Post–Hurricane Helene, this community is getting creative with solar

In Asheville, North Carolina, a low-income, mostly immigrant neighborhood called Emma is turning to solar power after Hurricane Helene knocked out the city's electricity and water for weeks. A community group called Poder Emma just added a 46-kilowatt solar array (about 100 panels) to the roof of its cultural center, which will lower the group's electric bills. The panels were donated by a disaster-relief nonprofit, installed by a local solar company, and backed by a bridge loan to cover costs until federal rebates come through.

Since a full battery backup system was too expensive, the group built a cheaper workaround: a trailer with solar panels and a small battery that can plug into the community center to run the internet, refrigeration, and the pump for a well drilled after the storm. The same trailer doubles as a portable power source for a home-repair crew's tools, so they don't overload the fuse boxes in the older homes they're fixing.

The group is also testing ways to bring solar to mobile homes, which are common in the area but usually too structurally weak to hold panels. Their fix: build a custom porch onto the home and mount panels on its roof. One household already has this setup, paired with a battery, at no cost to the homeowner, thanks to donated equipment and a regional solar company's assistance program. If it gets more funding, the company hopes to build more of these solar porches for other homes in the area.