed, that was where you connected the dots and blew my mind!
As a native North Carolinian, this is an extremely clear and concise explanation and provides a great understanding about how this epic even occurred. I have visited, lived and worked in these areas for much of my life but never had a clear understanding of the big picture of the geologic features that contributed to this disaster. Excellent presentation skills and talent with Google Earth that helped this geologic layman to make some sense of the magnitude of events that this storm produced. Thank you so much.
For a very long time I've wished I was a geologist. Fourty-seven years ago I started riding motorcycles and have ridden through every state, province and territory of the U.S. and Canada. Seeing rock layers that have been folded in half on top of mountains is what got me interested in geology. I'm kind of envious of your knowledge and profession. I'm also impressed with your use of your Goggle Earth and MS Paint tools. What topped it off for me was the Lidar imagery. I could make out what looked like debris piles from past landslides, and where the debris might have come from. Keep up the good work.
This is a great video. I grew up near Chimney Rock and my grandfather told me about 1916. This may be a worse event. I spent Thursday with in Chimney Rock talking about how to go forward. I have forwarded this video to the guy who organized that meeting.
Watching this from south Florida. That area of NC has been our go to vacation destination for years. Asheville, Swannanoa, Waynesville, etc. Your descriptions and explanation answers many questions and I'm grateful for your insight. Thank you.
Thank you for these breakdowns. It’s hard to stomach what has happened here but it’s necessary to know why/how it happened. You’re doing important work!
I don't have the words to compliment this video and your talents enough to do them justice. "Thanks" for such an exceptional lesson in both weather and geology!
Your videos are incredibly helpful and interesting. I wish it hadn't taken such an awful disaster to find them, but they have been helpful to share and demonstrate the profound destruction to western NC and eastern TN. The news cycles are short and such catastrophic events are, sadly, soon forgotten for those not affected. Your MS Paint skills are amazing! Thank you for everything, sir.
Thank you so much from all of us in Chimney Rock Nc. This has been truly heartbreaking & confusing. You give answers here & we are grateful. Thank you.
Sending love from Broad River! I always wanted to see my area in these videos, but not like this....i knew Chimney Rock was gone b4 we got word. I was watching all that water here and was thinking exactly this, that all of the water from this river system was just too much! We have floods every few years, but this was apocalyptic😢 Thanks for all your wonderful work!
I have relatives scattered all across this area, upper and lower flat creek, Morgan Mtn, etc. I have seen a variety of flood results over my lifetime, some moving house sized boulders more than a mile down lower flat creek. This was "next level flooding"
MS Paint Level: GODHEAD You and Myron Cook are far and away my favorite geo channels. I've learned way more from you two than I have ever learned about geology in my whole life. Keep up the great work!
Excellent video. Water has a tendency to flow downhill and also to gather in low places. 😆 That was a true or false question on a test I took in college many years ago. And believe it or not, some got the answer wrong. The area above Chimney Rock, heading towards Brevard, is called the Land of the Waterfalls. There are over 250 waterfalls in the area. And Transylvania County and the Highlands area have the highest annual precipitation in N.C. When you get the amount of water suddenly dumped there from a tropical storm/ hurricane, and then all flowing into a narrow place like Hickory Nut Gorge, there's gonna be serious flash flooding. I've spent a lot of time over the years in that area and I was actually surprised there was anything left standing in Chimney Rock. Such a beautiful place and lots of wonderful people that live there. Hoping and praying that the ones affected by this disaster can recover and possibly rebuild.
Outstanding presentation. I grew up on the coastal plain and now live in Wilmington. I’ve visited this area my whole life. Thank you for helping make sense of what happened.
The factors you need to add to your discussion 1. The angle of rainfall with a hurricane is nearly horizontal so surface wetting accumulations are different than measured by standard vertical rain gauge. 2 The structural instability of the tilted soil strata. 3. Resonance of wind (VLF) against the mountains causing liquefaction of soils similar to an earthquake.4. absolut timing of deposition. 5. the specific gravity of soil wasting flows associated with liquefaction. This Liquefaction is a more serious issue as it forms a situation similar to drilling mud in an oil well where it suspends rock. In this case, the flow appears to be more "Geologic" than hydrologic. This mobilized the rocks and boulders in the bottoms of the rivers and streams. (Evident by deposits)
flow appears to be more "Geologic" than hydrologic. Can you please explain this to the insurance companies? Word is only 1% of claims will be paid. They saying everything is “flood”.
did you mean this for the debris flow video? If so, yes, the pore space collapse and pore pressure spike from the failure of saturated soil definitely makes a slurry that can "float" dense things. The river flood video is at a bigger scale than hillslope-initiated processes, though. Interesting comment either way--thanks!
@@cumberlandquiltchic1 Sadly that is how insurance companies make a profit by denying coverage whenever possible, its awful but their business model especially when funneling off wealth to shareholders means that they can never actually pay out their claims in the case of a large scale disaster like Helene. It is basically the reason why Florida was forced to in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew implement a public state run insurance company. Though in the case of Florida that public insurance it has been subsequently gutted despite the fact that no insurance companies will touch most of the state because of neoliberal ideology seeking to privatize anything and everything to funnel off all the wealth of every community and the country as a whole to feed shareholders. I blame the idiocy of the whole Neoliberal shareholder profit maximization insanity where shareholders and CEO's pocket all the money over the years that is supposed to be saved up and invested into the company to be able to deal with large scale disasters, leaving only dregs in the company to handle a small number of claims gradually over time. Its a model which only works if 99+% of those putting money into insurance never need to make a claim because the money isn't there when a disaster hits. More Americans need to be aware of how various industries business models work in the economy. Also we need to raise awareness of what Neoliberalism and the Neoliberal consensus among the political elite is and how it has screwed over all but the richest few by converting public capital into financial investments which can be bought and sold on Wall-Street rather than getting invested back into our communities. There are far too many charlatans out there who spew bullshit lies and narratives designed to pull on our emotions and lead us to support the very interests of the rich at our own expense and frankly Insurance only works if it is just a few claimants at a time.
glad you found it valuable. I was at Lake Lure and up at Chimney Rock in late august. ran many a geology field trip out there in recent years. Hard to believe all this, even for a geologist.
@@TheGeoModels "Hard to believe all this, even for a geologist." .. and with that simple statement you've brought all of this down from planetary to human scale.
