Zeb Smathers

“He wasn’t named the recovery sidekick. He was named the recovery czar,”

Zeb Smathers · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-24

Smathers said Whatley was named the recovery czar, not the recovery sidekick, and that his leadership and presence has been absent.

“His leadership and presence has been absent.”

Zeb Smathers · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-24

Smathers said Whatley's leadership and presence has been absent and that he has never heard from him.

“Everything was flooded. We lost homes, businesses, things that we had rebuilt from ’21, gone again,”

Zeb Smathers · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-24

Zeb Smathers, Canton's Democratic mayor, recalled that everything was flooded and homes, businesses, and things rebuilt from 2021 were gone again after Helene.