Tool libraries allow community members to borrow a wide range of equipment for household jobs.
Photographer: John Ewing/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Storm Recovery? That’s a Job for a Tool Library
As federal emergency assistance dries up, community tool-lending programs have emerged as a hyperlocal way to fill the gap and improve climate resilience.
After Hurricane Helene struck western North Carolina in September 2024, Kevin Miller fired up his old chainsaw and spent hours sawing through trunks and limbs of downed trees. The toll was enormous: The storm had flooded homes, blocked roads and toppled electric lines, leaving millions without power or clean water. “I was just awestruck,” recalled Miller, a carpenter who lives in the mountain town of Weaverville, 10 miles north of Asheville. “I got in my truck and started driving, but I couldn’t get anywhere.”
By the time Miller had managed to clear a path into town, his chainsaw’s blade was dull. Down at the local community center, he found a mobile setup of the Asheville Tool Library and its partner, the West North Carolina Repair Cafe. On tailgates and folding tables in the parking lot, volunteers were at work, fixing power tools and rehabbing emergency equipment like generators. In short order, workers there tuned up his saw and replaced the chain with a sharp one from their truck. “Basically, they made the thing run like the day you bought it off the shelf,” Miller said.