30:30 “l'm not aware really of an event like this that's had that big of a geographic reach and did so much to people and infrastructure in the 20th century and maybe beyond.” Powerful words. Thank you for sharing this information. I know it will help many to better understand how this catastrophic event occurred. Looking forward to future videos.
This was SO INTERESTING. Driving down #9 to climb at the Bald is my favorite activity. Absolutely devastated for all the folks who live in this wonderful and powerful gorge. Thanks for sharing and looking forward to future videos.
All of these videos have been so incredibly helpful for me in processing what happened and better understanding it. I live on or right near these map views and to have it explained this way, with these visuals has been invaluable. Thank you so much.
Growing up in Skamania County in Washington, these images are surprisingly reminiscent (obviously less severe, but still) to the mess after the Mount St. Helens eruption. Crazy that the flood was so bad.
Great video and thank you !!! I grew up on Lake Lure and in the Hendersonville area. You r the first to mention the continental divide. After seeing Asheville and the Swannanoa area it is just incredible what has happened. Ty again !!!
Thanks for explaining. 23:27 my house was directly in line with that mudslide. I have some pictures I can send you if you want to see the damage. I had no idea how high up the mountain it came from.
@@TheGeoModels LP supercells are my favorite. Perhaps you could discuss how geology influences storms, particularly on the Caprock in Texas & New Mexico.
Living in the southwestern part of Henderson County I measured in my rain gauge 26” from Wednesday to after the storm ended on Friday. Two times as I emptied the gauge it was already running over.
My masters thesis dealt with fish genetics in the Southern Appalachians. We used a theoretical stream capture to describe some of the unique patterns that we saw a little farther north (Wilkes County). As soon as you drew the Blue Ridge escarpment, I knew the answer.
The most informative, well presented videos explaining how this incredible destruction event happened. Mother Earth is amazing, but she demands respect always. Prayers to my fellow North Carolinians (and everyone else impacted) to our west. ❤
Incredible video, from your geology expertise, to your freehand art and ability to narrate over it, just great stuff. I live in NC, it means a lot to learn about my homeland here. I took up geology as a hobby during covid, your channel is one of the absolute best for learning geology from this medium-scale, practical, topographical perspective. Thanks for doing this, it really helps me understand this beautiful place.
@@TheGeoModelsIt’s really working, I have no formal training but your descriptions tell very compelling stories, and help me apply those techniques to what I see on maps and in the field.
This is a great video. It kind of reminds me of the impacts that Hurricane Agnes had in Pennsylvania. It was a bit of a different meteorological setup but some areas received almost 18 inches of rain.
Thank you for the common sense presentation illustrating the horrible event. I've been driving on The Blue Ridge Parkway and stayed at Huntington, WV. Beautiful, especially with the leaves changing. After watching many of the videos covering the disaster, I was thinking of the possibility of the same thing happening in this area in the event of flooding rains & landslides. Very worrisome. Good thing the event was rare, although it has clearly happened in the distant past.
Your description of the plateau and how the weather can just dump out tons of water makes sense. I don't know what local warnings they were getting, but I was tracking Helene pretty closely. I did notice Accuweather had a red oval covering the affected area of NC, TN, etc. for at least 48 hours before that storm made landfall in Florida. It was the same color they had for the coast where it made landfall. I found that odd at the time, but now I see why. I doubt anyone living in those mountains could have envisioned what has happened. I certainly didn't
An exceptionally clear explanation. I've driven down the Chimney Rock Gorge a few times. I never asked myself, "How did this beautiful gorge get here?" Now I know. The next questions that should be asked are, "Is the process that created this gorge continuing? How frequently will this process repeat itself?" I think that the process that created this gorge is both daily and continuous, as well as accelerated by extreme events such as Helene.
I really appreciate the perspective you bring to this topic. I’ve been to many of the places mentioned, traveled I-40 between North Carolina and Tennessee for several years, always an issue with rock slides, etc. But I don’t see them as you show them, or know their history, nor am I familiar with their weather patterns- but I am now, thanks to you. Subscribed.
thank you for another fascinating analysis of the topography, water flows, and meteorology that contributed to the devastation in chimney rock. i hope that your observations are taken into consideration regarding the future of this area.
My English father put a topographic map on the wall of the guestroom for the area of Boone and Blowing Rock. He wanted quests to understand why you can't drive in straight lines in the mountains, and short walks could take hours up hill and down. He learned about this in his one year of army service in the UK and from uncles serving during WW II.
Our son is a Professor. He has his PhD in Philosophy. He's still trying to figure out if the storm was real or it was an illusion, from another parallel universe. We are so close that he didn't even reach out to his parents who lived through this devastation. Maybe he doesn't identify with us being real or no? If he was our neighbor, he would still be in meetings, trying to figure out how this hurricane could have impacted our Appalachian Mountains so drastically. Meanwhile, our real mountain neighbors were out the next morning with their equipment, making repairs, cutting trees and taking care of their neighbors. I once heard that a genuine Appalachian born mountain neighbor is worth a room full of PhD's. You however are a most excellent presenter. Your presentation needs to be shared at all major Universities. It's most excellent!!!!
The combination of the Toe and Cane Rivers, forming the Nolichucy River, was downright incredible during this event. Wrecked Erwin and points SW in TN. Water flow at the Nolichucky Dam was ~5K gal/sec on the Tuesday before, to ~1.3 MILLION gal/sec at the peak. This is nearly twice the flow at Niagara falls. Orographic lift is serious business.
Crabby Bill’s was washed down the river in 1995. Floods have been a fact of life periodically in Bat Cave and Chimney Rock in the 44 years I have been here; something of this magnitude was only a matter of time.
you are a great teacher for someone who has no real knowledge of how this all works. i've used your last video already to start researching the mountain area in the pnw to try to discern where these events would be more likely. wouldn't mind a video on that, honestly. prepare us all in the various regions for what the landscape has to teach us and prepare us moving fwd. thanks for these videos!
THANK YOU!!! I was hoping something like this would be put out. My brain needed to understand the “how” and “why” of it all. My sister lives in Asheville and is ok but it’s going to be a long road ahead for this whole region. 😢😢😢
The drainage area at Bat Cave is 64 square miles. Velocity (gradient) is a huge factor here. From where Broad River and Flat Creek confluence to Bat Cave is 4.3 miles with a 117 foot per mile gradient. From Bat Cave to the lake is 3.2miles with a 150FPM gradient. Those are HUGE gradients no matter where your from! (GIS and whitewater mapping GEEK)
Interesting to see numbers on it, from another boater and landscape guy. In Appalachia, you are likely to be dealing with a captured stream to pair that gradient and basin size. I can't imagine the flood going through the Upper Rocky Broad gorge with Flight Simulator and all of that. It's a horrifying thought.
