This coverage is made possible through a partnership between BPR and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
Asheville’s storied Riverside Cemetery saw severe storm damage from Helene.
There were 53 downed trees after the storm. In some cases, as trees fell, disturbed dirt and root systems caused portions of headstones and graves to pull up. Of the 11,000 graves, 132 were damaged.
Ben Steere, an associate professor of anthropology at Western Carolina University, is helping to lead a team of forensic anthropology and archaeology students to restore the cemetery. The work, he said, is more than just cleanup.
“We're pulling actual records from the cemetery to see who's buried each in of these plots and make sure that we can kind of account for each of those sites,” Steere said. “By the end of the week, we're going to produce a very practical set of recommendations for what's the best way to very carefully remove these tree stumps that have fallen on the site without further disturbing anything else.”
Throughout the week, the students are mapping the cemetery to ensure all graves have been accounted for and documenting where trees fell.
Famed Asheville novelists Thomas Wolfe and O. Henry (William Sydney Porter) are buried at Riverside. The cemetery is currently closed to the public, but open for funerals.
Cemetery damage is increasingly a problem as climate change-fueled extreme weather causes tree blowdowns, floods, and fires to damage places that were previously safe from disaster.
Cemeteries often serve as not only final resting places but also as arboretums or natural preserves. In Louisiana, cemetery flooding is so common that the state has its own cemetery response task force, and one forensic company on the Gulf has gained enough expertise to consult with other states.
FEMA’s Environmental and Historic Preservation division helps support disaster-impacted communities as they seek funding to restore historically and culturally sensitive sites damaged by a disaster, including for historical expert consultation and environmental review.
At Riverside, the Army Corps of Engineers and debris contractor, Ashbritt, are also involved.
Jose Sandoval contributed to this report.
