Swannanoa Valley Montessori School

In September of 2024, Hurricane Helene brought catastrophic levels of flooding to the WNC region. BMTMs school building flooded from water runoff from the road and around the building. Once we were able to assess the damage, we learned that 6,000 square feet of flooring would need to removed and replaced. This included 6,000 sq ft of asbestos tile that was underneath the floor in the building. The process was lengthy and required the school to be closed for 8 weeks. The school was able to offer reduced programming out of a local church for 3 weeks once the Town of Black Mountain restored access to water. Volunteers helped us move classrooms, clean up after the storm, empty rooms that required restoration, track down supplies and drinking water, restore the playground after storm damages, move back into the building and clean after restoration was complete. In the aftermath of the storm, we learned that we can count on our parent and local community members to help.