Hurricane Helene update: Norfolk Southern rail line near Asheville will be out for months

Norfolk Southern Railway track running through Asheville, North Carolina, will be out of service for at least three months due to damage caused by Hurricane Helene.

The deadly Hurricane Helene made landfall Sept. 26, severely flooding and damaging infrastructure and homes across multiple southern states. Hundreds of NS railroaders have been working to restore rail service on impacted rail lines as quickly as possible, NS said on its website. 

The railroad's AS Line runs between Morristown, Tennessee, to Salisbury, North Carolina.

Knoxville, Tennessee-based WBIR-TV reported yesterday on the status of the AS Line and its impact on the Asheville community. Service has been restored to AS Line track between Morristown and Newport, Tennessee, and between Salisbury and Old Fort, North Carolina. Track between Newport and Old Fort, which run through Asheville, will require significant repair and replacement.

According to NS, around 21,500 feet of track was washed out between Morristown and Salisbury, and more than 50,000 feet of track and multiple bridges were damaged during the storm. The remote nature and mountain topography of the Asheville region combined with the rough post-storm and flood conditions have made it difficult for teams to assess damage, particularly over Black Mountain, where the railroad reports much of the track has been destroyed.

NS estimates that the line between Asheville and Newport will be restored by late January 2025. The Class I is still evaluating the track between Asheville and Old Fort; no service restoration date has been announced.