Cars along Riverside Drive crash into each other after flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. Photo: Imagn Images
The death toll from the passage of Hurricane Helene through several states in the United States has increased to 162while hundreds remain missing and it is expected that the toll may increase in the coming days, while search and rescue efforts by emergency services continue.
The deaths have been registered in six stateswith North Carolina being the most affected, with 73 deaths; and South Carolina, with 36. In addition, there are 25 fatalities in Georgia, 17 in Florida, nine in Tennessee and two in Virginia, according to the balance collected by the American television network CNN.
With these figures, Helene has become the second deadliest hurricane to hit the continental United States in the last 50 years, after Hurricane Katrina, which killed 1,833 people in 2005. In just 48 hours, large areas of the southeastern United States were left unrecognizable after strong winds and flooding. Communities were isolated as the water washed away hundreds of roads, buildings, homes and vehicles. Millions of people were also left without power or access to water in at least six states.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has claimed that ‘communities were wiped off the map’, which is why emergency crews are still rescuing people and trying to bring help five days after Helene made landfall.
(With information from DPA)
