Hurricane Helene death toll rises as impact assessment begins: NPR

Rescue teams in the southeastern United States and southern Appalachia scrambled to respond to the destruction caused by Hurricane Helene as more than 2.7 million homes and businesses were without power on Saturday and remained at risk of flooding.

Moody's Analytics expects $15 billion to $26 billion in property damage from the hurricane, which was downgraded to a tropical storm late Friday and became a post-tropical cyclone on Saturday.

At least 56 people were killed in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, according to the Associated Press. The dead included three firefighters, a mother and her one-month-old twins, and an 89-year-old woman who was struck by a tree that hit her home.

The White House said it approved requests for emergency declarations from the governors of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, giving the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorization to provide emergency assistance. In addition, around 1,500 federal disaster relief personnel were deployed to the region.

In Florida, beaches along the coast near Tampa remained closed while rescue and recovery efforts continued. Andrew Swan, who lives in a home near the beach, told reporter Stephanie Colombini of NPR member station WUSF that he weathered the storm alone with water up to his chest.

“I mean, everyone is kind of in shock and just trying to pick up the pieces. I mean, nobody really expected it,” Swan said. As the water rose, Swan said he was sleeping on a kitchen counter with his legs over his stove.

A barn and Christmas trees were seen in high water in Ashe County near West Jefferson, N.C., on Friday.

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In North Carolina, Helene produced unusually strong winds – up to 140 miles per hour – on land, the strongest observed on the North Carolina coast since modern meteorological records began in the 19th century.

Experts said they were most concerned about the impending debris flow.

“The biggest concern here for me is debris flows, which are very wet, move very quickly and can travel long distances,” Brad Johnson, who researches landslides and erosion at Davidson College, told NPR member station WUNC.

Johnson added that debris flows can travel over a mile, carrying rocks, trees and other hazards.

The city in western North Carolina is waiting for water and electricity

Widespread flooding and landslides in western North Carolina hampered rescue operations Saturday, as did a lack of cell service. More than 600,000 homes and businesses nationwide were without power Saturday evening, according to Poweroutage.us.

Officials said non-emergency traffic on the roads also complicated the response. The North Carolina Department of Transportation said all roads in the region should be considered closed, noting that Interstates 40 and 26 were impassable: “Travel in this area for non-emergency purposes hinders the necessary emergency response,” it said.

Local officials urged people to stay home while it was safe to do so.

A man walks near a flooded area near the Swannanoa River after Hurricane Helene in Asheville, North Carolina, on Friday

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Electricity, water and cell service were shut down across much of the region, including Asheville. Officials have not said when they expect power and water to return.

In a video posted to Facebook Sunday morning, Asheville City Council member Maggie Ullman said the city is “working hard” on a water distribution plan to provide drinking water to residents.

“I don’t know the details of this plan, but details should be announced shortly,” she said.

Resident Richie Gedihovich told Blue Ridge Public Radio on Saturday that there was “complete chaos” in the Asheville area.

“Everything is so flooded. “Phone lines are down everywhere, trees have hit houses,” Gedihovich said. “Three huge pine trees fell on a house on Brookshire Road. It was hard.”

Gedihovich told the NPR member station that his basement is under 4 inches of water and he needs a Wi-Fi signal.

Officials in Buncombe County, where Asheville is located, said they expected Wi-Fi devices to reach shelters on Sunday.

Damaged infrastructure hindered cell service west of I-77. Network providers have enabled “disaster roaming,” Gov. Roy Cooper's office said, meaning people can find service on any functioning network, regardless of their provider.

Representatives from Verizon and AT&T said they were working to restore service, BPR reported.

In a statement Saturday, the governor said more than 200 people had been rescued from the floodwaters.

“This is a historic and catastrophic storm for Western North Carolina,” Cooper said. “Efforts are also underway to restore power and communications, and we are bringing in needed supplies by air.”

Record rainfall in Georgia and North Carolina

Heavy rains from Helene set a record in Atlanta, which recorded its highest 48-hour rainfall on record over the past two days. The Georgia Climate Office tweeted that 11.12 inches of rain had fallen in the area as of midday Friday, surpassing the previous record of 9.59 inches set in 1886.

In North Carolina, rainfall totals Friday afternoon were staggering: 29.58 inches for Busick, NC; 24.20 for nearby Mount Mitchell State Park; about 13 inches in Boone, about 55 miles away.

The storm dumped more than 8 inches of rain in Wilmington, causing severe damage to coastal homes and small buildings as well as agricultural fields.