Very interesting video. Today, Mark Honeycutt posted a RUclips video of climbing one of the debris flows you mentioned in this and the previous video. Amazing footaage.
I’m an aircrew member with the NC Army National Guard. We began flying rescue missions in this area on the morning of Saturday the 28th. The amount of destruction is absolutely unbelievable. We spent several days landing our aircraft at the Bat Cave fire department and Bat Cave Baptist Church, which are both located roughly where all of the points of the “cross” come together. Essentially all of the roads in that gorge were completely wiped out and many of the bridges were also. I was in complete shock at the amount of downed power lines everywhere. The amount of debris flow areas was mind blowing as well. Just this past spring we had conducted rescue hoist training with North Carolina Emergency Management’s Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team in Chimney Rock, and it was absolutely devastating to see the area like this. Thank for making this video, I will most certainly share this.
thanks for this-glad it was useful and interesting. thanks for all you did in the aftermath as well, to say the least.
🤣
Thank you so much for assisting this area, so much devastation there.
Thank you and your crew for all your hard work!!
Thank you for all the help. Thank you for serving . I could hardly stay here in Ms, but was unable to travel up there. So I did the next best thing, prayed and rallied the church. We joined with a number of churches and the supplies began to roll . I thank God for the chance to make a difference. Once again thank you and all the people with you who had boots on the ground. May God bless you and keep all of you
I hope we all realize that many young people pay thousands of dollars a semester for presentations of this exceptional quality in a place we refer to as "college." We just got it for free... Thank you for sharing your talent with us, Phillip!
Thanks! Given plenty of such presentations in the college setting as well back at Va Tech years ago. Tried to tune up my illustration style up there. Thanks for the watch and the comment!
The one good thing that stems from disasters is getting to know the geology or a region. Hard way to teach but good information nonetheless. I hope everyone affected gets the help they need.
Nothing here in the US is for free. It is off the backs of the hard working men and women paying it through taxes!
People in the field study these skills in.... college ❤
@@TheGeoModels I was curious if glaciation had any role to play in the formation of the gorge? The shape of it, with the broader portion downstream, made me think that. Thank you so much for all the information that you provide.
The "Bob Ross of Geology" paintings. 10*
Excuse you! The Bob Ross of Geology is Byron Cook, pls show some respect.
I got lots of colored diagrams in other videos, but they are pre-Helene structural geology stuff. Black and white does best for the landscape stuff. Glad you got something out of it.
@@Broken_robot1986 You mean YT "Myron" Cook, also another great painter of geological eras.
DISS TO YOU troll !!! ... respect ... hufff pffft !
@@johnlord8337 daaaaaanm true dat
@@Broken_robot1986 Bob Ross Jr? So a younger version of Bob Ross or Myron Cook?
Man if things were explained like this 25 years ago in school it would have been a lot more interesting. Great illustrations and making it simple
thank you. everything goes better with pictures
@@TheGeoModelsPictures, yes, but some people know their stuff and are good at explaining it.
Things were explained like this 25 and even 40 years ago and longer. This is all well know stuff. You just need good teachers and students who want to listen.
Good educators are precious. It's amazing when they can not only convey their passion for the subject, but also make ideas easier to grasp for relative beginners.
Passionate instructors, great presentation
My grandmother was born in 1902 in the foothills WNC. I had heard, and read about the “1916 Flood”. I asked her years ago, if she remembered it as a young 14yr old girl, and she said yes I do. She grew up at the foot of the South Mountains west of Casar, NC. This was near the Cleveland/Rutherford County Line, and the (1st Broad River basin)… out of Golden Valley. She said Her family rode in a old covered wagon, to see the Great Flood of the River. She said it was like a huge lake between the valley. She said she would never forget that, even in her ‘90s. I’m so glad I thought to ask her about it before she passed.
I love Geology, Topography and history. I’ve been an amateur self taught geology/rockhound my whole life. You do an Awesome job with your graphics and explaining Geology. So glad I found your channel. I own 28 acres in the area… My parents are in their 80s and they still live in the same beautiful area of the South Mountains. Helene, washed out a bridge a mile from my parents home.. on the 1st Broad River, We had extreme damage to trees, covering all the roads, water everywhere, and damage to homes from falling trees, we were out of power for a week. It will take a long time to get things back to normal. It’s so sad, I love the mountains. Prayers for WNC!🙏🇺🇸
Fascinating to read your grandma's account of the 1916 Flood. I also came across this video account of it, you might find it interesting if you haven't seen it yet: ruclips.net/video/jUOeMFG9WBQ/видео.html
@@whitewiz222 Thank you! I’ll definitely check this out!
Philip hands down does the best job of outlining a strictly science based approach to what happened in our mountains. Thank you for this! A very interesting comparison is to physically see it from the ground and air which I captured on my channel's videos. I walked the entire river from Bat Cave to Chimney Rock and it is EXTREME what happened to the landscape. In some area, you can't tell anything was ever built (not joking!). Philip's knowledge of the area is absolutely awesome and interesting to see for a native
Thank you for your videos. I have seen as few. Seeing what nature can do is amazing & also scary
It's called to much water for the size of the gutter.
My heart and prayers go out to all affected . Do you have any credible knowledge of what will happen to those areas and especially the people ,in the area’s of complete destruction. 😭 I honestly don’t know what I would do .
@MIMI-D rebuild slowly, I suppose. A lot will need help because they don't have flood insurance and are not covered for land slides. Homes and all belongings gone in an instant. This is not a good scenario for anyone but especially not for people with small cash reserves.
@@MarkHuneycuttit’s heartbreaking. Federal money needs to be funneled into the area, much like it is funneled to those in need outside of our country. No one can plan for this kind of devastation.
