The storm severely damaged Interstate 40, a vital freight corridor, along with other key trucking routes throughout the Southeast. Recovery efforts may take weeks or even longer.

Hurricane Helene has left a devastating impact across the Southeast, killing over 100 people, leaving millions without power, and washing out key highways crucial for delivering aid, according to authorities.

Western North Carolina remains largely inaccessible, with all roads closed, as reported by the state transportation department. Interstate 40, a major east-west trucking route, is impassable in multiple sections, and Interstate 26 is shut down at the Tennessee border. High winds knocked down trees and power lines, while floodwaters washed away homes, tractor-trailers, and large sections of highways. Social media footage revealed truck cabs filled with water and fallen trees crushing trucks, adding to the visuals of one of the nation’s deadliest storms on record.

The delivery of bottled water has become a top priority as the storm disrupted power to water treatment facilities in the region. “That’s going to take weeks, if not longer, for an appropriate recovery to the water supply,” said Ben Greenberg, President and CEO of the North Carolina Trucking Association. Efforts are underway to deliver as much water as possible to western North Carolina.

A van was seen floating in floodwaters near Biltmore Village in Asheville, North Carolina, after Hurricane Helene made landfall on September 28 with winds up to 140 mph in Florida’s Big Bend area.

Beyond the tragic loss of life and damage to property, carriers already struggling from a prolonged freight recession face additional challenges. Complicating matters further, a strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association has affected East Coast and Gulf Coast ports. “It’s a significant situation on two fronts for an already vulnerable supply chain,” Greenberg explained, pointing out that a major access route to Tennessee has been shut down indefinitely.

The combination of the hurricane and the dockworker strike threatens to shutter some carriers in the Southeast region, which has already been weakened by a two-year freight recession. “We will see companies, unfortunately, likely go out of business,” Greenberg warned.

However, the storm is not expected to lead to any lasting improvement in freight rates. FTR Transportation Intelligence CEO Jonathan Starks noted on LinkedIn that while some localized demand and rate increases may occur around the Southeast, the hurricane is not anticipated to cause widespread infrastructure damage or significant disruption to freight movements. “There does not seem to be widespread infrastructure damage or extreme limitations on getting loads into or out of the hurricane zone,” Starks wrote.