BANNER ELK, N.C. (WBTV) – Four weeks after Helen devastated much of western North Carolina, a popular vineyard is back open for business.
The owners of Grandfather Vineyards, just off Highway 105 in Banner Elk, said they suffered an estimated $1 million in losses due to the storm, but were able to reopen Thursday.
“The water was flowing very fast and the water level was very high at this point and was over the bridge,” Nicole Tatum said.
Tatum and her husband, Dylan, run a vineyard and said their winery was flooded and the bridge they rely on to get in and out of the vineyard was washed away.
“It came to me very quickly,” Dylan said. “There was a big eye beam there, and it twisted and snapped in two.”
The Tatum family tried to wrap their heads around the destruction, but their first move was to find a way to help the rest of the community.
In addition to organizing community donation drives, they also considered reopening as a way to help.
“Everyone did everything they could to help their neighbors and I was happy to be a part of it,” Nicole said. “It’s what we have to do now to get through it.”
Ahead of the reopening, the couple said they had help building a temporary boardwalk out of the overflow parking lot. While it’s not a long-term solution, the Tatums said being open as a venue that hosts musicians and food trucks is about touching people’s lives and serving the larger community.
“[It] It feels like a way to give back to the community and bring us all together and reconnect, and it’s almost therapeutic,” Nicole said. “It’s like we’re going through this journey together and we’re physically able to be together again.”
When Grandfather Vineyards reopened, the couple was unable to secure federal funding to help rebuild, but said they are taking it one day at a time and are very grateful to the community.
RELATED: Hurricane Helen is the most destructive hurricane in North Carolina history. Damage estimated at $53 billion
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