The human toll from Hurricane Helen in the east and southeast of the United States climbed to at least 63 deaths on Saturday, according to authorities, with millions of Americans in ten states remaining without electricity.
At least 24 people died in South Carolina, 17 in Georgia, 11 in Florida, ten in North Carolina and one in Virginia, according to a report compiled by AFP from statements by local authorities.
The hurricane then progressed northward, losing intensity, while leaving a landscape of desolation in its wake.
“I am deeply saddened by the loss of life and devastation caused by Hurricane Helene,” US President Joe Biden said on Saturday. “The road to recovery will be long,” he added.
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee have declared federal states of emergency. More than 800 personnel from the Federal Disaster Management Agency (FEMA) have been deployed.
– Now a post-tropical cyclone –
Now downgraded to a “post-tropical cyclone”, it is expected to hit the Ohio Valley and central Appalachia on Sunday, writes the National Hurricane Center (NHC), which also warns that power outages could be ” long-term”.
Rescue teams are still working to restore power and deal with the consequences of the massive floods which destroyed homes, roads and businesses. But their efforts are hampered by rugged terrain and blocked access routes.
“There are just a few businesses open, with limited inventory. I’m worried about families with children,” said Steven Mauro, a resident of Valdosta, Georgia.
“The main problem is the power,” commented another resident, saying that people should stay at home because “the traffic lights are out of service.”
According to the monitoring site poweroutage.us, more than 2.6 million people were still without electricity Sunday morning in ten states, from Florida to southeast Indiana.
– A small Florida island underwater –
On Cedar Key, an island of 700 inhabitants on the west coast of Florida, the roofs of houses were torn off and the walls gutted.
“It breaks my heart to see this,” Gabe Doty, a municipal employee, told AFP. “Many houses have disappeared, the market has disappeared. The post office has disappeared. It’s a real tragedy and it will be difficult to rebuild.”
In South Carolina, two firefighters died.
Large areas were destroyed by landslides and intense flooding, as far away as Asheville, North Carolina.
“This is one of the worst storms in modern history for parts of western North Carolina,” state Governor Roy Cooper said at a press conference Friday. evening.
The risk of rupture of the Nolichuky dam, in Tennessee, was ruled out on Saturday by local authorities, after record level flooding. The downstream population was allowed to return home.
In Erwin, in the same state, more than 50 patients and employees sheltering on the roof of a hospital had to be evacuated by helicopter.
After forming in the Gulf of Mexico, Helen moved over particularly warm waters.
“It is likely that these very warm waters played a role in the rapid intensification of Hélène,” said climatologist Andra Garner, for AFP.
By warming sea waters, climate change makes rapid intensification of storms more likely and increases the risk of more powerful hurricanes, scientists say.
