Emergency Supplies On Way to Isolated North Carolina Areas Hit by Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Helene has caused immense damage with the death roll rising as emergency supplies are rushed to areas hit hard.

Crews work to clean up the tons of sand and debris pushed onto Gulf Boulevard from Hurricane Helene storm surge, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Madeira Beach, Fla. / Mandatory Credit - Luis Santana/Tampa Bay Times via AP

Hurricane Helene made landfall last Thursday and remnants of the storm were dissipating by Monday. However, the amount of damage left in its wake will have an impact for days, months and potentially years.

Florida’s Big Bend was hit first, but the storm was devastating several other states. Deaths were reported there, Georiga, South Carolina, Virginia and North Carolina, with the toll quickly approaching triple-digits.

Unfortunately, the number of deaths caused by the storm is expected to continue rising, according to Governor Roy Cooper. Search and rescue teams are out looking for people who are stranded and doing their best to survive amid roads that have collapsed, infrastructure crumbling and flooding prevalent.

One of the areas that were hit hardest was Asheville in North Carolina. 30 people have been reported dead in the county, making up a large portion of the reported casualties to this point.

Emergency supplies are being airlifted to area, as Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder has pledged food and water will be there by Monday.

“We hear you. We need food and we need water,” Pinder said on a Sunday call with reporters, via Kate Payne, Jeffrey Collins and Patrick Whittle of the Associated Press. “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.”

Power and cellular service remain extremely limited, making the rescue efforts that much more difficult. As a result, Cooper is pleading that residents avoid travel if at all possible to allow the emergency vehicles and personnel to do their jobs to the best of their abilities.

As shared by the Associated Press, “One rescue effort involved saving 41 people north of Asheville. Another mission focused on saving a single infant. The teams found people through both 911 calls and social media messages, North Carolina National Guard Adjutant General Todd Hunt said.”

Officials have cautioned that rebuilding homes and businesses in the area would take some time. There are going to be challenges in accomplishing that as well given just how damaging this storm was to Asheville and other areas in the state.

According to President Joe Biden, the administration is giving the states “everything we have” as they battle the impact of Hurricane Helene.