From Staff Reports

HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. — A new round of disaster aid from FEMA will provide $4.5 million to fix Pot Shoals Road and $1.61 million to repair Edney Inn Road and Hog Rock Road, all of which are roads in Edneyville and the Hickory Nut Gorge that were badly damaged by Troplical Storm Helene, the Hendersonville Lightning reported on Jan. 28.

U.S. Chuck Edwards, R-Flat Rock, and U.S. Sen. Ted Budd, R-Advance, announced on Jan. 28 the release of more than $230 million in additional public assistance funding for continued Helene recovery efforts.

Of the $230 million, the Town of Lake Lure will get nearly $1.8 million to rebuild its marina docks, which were severely damaged in Helene. The money will also go toward making the docks more resilient against potential future disasters. (A separate story of the Lake Lure marina docks funding appears — above — on this page.) 

The Edney Inn and Hog Rock roads experienced “severe washout, material loss, and erosion of the road’s sub-base, embankments, shoulder/slope areas, asphalt surfaces, pavement marking lines, and corrugated metal pipe culverts,” Budd’s office said in a news release. 

In making repairs, the NCDOT will incorporate mitigation by adding rip rap and other erosion control methods to stabilize the roadways and prevent future damage.

Historically, regarding the Edney Inn Road, AI Overview noted that it “is named for the historic Edney Inn, a popular 19th-century tourist destination operated by the Edney family. The road runs through land settled by the early Edney family, passing near the historic Asa Edney/Townsend Cemetery....”