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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.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
Martika Stansell and two of her children help pile debris in front of their flooded house in Canton, North Carolina, on Thursday, October 3.
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Helicopters use a field in Swannanoa, North Carolina, as a landing zone Thursday to ferry supplies and crews to areas made inaccessible by Helene.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
A man helps clean out a home's flooded crawlspace in Cruso, North Carolina, on Thursday.
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A residential area is flooded in Swannanoa on Thursday.
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A relief group climbs up the side of a hill as they help near Bat Cave, North Carolina, on Thursday. The group was tasked with clearing roads and checking on people isolated because of Helene.
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Volunteers load supplies at Ridgeline Heating and Cooling, which was turned into a relief area and community coordination center in Bills Creek, North Carolina, on Thursday.
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A police car is stuck in mud in a flooded area of Lake Lure, North Carolina, on Wednesday, October 2.
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Homes are damaged in Chimney Rock, North Carolina, on Wednesday.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
People help run a volunteer local community care center in Barnardsville, North Carolina, on Wednesday.
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A marina is filled with debris in Lake Lure on Wednesday.
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Emily Ogburn, right, hugs her friend Cody Klein after he brought her a meal in Swannanoa on Wednesday.
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Friends help Sam Soughail, third from left, clear out his Casablanca Cigar Bar in Asheville, North Carolina, on Tuesday, October 1.
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Van Hutchins, right, hands Dennis Rector a family photo album that survived the flooding of his wife's business, the Penland & Sons Department Store, in Marshall, North Carolina.
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Power line poles lean in Lake Lure on Tuesday.
Mike Stewart/AP
A search-and-rescue team looks for victims in deep mud Tuesday in Swannanoa, North Carolina.
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Andy Brown takes a break on top of what remains of a tree that destroyed his SUV in Augusta, Georgia, on Tuesday.
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Len Frisbee dumps a wheelbarrow of dirt as he helps with cleanup in Hot Springs, North Carolina, on Tuesday.
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People evacuate by foot on Highway 64, near the Bat Cave community of North Carolina, on Monday, September 30.
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A helicopter flies near damaged buildings in Bat Cave on Monday.
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Linda Bandy, left, and Carissa Sheehan clean up inside the International Moulding frame shop in Morganton, North Carolina, on Monday.
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Janice Whitley hands her brother Terry Wilson some salvaged items while they remove valuables from their flooded home in Old Fort on Sunday, September 29.
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People wait in line to access gasoline in Fletcher, North Carolina, on Sunday.
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Melinda Segassie wheels possessions she salvaged from her home in Steinhatchee, Florida, on Sunday.
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This home in Tampa, Florida, was destroyed by fire during the storm.
Gerald Herbert/AP
Workers clean and gut a flooded property in Steinhatchee on Sunday.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
Meta Gatschenberger surveys the remains of her collapsed house in Boone, North Carolina, on Saturday, September 28.
North Carolina Department of Transportation
Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images
People gather at a fire station to access Wi-Fi on Saturday after Helene moved through Asheville.
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People inspect flood damage in Asheville on Saturday.
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An area of Asheville is flooded on Saturday.
Kathleen Flynn/Reuters
Elmira Glover sits on her porch after taking the first look inside her home, which had been completely flooded in Steinhatchee.
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Boats displaced by Hurricane Helene sit in front of homes in Treasure Island, Florida, on Saturday.
Marco Bello/Reuters
Light filters into a room of a home that was destroyed by the hurricane in Horseshoe Beach, Florida.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
Customers crowd a supermarket aisle for bottled water after widespread damage disrupted water supplies in Boone on Saturday.
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Buildings are left damaged by the storm in Valdosta, Georgia, on Saturday.
Marco Bello/Reuters
People walk among debris from their family's beach house in Horseshoe Beach on Saturday.
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The Laurel Fork Road bridge is destroyed by floodwaters in Vilas, North Carolina, on September 27.
