UNC Charlotte students help design bridges for Helene-destroyed roads

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Recovering Western North Carolina from Helene is an all-hands-on-deck project — including for students at UNC Charlotte.

Engineering students in a new class are helping to design bridges lost to Hurricane Helene in Ashe County.

“This is the kind of thing that we call resilience, that people are willing to help each other,” said Professor Shenen Chen. “A lot of places are still there’s no access, so the students will have to do something extraordinary”

Chen leads the independent study of 13 students. For some, the connection is personal.

“I go home every weekend. I can get to my house easy, but it’s like, these people 40 minutes from me can’t even get to their house, or their house is gone,” said UNCC Senior Nathan Hall, from Ferguson in Wilkes County. “So just trying to help out your neighbor and your neighbor county.”

His personal connection is shared by Emily Davis, a former UNCC Charlotte student and now engineer in Ashe County. She and her husband Leeth founded Lansing’s Bridge to Recovery after the storm, a nonprofit helping people rebuild their private roads and bridges. 

“We’re seeing a lot of washout and damage to even destruction of things that have been put in place since the storm to gain access,” Davis said.

It was Davis’s idea to get UNC Charlotte involved to help them design the bridges.

“The students will assess hydraulic and structural needs and provide us with engineered designs of those crossings,” Davis said.

Not only do the students get real-world experience, but they also say it’s fulfilling to know they’re making a difference in their community.

“What really gives me that satisfaction is making that impact,” said Sophomore Gabriel Jugan. “It’s kind of that validation that what I’m studying for, what I’m pursuing, is something real and worthwhile for me to continue putting my effort into.”

They hope to take a field trip up to Ashe County over spring break to see the need in person. As of now, the goal is to finish one bridge per student this semester. For future semesters, both Davis and Chen say they hope to expand.