Hurricane Helene impacts Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The staff at Great Smoky Mountains National Park continue to assess conditions after the park experienced historic flooding and other damage from Hurricane Helene.

The storm, which hit Florida’s Big Bend region as a Category 4 hurricane on Thursday night, has been confirmed to have caused more than 120 fatalities.

Over 3 million customers are currently without power across states like the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. Among them, more than 1.6 million are in the Carolinas, and 700,000 are in Georgia, as the storm’s aftermath triggered severe flooding and evacuation alerts.

Reschedule visits

Visitors are encouraged to reschedule their trips to GSMNP and other affected areas for their own safety. Hiking and backcountry travel are not recommended due to the unpredictability of creek crossings, potential of downed trees, and other hazardous trail conditions. Park staff will evaluate trails once the roads are safely assessed.

Some reopening

Many visitors were expected to visit the park in the coming weeks to view the brilliant fall colors and enjoy cooler autumn temperatures. However, GSMNP encourages extreme caution and patience as staff determine the conditions left in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

The following areas and facilities were reopened by park staff over the weekend:

• Cades Cove Loop Road (including Sparks and Hyatt lanes)
• Little River Road
• Wear Cove Gap Road
• Cherokee Orchard Road
• Lakeview Drive
• Sugarlands Visitor Center
• Cades Cove Visitor Center and Cable Mill

Closures remain

Until notified otherwise, park officials caution visitors to heed the closures of the following areas:

• Newfound Gap Road/Hwy 441 (reopening time to be determined)
• Foothills Parkway East
• Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail
• Balsam Mountain area, campground and roads
• Cataloochee Valley area, campground and roads (including Hwy 284)
• Big Creek area, campground and roads
• Greenbrier area and roads
• Oconaluftee Visitor Center (through at least Sunday)
• Kuwohi Visitor Center (through at least Sunday)
• Kuwohi Road (formerly known as Clingmans Dome Road)
• Rich Mountain Road
• The Deep Creek between Indian Creek Bridge and park boundary (closed to all water activity)
• Parson Branch Road due to impacts from the Flint Gap Fire

Community support

In addition to addressing park needs, the GSMNP personnel is supporting the surrounding communities and staff that were severely impacted by the storm.

Information

Additional updates for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be shared on the park website.

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