Social media users shared a photo of two people standing over a man covered in mud in late September 2024 alongside a claim it showed workers rescuing six people from a North Carolina mountain building that collapsed in a mudslide due to Hurricane Helene.
The storm had led to at least 190 deaths as of this writing (archived) after wreaking havoc across Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, the Carolinas and Virginia.
Facebook user Mellanie Picklesimer appeared to first post the image on Sept. 30 (archived). She wrote: "Somebody praise with me!! We just got word that a friend of a family member took a builder crew to the NC mtns. They came upon a house collapsed in a mudslide. They began digging and were able to rescue 6 people!!! God is working and using the hands of those willing to go! Somebody SHOUT!"
Her post had been shared more than 11,000 times as of this writing. She also later broadcast a live video explaining what she knew of the photo and story, saying of the devastation left behind by Helene, "So many people are looking for hope in the middle of this."
Many other Facebook users have since shared the same story and photo, which appeared to show two men attempting to rescue another who was covered in mud and had his eyes closed.
In short, this picture truly did authentically show the rescue of one of six men following a building collapse. The rescue occurred at the YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly in Black Mountain, North Carolina. While we were unable to definitively confirm some of the minor details in the copied-and-pasted posts — such as the matter involving "a builder crew" — evidence we reviewed from a firsthand account reflected that the larger story of the rescue was true.
'The Taylorsville 6'
On Sept. 28, Facebook user Moises Rivera shared numerous photos and videos (archived) of rescue workers assisting at the extensively damaged YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly. The image of the man covered in mud was not included in the post, nor did it appear to be publicly visible anywhere on Rivera's timeline.
Rivera said in his post that on Sept. 27, people on site rescued six men who were visiting from the town of Taylorsville, from a fallen cabin (possibly a cottage) and who experienced "serious injuries."
Rivera's post read, in part:
6 men from the Taylorsville church were injured with serious injuries but were able to get evacuated yesterday early on by the rescue team and paramedics. They're believed to be in Asheville hospital but not confirmed. They do have a list of emergency contacts to reach to the families at the hospital. They asked no one drive there unless directly spoken to.
This was a miracle, the men that were staying next door to the fallen cabin ran out and risked their lives to save all 6 men that were being dragged in the rubble and carried to safety. Everyone then learned of the situation voluntarily started to help in anyway they could.
There was unity from all the men no matter where we came from or what church we belonged to, yesterday they all worked together to get the injured men to the ambulance and comfort one another. Boundaries were broken and new bonds were made. God bless this district.
Hours later, Rivera posted another update (archived), calling the six injured men the "Taylorsville 6":
6 men have been hospitalized in Asheville area, they have not able to reach their families as roads are blocked and phone service is down. Please keep them in your prayers and when the time comes we will unite and raise funding for them. These men do not have insurance or paid time off, they depend on their physical strength and capacity to make a living. Please consider this and prepare a love offering of any amount, I know these men personally and they are close friends. They would never ask for anything from anyone, but we will give it to them in sign of love. #Taylorsville6
Further Evidence
Under Rivera's initial post, he uploaded a photo of two men and commented: "These two men saw the 6 being dragged and initiated the rescue, the Taylorsville 6 were minutes from being buried alive."
(Facebook user Moises Rivera Moises)
The man on the left of the above image was wearing similar clothes to one of the people in the picture of two men digging.
In another comment, Rivera posted a video showing unidentified people appearing to help an injured and mud-soaked man away from the floodwaters and into shelter. The clip showed the same man wearing the white shirt, hat and dark pants helping the person inside.
Further, the Facebook page for Salvando Almas para Cristo (Saving Souls for Christ) posted a video from the YMCA site showing several photos of people caring for injured men in a gymnasium and other rooms. The last picture shown in the video displayed the same photo from Picklesimer's post and all of the other copied-and-pasted Facebook posts.
Additional Details
We reached out to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety to ask about Picklesimer's story and its accompanying photo. A spokesperson for North Carolina Emergency Management said in an email on Oct. 2 they were not able to provide information about the described rescue, writing: "We checked with our operations unit for NCEM, and we don't have specifics on this particular rescue, but this shows how people are helping people in our state in many different ways, including doing brave acts of heroism that you [described]."
Meanwhile, a person representing The Taylorsville Times newspaper told us by phone they had yet to become familiar with the story. After all, Rivera's posts mentioning what he called the "Taylorsville 6" had not received a large number of shares.
Via Messenger, we sent questions to Picklesimer and the manager of the Salvando Almas para Cristo Facebook page but did not yet receive answers. Also, a representative with YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly said via Messenger that they could not confirm whether or not the photo originated on their property.
As of this writing, many areas across North Carolina and the other affected states were still in the early stages of recovering from Helene's devastation. The Charlotte Observer reported of affected areas experiencing "widespread cellphone and internet blackouts." We will update this story if we receive any further details.
Statement from Rivera
Following the initial publishing of this article, we received a response from Rivera via Messenger, in which he provided more information about the gathering and picture.
Rivera told us he was one of about 350 men who gathered at the YMCA site for an annual retreat, and that he belonged to the Apostolic Assembly of the Faith in Christ Jesus. In the message, he said the group all arrived on Sept. 26 and the mudslide happened on the following morning at around 9:00 a.m. EDT.
"There were three six-person cabins/cottages near the gym that we used as a sanctuary," he said. "One of the cottages got swept away in a mudslide and made a rumble noise that alerted the men that were in the cottages next door. They rushed out and, in shock, some of them went straight for the rescue as they heard their fellow friends call for help. Three of the six men that were in the cabin that was swept away were buried in the mud and were pulled out by the neighboring men."
Then, Rivera addressed the picture, saying, "That photo was taken by one of the first rescuers. He did not want this image out to the public until the person in the photo gave his permission. This photo was leaked, taken out of context and just lacked any respect to the victims overall. As a result, it has caused confusion to the public."
"I can confirm that I know personally and I am very close to the person being pulled out of the mud. The person being pulled out of the mud is the Pastor of the Apostolic Assembly Church in Taylorsville. The other five are his members. The [rescuers] that were staying next door to the cabin are my personal friends and we assist the same church in Charlotte, the Remnant Church Apostolic Assembly. The other men that were staying in the third cottage assist the Apostolic Assembly in Winston-Salem."