The disaster has decimated towns, destroyed roads, and left more than a million homes without power. As of Tuesday, the death toll stood at 135 across six states, and officials expect this number to rise.

North Carolina has been particularly hard-hit, with at least 40 deaths reported in the western part of the state. The region remains crippled as 300 roads are still closed, obstructing recovery efforts and the delivery of essential supplies such as food and water. In Statesville, located two hours east of Asheville, around 50 volunteers have come together in an old flat red-brick building to coordinate the distribution of donated goods to the most affected areas. "This all happened since yesterday at 11:00," Beth Kendall, one of the organisers, noted.

The community’s response has been overwhelming, with massive stacks of items like toilet paper, dog food, and cases of drinking water now filling the previously empty space. Volunteers have been buoyed by reports of the immense need, with social media narratives frequently documenting residents searching for missing loved ones. The community’s stories poignantly describe the sudden loss of livelihoods and lasting traumas, such as those shared by Dennis Spring about friends in Asheville who had previously been devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Buncombe County, which includes Asheville, is among the most severely impacted areas. Emergency official Ryan Cole described the scene as "biblical devastation," noting it as the most significant natural disaster anyone in the region has experienced. Although some floodwaters have receded, much of North Carolina remains paralyzed by the storm's aftereffects.

The severe weather has also led to the closure of quartz mines in Spruce Pine, a small town crucial for the production of semiconductors essential for modern technology. This town, located about an hour northeast of Asheville, received over 2 feet of rainfall between Tuesday and Saturday. Mitchell County, where Spruce Pine is situated, reported having no electricity, cell service, or internet connectivity as of Monday. The county experienced what officials termed a "500-year flood," causing extensive damage to infrastructure.

The Quartz Corp, a leading supplier of high-quality quartz, faces significant operational disruptions. Communications head May Kristin Haugen indicated it is currently "impossible" to predict when operations will resume, heavily depending on the restoration of surrounding infrastructure.

Despite the closure, Ms. Haugen expressed confidence in the short and medium-term availability of quartz, citing lessons learned during the Covid-19 pandemic about maintaining sizeable safety stocks. However, the community and the local economy face a long road to recovery from this unparalleled natural disaster.