Contact: FHWA.PressOffice@dot.gov

On September 26, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Federal Highway Administrator Sean McMaster traveled to Western North Carolina to mark remarkable progress one year after Hurricane Helene devastated the region. McMaster joined Governor Josh Stein, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), and the U.S. Forest Service to celebrate major repair milestones along I-40, where critical infrastructure has been restored following widespread storm damage and closures. Read more here.

One year after Hurricane Helene, North Carolina is building again.

Earlier that week, the USDOT announced $1.15 billion in Emergency Relief (ER) Program funding for NCDOT—the largest single-state allocation in the program’s history. Read more here.

DOT and DOI Officials Highlight Successful Federal Partnership on Blue Ridge Parkway Repairs

Administrator McMaster later joined Department of the Interior Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor on the Blue Ridge Parkway to highlight FHWA’s successful partnership with the National Park Service. Together, they cut the ribbon on Phase I repairs, restoring a stretch of roadway damaged by Hurricane Helene. Read more here.

The News & Observer
Feds sending NC another $1 billion in emergency aid for Helene road repairs

The Charlotte Observer
USDOT head: Helene hit NC hard. We’re hitting back with largest relief package ever | Opinion

9/26/25 Hurricane Helene I-40 Repair Milestones Press Event Coverage:

• Raleigh News & Observer: Pledge of bipartisan support for repairs of still damaged Interstate 40 in Western NC
• 3 WBTV: North Carolina gov., federal officials applaud I-40 rebuild, pledge continued cooperation
• WCNC: Stein, NCDOT update I-40 reconstruction progress 1 year after Hurricane Helene
• WLOS/ABC 13 News: NC Gov. Stein, FHWA Administrator McMaster highlight post-Helene I-40 repairs
• WWAY 3: Officials mark one year since Hurricane Helene, highlight progress on repairs
• WJZY-TV/Queen City News: One Year Later: Gov. Stein visits WNC to commemorate Hurricane Helene anniversary
• WCNC: Rebuilding I-40 a year after Hurricane Helene hits North Carolina
• Goldsboro Daily News: NCDOT Reports Major Hurricane Helene Recovery Progress as New Transit and Safety Initiatives Launch
• WLOS-TV/ABC 13 News: Crews tackle I-40 repairs as federal funds boost efforts to reopen vital four-lane route
• WYFF NBC 4: North Carolina seeks more federal aid for Hurricane Helene recovery as one-year milestone nears
• North Carolina Public Radio/Blue Ridge Public Radio: National, local leaders tout accomplishments and new money for roads destroyed by Helene
• The Mountaineer: Hardhat heroes: Crews worked round the clock to fix what Helene broke
• 828 News Now: Roar of trucks on I-40 signals resilience one year after Helene
• Sandhills Sentinel: 1-year Helene milestone event looks back, forward on N.C.’s most destructive storm
• WCNC: NCDOT updates I-40 reconstruction progress after Helene devastation

9/26/25 Blue Ridge Parkway Event Coverage:

• FOX Carolina/WMBF: ‘The thread that ties communities together’: First of three major repairs complete at Blue Ridge Parkway
• Asheville Citizen-Times: Blue Ridge Parkway hosts ribbon cutting to mark Helene recovery, Sept. 26
• Asheville Citizen-Times: Blue Ridge Parkway 'ready' for fall color visitors after landslide repairs, officials say

Additional Coverage:

• Asheville Citizen-Times: U.S. Department of Transportation announces another $1.15B for NC Helene repairs
• WCNC: North Carolina gets record $1.15 billion for Hurricane Helene road repairs
• Carolina Journal: NCDOT to receive $1.15B in federal Helene relief
• Carolina Coast Online: NCDOT to receive $1.15B in federal Helene relief
• WLOS: NC Gov. Stein, officials to highlight I-40 repair progress nearly 1 year post-Helene
• WNCT: I-40 repair milestones marked one year post-Hurricane Helene