Greg Biffle started out willing to lend a hand, or a helicopter as the case happened to be, in the Hurricane Helene relief effort but ended up leading the charge.

The former NASCAR driver was asked by a friend if he would fly his helicopter to assist with a single-family rescue in western North Carolina on Sept. 28, which Biffle, 54, did. After witnessing the devastation, there was no turning back for Biffle.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame driver nominee was locked in like being in the middle of the Daytona 500.

"What started out to be helping one family that was stuck up in Banner Elk, which was the only thing I knew about, it's kind of taken on a life of its own," Biffle told The Tennessean Wednesday. "That family was at an Airbnb with a two young kids and didn't have enough baby formula and diapers because they were supposed to check out that day. So I thought, 'Maybe I'll go get them because if I don't who else is?' Not everybody has a helicopter and the means and the time on a moment's notice."

On that rescue attempt, which turned out to be unsuccessful because of low-lying clouds, Biffle was startled by what he saw below. After landing back at his shop in Mooresville, North Carolina, just north of Charlotte, Biffle posted on social media that he had been unable to rescue the family at Banner Elk but planned to try again the following day. The family did make it out on a bridge.

That's what thrust Biffle fully into the thick of what has turned into Operation Airdrop, a volunteer effort to provide disaster relief to those affected by the storm. As of Wednesday Biffle had flown nine days straight into the rescue areas.

"After I posted that first day I got like 4,000 messages in an hour and a half," Biffle said. "Messages like, 'I haven't heard from my parents. My brother's up there. My sister's there. My kids, my grandparents, my neighbors.' I don't think people knew the magnitude of it and neither did I. What I thought was one day of flying turned into a rescue mission of dire need."

Biffle and the others involved in the mission have flown food, water, insulin, baby formula, diapers, generators and other necessities to stranded individuals and families. More than 1 million people lost power and cell service during and after the storm.

Biffle's wife Christina has flown along on several of the missions and served as his navigator.

"These mountain areas are completely isolated," Biffle said. "Because there's not one road washed out. Every road is washed out for hundreds and hundreds of miles. It wasn't just one power pole that was knocked down, every power pole for miles and miles was knocked down. The roads are gone. The railroad is gone. This thing spans from South Carolina to Virginia."

The rescue operation Biffle is involved in started on Sept. 28 with two helicopters in the morning, eight by early in the afternoon and 20 by the end of the first day. The following day 35 helicopters were on board along with more and more volunteers.

The confirmed death toll from the hurricane reached 230 people earlier this week.

"What was reported to be 20 or 30 people lost their lives, I didn't say anything in those early interviews because what I saw was we've got big problems," Biffle said. "What you don't want to happen is to have casualties or people perish after the event because they're stranded. Those are preventable."

On many of his flights into the impacted areas Biffle said victims in need attempted to get his attention. One used a large mirror to alert Biffle.

Biffle planned to start an eight-day vacation three days after he was drawn into the rescue effort. He had a trip planned that he first decided to delay for a day and ultimately canceled after seeing the amount of work that was needed.

"The way I was raised was you don't live people behind," Biffle said. "I recognized right away with all of the people texting me and messaging me that there were desperate people. I wasn't going to stop until I felt like I'd done everything I could within my means. I'm blessed. My schedule was open. There were things I was able to move around. I had my helicopter, which ironically I wasn't planning on buying but ended up buying five months ago. All the stars just lined up."

Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Greg Biffle: NASCAR driver uses helicopter in Helene rescues, relief