Second EPA mobile water laboratory deployed to North Carolina to assist communities impacted by Hurricane Helene

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (October 21, 2024) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deployed a second mobile laboratory to Watauga County, North Carolina, to support the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ), North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), and local health departments in drinking water testing efforts.

Placing a second mobile laboratory in Watauga County will expand water testing capacity in rural communities in more remote parts of North Carolina that were impacted by Hurricane Helene. To date, the mobile laboratory in Asheville has tested more than 500 drinking water samples to support NCDEQ, NCDHHS, and Buncombe County, and EPA remains committed to augmenting county health department and state resources to ensure communities impacted by the storm have access to the needed analyses.  

EPA’s mobile laboratories can only accept water samples directly from water utilities, NCDEQ, and local health departments – not residents. Private well owners whose wells were completely flooded or otherwise damaged by the storm are urged to contact their local health department to request testing. Additional information for well owners is available in a NCDHHS Fact Sheet on well disinfection.

For more information on the mobile lab and water testing updates, visit EPA Hurricane Helene Response.

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