Current:Home > InvestDrone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina -Wealth Evolution Experts
Drone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina
View
Date:2025-04-18 13:15:14
Severe weather and historic flooding brought by Hurricane Helene killed at least 100 people across the Southeast including in Asheville, North Carolina where residents are scrambling to find resources amid gas and water shortages.
Since the system's landfall in Florida's Big Bend area late Thursday, hundreds of water rescues have occurred across the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia. Power outages left over 2 million homes and businesses in the dark as of Monday.
In Asheville, torrential rain destroyed vehicles and homes while leaving roads submerged. At least 35 people died in Buncombe County, which encompasses Asheville, though the death toll is expected to rise, the sheriff said Monday. Officials have also received about 600 missing persons reports, though many are presumably due to communication blackouts.
Helene has also severely damaged the city's water system, Asheville officials said in a statement Saturday.
"Extensive repairs are required to treatment facilities, underground and aboveground water pipes, and to roads that have washed away which are preventing water personnel from accessing parts of the system," the City of Asheville said in the statement.
Watch drone footage of flooding in Asheville, North Carolina
Estimates: Helene caused between $15 billion and $100 billion damage
Insurers and forecasters have projected that catastrophic damage caused by Helene is somewhere between $15 billion and $100 billion.
"We have biblical devastation through the county," Buncombe County Emergency Services Assistant Director Ryan Cole said. "We’ve had biblical flooding here."
President Joe Biden has sent Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell to remain on the ground in Asheville "until the situation has stabilized," the agency said Monday.
"We'll continue to serve resources including food, water, communications, and lifesaving equipment will be there," Biden said. "I mean it − as long as it takes to finish this job."
FEMA said 10 federal search and rescue teams were in the region Monday and more nine teams were on the way totaling 900 active personnel. The agency will also bring essentials on the ground including 25 trailer-loads of meals, 60 trailer-loads of waters, and C-17 cargo plane full of food and water. The agency is also utilizing Starlink satellites to enhance responder communications and has 18 helicopters on standby to bring more needed resources.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has also brought more than 500 National Guard soldiers and airmen as well as over 200 vehicles and aircraft to save lives in the affected areas.
veryGood! (515)
Related
- At site of suspected mass killings, Syrians recall horrors, hope for answers
- Rocket Lab plans to launch a Japanese satellite from the space company’s complex in New Zealand
- Jurors will begin deciding how much Giuliani must pay for lies in a Georgia election workers’ case
- As Financial Turmoil Threatens Plans for an Alabama Wood Pellet Plant, Advocates Question Its Climate and Community Benefits
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- Gospel Singer Pedro Henrique Dead at 30 After Collapsing Onstage
- Driving for work will pay more next year after IRS boosts 2024 mileage rate
- Kansas courts’ computer systems are starting to come back online, 2 months after cyberattack
- Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
- An appeals court will hear arguments over whether Meadows’ Georgia charges can move to federal court
Ranking
- Bodycam footage shows high
- Oprah Winfrey portrait revealed at National Portrait Gallery
- South Carolina’s 76-year-old governor McMaster to undergo procedure to fix minor irregular heartbeat
- 'Thanks for the memories': E3 convention canceled after 25 years of gaming
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Inside OMAROSA and Jax Taylor's Unexpected Bond After House of Villains Eliminations
- Israeli military veteran tapped as GOP candidate in special election to replace George Santos
- An appeals court will hear arguments over whether Meadows’ Georgia charges can move to federal court
Recommendation
Intel's stock did something it hasn't done since 2022
Vodka, doughnuts and a side of fries: DoorDash releases our favorite orders of 2023
Jill Biden releases White House Christmas video featuring tap dancers performing The Nutcracker
Gunmen kill 11 people, injure several others in an attack on a police station in Iran, state TV says
Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
Lily Gladstone on Oscar-bound 'Killers of the Flower Moon': 'It's a moment for all of us'
Camila Alves McConaughey’s Holiday Gift Ideas Will Make You the Best Gift Giver in Your Family
Andre Braugher died from lung cancer, rep for ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ and ‘Homicide’ star says