Current:Home > MyDrone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina -CapitalWay
Drone video captures Helene's devastation in Asheville, North Carolina
Fastexy Exchange View
Date:2025-04-08 10:01:09
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! (77)
Related
- Macy's says employee who allegedly hid $150 million in expenses had no major 'impact'
- Commuter train strikes and kills man near a Connecticut rail crossing
- Russian lawmaker disputes report saying he adopted a child taken from a Ukrainian children’s home
- It's the cheapest Thanksgiving Day for drivers since 2020. Here's where gas prices could go next.
- DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
- Pakistani shopping mall blaze kills at least 10 people and injures more than 20
- Argentina’s labor leaders warn of resistance to President-elect Milei’s radical reforms
- Stakes are clear for Michigan: Beat Ohio State or be labeled a gigantic fraud
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- UN confirms sexual spread of mpox in Congo for the 1st time as country sees a record outbreak
Ranking
- Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
- Lawsuit accuses actor Jamie Foxx of New York City sexual assault in 2015
- The Netherlands’ longtime ruling party says it won’t join a new government following far-right’s win
- Kentucky train derailment causes chemical spill, forces evacuations
- Person accused of accosting Rep. Nancy Mace at Capitol pleads not guilty to assault charge
- Olympian Oscar Pistorius granted parole 10 years after killing his girlfriend in South Africa
- A Mom's Suicide After Abuse Accusations: The Heartbreaking Story Behind Take Care of Maya
- Native American storyteller invites people to rethink the myths around Thanksgiving
Recommendation
The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
4 Black Friday shopping tips to help stretch your holiday budget
Person dead after officer-involved shooting outside Salem
5 people dead in a Thanksgiving van crash on a south Georgia highway
Intellectuals vs. The Internet
Georgia high school baseball player in coma after batting cage accident
Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky Reunite for Thanksgiving Amid Separation
NATO member N Macedonia to briefly lift flight ban in case Russia’s Lavrov wants to attend meeting