ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) –Tropical Storm Helene has made driving around the Asheville area an adventure — and not in a good way. If you plan to get out around midday Friday, maybe reconsider, because President Donald Trump’s planned visit is likely to make many roads unnavigable.
Significant traffic impacts are anticipated midday, likely between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., Buncombe County officials said. Residents are encouraged to plan accordingly. Details about road closures will be shared if they become available.
The president said he would visit Southern California, in addition to Western North Carolina, on Friday. But officials have not said exactly where in WNC he plans to go, only that he plans to tour disaster zones.
Comments on social media range from people worried the visit would interfere with ongoing relief work to pleas for more federal help.
A spokesperson from Gov. Josh Stein’s office said the governor planned to meet the president on the tarmac at Asheville Regional Airport.
Some of the local businesses in the Swannanoa area have been alerted to road closures caused by the president’s immanent visit. State Highway Patrol officers have been swarming U.S. 70 in Swannanoa all morning.
Drivers should remain clear of the Swannanoa area around lunchtime and into the early afternoon to avoid getting caught up in a traffic jam.