In rural North Carolina, dozens of water systems were knocked out by Hurricane Helene. Recovery could take years

The flooding that devastated western North Carolina knocked out water systems, and some small towns still don’t have water.

The most exciting part of the day at Spruce Pine Montessori School is when the truck arrives to empty the porta-johns. At that point in the afternoon, the kids abandon their toy dinosaurs and monkey bars, throw up their hands, and yell in excitement as they run to watch the truck do its work. It’s lucky that they find something to be so joyful about, Principal Jennifer Rambo said on a recent sunny afternoon, because things have been a mess for the past seven weeks.