This week, filmmakers Katie Hawkins, a McDowell County native, and Cory Locatelli returned to the mountains to film for their upcoming documentary “Small Town Mountain Strong.”

The feature documentary explores what long-term rebuilding looks like in small towns after a climate disaster like Hurricane Helene, which hit North Carolina on Sept. 27, 2024, according to a news release.

The visit includes filming participants in the Buck Creek community of McDowell County, the town of Spruce Pine in Mitchell County and Lansing in Ashe County.

While in North Carolina, Hawkins and Locatelli will share excerpts from the documentary at the University of North Carolina at Asheville’s Post-Helene Symposium on Thursday, Sept. 25, and at Film Fest-ish in Lansing on Saturday, Sept. 27. Both events will

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