Hurricane Helene caused 45,000 small businesses in North Carolina to be shuttered.
Posted by Michael Whatley, Checked
- Sources
- 5 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 60%
Michael Whatley@WhatleyNCOct 3, 2026While multiple reports confirm that thousands of small businesses in Western North Carolina suffered temporary or permanent closures due to Hurricane Helene, the provided sources do not contain evidence confirming or disputing the specific figure of 45,000 shuttered businesses.
What was said
… of dollars worth of hurricane relief that was passed by the North Carolina General assembly and had the worst hurricane response in the country to Hurricane Helene. We saw the damage that that storm brought to North Carolina. 73,000 homes we destroyed. 45,000 small businesses were shuttered. 107 people were killed. And Roy Cooper was absolutely not there. He was not there when the storm hit and he was not there afterwards. …
Michael Whatley@WhatleyNC · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Context. State assessments and local surveys confirm that thousands of businesses and farms in the disaster declaration area suffered severe property and revenue losses, with surveys indicating high rates of temporary or permanent closures.[1][2][3]
Context. None of the provided sources verify or disprove the specific total of 45,000 small businesses shuttered by Hurricane Helene.[1][2][4][5]
Sources
5 sources: 1 primary, 4 not rated
- 1Hurricane Helene Damage and Needs Assessment - NC OSBMosbm.nc.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 2Stein says Helene aid moved slowly, in western visitcarolinajournal.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 3Western north carolina Hurricane Helene Business Feedback Surveyashevillechamber.org · not rated · cited for: context
- 4Western NC marks two years since Hurricane Heleneqcnews.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 5How Small Businesses Are Faring in the Aftermath of Hurricane ...richmondfed.org · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post