I live in the N.E. Ga. foothills. I dont't know how many times I have told my oldest daughter, "I just can't seem to wrap my head around how something like this could have happened where it did." The last time I said it was this evening after having watched more videos of pictures & drone footage of the areas hardest hit. Shortly after, I find this video which has immensely helped me understand just how this could have taken place & anwered that lingering question I've asked so many times since the devastation occurred. Excellent video & thank you so much for taking the time to do this for those trying to understand how this could have happened. I kept hearing my favorite weather guy, Ryan Hall Y'all, keep talking about the "escarpment" & how seriously Helene would effect that area. I had even tried to find out by googling it to try to see an approximate location, to no avail. I was concerned about my area because it was listed as in a high risk area but even more concerned about the people in that area, wherever that was above where I live. Now I know & I thank you, immensely! My heart & prayers goes out to all affected by Helene & Milton but especially Helene.
And yet after the 1916 flood in the same area,
they built it all back again. Even bigger,
with greater obvious consequences.
Never build and live in a "Gorge".
I love Ryan Hall Y'all!! ❤
Geoengineering
Feds did this , they got a plan
I hear ya, i was even wondering if they purposely opened up a dam...so much water
Hello Phillip. When I first started watching this, I almost clicked off simply because it's so far over my head. I decided to stick around anyway. I have to say sir, you are one of the best and most articulate human beings I've ever listened to. Not only did I grasp exactly what you were saying as you said it, but the further you got into it, I was fully understanding most of it. This is, for me at least, the best YT video I've watched this year. If I would have had teachers like you in high school, I'm sure I would have enjoyed it a lot more than I did. Mark Huneycutt, a paramotor channel in that direct area is a channel I've followed on and off for years under my various user names. He said it best in one of his first videos covering the damage and the vastness of the area damaged. He called it unimaginable. I can't think of a more fitting word for it. Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video. Thank you even more for making it in a way that the everyday average person can understand it. It's terribly sad and so tragic, but also quite interesting to see how and why such an event could happen. I'm subbed and plan on digging into your older uploads over the next several weeks
I continue to send thoughts and prayers to everyone affected by this disaster and of course to those helping in the recovery and cleanup. Cheers from Chicago
honored friend, truly. very glad you stuck around and got something out of it. Huneycutt’s videos are the best resource to see what this looks like in person
@@TheGeoModelsHuneycutt did a video filmed from the air over Chimney Rock a few days ago that showed perfectly several debris flows that went directly into Chimney Rock.
His latest video is him and two others flying around the area with engines that were underwater as they hung in the rafters of his storage unit at the airport. That's nuts.
@@ericfielding2540 I saw that one Eric. Mark's the real deal. I've enjoyed his content for a long time.
@@TheGeoModelsagreed to huneycutt. would love to see a breakdown of how the nolichuky pipes through poplar and washed out in Erwin, Tn. there's a new outwash plain and yesterday watched a good video of a whitewater kayaker going through - the maps will need to be redrawn. it's just crazy!
This video should be required viewing for all govt employes in the Chimney Rock area, great job!
And residents and tourists and people in general.
If there was any flood plain planning effort, All this info would be available to guide development. Given history of flooding in area, I am shocked that the drainage was not better understood.
@@dennisgregoire7706
It was very well understood. But who wants to listen? Who wants to give up property for something that only happens every 100 years.
Insurance companies have become aware too.
Maybe the residents and the wannabe residents in that area need to be aware of this more than anyone else.
I’m from Hendersonville nc. I work all over wnc. I look forward to your analysis videos. Please keep it going. It’s very horrific what happened. But we are doomed to repeat what we do not understand. The beauty of this land got that way through many of upending years of being alive. It’s part of why I love the subject of geology. These mtns made me appreciate our lives as humans on this earth. A lot of collateral beauty in these mountains.
well said. understanding is key, and it's important to remember the mountains look so good because they were sculpted that way, and it takes something pretty big to shape up a mountain or a gorge.
A week or so after Helene, my brother invited me to a long planned event at Hendersonville. It was a you've-got-to-be-kidding moment.
@@TheGeoModelsit's my perception that what we've witnessed is a continuation of the evolutionary forces that formed the Appalachian mountains. We must learn how to stay out of the way.
Very well and beautifully said! A native from Hendersonville as well, my family helped start the town and other towns in the area. Bless you whoever you are, in everything you do.
@@iahelcathartesaura3887 I’m so happy to see the beauty of character. That our little part of the world seems to have an artisan well bursting at the seams to help thy neighbor. It’s so sad this happened. But to see everyone helping everyone. It’s just amazing. Brings tears to my eyes. I’m an electrician. So right now. I’m the blessing. Lucky for me. I learned a trade that would go on to help fill my cup so it runs over. Never had any money. Always had skills. Nobody wants your money here. They want your time and effort. It just goes to show me how special where I come from is. I monumentally blessed beyond words just to have been raised here. This event has deepens that love for these old blue mountains and the ppl that made it possible for us to experience it. The good with the bad. Come hell or high water. We will rebuild.
Thanks to the West Virginia boys that cleared and moved debris/rocks to create a new road for trapped residents for Chimney Rock.
❤❤❤❤ from West Virginia
Fascinating. Long time resident of Lake Lure. Thank you so much for this incredibly informative geological explanation of the area and why things happened the way they did.
I wish I had been able to do it under better circumstances. One way or another, the place looks so remarkable because it's more dynamic than the "average" landscape in the region. I had never actually been out on Lake Lure til this August (more of a Rumbling Bald and Chimney Rock kind of guy), but it was incredible to look back up the gorge from the water. I'm hopeful for what folks may be able to do to bring it back, because lots of folks get a lot out of being there!
Did the dams bursting also have some effect?
I heard that the damns were opened?
You can explain this away any way you want. But don't think for one minute this was natural.
I myself I'm from appalachia, I was born and raised in travelers rest which goes all the way up to North Carolina line which got hit pretty hard too. I am one of the few people that believes and what is real and I know mother nature will always be and I appreciate what you are trying to teach and what you are trying to show to prevent people from going through this in the future. Thank you sir and I will be a follower and I am also a veteran.but people need to actually think before talking and put people down. I'm not the smartest person on this earth but I have common sense (which is also learned) the way you explained it made sense to me so thank you very much for putting this video out
Thank you Sir, for your service to our country. I am a civilian and can never appreciate what you have done enough. I am from Boone, NC myself and even though I don't live there right now it will always be where I think of as home.
