Current:Home > reviewsDrone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina -WealthSpot
Drone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina
View
Date:2025-04-17 21:01:22
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! (22)
Related
- How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
- Massachusetts to let homeless families stay overnight in state’s transportation building
- Gisele Bündchen Reflects on Importance of Kindness Amid Silent Struggles
- Below Deck Mediterranean Shocker: Stew Natalya Scudder Exits Season 8 Early
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- New iPhone tips and tricks that allow your phone to make life a little easier
- Lionel Messi at Maracanã: How to watch Argentina vs. Brazil in World Cup qualifier Tuesday
- Closer than we have been to deal between Hamas and Israel on hostage release, White House official says
- 'Most Whopper
- Hiker who was missing for more than a week at Big Bend National Park found alive, NPS says
Ranking
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Senate panel subpoenas CEOs of Discord, Snap and X to testify about children’s safety online
- Years after Parkland massacre, tour freshens violence for group of House lawmakers
- Ukrainians who fled their country for Israel find themselves yet again living with war
- Friday the 13th luck? 13 past Mega Millions jackpot wins in December. See top 10 lottery prizes
- 49ers lose All-Pro safety Talanoa Hufanga for season due to torn ACL
- Naughty dog finds forever home after shelter's hilarious post: 'We want Eddie out of here'
- Slain New Hampshire security guard honored at candlelight vigil
Recommendation
'We're reborn!' Gazans express joy at returning home to north
Shipwreck called the worst maritime disaster in Seattle history located over a century later, explorers say
US Navy plane overshoots runway and goes into a bay in Hawaii, military says
Rosalynn Carter’s tiny hometown mourns a global figure who made many contributions at home
Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
Signature-gathering starts anew for mapmaking proposal in Ohio that was stalled by a typo
Missing Florida woman Shakeira Rucker found dead in estranged husband's storage unit
Tom Schwartz's Winter House Romance With Katie Flood Takes a Hilariously Twisted Turn