No, Chimney Rock is not being seized, Rutherford County Sheriff Aaron Ellenburg confirmed. The sheriff took to social media on Thursday to dispel rumors that had been circulating about the town’s seizure by the government.

Officials are trying to debunk rumors spreading on social media in the wake of Hurricane Helene’s devastation of western North Carolina. Rutherford County Emergency Management in North Carolina took to Facebook to set the record straight after conspiracy theories circulated about an alleged “government seizure of Chimney Rock” on social

The ringing of phones, radio squawks and typing fill the room of the emergency operations center (EOC) for Rutherford County located at the Senior Center.