Hurricane Helene

[mystery-ak]

 1,000 people reported unaccounted for in North Carolina county hit hardest by Hurricane Helene
By Jared Downing   
Published Sep. 29, 2024, 3:08 p.m. ET

More than 1,000 people have been reported unaccounted for in a devastated North Carolina county where 10 people have already been confirmed dead after Hurricane Helene, officials said Sunday.

Authorities in Buncombe County reported the horrifying toll in an emergency meeting announcing emergency medical shelters and ongoing rescue efforts in areas almost overwhelmed by stormwater.

They also announced a special website to appeal for help finding those unaccounted for — with “more than 1,000 reports so far,” one local official told the live-streamed meeting.


Many of the unaccounted for are hoped to just be those without electricity and efforts to let loved ones know they are safe, officials said.


They also announced a special website to appeal for help finding those unaccounted for -- with "more than 1,000 reports so far."

more
https://nypost.com/2024/09/29/us-news/hurricane-helene-leaves-1000-people-unaccounted-for-in-hardest-hit-north-carolina-county/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=nypost

[mountaineer]

Ryan Saavedra
@RealSaavedra
Military friends who live in North Carolina say they're appalled by the lack of a response to Hurricane Helene from Governor Roy Cooper (D) and the Biden-Harris admin. They say they believe politics are the reason it's happening since a lot of the impacted areas are Republican
4:40 PM · Sep 29, 2024

epic winner
@winepically
Ashville is Berkeley CA east Coast Campus. So this merely shows the Governor and the Biden admin are criminally incompetent.
5:56 PM · Sep 29, 2024
-------------------------
I agree with epic winner - just look how the Biden administration treated the Dem stronghold of Hawaii when the fires decimated Maui.

[mountaineer]

 Volunteers and complete strangers are coming together with privately owned helicopters to bring emergency supplies in, and help people get out of the hardest hit communities in Western North Carolina.

They're asking for donations to help cover the cost of fuel, food, bottled water, and emergency supplies.

https://twitter.com/BillWadell/status/1840500146615865594

[mystery-ak]

https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1840503227516920199

[libertybele]

https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1840503227516920199

They've been absent throughout most of their administration; either mentally or physically. 

No worries ... DeSantis is sending resources to help.

 

[libertybele]

Florida will send rescue, communications ‘assets’ to North Carolina

Update: The DeSantis administration has released details about the resources it’s sending to North Carolina and Tennessee, where the Helene storm system has caused widespread flood damage.

There’ll be two airborne Florida State Guard search and rescue teams each comprising a pilot and eight crew, plus two similar units from Florida National Guard flying Chinook helicopters. He’s sending a hazard-management team from the Florida Division of Emergency Management with 42,550 gallons of water and 100 Starlink ground stations to restore communications in isolated areas.

A fixed-wing aircraft is being dispatched, plus law officers from the Florida Department of Department of Law Enforcement and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission with high-water vehicles, airboats, shallow-draft boats, and 4×4 trucks.

Teams from the Florida Department of Transportation will assist in damage assessment, cleaning out damaged buildings, inspecting bridges and building temporary crossings, and assessing other damaged infrastructure.

The complete list for “Operation Blue Ridge” is here.

+++

Even as post-Helene cleanup continues in Florida, the DeSantis administration is sending state “air assets” and satellite earth stations to areas of North Carolina where the storm caused catastrophic damage that isolated communities.

“You had major, major devastation. Fortunately, our rescue operations were conducted … and we don’t have the demand for that right now,” DeSantis said during a news conference mid-Sunday morning in Hudson, in Pasco County.

He noted that lots of Floridians spend their summers in the North Carolina and Tennessee mountains, where flooding has ripped out major highways and bridges.

“You go there over the summer, half the people there are from Florida,” the governor said. If any remain there and need evacuation,” he offered to send state assets to help.

Florida state government performed similar missions during recent chaos in Haiti and following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

“We stand by to do more, as we have resources that are not being used for our recovery efforts here in Florida,” DeSantis said...........

https://ncnewsline.com/2024/09/29/florida-will-send-rescue-communications-assets-to-north-carolina/

[libertybele]

Ron DeSantis
@GovRonDeSantis

Visited Suwannee City in Dixie County, which experienced massive storm surge and was close to Hurricane Helene’s landfall, to meet with residents and to provide support and direct services to where they’re needed.

