Crews Ready Hurricane-Damaged Sites for Spring

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, the French Broad River chewed at the banks of TVA’s Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground.

When the water rose above the banks and flowed over campsites, it carried away fire rings and wrapped heavy picnic tables around trees.

But come March 15 – just months after the storm – the campground will again welcome visitors.

Thanks to coordinated efforts from TVA’s Natural Resources and Facilities teams, the campground, in East Tennessee near Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is back and better than ever. It boasts freshly graveled and leveled surfaces and refreshed electrical hookups, fire rings and playground.

“A lot of people weren't sure whether it would be reopened in the near future because of the damage that it suffered,” Mike Seagle, TVA Facilities property foreman, said.

Jonathan McNutt, TVA recreation agreement specialist, nodded as he and Brandon Tincher, TVA watershed representative, snapped photos of the restored campsites.

“They've been pulling together everyone who can help,” McNutt said.

While communities throughout the region are still recovering and rebuilding, re-openings of recreational facilities such as this one are signs of hope and an economic rebound.

Just a handful of finishing touches remain before the campground welcomes visitors on opening day.

Reseeding grass. Resetting fire rings. Restoring electricity.

“We’re on track and on schedule,” Seagle said.

TVA Facilities team member John Thompson navigates through trees to place new picnic tables at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground. (Photos by Susan Ehrenclou / TVA)

Storm of the Century

Helene delivered record-breaking rainfall to eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. The river roared over Nolichucky Dam during the storm, with a flow twice that of Niagara Falls.

People downriver waited and worried.

The Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground sits right on the riverbank below Douglas Reservoir.

“This campground was full, because closing date was Nov. 15,” McNutt said.

McNutt, a member of the recreation team that manages public lands, also handles permits and works with companies that run day-to-day campground operations on TVA property.

During and after Helene, he played a key role in managing gradual evacuations and coordinating the recovery response within TVA’s Recreation group.

“During the storm, Recreation was in close communication with River Operations,” McNutt said. “And we were in close communications with the concessionaire and the Facilities foreman.”

The collective expertise of TVA’s specialists and regional partners helped ensure campers could leave safety and efficiently.

Everybody was evacuated. Everyone came out,” McNutt said.

After the campers left and the storm raged on, TVA’s River Management teams had to strategically release water from Douglas Reservoir into the French Broad below.

“This was one of the top five flows out of Douglas,” Seagle said. “We were 6 or 7 feet out of banks."

Still, Douglas Reservoir, which rose 22 feet and held 182 billion gallons behind Douglas Dam, kept the damage downriver from being much worse.

“The dam did its job, for sure,” Seagle said. “And River Operations, they knew exactly the amount to release … to keep everything holding back as much as they could. That's years and years of knowledge, knowing what the water’s doing.”

Jonathan McNutt, TVA recreation specialist, documents restoration at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground months after Hurricane Helene forced evacuations.

Building Back

The moment floodwaters receded, TVA Natural Resources and Facilities teams were there to assess the damage.

“There were some voids in the shoreline, and of course a lot of the camp was underwater and washed away,” Seagle said. “There was a lot of erosion."

Since mid-February, crews have been hard at work.

On a recent weekday, Seagle and TVA property and grounds supervisor Jason Jarnagin soaked up some welcome sunshine as they stood on beams for the newly constructed campsite walls.

A bald eagle circled overhead.

“I have recovered several tables out of the river,” Seagle said. “I picked up one part out of these trees, and the other part I picked up from the trees down there.”

“The water was right up to the front of the bathroom building,” Shannon Mullendore, TVA Facilities property foreman, said. He spent the past six weeks helping, driving down from Watauga.

“We had to build up small, short walls to level the sites back out,” Mullendore said, gesturing to the reinforced riverbank and new, straight-sided camping pads. “We had to remove all the grills and all the tables and redo the sites, then put the grills back.”

Seagle watched as John Thompson, TVA Facilities property worker, carefully set a new picnic table in place.

“We're pushing 600 tons of gravel, maybe a little more with riprap,” Seagle said. “And you’ll see we have several new pedestals. They were either hit by debris or eroded around or rotten.”

Next steps include reseeding and straw, then resetting some fire rings.

But they’ve tackled the bulk of the work.

“There's been some people … who’ve been really surprised that it's back to this shape this fast, in a five- or six-week period,” Mullendore said.  “We just work to get it done, you know?”

Restored campsites along the French Broad River at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground await campers for the spring season. 

A New Season

The coordinated efforts to repair, restore and ready the campgrounds mean they’ll open on time – even though campers, boaters and others may see signs that recovery is still underway at TVA lands and river access spots across the region.

That means an opportunity, in many cases, for upgrades.

“A lot of these sites, where it got washed away, now they’re a lot bigger, a lot nicer, a lot more level than what they were before,” Seagle said. “Hopefully the campers will get some good enjoyment out of it."

He emphasized the partnership with Natural Resources to bring recreational opportunities to the people of the Valley region.

A third partner – concessionaires – will soon join the mix, helping campers enjoy the region’s incredible lands, rivers and recreation opportunities.

“We all want to make sure people have the best experience out here that they can,” McNutt said.

Photo Gallery

A resident bald eagle at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground. 

Brandon Tincher, TVA watershed representative, looks at restored campsites in the Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground.

Trees remained intact but campsites suffered significant damage and required restoration.

Campers had to cut their trips short and evacuate when Hurricane Helene flooded Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground.

Jason Jarnagin, Mike Seagle and McNutt stand near a soon-to-be-anchored fire ring at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground.

Douglas Campground Tailwater Campground opens again to the public after Hurricane Helene damage.

PHOTO AT TOP OF PAGE: The restored bank and sites at Douglas Dam Tailwater Campground.