America’s largest privately-owned estate has abruptly shut down in Asheville after Hurricane Helene caused extensive flooding and building damage along the 8,000 acre property.

Hurricane Helene's​ massive rains and flooding is a major health and safety risk for residents exposed to potential waterborne illnesses and other dangers.

Hurricane Helene was a historic storm that will be on the minds of those affected for years to come. During the evening of Sept. 26, the storm made landfall along Florida’s Big Bend area as a category 4 with wind speeds of 140 mph.

The storm pummeled nearby Biltmore Village, a mixed-use neighborhood with homes, shops, and restaurants, leaving more historic buildings destroyed and flooded. In an interview with 7 News WSPA, business owner Thomas Young said, “We’re pretty certain that we were totally under water, and the river went pretty much through our building.”

Aerial footage is capturing the extent of Hurricane Helene's cataclysmic impact on Asheville, North Carolina. Watch the aerial footage.

Satellite images taken after Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina show washed-out streets and buildings, downed trees, and more.

A week after Hurricane Helene's catastrophic landfall, Florida and especially North Carolina face a grim reality with a death toll reaching 215. The hurricane's wrath left communities uprooted, with North Carolina's mountainous regions being the hardest hit.