Operation BBQ was on-site to help relieve hardworking volunteers and get more food out to the community, and they’ll be back tomorrow with more!

[libertybele]

Governor DeSantis assesses Hurricane Helene damage in Pasco County

PASCO COUNTY, Fla. -- Governor Ron DeSantis was in Pasco County Sunday following Hurricane Helene.

He says the area faced a storm surge which left homes destroyed.

The governor also toured communities that were hit by Helene and also hit by hurricane Idalia last year.

The Florida National Guard has 34 points of distribution set up across the state from Leon, Wakulla, Lafayette, and more.

That’s where people can get water, food, tarps, ice bags, and other supplies.

DeSantis gave updates on the efforts to restore power in impacted areas.

“Since the beginning impacts of the storm 2.175 million accounts have been restored, and 227,000 accounts are outstanding, " DeSantis said. "We have gotten word from here in Pasco that in this area, the local utility is expecting the power to be back on by tonight."

" You may not be able to receive power and you may have damage to your own system apart from what the overall system is doing that’s going to require people to come to look at that," he added. You may have potential fire hazards so I know they’re going to work on that to make sure everyone is safe.”

The state of Florida is also mobilizing hundreds of travel trailers for people who had their homes damaged by the storm.

This will help them live on-site while renovations and repairs are underway..................

https://weartv.com/news/local/governor-desantis-assesses-hurricane-helene-damage-in-pasco-county

[mystery-ak]

https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1840514106610049410

[banddag]

They've been absent throughout most of their administration; either mentally or physically. 

No worries ... DeSantis is sending resources to help.

 

Show me a a Republican President who was at a national disastor of this scale 1-2 days after it happened.

@libertybele

[libertybele]

Show me a a Republican President who was at a national disastor of this scale 1-2 days after it happened.

@libertybele

President Bush visited the area 3 days after the attack on 9-11.

President Trump, Melania, Mike Pence and Karen visited a week after Irma hit.

President Trump visited Louisiana - hurricane Lara

President and Melania Trump visited Florida - hurricane Michael

[cato potatoe]

The situation in western carolinas gets worse as more information trickles out.  A large number of people need to be airlifted and resettled for a number of months, or until critical infrastructure is online.  Rebuilding in steep terrain is no easy task in itself.  You also have places like Henderson and Spartanburg counties, were nearly 100% of people are without electricity and no internet or cell service.  Augusta GA is in poor shape ... really an unprecedented mess all the way down to the point of landfall.

I drove through north St. Pete over the weekend, and it's mile after mile of muddy streets lined with sopping wet furniture awaiting trash collection.  The barrier islands are slowly reopening to residents, albeit uninhabitable for the time being. 

[bigheadfred]

RNC Research

@RNCResearch
"Do you have any words to the victims of the hurricane?"

BIDEN: "We've given everything that we have."

"Are there any more resources the federal government could be giving them?"

BIDEN: "No."

[mountaineer]

Kommie tweeted a photo of herself sitting on an airplane, wearing ear buds, with an expression of deep, really deep, concern (or boredom, it's hard to tell) on her face:

Vice President Kamala Harris
@VP
I was just briefed by @FEMA_Deanne Criswell on the latest developments about the ongoing impacts of Hurricane Helene. We also discussed our Administration's continued actions to support emergency response and recovery.
 
I also spoke with @NC_Governor Cooper about the ongoing rescue and recovery efforts in North Carolina.
 
Our Administration will continue to stay in constant contact with state and local officials to ensure communities have the support and resources they need.
 