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Cassandra Randall, right, is hugged by Jessica Downey inside a damaged Maddie's grocery store in Steinhatchee on September 27.
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People work on power lines after Hurricane Helene passed offshore in Crystal River, Florida, on September 27.
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Hailey Morgan, right, surveys the damage to her flooded home after returning with her children, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Crystal River on September 27.
Marco Bello/Reuters
An aerial view shows a flooded and damaged area following Hurricane Helene in Steinhatchee on September 27.
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A person walks into fast-flowing waters to assist a stranded driver in a stretch of flooded road on the outskirts of Boone on September 27.
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People use buckets to remove water from a home near Peachtree Creek in Atlanta on September 27 after Hurricane Helene brought heavy rain overnight.
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Sarah Cribbins and her son, Michael, cuddle their dog after being rescued from floodwaters in Crystal River on September 27.
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Debris is seen inside a Cedar Key, Florida, store on September 27.
Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News/USA Today Network
A tree crew cuts up large limbs that fell on East 49th Street in Savannah, Georgia, on September 27.
Mike Carlson/AP
An American flag sits in floodwaters in the Shore Acres neighborhood of St. Petersburg, Florida, on September 27.
Mike Stewart/AP
A tree lies on a house in Valdosta, Georgia, on September 27.
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Candice Ocvil, left, and Jibri Tolen, right, row through flood waters in Atlanta on September 27.
Cristobal Herrera-Ulashkevich/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The aftermath of Hurricane Helene is seen in Cedar Key, Florida, on September 27.
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Candace Redwine surveys the damage after about 3 feet of water inundated her Spiceman Kitchen store in Tarpon Springs, Florida, on September 27.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters
Flood water washes over Guy Ford Road bridge on the Watauga River in Sugar Grove, North Carolina, on September 26.
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In this screengrab taken from a
United States Coast Guard body cam, a man and his dog are seen being rescued after his sailboat became disabled and started taking on water off Sanibel Island, Florida, on September 26.
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Cars drive over the George G. Tapper Bridge before Hurricane Helene makes landfall in Port Saint Joe, Florida, on September 26.
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Guests put on ponchos at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida, on September 26 as Hurricane Helene began bearing down.
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Carol Poulson uses her phone to document the impacts of Hurricane Helene as it builds offshore in St. Petersburg on September 26.
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A man walks through a flooded Times Square area of Fort Myers Beach, Florida, on September 26.
Gerald Herbert/AP
Cynthia Centeno, a Tallahassee resident, sits with her family inside a hurricane evacuation shelter at Fairview Middle School in Leon County, Florida, on September 26.
Marco Bello/Reuters
Waves impact a house seawall in Eastpoint, Florida, on September 26.
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Charles Starling, a lineman with Team Fishel, walks by a row of electrical line trucks staged in a field in The Villages, Florida, on September 26.
Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images
People work at the State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee, Florida, on September 26.
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A man crosses a flooded area on the coast of Gulfport, Florida, on September 26.
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Cars drive through a flooded street in St. Pete Beach on September 26.
NOAA
Hurricane Helene is seen in a satellite photo on September 26.
Marco Bello/Reuters
A woman fills up a container with gas ahead of Helene's landfall in Cross City, Florida, on September 25.
Ramon Espinosa/AP
People in Guanimar, Cuba, traverse a flooded street in a boat on September 25.
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A Wakulla County firefighter speaks to residents of Panacea, Florida, while making note of those who were not evacuating on September 25.
Paola Chiomante/Reuters
Storm damage from Helene is seen in Puerto Juarez, Mexico, on September 25.
Marco Bello/Reuters
People fill up sandbags in Clearwater, Florida, on September 25.
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.
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.”
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.
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“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, 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.
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.
Correction: A previous version of this story mischaracterized how Helene ranks among deadliest hurricanes. It is the deadliest since Katrina to hit the US mainland.