After the Flood: Mountain Island Recovery Highlights the Importance of Preparedness

Media partners can download Riverhaven Drive before-and-after photos

Two years after Tropical Storm Helene caused significant flooding in the Mountain Island area, Mecklenburg County Storm Water Services continues recovery work in the Riverhaven Drive community in Mecklenburg County. 

While flooding can happen anywhere, the Riverhaven Drive community experienced devastating flooding in some areas. The hardest hit were properties along the Catawba River, south of the Mountain Island Dam, where floodwaters washed away homes as the banks of the river deteriorated. The work Storm Water Services accomplished addresses those properties, repairing the banks and creating floodplain buffer habitat in its place. 

The project offers a timely example as we mark National Preparedness Month of why preparing for flooding isn’t only about what residents do when a storm is approaching. It is about what utilities like Storm Water Services are doing to reduce risk in the future.  

Helene’s Impact

Tropical Storm Helene brought between 2.75 and six inches of rain to Mecklenburg County on Sept. 27, 2024. The substantial rainfall northwest of the county near the headwaters of the Catawba River carried amounts of water through the river system that had largely been unseen in a century. More than 170 homes were impacted, including 90 where floodwater entered the living space. On Riverhaven Drive, water exceeded the 500-year flood level.

Following Tropical Storm Helene, Storm Water Services enacted a Quick-Buy Program to provide an option to homeowners who experienced substantial damage to their homes.  Properties purchased during the Quick-Buy process are developed as greenspace, ensuring no development can take place on the land, and preventing future risk to life and property. 

In fiscal year 2025, 29 homes were purchased through the Quick-Buy Program. Fourteen properties were bought out in fiscal year 2026. Three sales are currently pending and the total amount spent on Quick-Buy Program acquisitions is approximately $12.5 million.

Photos of Riverhaven Drive before and after restoration.

Looking Ahead

While the banks were being restored and the area prepared for planting, Storm Water Services met with the Riverhaven community to receive input on the planting plan and discuss plans for a community event. 

The next phase of restoration will help create a natural buffer in the area, with approximately 70 native trees, 30 shrubs and a wildflower and pollinator ground cover mix. Planting is expected to begin in January 2027.

Before-and-after photos from Riverhaven Drive show the devastation caused by the flood and the cleanup and recovery work that followed. The work is part of the longer process of recovering from a major weather event while preparing for what could happen in the future.

Know Your Flood Risk

Residents can use Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services’ 3-D Floodzone Map to learn more about flood risk near their homes and neighborhood and get an immediate hazard assessment based on their address.

Residents should also know how they will receive information during an emergency. CharMeck Alerts provides emergency notifications that may affect Mecklenburg County communities.

National Preparedness Month is a good time for residents to understand their flood risk, know how they will receive emergency information and take steps now that could make a difference later.