Helene devastated towns in western North Carolina. Three weeks later, dozens of people are missing and thousands are without power. Volunteers, donations and search and rescue teams have poured in.

Three weeks after Tropical Storm Helene turned quaint creeks and rivers into deadly forces of nature in western North Carolina on Sept. 27, statistics still feel inadequate to describe the depth of its wounds.

On the first day of early voting, residents of western North Carolina weighed which candidates would most help their yearslong recovery.