By Parker Soughers
At 11:10 pm on September 26th, 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall near Perry, Florida. What would follow was a path of destruction, one of 800 miles long, causing the deaths of at least 119 people. Hurricane Helene was rapidly upgraded to a category 4 hurricane‒one of the strongest hurricanes that the United States has seen in years.
Helene’s Destruction
Helene’s path cut through Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee, devastating numerous communities.
Hurricane Helene was the third hurricane to hit the Big Bend area in Florida within the last 13 months. We’ve seen Keaton Beach, a coastal town in Florida, report that 90% of houses had been washed away.
North Carolina and Tennessee were also in the path of Hurricane Helene. In western North Carolina, over 400 roads were closed due to fallen debris and flooding. Officials have said to consider all roads in western North Carolina as closed. In other parts of North Carolina, cell service has been unavailable, leaving people without the ability to contact family and emergency services. Citizens in Asheville, NC, struggled to find food, with both electricity and gas out of commission and several road closures.
In eastern Tennessee, the Nolichucky Dam was close to failure due to the massive influx of rain waters and tumultuous weather from Helene. In Atlanta, over 100,000 households found themselves without power. Fallen trees killed many people across multiple states.
Casualties have currently reached over 130 people across the affected states, with the number still rising. Over 600 people are still unaccounted for in the town of Asheville, NC alone. Rescue efforts are underway, but Hurricane Helene’s destruction has severely hampered their progress.
Relief and Rescue
With ruin and wreckage scattered across the southeast of the US, relief efforts have been slow. In North Carolina, the lack of cell service has hampered rescue efforts. However, supplies have arrived in Asheville via airdrops and by mule.
Many in Asheville and in other areas of North Carolina have expressed the massive amount of recovery efforts it will take to return to normal. NC Attorney General Josh Stein stated, “It’s going to take us weeks, months and years to recover.” Recovery isn’t cheap either. Stein further expressed his concerns for what it will cost the state: “It’s going to be billions of dollars to bring western North Carolina back…It is a desperate situation.”
In all of the affected states, a public health emergency has been declared in order to address the health impacts of Hurricane Helene. These public health emergency statements allow for “greater flexibility in meeting emergency health needs of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries,” giving health care workers a better chance for helping as many of the victims of Helene
On Monday, the Pentagon deployed thousands of National Guard members to support relief efforts, as well as 18 helicopters and several high-water vehicles to aid in search and rescue. Beyond search and rescue, the national guard has been tasked with road clearance and law enforcement among damaged communities.
Red Cross emergency shelters have been set up across the East Coast. Currently, over 900 volunteer workers have provided round-the-clock support to those affected by Hurricane Helene. Currently, the Red Cross has prioritized supplying shelters and food for those in need. Over 2,600 citizens have been housed in over 69 different shelters.
Political Implications
Amidst relief efforts, political efforts made by former president Donald Trump have been met with mixed responses. Trump claimed that there were reports of “the Federal Government, and the Democrat Governor of the State, going out of their way to not help people in Republican areas.”
This message was met with a response from North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper stating “It makes no difference who you are. If you need help, we are going to provide it…we all need to come together and put politics aside….”
Whereas Trump has actively campaigned among the wreckage of Hurricane Helene, Vice President Kamala Harris canceled campaign plans in order to return to Washington to assist in governmental relief efforts with President Joe Biden.
The Future of Hurricanes
What caused Hurricane Helene to be so destructive? It is a combination of several things. Firstly, global warming has caused 1-in-a-100 flooding events as seen in North Carolina to become more common with intense rain. Helene’s speed was uncommonly fast, possessing wind speeds over 140 mph. Global warming allows for hurricanes to form faster and stronger. Communities along the East Coast are at risk for more frequent and powerful hurricanes—now more than ever.
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