Resilience in Action: Economic Development Districts and Hurricane Helene Recovery in Western North Carolina

On September 26, 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 storm. It had devastating effects across the Southeastern United States, but broke records as one of the most impactful storms to ever hit the southern Appalachians, especially in Western North Carolina. This case study explores how five Economic Development Districts (EDDs) in Western North Carolina supported their communities following Hurricane Helene’s devastating impacts.
 
Through examples from across the region, it highlights how EDDs helped local governments navigate complex recovery funding, strengthen administrative capacity, and advance critical infrastructure and community recovery projects. The report examines how longstanding relationships, shared expertise, and regional coordination enables EDDs to serve as core resilience infrastructure. These lessons learned offer practical takeaways for regional organizations seeking to build stronger partnerships, expand local capacity, and strengthen resilience before the next shock occurs.

This resource is offered through the Economic Development District Community of Practice (EDD CoP), managed by the NADO Research Foundation to build the capacity of the national network of EDDs. To learn more, visit: www.nado.org/EDDCoP. The EDD CoP is made possible through an award from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce (ED22HDQ3070106). The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations in this resource are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Economic Development Administration or the U.S. Department of Commerce.

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