The death toll from Hurricane Helene has now climbed to 200, as search and rescue operations continue across the storm-ravaged southeastern US.
North Carolina has suffered the highest casualties, with entire neighborhoods obliterated, making this the most lethal mainland hurricane since Katrina in 2005.
Hundreds remain unaccounted for, and nearly a million homes are still without electricity, almost a week after Helene made landfall.
President Joe Biden has been on a two-day visit to the affected regions, including stops in Florida and Georgia on Thursday.
In Florida’s Tallahassee, where the hurricane struck as a Category 4 storm, Biden surveyed the destruction from the air on Thursday.
The president has authorized federal disaster relief for survivors in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
Tens of thousands of residents in North Carolina remain without running water, with Asheville and the surrounding mountain areas suffering some of the storm’s most severe impacts.
“I feel like I just lived through the end of the world,” said Nicole Rojas, a resident of Vilas, North Carolina, in an interview with the BBC.
Power outages have forced North Carolina prisons to relocate around 800 inmates, according to NBC News.
Hundreds of roads are still closed, complicating relief efforts in some of the hardest-hit regions.
Fatalities were also reported in South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and Virginia.
In South Carolina, an elderly couple tragically died when a tree fell on their house as they slept, their grandson told the Associated Press. They were found embracing each other.
Over 6,700 members of the Army and Air National Guard from 16 states are on the ground to aid recovery efforts, according to the National Guard.
Additionally, 1,000 active-duty soldiers have been deployed by the president to assist in the relief operations.
On Wednesday, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris visited storm-damaged regions in North Carolina and Georgia, respectively.
Biden announced that the federal government will fully cover all emergency protective measures and debris removal costs in North Carolina for six months. For Georgia and Florida, this full federal support will continue for the next 90 days.
Earlier in the week, former President Trump also toured storm-ravaged areas in Georgia.
Recovery efforts may be complicated by additional rainfall expected in parts of the Gulf Coast and Florida in the coming days.
The Atlantic hurricane season remains active through the end of November.
Earlier this week, US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas issued a warning that FEMA would face significant challenges if another major storm hits the US in the coming months.
“FEMA does not have the resources to last through the remainder of the season if another hurricane strikes,” Mayorkas said during a press briefing.
The Biden administration has already dispatched over 8.8 million meals, 7.4 million liters of water, 150 generators, and 225,000 tarps to the affected areas, according to Mayorkas.
Meanwhile, two storms are currently developing in the Atlantic. Hurricane Kirk, now a Category 3 storm, is expected to generate dangerous surf conditions in Florida and the Caribbean but is not projected to make landfall in the US. Tropical Storm Leslie, on the other hand, poses no immediate threat to the US.
