“What’s probably happened to these poor consumers is where they’re in an area where there’s not a lot of awareness about flood insurance. … They’re in one of these places where the risk is lower and there’s less awareness and they’re just not buying flood insurance,” she said.

A FEMA spokesman put it simply what many might not expect: Floods don’t follow lines on a map.

“Where it can rain, it can flood,” the agency said in an emailed statement. “Whether a property is inside or outside the high risk flood zone, FEMA encourages property owners to consider purchasing flood insurance for the protection and peace of mind it brings.”

The help available may not be enough

Unlike individuals who lost everything or certain nonprofits, the businesses must repay the federal funding through the U.S. Small Business Administration loans that Foam Products applied for. Muse isn’t sure which way to go. All options are bad.

The best estimate of what cleanup and demolition could cost is well over $20 million, and that doesn’t include replacing equipment and machinery. Two things further complicate the matter.

First, the company recently invested $15 million in a new facility in Calhoun, Georgia. The new plant has not yet opened and Foam Products is low on cash, he said.

Second, the company manufactures a custom underwear product for a customer that brings in $4 million annually. Since the flooded plant cannot produce it, the account will dry up.

“It’s devastating. I mean, how do you recover from that? I don’t know,” he said.

His company’s options, as bad as they currently stand:

Get a big loan.

Issues: The size of a possible SBA loan is unclear and I don’t know if it will be enough to try to rebuild. The company’s existing loan for the new facility and the loss of a major customer compound the problem of taking on more debt.

Take out what they can and bulldoze the building to sell the land.

Problems: The company is unlikely to recoup the money just from selling the property to cover costs. Besides, who knows if they can find a buyer after a huge flood?

Tear down the building, rebuild and sell the new building.

Problems: The same problems would come into play, although perhaps the company would make a little more on the sale. It still probably wouldn’t cover the costs of the work to get to that point.

“The biggest question is not whether we start back or not. Probably not,” Muse said. “The question is what do we do with the building and the land? What makes the most economic sense?”

Businesses damaged by Helene face millions of dollars in repairs

The facilities at Foam Products Corporation in Erwin were damaged after Helene’s flooding.

The Old Hickory Buildings, which sits at the end of South Industrial Drive and also lacks flood insurance, appears to be in a better place moving forward, according to Jeff Bratcher, senior vice president of external operations.

“We don’t really want to make loans,” Bratcher told Knox News in an email. “We have already moved in some large excavation equipment and are working on the site now. We will do our best to clean up the site. Next, assess the building and foundation. Hopefully we can start rebuilding next year.”

The industrial park has employed more than 250 people, almost all of whom are out of work, according to Austin Finch, Unicoi County Economic Development Director. Finch wrote a letter Oct. 15 to Tennessee Community and Economic Development Commissioner Stuart McWhorter requesting state aid for these businesses.

“The loss of these industries is a staggering blow to our workforce, our families and our local economy,” Finch wrote. “In an already economically vulnerable area, the knock-on effects of this disaster are far-reaching, from the immediate loss of jobs to the long-term impact on our tax base and public services. Simply put, without special assistance, Unicoi County faces an uncertain future.”

The state’s response has been encouraging, Finch told Knox News, but he doesn’t yet have details on what that might look like.

However, Muse is able to put everything into perspective. Because he called for the plant to close for part of the day on Thursday and remain closed on Friday as the floodwaters rose, none of his employees were in the way. It was the first time in the plant’s 15 years of operation that it closed due to weather, he said.

“I couldn’t have lived with myself doing that,” he said. “That would have been it for me. I care deeply about our employees.”

Tyler Whetstone is an investigative reporter focused on accountability journalism. Connect with Tyler via email at [email protected]. Follow X, formerly known as Twitter, @tyler_whetstone.