AppState BioBlitz postponed
Hi all, I hope this message finds you safe and sound! Thank you for signing on for this year's Fall BioBlitz at AppState! We were going to compete with UNC Greensboro and UNC Wilmington again, and challenging UNC Asheville to join the competition. Unfortunately, hurricane/tropical storm Helene had other plans for the NC mountains. Both AppState and UNC Asheville campuses remain closed for this week and the BioBlitz here in the mountains is canceled. We will reschedule at another time.
The storm has cleared but rescues are still underway and a lot of people in the mountains are still without power or cell coverage. Bridges and roads have washed out, a lot of property was lost, and the death toll keeps climbing. My thoughts are with everyone who has lost loved ones and homes in the area. We're checking on folks here in Boone and more people are checking in as their power and cell coverage returns. Many are stuck in their houses because of the road conditions, others have lost everything. As of now, I have not heard from anyone in Asheville yet. That area was hit particularly hard and it will likely be a while before their power and internet gets restored.
I got lucky - my house is fine, power/water/internet are back, and I'm trying to help my community locally as best as I can. This means I likely won't be doing much on iNaturalist for a little while. However, I can get online so feel free to reach out to me if you need! If you are able to use the app but can't get into your email, you can send me a message through iNaturalist.
We will leave this project active for students staying on campus or anyone using the university as a temporary shelter location. However, a lot of the walkways and trails in the area have been compromised by flooding and have not yet been assessed for safety. Parks are still roped off and closed. Use common sense and please don't put yourself in danger for making observations!
