Asheville lifts boil water notice for first time since Helene flooding

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Asheville residents were told Monday that the water is safe to drink again nearly two months after Hurricane Helene caused flooding and damaged the water system.

Asheville city officials lifted the boil water notice for all customers on Monday at 11 a.m.

Residents who had running water have been boiling it since Sept. 26 when Helene dropped more than 30 inches of rain in parts of western North Carolina , causing rivers to swell and flood communities, claiming at least 103 lives in the state .

Flooding wiped out Asheville's primary and secondary water systems. Once the systems were restored, a boil water notice was put in place.

"Water Resources lab staff finished sampling the distribution system and results have confirmed that the water supply is free from contaminants," the city said in a statement.

When Asheville city schools reopened one month after Helene, district officials worked with the nonprofit Water Mission to install water filtration systems to provide safe drinking water for their students.

Buncombe County said customers could resume normal water system usage but asked residents to temporarily avoid large-volume activities like filling bathtubs, watering landscaping, filling swimming pools and taking abnormally long showers.