I'm glad you are putting this out. I'm just a random guy that was a hot tub and pool service guy operating out of Asheville in the late 2000's. I also was a caver prior to that with more than a passing interest in geology and hydrology. I used to drive 9 out of Black Mountain down into those drainages as well as 74 through Fairview and over the divide down into the gorge; Bat Cave, Chimney Rock and Lake Lure to service hot tubs. I've seen and countered a couple of different 'theory's' I've seen on FB about how there 'MUST HAVE BEEN A BIG FAILURE UPSTREAM' to have resulted in what happened. And one moron who was trying to assert that all the water that fell on Mt. Mitchell ended up in Lake Lure. (no one seems to understand how the Continental Divides work?) Simply put, as you describe, it's a huge drainage system that people have ignored the worst possible outcome of an extreme weather event. You spoke in another video regarding the tragic loss of family in Fairview, about how people forget. I've been chastised for pointing out the science/math of it all because 'now is not the time'. I think now is EXACTLY the time to try and teach the facts about the land so people don't forget and prepare both strategically and tactically. I'm glad someone like you with the degree and most capable ability to demonstrate in common sense terms what happened. And, not for nothing, those are some real Jedi level skills with Paint! Subbed and liking every vid I see from you.
Maybe people get annoyed with the way you phrase it “ignored common sense”. There are still almost a 1000 people missing that we know of. People who lost loved ones, their homes, and their whole communities, probably don’t want to hear that their pain and trauma is due to their “lack of sense”. I don’t think anyone predicted that 30 inches of rain was going to fall over 24 hours. These people are at no fault of being in cross roads of mother natures fury. Maybe if you explain using words that are more sensitive to the situation instead saying it in a way that makes it seem like you are victim blaming people will be more receptive to it. Just saying because I’ve seen a lot of people relish in the fact these people were affected because of assumed political opinions of the victims. That’s probably why they are more sensitive, I would be too if people were celebrating the death and destruction my community experienced.
@@AstraLuna-o9iplease be wary of social media accounts expressing such sentiments. A friend told me she was seeing the same and shared a video with me of what I can best describe as a demonic shape shifter but, after consideration, strongly suspect high level AI production likely from foreign interests. The real people I know have a wide range of political beliefs and none are anything but compassionate towards those who are suffering. I'm much more suspicious of manipulation.
@@AstraLuna-o9i When we have discussions like this, nobody is trying to place blame on missing/dead people. Those people aren't missing/dead because they made a bad decision, nobody expects Joe Welderson to understand the watersheds of every place he ever buys a house.
The people who are "ignoring common sense" are our elected officials. It's THEIR job to hire experts to consult on things like geology and hydrology when deciding on zoning and issuing building permits. The people who are missing and dead are not missing/dead because they didn't understand the geology of the Blue Ridge Mountains, they're missing/dead because someone at the Town/City Council or County Building/Zoning failed to learn that geology and make good policy decisions based on it.
@@ShuRugal in a perfect world politicians would be educated on these type of threats, and always act with their constituents best interests. Unfortunately from the local to federal level, politics is a popularity contest usually motivated by whomever has the most money and not an actual decision based on who is more qualified for the job. This was a failure on the local, state, and federal level.
@AstraLuna-o9i yep, and we need to be calling out those who made it possible.
state government should be consulting with geology and hydrology consultants to identify watershed characteristics across the state and provide guidance that local government can use that information when issuing building permits.
federal government should be providing guidance and oversight to state governments to ensure that this is happening.
and since politics is a popularity contest, we, the voting public, need to be pointing at disasters like this while they are still fresh and saying to our politicians "this is on you. what are you going to do to prevent our children from falling victim to your errors?"
I live on Flat Creek Rd. My property was flooded but fortunately I was spared the worst of it. It’s fascinating learning about my exact area from a RUclipsr. I uploaded a video showing the flat creek debris flow for those that haven’t seen it.
Thank you for your time and knowledge!
I’m on Ridge Road, just above Chimney Rock. I walked down in to town to help at about 12:15pm after the rain had started to subside a bit. I knew it wasn’t gonna be good, but it was a fucking hellscape. The things I’ve seen there, I will never forget. 20+ years of search and rescue never prepared me for this. The only thing I can compare it to is the 2011 tsunami Japan endured after that massive earthquake.
Your video is unbelievable. I’m very sorry it was so bad up there. It’s crazy how in some places you can’t even tell there was a storm and then some look like that. I’m glad you’re ok.
@@bryantrudy568thank you for your service with S&R - and I'm sorry you had to bear witness to such tragedy & in your home town. ❤ from GA
Wow. I've seen your footage and I've been down that road quite a bit. You guys got hit hard. Hoping for the best for you.
Sad. Thanks for sharing that. I can't imagine. @bryantrudy568
Thank you!!! Somebody who could answer my questions! Nobody could tell me why what happened with hurricane Helene happened now. Perfect storm scenario. I love geology!! Wish I was beginning my life, instead of being 70.
Wow, these towns never had a chance. Thank you for the informative presentation.
Can I just compliment you on how quickly and clearly you drew every diagram in this video? You made it so incredibly easy to follow because of this!
thank you
I live in Fairview, NC (right on the other side of Gerton). THANK YOU for making these videos. People need access to approachable ways to understand the science behind what happened here and you are providing exactly that. Helene was just one example of how the Hickory Nut Gorge responds when the forces of nature are directly applied to it. Climate change will not spare Appalachia and I (age 32) fear that we are not unlikely to see another "1 in 1000 year" storm again in my lifetime.
Two years ago, my wife and I were actually considering buying a house in Bat Cave. It was a beautiful little cottage right beside the creek on NC 9. That didn't work out, so we ended buying a place on top of a hill in Hendersonville. In retrospect, that now feels VERY fortunate.
wow…those creekside properties were great, but I imagine most of all aren’t there anymore.
@@TheGeoModelsit’s possible to build a home that would survive but you would need to spend 25% more to hire an engineer and drive reinforced concrete pylon down 20ft with a tear away foundation and build your home 20 ft above ground on the pylon. 2 guys build a vacation home on the water in Mexico Beach Florida that took a direct hit and their home survived while most didn’t because the engineering worked as planned. They literally hired an engineer to build a hurricane resistant house. I’d imagine that an imagine could do the same for this situation though no one can ever make any guarantees.
@@zeitgeistx5239I have worked in a poured wall concrete home with a basement. Only the roof was wood.
This is SO HELPFUL to better ASSESS our RISKS and PREPLAN, intentionally locating our infrastructure to mitigate losses from low probability/high impact events like this storm Helene and conditions leading up to it. Thank you so much for taking the time to do these very understandable videos.
I'm glad they are connecting with people!
