Its facilities have been closed since Sept. 26. Sibelco’s mines sit north of downtown in an area called the Spruce Pine Mining District. Like much of the region, Mitchell County has sustained ...

The company sells its quartz under the brand name IOTA. Its mines are north of downtown in an area called the Spruce Pine Mining District. On Google Maps they look like wide, white sandy beaches.

The water in the business district of Spruce Pine is long gone, but the memory is still marked on a window by the river to show how high the water was at one point. Nearly six months after Helene ...