A crisis is unfolding in western North Carolina as officials scramble to deliver more water, food and other supplies to areas left without power and cell service on Monday, three days after Hurricane Helene tore through the US.
The death toll has reached at least 102 people across several states. A county in North Carolina that includes the mountain city of Asheville reported 30 fatalities.
Governor Roy Cooper anticipates the death toll will increase as rescue teams and emergency workers gain access to areas cut off by collapsed roads, failing infrastructure and extensive flooding.
Supplies are being airlifted to the region surrounding the isolated city of Asheville. Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder vowed to have food and water delivered to the city by Monday, reports the Express US.
“We hear you. We need food and we need water,” Pinder stated during a Sunday call with reporters. “My staff has been making every request possible to the state for support and we’ve been working with every single organization that has reached out. What I promise you is that we are very close.”
One person who went to assist in the Lake Lure/Chimney Rock area described the scene as post-apocalyptic. They said: “It’s so overwhelming you don’t even know how to fathom what recovery looks like, let alone where to start. Going to be a long path to recovery.”
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Asheville’s water infrastructure has taken a massive blow. Locals trekked with buckets to creeks in search of water for basic needs, treading carefully across landscapes stripped bare by the storm’s fury, leaving nothing but mud in its wake.
Rescue workers from the Pamlico County rescue are in Chimney Rock (
(Image: Pamlico County Special Operations))
Community bonds were evident as neighbors exchanged food, water, and offered solace amidst the chaos. “That’s the blessing so far in this,” expressed Sommerville Johnston in front of her residence.
Recovery from the extensive devastation will be a daunting challenge, officials cautioned; homes and properties have been obliterated, disrupting lives across the Southeast, with fatalities also emerging from Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency disclosed on Monday that a myriad of roads remained impassable in western North Carolina, while shelters are currently accommodating over a thousand evacuees.
Road travel within western North Carolina is highly discouraged by the governor, who cites the twin imperatives of citizen safety and maintaining access for emergency responders. Search operations involved over 50 teams conducting missions throughout the affected area, including a noteworthy rescue of 41 individuals and a separate, intense effort to save an infant.
Lifesaving teams located victims via 911 calls and pleas for help on social media platforms, according to North Carolina National Guard Adjutant General Todd Hunt.
Video captured the aftermath of a storm at Lake Lure, revealing a chaotic scene strewn with debris, including capsized pontoon boats and shattered wood docks, in this idyllic location nestled amidst the mountains near Asheville.
The death toll surpassed 100 (
(Image: Tampa Bay Times))
President Joe Biden remarked on the devastating effects of the recent storm, labeling them “stunning” and announced intentions to tour the disaster sites this weekproviding his presence doesn’t hinder ongoing rescue or restoration efforts. Talking briefly with journalists, he assured that the federal administration is putting “everything we have” into assisting states in coping with the aftereffects of the tempest.
Lashing the coast, Hurricane Helene made landfall late Thursday in Florida’s Big Bend as a Category 4 hurricane, boasting winds of up to 140 mph. Helene deteriorated as it whipped through Georgia but then deluged the Carolinas and Tennessee with relentless rain, causing waterways to overflow and placing pressure on dams.
In response to the raging waters, numerous rescues have taken place. This includes an operation in East Tennessee’s rural Unicoi County, where helicopters air-lifted dozens of individuals, consisting of patients and staff, from atop a hospital building on Friday.
Sunday night still saw over 2 million home and business owners grappling with power outages. Of those affected, South Carolina bore the brunt, prompting Gov Henry McMaster to call for patience as recovery teams tackled the problem of snapped electricity poles across the region.
“We want people to remain calm. Help is on the way, it is just going to take time,” Gov. McMaster stated during a press briefing outside the Aiken County airport.
Hurricane Helene brought winds of 140mph (
(Image: Tampa Bay Times))
Floodwater is hampering rescue efforts in North Carolina