Get rid of all the dams and the faulty reservoirs
@@jasonbare3472 You could do all that ... do without the power and resevoirs ... and still end up with the same results under the right set of circumstances in the future ... that is one of the biggest points made in these videos 🤔
As if 1916 didnt show us… they just continued building right where they were. Should’ve never happened because they shouldve relocated the towns like they did up in virginia.
@@jasonbare3472there wasnt any dams in 1916. You gotta solution still or just talking out your ass to pleaee your daddy “epa”?
This is exactly what my scientific mind needed because my heart is broken 💔 Thank You so much and you are an excellent educator 🙌👏👏
Why did so much water flow to Chimney Rock during the Helene flood? I think your words and illustration, at timestamp 21:09, answers the question. "...So a big, big piece of the landscape was funneling 25-30, maybe more, inches of cumulative rainfall over those days out through that pretty restrictive gorge and that's going to produce a destructive flood." I hope you publish your conclusions and illustrations in book form for historical reference. This video was very interesting!
I'm 36, in college, and I sit in the tub and watch these all the time. You teach me so good... 12:14 should be the most replayed, that was where you connected the dots and blew my mind!
As a native North Carolinian, this is an extremely clear and concise explanation and provides a great understanding about how this epic even occurred. I have visited, lived and worked in these areas for much of my life but never had a clear understanding of the big picture of the geologic features that contributed to this disaster. Excellent presentation skills and talent with Google Earth that helped this geologic layman to make some sense of the magnitude of events that this storm produced. Thank you so much.
For a very long time I've wished I was a geologist. Fourty-seven years ago I started riding motorcycles and have ridden through every state, province and territory of the U.S. and Canada. Seeing rock layers that have been folded in half on top of mountains is what got me interested in geology. I'm kind of envious of your knowledge and profession. I'm also impressed with your use of your Goggle Earth and MS Paint tools. What topped it off for me was the Lidar imagery. I could make out what looked like debris piles from past landslides, and where the debris might have come from. Keep up the good work.
This is a great video. I grew up near Chimney Rock and my grandfather told me about 1916. This may be a worse event. I spent Thursday with in Chimney Rock talking about how to go forward. I have forwarded this video to the guy who organized that meeting.
Thanks. Happy to help out however possible.
Watching this from south Florida. That area of NC has been our go to vacation destination for years. Asheville, Swannanoa, Waynesville, etc. Your descriptions and explanation answers many questions and I'm grateful for your insight. Thank you.
Thank you for these breakdowns. It’s hard to stomach what has happened here but it’s necessary to know why/how it happened. You’re doing important work!
As a lifelong resident and explorer of WNC, I really appreciate these videos!
You are so good at explaining all of this
I don't have the words to compliment this video and your talents enough to do them justice. "Thanks" for such an exceptional lesson in both weather and geology!
Your videos are incredibly helpful and interesting. I wish it hadn't taken such an awful disaster to find them, but they have been helpful to share and demonstrate the profound destruction to western NC and eastern TN. The news cycles are short and such catastrophic events are, sadly, soon forgotten for those not affected. Your MS Paint skills are amazing! Thank you for everything, sir.
Thank you so much from all of us in Chimney Rock Nc. This has been truly heartbreaking & confusing. You give answers here & we are grateful. Thank you.
Very meaningful to get this comment. I'm so glad this video was useful.
Sending love from Broad River! I always wanted to see my area in these videos, but not like this....i knew Chimney Rock was gone b4 we got word. I was watching all that water here and was thinking exactly this, that all of the water from this river system was just too much! We have floods every few years, but this was apocalyptic😢 Thanks for all your wonderful work!
I hear you. I will miss the old place for sure. Will keep trying to tell the tale.
I have relatives scattered all across this area, upper and lower flat creek, Morgan Mtn, etc. I have seen a variety of flood results over my lifetime, some moving house sized boulders more than a mile down lower flat creek. This was "next level flooding"
MS Paint Level: GODHEAD
You and Myron Cook are far and away my favorite geo channels. I've learned way more from you two than I have ever learned about geology in my whole life. Keep up the great work!
thank you!
I agree! And there is another on YT. Diamond on Oppenheimer Ranch
Excellent video.
Water has a tendency to flow downhill and also to gather in low places. 😆 That was a true or false question on a test I took in college many years ago. And believe it or not, some got the answer wrong.
The area above Chimney Rock, heading towards Brevard, is called the Land of the Waterfalls. There are over 250 waterfalls in the area. And Transylvania County and the Highlands area have the highest annual precipitation in N.C. When you get the amount of water suddenly dumped there from a tropical storm/ hurricane, and then all flowing into a narrow place like Hickory Nut Gorge, there's gonna be serious flash flooding. I've spent a lot of time over the years in that area and I was actually surprised there was anything left standing in Chimney Rock. Such a beautiful place and lots of wonderful people that live there. Hoping and praying that the ones affected by this disaster can recover and possibly rebuild.
Glad you did these. They are very educational on the actual sum of issues.
thank you
Outstanding presentation. I grew up on the coastal plain and now live in Wilmington. I’ve visited this area my whole life. Thank you for helping make sense of what happened.
The factors you need to add to your discussion 1. The angle of rainfall with a hurricane is nearly horizontal so surface wetting accumulations are different than measured by standard vertical rain gauge. 2 The structural instability of the tilted soil strata. 3. Resonance of wind (VLF) against the mountains causing liquefaction of soils similar to an earthquake.4. absolut timing of deposition. 5. the specific gravity of soil wasting flows associated with liquefaction. This Liquefaction is a more serious issue as it forms a situation similar to drilling mud in an oil well where it suspends rock. In this case, the flow appears to be more "Geologic" than hydrologic. This mobilized the rocks and boulders in the bottoms of the rivers and streams. (Evident by deposits)
flow appears to be more "Geologic" than hydrologic.
Can you please explain this to the insurance companies? Word is only 1% of claims will be paid. They saying everything is “flood”.
did you mean this for the debris flow video? If so, yes, the pore space collapse and pore pressure spike from the failure of saturated soil definitely makes a slurry that can "float" dense things. The river flood video is at a bigger scale than hillslope-initiated processes, though. Interesting comment either way--thanks!
@@cumberlandquiltchic1 Sadly that is how insurance companies make a profit by denying coverage whenever possible, its awful but their business model especially when funneling off wealth to shareholders means that they can never actually pay out their claims in the case of a large scale disaster like Helene. It is basically the reason why Florida was forced to in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew implement a public state run insurance company.
