Western North Carolina business has suffered a lot from rockslides this winter. Some businesses in Cherokee County claim a rockslide on I-64 blocking traffic to and from Chattanooga has caused them to lose 80-90% of business. State agents are trying to acquire federal disaster assistance for the area. In the meantime, they recommend businesses getting loans or other assistance from the federal Small Business Administration. Unlike the federal government, business owners (who are neither authorized to levy taxes nor print money) are skittish about taking out loans when they’re already hurting financially.