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Beech Mountain Ski Resort, Banner Elk welcome visitors back after Hurricane Helene
The town is hoping the snow brings back a sense of normalcy as it continues recovering from the storm.
BANNER ELK, N.C. — Snow may have stopped falling out of the sky, but it’s still coming down on Beech Mountain.
The Beech Mountain Ski Resort is expected to open on Saturday, Nov. 30, welcoming in as many people as possible.
It’s hard to believe just eight weeks ago this entire part of the state was nearly underwater.
Cities, towns, and businesses have been working nonstop towards recovery, hoping to open as much as they can.
Beech Mountain Ski Resort, like many other businesses, experienced damage but was able to recover quickly and start the preparation process for skiers.
The ski resort has been making snow and will continue until opening day.
Director of Marketing Talia Freeman said the ski industry in western North Carolina brings in millions of dollars every year. At Beech Mountain alone, over 200,000 people visit during ski season with over 400 seasonal employees hired.
Freeman said this year, it’s even more important for the resort to open After many experienced devastation from Hurricane Helene, Freeman said she saw firsthand how strong and tight-knit western North Carolina is.
“Living in a small town and growing up here seeing just the how people rely on each other and the crazy thing about the storm and Helene that we experienced is that there’s no phone reception and everyone was still able and willing to communicate help each other out give back it’s still happening. It’s so impressive and we are so lucky to be a small business and western North Carolina and just be a little piece of that puzzle and do everything that we can to give back to our community,” Freeman said.
The resort said it had a tough October, but is feeling confident for the season.
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