Though in the case of Florida that public insurance it has been subsequently gutted despite the fact that no insurance companies will touch most of the state because of neoliberal ideology seeking to privatize anything and everything to funnel off all the wealth of every community and the country as a whole to feed shareholders. I blame the idiocy of the whole Neoliberal shareholder profit maximization insanity where shareholders and CEO's pocket all the money over the years that is supposed to be saved up and invested into the company to be able to deal with large scale disasters, leaving only dregs in the company to handle a small number of claims gradually over time. Its a model which only works if 99+% of those putting money into insurance never need to make a claim because the money isn't there when a disaster hits.
More Americans need to be aware of how various industries business models work in the economy. Also we need to raise awareness of what Neoliberalism and the Neoliberal consensus among the political elite is and how it has screwed over all but the richest few by converting public capital into financial investments which can be bought and sold on Wall-Street rather than getting invested back into our communities.
There are far too many charlatans out there who spew bullshit lies and narratives designed to pull on our emotions and lead us to support the very interests of the rich at our own expense and frankly Insurance only works if it is just a few claimants at a time.
@@Dragrath1 I concur. It is a disaster worse than Katrina and Helene combined. And it occurs continuously.
Thanx so much - I wish news channels woudl do this type of explaning- geography is important !
it is very important
Thank you. I was sceptical to watch this but found it so interesting with a ton of information. I appreciate your time
Thank you for this, I was literally driving home tonight wishing someone would create such an explanation. 🙏🏼
THANKS SO MUCH ! THIS EXPLAINS A LOT. EXTREMELY INTERESTING TO SAY THE LEAST.
You're an excellent teacher; watching from South Africa
Greetings to you from Greensboro, NC USA!
Thanks so much for making this video. Extremely informative in an approachable way :)
This was fantastic. Spent many summer days at Montreat and Black Mountain. Visited Chimney Rock and Lake Lure last October. Thank you!
glad you found it valuable. I was at Lake Lure and up at Chimney Rock in late august. ran many a geology field trip out there in recent years. Hard to believe all this, even for a geologist.
@@TheGeoModels "Hard to believe all this, even for a geologist." .. and with that simple statement you've brought all of this down from planetary to human scale.
30:30 “l'm not aware really of an event like this that's had that big of a geographic reach and did so
much to people and infrastructure in the 20th century and maybe beyond.”
Powerful words.
Thank you for sharing this information. I know it will help many to better understand how this catastrophic event occurred. Looking forward to future videos.
1916....it has happened before
This was SO INTERESTING. Driving down #9 to climb at the Bald is my favorite activity. Absolutely devastated for all the folks who live in this wonderful and powerful gorge. Thanks for sharing and looking forward to future videos.
Blue Ridge
All of these videos have been so incredibly helpful for me in processing what happened and better understanding it. I live on or right near these map views and to have it explained this way, with these visuals has been invaluable. Thank you so much.
glad to help
Growing up in Skamania County in Washington, these images are surprisingly reminiscent (obviously less severe, but still) to the mess after the Mount St. Helens eruption. Crazy that the flood was so bad.
You explain things so well. I shared this to my children and husband. Thanks so much.
thanks for your comment. I'm happy you folks got something out of this. I'll try to put together a few more.
Great video and thank you !!! I grew up on Lake Lure and in the Hendersonville area. You r the first to mention the continental divide. After seeing Asheville and the Swannanoa area it is just incredible what has happened. Ty again !!!
Thanks for explaining. 23:27 my house was directly in line with that mudslide. I have some pictures I can send you if you want to see the damage. I had no idea how high up the mountain it came from.
Very interesting, thank you for your hard work showing this.
Can't stop watching your vids. I always say I'll just watch for a few minutes, and end up watching the entire thing.
thanks. appreciate it.
Very informative. I'd like to see you do one of these for Spruce Pine and the Burnsville areas.
If this is accurate, it's the explanation so many, including myself, have been looking for. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and hard work.
Just discovered your channel today. I love learning about Geography. Nature, time, and weather among other things makes it very interesting!
3:42, nice little meteorology lesson there sir! Explained perfectly
thanks. wish I could work some more atmospheric doodles in. not sure if I can cross geology and LP supercells but I’ll keep thinking.
@@TheGeoModels LP supercells are my favorite. Perhaps you could discuss how geology influences storms, particularly on the Caprock in Texas & New Mexico.
I live in an area subject to orographic rainfall. On average it can be 3 times that of the surrounding areas.
Living in the southwestern part of Henderson County I measured in my rain gauge 26” from Wednesday to after the storm ended on Friday. Two times as I emptied the gauge it was already running over.
My masters thesis dealt with fish genetics in the Southern Appalachians. We used a theoretical stream capture to describe some of the unique patterns that we saw a little farther north (Wilkes County). As soon as you drew the Blue Ridge escarpment, I knew the answer.
@shullln Did you deal with how Brook Trout, a species related to Arctic Char, came to be marooned in Appalachian high country streams?
@@bjjt-nu9dxexcellent question!
The most informative, well presented videos explaining how this incredible destruction event happened. Mother Earth is amazing, but she demands respect always. Prayers to my fellow North Carolinians (and everyone else impacted) to our west. ❤
Yes, they have a long road ahead.
Incredible video, from your geology expertise, to your freehand art and ability to narrate over it, just great stuff. I live in NC, it means a lot to learn about my homeland here. I took up geology as a hobby during covid, your channel is one of the absolute best for learning geology from this medium-scale, practical, topographical perspective. Thanks for doing this, it really helps me understand this beautiful place.
Glad you like it! Trying to give folks a framework to understand these events and how they fit into the bigger picture of the land around here.
@@TheGeoModelsIt’s really working, I have no formal training but your descriptions tell very compelling stories, and help me apply those techniques to what I see on maps and in the field.
This is a great video. It kind of reminds me of the impacts that Hurricane Agnes had in Pennsylvania. It was a bit of a different meteorological setup but some areas received almost 18 inches of rain.
EXCELLENT REPORTING THANK YOU !!!
Thank you for the common sense presentation illustrating the horrible event. I've been driving on The Blue Ridge Parkway and stayed at Huntington, WV. Beautiful, especially with the leaves changing. After watching many of the videos covering the disaster, I was thinking of the possibility of the same thing happening in this area in the event of flooding rains & landslides. Very worrisome. Good thing the event was rare, although it has clearly happened in the distant past.
