Residents in western North Carolina, cut off by flooded roads and no power or cell service, waited for clean water on Monday following Hurricane Helene’s devastation in the Southeastern US, which claimed over 130 lives.
Government authorities and humanitarian organizations were collaborating to deliver essential supplies to Asheville and nearby mountain towns impacted by the disaster through both airlifting and truck transportation.
The death toll rose on Monday, with at least 133 people killed across six states as the extent of the devastation became clearer from Florida’s Gulf Coast to the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia. At least 35 people were reported killed in the North Carolina county containing Asheville. The death toll in Georgia increased from 17 to 25 on Monday.
North Carolina’s governor, Roy Cooper, anticipated an increase in casualties as rescuers and emergency workers accessed isolated areas due to collapsed roads, failing infrastructure, and extensive flooding.
The water system in Asheville suffered significant damage, leading residents to have to transport buckets to a creek in order to obtain water for flushing toilets. They cautiously observed their footing in an area where a massive wave of water had washed away every tree and patch of land, leaving behind just mud.
Neighbors exchanged food and water and offered comfort to one another. “That’s the upside in all of this,” remarked Sommerville Johnston outside her home, which has been experiencing a power outage since Friday.
She intended to share venison stew with the neighborhood from her non-functioning freezer before it spoils. “She simply said to bring your bowl and spoon.”
Others stood in a long line that stretched for over a block at Mountain Valley Water, a vendor of water, in order to refill milk jugs and any other available containers.
Derek Farmer, who came equipped with three gallon apple juice containers, mentioned he was ready for the storm but has become anxious after going three days with no water. Farmer expressed that he didn’t anticipate the severity of the situation.
Authorities cautioned that it would take a long time and be challenging to reconstruct after the extensive damage to homes and property. The storm caused disruption across the Southeast, with fatalities also reported in Florida, South Carolina, and Virginia.
Officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported on Monday that numerous roads in western North Carolina were shut down and over 1,000 individuals were being accommodated in shelters.
Cooper pleaded with local residents to refrain from traveling for their own safety and to ensure emergency vehicles have clear roads. Over 50 search teams are dispersed across the area searching for individuals who are stranded.
One mission involved rescuing 41 individuals located to the north of Asheville. According to Todd Hunt, the North Carolina National Guard Adjutant General, teams located individuals by monitoring both 911 calls and messages on social media.
A video displayed a large amount of wreckage, such as flipped pontoon boats and broken wooden docks, spread across the surface of Lake Lure, a scenic location nestled among the mountains near Asheville.
President Joe Biden announced on Monday that the federal government will support and stand by survivors and others in the nation’s southeast impacted by Helene for as long as necessary. He plans to request more funds from Congress for disaster aid and is planning to go to North Carolina later this week without interfering with life-saving search and rescue operations.
Helene made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area as a powerful Category 4 hurricane on Thursday night, bringing with it winds reaching speeds of 140 mph (225 kph). Helene, who was weakened, swiftly traveled across Georgia, causing heavy rainfall that flooded rivers in the Carolinas and Tennessee.
Seeking assistance and seeking a signal in North Carolina, a group of people gathered in Asheville on Monday to find a valuable commodity – a cell signal. From there, they texted a reassuring message to their friends and family: “I’m safe.”
“Is today the third day or the fourth day?” Colleen Burnet inquired. “Everything has been a haze.”
The storm caused the most severe flooding in North Carolina in 100 years. The town of Spruce Pine accumulated over 2 feet (61 centimeters) of rainfall from Tuesday to Saturday.
Jessica Drye Turner in Texas pleaded for help to save her family members stuck on their rooftop in Asheville as floodwaters increased. “They are observing 18-wheelers and cars drifting past,” Turner urgently posted on Facebook on Friday.
However, Turner mentioned in a subsequent message on Saturday that assistance didn’t come soon enough to rescue her elderly parents and 6-year-old nephew. They all drowned when the roof caved in.
She expressed that she and her sisters are experiencing immense sorrow, heartbreak, and devastation that cannot be fully described in words.
The state’s efforts to deliver clean water to Asheville were being hindered by mudslides blocking Interstate 40 and other highways. The county sheriff reported that police were preparing to dispatch officers to areas with remaining water, food, or gas due to reports of disputes and violence threats.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell visited southern Georgia on Sunday and was scheduled to be in North Carolina on Monday.
“It remains a highly active mission for search and rescue in western North Carolina,” Criswell stated. “We are aware that numerous communities are isolated due to the mountainous geography, resulting in road and bridge damage that disconnects certain regions.”
Devastation spanning from Florida to Virginia
On Florida’s Gulf Coast, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium was flooded with water, prompting staff to relocate two manatees and sea turtles. James Powell, the executive director of the aquarium, stated that while all the animals were unharmed, a significant amount of crucial equipment at the aquarium was either damaged or ruined.
Brian Kemp, the governor of Georgia, stated that the storm affected everyone without exception. The majority of individuals in and near Augusta, a city with a population of approximately 200,000 close to the South Carolina border, remained without electricity on Monday. Kemp and other authorities attempted to comfort residents by acknowledging their suffering.
Helene caused the highest number of fatalities in South Carolina since Hurricane Hugo struck the state in 1989, leaving 35 dead.
Climate change has worsened circumstances that enable these storms to flourish, quickly escalating in warming oceans and transforming into strong cyclones in just a few hours.
Tropical Storm Kirk has developed and has the potential to strengthen into a strong hurricane.
Tropical Storm Kirk developed on Monday in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and is forecasted to transform into a “significant and strong hurricane” by Tuesday night or Wednesday, as stated by the US National Hurricane Center. The storm was situated around 700 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands and had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. No coastal watches or warnings were in place, and the storm system posed no danger to land.