A report from the North Carolina state auditor’s office has found that a Buncombe County community care station set up to assist residents in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene cost an estimated $27.4 million to operate.The care station, which opened at Owen Pool in Swannanoa, provided showers, laundry services, bathrooms, water, cell service and WiFi, and access to counseling ...
A report from the North Carolina state auditor’s office has found that a Buncombe County community care station set up to assist residents in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene cost an estimated $27.4 million to operate.
The care station, which opened at Owen Pool in Swannanoa, provided showers, laundry services, bathrooms, water, cell service and WiFi, and access to counseling services. The site was in operation for more than six months and had an average daily cost of $145,217.77, according to the report.
“The services provided by a Community Care Station are responsive in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster, but analysis and monitoring of cost, use, and need should be more frequently conducted, particularly in this case with costs running over $145,000 per day,” the report’s authors wrote. “Planning for future disaster response should include contingencies for this type of facility.”
The review, which is part of auditor Dave Boliek’s monitoring of Helene relief spending, was conducted by the department’s rapid response division.
SLSCO, Ltd, a Texas-based general contracting and construction management firm that provides disaster response services, operated the facility and billed North Carolina Emergency Management, according to invoices included in the audit. SLSCO often works with federal and state governments on large-scale construction projects and has been awarded contracts for the border wall and fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border.
During a June 9 meeting of the Governor’s Advisory Committee on WNC Recovery, Matt Calabria, director of the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina, mentioned the report, saying he appreciated the “auditor’s attention” to the costs of running the site and that his group would continue investigating the station’s operations.
Calabria did stress that the services were procured in line with state emergency purchasing protocols and the care stations set up after Helene were done so in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other local partners.
“When you have a disaster strike, especially when running water is unavailable, obviously, folks need these basic services,” Calabria said. “And on an emergency basis, they tend not to be cheap.”
What did the auditor’s office find?
Jacob Biba is the Helene recovery reporter at the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected].