Bringing our community back to life after Hurricane Helene

Post hurricane devastation with tipped over water tower and downed trees

24. september 2025, 07:13

When the tragic hurricane Helene hit Spruce Pine one year ago today, one thing became evident: Caring for each other and our local community is a core value at The Quartz Corp.

Friday, September 27th, 2024: A hurricane approaches North Carolina. Spruce Pine, a small town usually protected from the most severe storms by its surrounding mountains, is about to experience something unprecedented in its history. In only three days, a local weather station measures a total of 24.12 inches of rainfall – among the highest numbers in the state.

Safety Coordinator Brandy Steward explains that the sense of community and care extends beyond the workplace at The Quartz Corp. This became evident during the hurricane.

Two employees disucussing damage recovery at a broken road entrance — The impact of the hurricane came close to the plant. Here, Brandy is in dialogue with the team working on the plant.

The impact of the hurricane came close to the plant. Here, Brandy is in dialogue with the team working on the plant.

“My colleagues helped rebuild bridges, removed fallen trees, and coordinated efforts to give out food at church. Nobody will ever know, because these people aren't asking for anything back. They just do it," Brandy says.

We talked to two employees with stories that truly prove this to be the truth.

Family first

Family comes first. This is something employees at The Quartz Corp know. That’s also why they are always eager to help when a colleague or their family is in need. This is what happened to Logan Garland.

When Logan woke up Friday morning, he prepared to go to work. “Obviously, they told us a storm is coming. But this happens several times a year, and usually it’s some heavy rain and then it’s gone. We thought this would be similar”.

Stacks of household supplies outside of a school entrance being delivered by a box truck — Local schools were used to house emergency equipment and clothes for those affected by the hurricane.

Local schools were used to house emergency equipment and clothes for those affected by the hurricane.

Living in a small town next to Spruce Pine, everything happened a bit later. “I hadn’t noticed much of the storm yet. But then the trees started to fall around us”.

From son to mother

When the hurricane hit, one of the first consequences was that electricity shut down. He immediately thought of his mother.

“Both my mom and grandma need oxygen. My main concern was my mom. She requires oxygen 24/7 and she only had enough to last for a few days. I asked all around for oxygen, but no one was able to tell me when they’d be able to get it,” says Logan.

Debris in the river following hurricane Helene — Record amounts of rain poured down during the first three days.

Record amounts of rain poured down during the first three days.

Saturday evening, Logan and his brother set their minds to one task: Knowing that the oxygen tanks would only last so long, they had to get their mom a generator. They left home at 2am to beat the traffic and be first in line. They finally got hold of one.

But the generator needed new gas every 12 hours. Back at work, he explained his mom’s situation to his colleagues. “They insisted that they’d take care of her. We got gas to supply her generator and, the next day, they show up with a generator that I was able to take to my grandma, who was also running out of oxygen”.

From powerless to blessed

Some 2-3 weeks after the storm both Logan's mom and grandma got their power back. Looking back, he especially wants to thank his electrician colleagues.

Electrician working on a breaker box at a plant facility — Andrew Duggar at work to get the power back and running at the plant.

Andrew Duggar at work to get the power back and running at the plant.

“They really helped me and my family throughout the storm. They came and wired up generators at all of our houses. They were out working for days and nights helping people get electricity. They were a really big blessing”.

The thing Logan will carry with him for the rest of his life, is the care shown during the hurricane. “Honestly, the outpouring of support from all kinds of people is amazing. Both local, governmental and from all over the world,” Logan says.

From fairytale to truth

Some things happen so rarely that you usually only experience it in fairytales. For example, imagine if suddenly the thing you need the most in the world suddenly comes falling down from the sky, landing right in front of you?

This is what happened to geologist and part-time farmer James Byrd. Living on the property his grandfather was born on back in 1925, James has a special relationship to the place he calls home for his family – and 30 cows.

Geologist, James Byrd, standing in front of a mine with the backdrop of green mountains — James Byrd works as a Senior Geologist at The Quartz Corp and part-time as a cattle farmer.

James Byrd works as a Senior Geologist at The Quartz Corp and part-time as a cattle farmer.

When the storm hit, James was taken aback by how fast everything happened.

“It was Friday morning, and I was with my family with three kids. Some trees started to fall before the roof flew off the barn, and the barn broke down. Then we heard a crash. Suddenly we saw a part of our roof in the yard. I started to realize that this was more than a normal storm,” James remembers.

Cattle in need

When the worst winds had calmed, James got in his truck to see how much of the property was affected. All around him, trees were broken down. Electricity was gone. And he noticed something of great concern. “We saw that a lot of our fencing had gone down. Miles and miles of fences. We started to worry about our cattle”.

Wooden barn with tin roof missing and in disrepair — This is what remained of James’ barn after the storm.

This is what remained of James’ barn after the storm.

One thing was the risk of the cattle running off. Another risk was a type of cherry tree, with poisonous leaves. These trees were now lying all around. James and his family soon lost 3 cows to poisoning.

Help sent from above

One morning, his wife had phone reception for a brief moment. She messaged a friend explaining the situation. “Later that day my daughter kept saying a helicopter was landing in our field. We didn’t believe her,” James said.

Out of nowhere, a private helicopter lands in his yard, leaving new fences for the family’s cattle. “I tried to explain to the pilot that he had gotten it wrong, that it wasn’t ours. But he insisted”.

Helicopter landing in a cattle field — A private donor heard about James and his family’s situation and delivered new fencing.

A private donor heard about James and his family’s situation and delivered new fencing.

“If this hadn’t happened, we wouldn’t have lost 3 cows, but all 30. With the extra fencing we managed to keep the cows alive,” James says.

A tough decision

In the weeks that followed, James spent most of his time at a distribution center led by his church. He and his wife lived in the garage.

“We saw that we didn’t have time to do kids, full time work and church. I told a friend that we were going to sell our cattle, because we needed to spend a lot of time rebuilding,” James says.

Young girl working to post cattle fencing for cows standing behind her — James’ daughter working on the new fencing to protect the cattle.

James’ daughter working on the new fencing to protect the cattle.

A short time later, some 20 people suddenly showed up at his property. They wanted to help him rebuild. “We spent a long time cutting trees and working on the fencing. The US Forest Service spent days clearing up the woods,” James says.

High muddy river flowing under a bridge with fallen trees beside it — Some of the damage seen on trees and the river close to James’ property.

Some of the damage seen on trees and the river close to James’ property.

“I didn’t even ask for help, but people just came. We are now keeping the cows and working on fixing the fence”.

Come together

As a regular in the church community, James is used to being the one helping – not being helped.

“I’ve seen so much good after the storm. People coming together in a time of maximal polarization, just helping each other. Giving of their resources, coming together and carrying on. It’s impactful and it makes a difference,” James says.

Heaps of donated clothing fill a school auditorium — Local schools turned into long-term distribution centers.

Local schools turned into long-term distribution centers.

After the storm

In the weeks following the storm, all employees at The Quartz Corp split their work hours 50/50 on operations at the plant, and volunteering to rebuild the local community and helping people in need.

Man driving a fork lift to move donated items — Keegan Burleson at TQC helped at a distribution center, with the aid of donated forklifts.

Keegan Burleson at TQC helped at a distribution center, with the aid of donated forklifts.

James is thankful that The Quartz Corp allowed him to do community work in the aftermath of the hurricane.

“They were very gracious after the storm. I was working with charity, and this is something they encouraged. After three weeks I came back to fairly normal work hours. Having an employer who let employees help in the community while still getting paid, is very fortunate”.