See challenges faced by FEMA rescuers in Hurricane Helene aftermath

(CNN) — A week ago, Helene was plowing into Florida, thrashing cities and towns on the Gulf Coast while millions of people ahead of the hurricane’s path were dealing with rains that preceded even more rain. Forecasters warned of impacts that would be felt far inland.

In the Southeast, roads were covered with cars, not feet of water. Bridges were still up. The lights were still on. The town of Chimney Rock – home to a popular North Carolina state park, breathtaking views and iconic rock formation – was still looking forward to visitors.

A week later, 213 people are confirmed dead from Helene across six states, making Helene the deadliest hurricane to hit the United States mainland since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. That count includes the following deaths reported Thursday: 11 in North Carolina’s Buncombe County, where Asheville is situated (bringing that county’s overall toll to 72); eight in Georgia; two in South Carolina; and one in western Florida.

Of the 213 killed, 106 were in North Carolina and 41 were in South Carolina.

Those who survived are still in disbelief after the historic storm pummeled their homes and communities. Chimney Rock has been washed away, as have roads and bridges throughout the massive storm’s path.

Survivors are pitching in for each other, bringing food and water, helping dig out and cut up knocked down trees. All are hoping for small victories – like getting their cell phone service back or finding a gas station that is open – while facing a long recovery.

“This is not something that’s going to just last weeks,” Zeb Smathers, the mayor of Canton, told CNN Thursday. “We’re going to be having to advocate for these areas in western North Carolina for many, many years.”

More than 850,000 customers in seven states from Florida to West Virginia still were without power as of Thursday evening, according to PowerOutage.us. Most are in the Carolinas, where regional energy provider Duke Energy says “major portions of the power grid … were simply wiped away.”

Helene’s swift floodwaters took out so many power poles and electric lines, infrastructure needs to be rebuilt before power is restored, though the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Thursday it had helped restore power to more than 3.3 million homes.

Hundreds of roads remain closed, hampering efforts to send aid to hard-hit communities. And for those who left before Helene, it’s delayed their returns to check on family, friends and the state of their homes. Some areas are so inaccessible supplies are being delivered by mules and by air.

In Weaverville, North Carolina, things are improving for around 5,000 residents, but “they’re still pretty rough,” Mayor Patrick Fitzsimmons told CNN on Wednesday. The mayor was speaking from the grocery store: the only place in town that had working Wi-Fi, he said.

Meanwhile, more than 200 people in Buncombe County, North Carolina, remain unaccounted for as of Thursday afternoon, Sheriff Quentin Miller said at a news briefing. “We know these are hard times, but please know we’re coming to get you,” Miller said. “We will not rest until you are secure and you are being cared for.”

When asked for clarity on the number of people unaccounted for, county spokesperson Lillian Govus said the number fluctuates rapidly, as search and rescue efforts are ongoing. The county’s register of deeds is knocking on doors to check on community members, Govus said during a news conference.

“Once those crews have exhausted every resource they have at their fingertips, that’s when the search and rescue efforts will conclude, and we will have a number to share at that time,” Govus said.

Relief efforts across the damaged areas are picking up as linemen restore power and the military and relief groups bring in people and supplies. On Wednesday, President Joe Biden deployed 1,000 troops from Fort Liberty in eastern North Carolina to the ravaged western part of the state. Biden visited North and South Carolina on Wednesday while Vice President Kamala Harris visited Augusta, Georgia, a city still under a curfew and a boil water advisory.

Asheville restaurant owner commits to preparing 1,000 meals a day

Before Helene, Katie Button’s popular Asheville, North Carolina, restaurants Cúrate and La Bodega were thriving. Now, she says it could take up to a month before the restaurants even have access to running water.

As the community tries to comprehend the magnitude of Helene’s destruction, Button told CNN she’s focusing on doing what she can to help those in dire need.

Her restaurants have partnered with chef José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen to deliver meals and water to those who have been cut off in the aftermath of the storm.

She estimates they will have prepared 3,000 meals for residents in Asheville and the surrounding community by the end of Wednesday.

“We’re able to do it because World Central Kitchen is trucking water in for us to be able to use,” Button said.

“We will do at least 1,000 meals a day. And then they helicopter those meals to people who are completely cut off from road access. There’s so many challenges.”

‘We’ve never seen anything like this,’ Cajun Navy founder says

Robert Gaudet, the founder and CEO of the Cajun Navy, a volunteer disaster rescue and response team, has witnessed the devastation of dozens of natural disasters firsthand.

But he told CNN the destruction from Hurricane Helene has him lost for words.

“We’ve done a lot of disasters. We went to Maui for the wildfires. We’ve never seen anything like this,” he said.

“When there’s feet of mud filling up properties and homes and an entire town is washed into a lake … and it’s not just what you see, but it’s where you can drive for hours and hours and see the destruction and damage, you lose a sense of how life has been and how it is for you really quickly.”

Gaudet, who founded the Cajun Navy in the aftermath of Katrina, said the death toll continues to be personally difficult for him.

“We do a lot of (disasters) and to hear that over 100 individuals have lost their lives – and those are the ones who have been recovered so far, it’s really horrible,” he said.

Starlink providing 30 days of free internet service

Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, announced it will provide free service for 30 days in regions affected by Hurricane Helene.

“For those impacted by Hurricane Helene, or looking to support response and recovery efforts in affected areas, Starlink is now free for 30 days,” Starlink said on X.

After 30 days, customers will be moved to a “paid residential subscription, tied to the location you are using it in at that time,” the company said, adding: “We will reevaluate as necessary based on conditions in the area.”

On Thursday, FEMA announced it had provided more than 67 Starlink satellite units to first responders in North Carolina, where the agency said less than 50% of cellular service sites were still down.

More than 3,500 FEMA personnel deployed

FEMA is still working with state and local officials to confirm how many people are missing in the aftermath of Helene, Administrator Deanne Criswell told CNN’s Jim Acosta on Wednesday.

More than 3,500 FEMA personnel have been deployed – including 1,200 in North Carolina alone – to aid in search and rescue and recovery efforts, Criswell said.

“As we look at the infrastructure damages to water, to cell lines, to power, the ability to get those turned back on is going to be complicated just by the way (the mountainous region) is configured,” she said.

The agency is sending additional personnel, Criswell said, and repairing some of the facilities will take weeks, not days.

“We know that this is going to be a sustained operation,” she said. “How do we continue to bring resources in that can sustain the need for the next several weeks, or as long as it takes to get some of these critical services, like water, restored to these communities?”

The administrator said her agency is working with cell phone companies to bring in portable “cell on wheels,” or COWS, to ensure residents can contact emergency services and their loved ones.

“We’re seeing some cell phone service start to improve but we know that it’s still limited in so many different areas,” Criswell said. “We’re going to move more in so that we can broaden that accessibility.”

She urged those who have been unable to locate their loved ones to dial 211 to help account for those who are missing.

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