More than 1 million customers remain without power due to Hurricane Helen’s devastating damage to the eastern United States
Hurricane Helen made landfall in Florida on Thursday as a powerful Category 4 storm. Forecasters warned of a “catastrophic and deadly storm surge”. According to the Weather Channel, it was the strongest hurricane ever to hit Florida’s Big Bend region.
The worst-hit state was South Carolina, with 755,313 power outages recorded early Monday, according to outage tracking service PowerOutage.us. More than 200,000 people are registered in Greenville County alone.
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South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster previously told It costs a lot,” he added.
Mill Creek damage and residual flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Helen in Old Fort, North Carolina on September 29, 2024. The hurricane left millions without power, and the report says more… Mill Creek damage and residual flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Helen in Old Fort, North Carolina, on September 29, 2024. The hurricane left millions without power and reportedly killed more than 100 people. More Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images
Also significantly affected were Georgia with 580,771 cases, North Carolina with 457,941 cases, Florida with 133,492 cases, and Virginia with 100,584 cases.
There were also 31,975 new cases in Ohio, 25,912 in West Virginia, 22,434 in Kentucky and 11,886 in Tennessee.
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The National Hurricane Center (NHC) previously warned that power outages could be prolonged and urged people using generators to stay at least 20 feet away from doors, windows and garages to avoid deadly carbon monoxide poisoning. It is recommended that it be installed in a suitable location.
Helen became the strongest hurricane of the season before reaching land, before becoming a tropical storm on Tuesday.
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In an update released late Friday, the NHC warned of “record-breaking” flooding across the southern Appalachians, but conditions remained low Friday night and Saturday “following the devastating flooding over the past two days.” said it would start to improve.
Flood warnings from the National Weather Service (NWS) remained in effect early Monday for many affected counties in the state.
At least 116 people died as a result of Helen, with 30 in Buncombe County, North Carolina, one of the hardest-hit states, according to CBS News.
“This is the most significant natural disaster we have ever experienced in Western North Carolina,” Ryan Cole, assistant director of emergency services for Buncombe County, told local news station ABC11.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper called the radioactive fallout from Helen “an unprecedented tragedy that requires an unprecedented response.”
About 4 million customers were without power early Saturday morning.
Once again, South Carolina was the worst-hit state, with 1,089,535 power outages recorded.
Approximately 787,428 power outages were recorded in Georgia, 728,427 in North Carolina, 527,945 in Florida, 224,841 in Ohio, and 141,407 in Kentucky. Indiana added 72,962, West Virginia 70,991 and Tennessee 62,091 for a total of 3,705,627.
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