Doug and my thoughts are with all those who lost loved ones and those whose homes, businesses, and communities were damaged or destroyed during this disaster.
11:09 PM · Sep 29, 2024

Comments are entertaining:

Clown World ™ 🤡
@ClownWorld_
You don’t look presidential at all stop trying 🤡
5:18 AM · Sep 30, 2024

Kenny Webster
@KennethRWebster
Why aren't her iPhone earbuds plugged into her iPhone?
6:56 AM · Sep 30, 2024

AmericanPapaBear
@AmericaPapaBear
What have you guys been doing? Because it seems like a lot of state and local officials and citizens doing the work.
11:10 PM · Sep 29, 2024

rooted.wings
@BrittRooted
“Constant contact and thoughts and prayers”??? You’ve got American citizens bringing in Starlink on their own dime, veterans bringing in food, water and airlifting medical supplies, Youtubers bringing in hot meals to first responders and American citizens with no gas or running water.
But at least you tweeted a picture of yourself with “thoughts and prayers”.
11:35 PM · Sep 29, 2024

Collie Momma
@nesbit_
Samaritan’s purse, which is located in NC has sent its Semi’s full of items needed, recovery and clean up crews. DeSantis has sent National Guard from FL to assist with air lifting people out of devastated areas in NC.
11:55 PM · Sep 29, 2024

[mystery-ak]

Show me a a Republican President who was at a national disastor of this scale 1-2 days after it happened.

@libertybele

Trump will be delivering supplies today..

[mystery-ak]

Trump to Visit Georgia in Aftermath of Devastation from Hurricane Helene

Elizabeth Weibel29 Sep 2024469
2:05

President Donald Trump will visit the city of Valdosta, Georgia, which was left devastated in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

In a press release issued on Sunday, the Trump campaign announced that Trump would be visiting Valdosta “to receive a briefing on the devastation” from the hurricane and to “facilitate the distribution of relief supplies.”

“President Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, will visit Valdosta, Georgia to receive a briefing on the devastation of Hurricane Helene, facilitate the distribution of relief supplies, and deliver remarks to the press on Monday,” the Trump campaign wrote.

Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson confirmed to WALB that there have been three deaths reported as a result of Hurricane Helene.

“So it’s three,” Matheson said in a statement to the outlet. “It’s three for us. And a lot more injury then we sustained than Idalia, a lot more injury for the penetration of the trees to roofs and houses as well.”

Video footage posted to X by Billy Heath, a photojournalist with Fox5 Atlanta, showed damaged sustained to “historic buildings” in downtown Valdosta.

https://twitter.com/BillyHeathFOX5/status/1839660719844835803

more
https://www.breitbart.com/weather/2024/09/29/trump-visit-georgia-aftermath-devastation-hurricane-helene/

[mystery-ak]

 Watch live: Biden to address devastation from Hurricane Helene
by TheHill.com - 09/30/24 9:00 AM ET

President Biden is set to deliver remarks Monday at 10:30 a.m. EDT about the administration’s response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene.

The hurricane swept through the Big Bend area of Florida early Friday morning, and has since caused devastation across a swath of the southeast, including Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Western North Carolina has seen some of the worst devastation, with towns inundated with flood waters. Hundreds of thousands of people were without power, and damage to roads was making travel difficult. Gas shortages in the area were also contributing to the problems.

Overall, the total death toll from the storm had risen to at least 91 people.

Biden will deliver remarks from the Roosevelt Room at the White House.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/4906780-joe-biden-hurricane-helene-response/

[mystery-ak]

 Harris cuts campaign trip short to visit FEMA for Helene briefing
by Brett Samuels - 09/30/24 8:18 AM ET

Vice President Harris is cutting her campaign swing on the west coast short to return to Washington, D.C., for a briefing on Hurricane Helene.

A White House official said Harris will depart Las Vegas on Monday morning, canceling planned campaign stops, to head back to the nation’s capital. Harris will visit Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters for a briefing on the impacts of Helene and updates on the federal response, the official said.

Harris on Sunday spoke with North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) about the aftermath of the storm and reached out to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R). Harris is expected to visit affected areas “as soon as it is possible without disrupting emergency response operations,” a White House official said.