Your description of the plateau and how the weather can just dump out tons of water makes sense. I don't know what local warnings they were getting, but I was tracking Helene pretty closely. I did notice Accuweather had a red oval covering the affected area of NC, TN, etc. for at least 48 hours before that storm made landfall in Florida. It was the same color they had for the coast where it made landfall. I found that odd at the time, but now I see why. I doubt anyone living in those mountains could have envisioned what has happened. I certainly didn't
As someone who was coming to that area each year, I really appreciate the explanation. Thank you for the talk and the great visuals!
I have been picturing it like the Mt. St. Helens eruption, which was more like a debris flow 'n' blow. Thank you for making this understandable.
thank you for making these videos to help us understand why things happened the way they did
Thank - you for this super accurate geologic account! No excuses and blaming just pure logic.
An exceptionally clear explanation.
I've driven down the Chimney Rock Gorge a few times. I never asked myself, "How did this beautiful gorge get here?" Now I know.
The next questions that should be asked are, "Is the process that created this gorge continuing? How frequently will this process repeat itself?"
I think that the process that created this gorge is both daily and continuous, as well as accelerated by extreme events such as Helene.
Yeah just like if someone decides to live in the grand canyon
Thank you for the precise explaination of the geological forces that caused this catastrophy.
I really appreciate the perspective you bring to this topic. I’ve been to many of the places mentioned, traveled I-40 between North Carolina and Tennessee for several years, always an issue with rock slides, etc. But I don’t see them as you show them, or know their history, nor am I familiar with their weather patterns- but I am now, thanks to you. Subscribed.
thank you for another fascinating analysis of the topography, water flows, and meteorology that contributed to the devastation in chimney rock. i hope that your observations are taken into consideration regarding the future of this area.
My English father put a topographic map on the wall of the guestroom for the area of Boone and Blowing Rock. He wanted quests to understand why you can't drive in straight lines in the mountains, and short walks could take hours up hill and down. He learned about this in his one year of army service in the UK and from uncles serving during WW II.
Our son is a Professor. He has his PhD in Philosophy. He's still trying to figure out if the storm was real or it was an illusion, from another parallel universe. We are so close that he didn't even reach out to his parents who lived through this devastation. Maybe he doesn't identify with us being real or no? If he was our neighbor, he would still be in meetings, trying to figure out how this hurricane could have impacted our Appalachian Mountains so drastically. Meanwhile, our real mountain neighbors were out the next morning with their equipment, making repairs, cutting trees and taking care of their neighbors. I once heard that a genuine Appalachian born mountain neighbor is worth a room full of PhD's. You however are a most excellent presenter. Your presentation needs to be shared at all major Universities. It's most excellent!!!!
🙏
Bless your hearts. 🙏🏻
Great video!
So informative with such clear explanations of what happened.
Thank you for sharing your expertise.
Fantastic analysis. Thank you.
Thanks for watching
The combination of the Toe and Cane Rivers, forming the Nolichucy River, was downright incredible during this event. Wrecked Erwin and points SW in TN. Water flow at the Nolichucky Dam was ~5K gal/sec on the Tuesday before, to ~1.3 MILLION gal/sec at the peak.
This is nearly twice the flow at Niagara falls. Orographic lift is serious business.
probly the next video
because they opened the dam spillways...
👍,winter perils
Not over till spring,even then, not over
@@LilyWillow22It wouldn't matter if they didn't. The amount of water would have breached them anyway.
Crabby Bill’s was washed down the river in 1995. Floods have been a fact of life periodically in Bat Cave and Chimney Rock in the 44 years I have been here; something of this magnitude was only a matter of time.
you are a great teacher for someone who has no real knowledge of how this all works. i've used your last video already to start researching the mountain area in the pnw to try to discern where these events would be more likely. wouldn't mind a video on that, honestly. prepare us all in the various regions for what the landscape has to teach us and prepare us moving fwd. thanks for these videos!
4:23 this dude draws really good arrows
trying to step my game up
@@TheGeoModels awesome videos man, if you ever have the time, I’d love to see one on the Linville Gorge!
Great video. Thanks for taking the time to explain this devastating event. People really do appreciate you.
Thank you Dr. Prince for your fascinating content.
Glad to do it and see folks get something from it.
So informative, thank you! I love geology and hydrology but I feel guilty enjoying this presentation. So many lives changed forever.
THANK YOU!!! I was hoping something like this would be put out. My brain needed to understand the “how” and “why” of it all. My sister lives in Asheville and is ok but it’s going to be a long road ahead for this whole region. 😢😢😢
I would suggest they not rebuild in the parts of Ashville that were flooded. It will happen again.
One of the best videos I have watched yet concerning the storm. Fascinating. Thank you. Subscribed.
The drainage area at Bat Cave is 64 square miles. Velocity (gradient) is a huge factor here. From where Broad River and Flat Creek confluence to Bat Cave is 4.3 miles with a 117 foot per mile gradient. From Bat Cave to the lake is 3.2miles with a 150FPM gradient. Those are HUGE gradients no matter where your from! (GIS and whitewater mapping GEEK)
Interesting to see numbers on it, from another boater and landscape guy. In Appalachia, you are likely to be dealing with a captured stream to pair that gradient and basin size. I can't imagine the flood going through the Upper Rocky Broad gorge with Flight Simulator and all of that. It's a horrifying thought.
This is fascinating! Thank you for sharing
Very impressive artwork the way he did that uplift over the Blue ridge mountains I was sold❤🫡🇺🇸💯
Great dive into the geography.
It's a big thing here. You rarely see a good description of how the gorges are set up on the Escarpment.
this is a great channel
Excellent video!
20:20 he shows how the topography contributed to the flooding.
Thank you from the Piedmont. Truly fascinating.
Great video! Thank you! This type of 'meta' analysis is exactly what Ive been looking for regarding the NC Helene flooding
Excellent explanation. I hope you do a video about the Green River gorge specially.
yep we'll get there. have to get someone to share out some drone footage. I might also hike it, but I'm likely to have to take a moment at Gorilla.
@@TheGeoModelsThis drone footage might be useful for the Green River.
ruclips.net/video/e6UfqcUNbys/видео.htmlsi=lqL3S8v3UyayFcuS
Very interesting video. Today, Mark Honeycutt posted a RUclips video of climbing one of the debris flows you mentioned in this and the previous video. Amazing footaage.