Asheville, Buncombe, Haywood see minor impact from Hurricane Ida

Hurricane Ida's traverse through Western North Carolina ended up being relatively mild, a welcome reprieve from Fred, which doused the region Aug. 17, causing deadly flooding in Haywood County.

Transylvania County, however, which lies to the south of Asheville, did receive heavy rain - up to 6 inches in places and some power outages.

Buncombe and Haywood counties received between 0.5 and 3 inches of rain Aug. 31, National Weather Service meteorologist Doug Outlaw said. Neither the French Broad nor the Pigeon rivers reached flood levels.

"For rainfall in Buncombe County, there was about a half-inch in the Weaverville area and about an inch-and-a-half in the extreme southern part of the county near the airport," Outlaw said.

"In Haywood County, there was about an inch-and-a-half near Fines Creek. The heaviest rainfall in Haywood County, in the southern part of the county near Cruso got about 2 to 3.5 inches."

Haywood County encouraged evacuations Aug. 31 in areas already damaged by Tropical Depression Fred — Cruso, Bethel, Lake Logan, Center Pigeon, Canton and Clyde. The county opened a temporary shelter for any evacuees.

Haywood County Schools let students out at 1 p.m. Aug. 31 and had a two-hour delay Sept. 1. 

Haywood's caution comes after the county was gravely struck by Aug. 18 flooding that resulted in six fatalities and millions of dollars of damage. However, conditions following Ida's sweep through Haywood were not severe. 

Tropical Storm Fred:

• Fred aftermath: Pop-up donation center receives supplies for flood cleanup
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"Fortunately, last night's storm turned out to be manageable," Haywood County spokeswoman Allison Richmond said. "One person stayed overnight in the emergency shelter. Our plan is to close the shelter when we find that person a more permanent situation."

Richmond said emergency services received only four calls regarding downed trees. No one is reported missing — a welcome change from Haywood's early post-Fred report of 35 missing people. 

Duke Energy's outage map shows only one customer in Haywood County without power. 

More than 100 customers in Buncombe County are without power, according to Duke. 

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However, Ida's effect on Buncombe also was light. City of Asheville spokesperson Polly McDaniel said no city roads are currently closed. 

"Fortunately, our area did not receive an excessive amount of rain and therefore we did not see an increase in calls," Asheville Fire spokesperson Kelley Klope said. "There were no rescues related to Ida or other injuries."

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Related:Tropical Depression Fred leads to Buncombe's heaviest rainfall in 50 years

Buncombe County Emergency Services did not "have any significant weather issues," county spokeswoman Kassi Day said. 

"(EMS) proactively activated Task Force 2 yesterday with a boat crew and a structural crew on standby overnight in the event the weather did present any issues," Day said.  "There are no additional areas of concern that we are aware of."

Asheville Police Department spokeswoman Christina Hallingse said the department received "numerous" calls Aug. 31 regarding traffic incidents — mostly on interstates — however, only one person sustained minor injuries. 

The NC Department of Transportation reported two weather-related closures at Island Ford and Green roads in Transylvania County. 

Transylvania was the hardest hit by the Aug. 31 storm with 2-6 inches of rain touching down throughout the county.

"That was one of the wetter counties," Outlaw said.

According to Duke, 74 customers in Transylvania County were without power. 

Transylvania County Manager Jaime Laughter said there are a few trees down, but no had been injuries or property damage reported as of 11 a.m. Sept. 1.

In all, the Aug. 31 rainfall pales in comparison to what Western North Carolina received two weeks ago with Tropical Storm Fred when as much as 14 inches of rain fell in Haywood County. 

Light rain is expected to continue through Sept. 1. Outlaw said WNC near the Tennessee border should expect about a half-inch of rain through the evening. 

Shelby Harris is a reporter covering education and other topics. She can be reached at sharris@citizentimes.com or on Twitter @_shelbyharris.