The vice president late last week traveled to Arizona and spent the weekend holding fundraisers in California before holding a rally in Nevada on Sunday night.

more
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4906743-hurricane-helene-vice-president-kamala-harris/

[mountaineer]

Dhruv
@dhruv2038
Last image of a wife and husband in Asheville, NC sheltering from the flood on a roof.
The roof would soon collapse, causing them and their 6 year old grandchild to drown. Their daughter and mother of the child took the photograph. When the roof collapsed, she got wedged between debris and was able to be rescued an hour later.
And things are way way worse in Burnsville. These pictures need to reach people.
1:12 AM · Sep 29, 2024

[mystery-ak]

FEMA warns of ‘complicated’ recovery process from Helene’s water damage
By
Callie Patteson
September 29, 2024 4:13 pm
.

As people start to recover from the devastation brought on by Hurricane Helene, officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency are warning it will take a “complicated” response to help the states affected in recent days.

Since Thursday, Helene has wreaked havoc across Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas, leaving dozens dead and millions without power.

Heartbreaking photos and videos show homes and towns completely flooded, with roads turned into waterways, bridges collapsed, the houses even floating away.

Local and state governments have been working tirelessly to conduct search and rescue missions while getting necessary items like food and drinking water to those affected by the storm. As many are also looking to the federal government for help, FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said recovery will be “complicated.”

“We absolutely have enough resources from across the federal family,” Criswell said during a Sunday appearance on CBS News’s Face the Nation. “FEMA is one part of the team, and we have the ability to bring in all of our team members from many other federal agencies to support this response.”

more
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/3170434/fema-warns-of-complicated-recovery-process-from-helenes-water-damage/

[mystery-ak]

Dhruv
@dhruv2038
Last image of a wife and husband in Asheville, NC sheltering from the flood on a roof.
The roof would soon collapse, causing them and their 6 year old grandchild to drown. Their daughter and mother of the child took the photograph. When the roof collapsed, she got wedged between debris and was able to be rescued an hour later.
And things are way way worse in Burnsville. These pictures need to reach people.
1:12 AM · Sep 29, 2024

  Oh my

Do you all remember silent-johnny from FR...he lives in Asheville...I have been trying to reach him for several days....

[Bigun]

Oh my

Do you all remember silent-johnny from FR...he lives in Asheville...I have been trying to reach him for several days....

No chance @mystery-ak they have no cellphone or internet service currently.

[mystery-ak]

 FEMA sending Starlink satellites, search-and-rescue teams to aid Helene’s victims

Administrator Deanne Criswell is confident that the agency has enough resources.

By Greta Reich

09/29/2024 02:39 PM EDT

As Hurricane Helene’s impact continues to be felt, the states are turning to FEMA, the agency responsible for the federal response to hurricanes, to ask whether or not it has what it needs to deal with the storm. FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell says it does.

“We absolutely have enough resources from across the federal family,” Criswell said to guest host Robert Costa on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “FEMA is one part of the team, and we have the ability to bring in all of our team members from many other federal agencies to support this response.”

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall in Florida on Thursday night and expanded quickly, wreaking havoc in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee. As of Sunday morning, at least 64 people have died.

“This has been a true multi-state event,” Criswell said. She added that they’re “hearing significant infrastructure damage to water systems, communication, roads, critical transportation routes, as well as several homes that have been just destroyed by this. So this is going to be a really complicated recovery in each of these five states that have had these impacts.”

more
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/09/29/fema-starlink-helene-victims-00181576

[catfish1957]

FEMA warns of ‘complicated’ recovery process from Helene’s water damage

Translated?

Like the USSS we are just another incompetent, inept federal bureacracy. 

[mystery-ak]

 Flooding isolates North Carolina communities as Helene's death toll rises above 100 across Southeast

Hurricane Helene made landfall along Florida's Big Bend region late Thursday night as a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 140 mph.


BOONE, N.C. - Crews are continuing their work to clear debris, restore power and get supplies into North Carolina communities that remain isolated due to the destruction caused after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida last week, leaving at least 101 people dead in several states across the Southeast.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall along Florida's Big Bend region late Thursday night, with winds of 140 mph and a devastating storm surge. Helene left behind widespread destruction from the Sunshine State through Georgia into the Carolinas and Tennessee Valley as the storm traveled across the U.S.

At least 101 people are now confirmed dead across six states – Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.

more
https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/helene-north-carolina-florida-southeast-recovery-dead