Helene's Path Through Southeastern U.S. Leaves at Least 33 Dead
At least 33 people have lost their lives as Helene makes its way through the southeastern United States.
TroibNews 
Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc across significant portions of the U.S. Southeast on Friday, resulting in life-threatening flooding that has claimed at least 33 lives. The storm inundated neighborhoods, triggered mudslides, threatened dam structures, and left over 4 million homes and businesses without power.
In Tennessee, officials ordered the evacuation of downtown Newport due to fears of imminent dam failure near the area. Similarly, a dam in North Carolina was also reported to be on the verge of collapse.
Helene made landfall as a powerful Category 4 hurricane in Florida's Big Bend region at 11:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, bringing winds of 225 kph before tracking northward through Georgia and into Tennessee and the Carolinas. The aftermath left a landscape of overturned boats, downed trees, flooded vehicles, and inundated streets.
As of early Friday afternoon, the storm had weakened to a tropical depression with maximum sustained winds of 55 kph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Despite this downgrade, Helene's heavy rainfall continued to cause severe flooding in various regions, leading to police and firefighters conducting thousands of water rescues across the impacted states.
In Unicoi County, Tennessee, more than 50 individuals found themselves trapped on the roof of a hospital Friday afternoon as floodwaters engulfed the rural area. Fortunately, state officials later confirmed that those individuals had been rescued safely.
The rising waters from the Nolichucky River impeded ambulances and emergency vehicles from evacuating patients and others, as reported by the Unicoi County Emergency Management Agency on social media. Rescues were being carried out by emergency crews using boats and helicopters.
In another part of Tennessee, Cocke County Mayor Rob Mathis posted on social media about a "catastrophic failure" at the Walters dam, prompting evacuations in the downtown area of Newport, which has a population of 36,000. However, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency corrected this on social media, stating that the Walters dam, located just across the state line in North Carolina, had not failed. This information was verified by Duke Energy, which manages the dam.
Madison McDonald, a spokesperson for Duke Energy, commented, "we are aware of the situation and we're sorting out the facts."
In western North Carolina, emergency officials in Rutherford County urged residents near the Lake Lure Dam to evacuate immediately, warning that a "dam failure [was] imminent."
Additionally, landslides in nearby Buncombe County resulted in the closure of interstates 40 and 26, as announced by the county on X.
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
In Tennessee, officials ordered the evacuation of downtown Newport due to fears of imminent dam failure near the area. Similarly, a dam in North Carolina was also reported to be on the verge of collapse.
Helene made landfall as a powerful Category 4 hurricane in Florida's Big Bend region at 11:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, bringing winds of 225 kph before tracking northward through Georgia and into Tennessee and the Carolinas. The aftermath left a landscape of overturned boats, downed trees, flooded vehicles, and inundated streets.
As of early Friday afternoon, the storm had weakened to a tropical depression with maximum sustained winds of 55 kph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Despite this downgrade, Helene's heavy rainfall continued to cause severe flooding in various regions, leading to police and firefighters conducting thousands of water rescues across the impacted states.
In Unicoi County, Tennessee, more than 50 individuals found themselves trapped on the roof of a hospital Friday afternoon as floodwaters engulfed the rural area. Fortunately, state officials later confirmed that those individuals had been rescued safely.
The rising waters from the Nolichucky River impeded ambulances and emergency vehicles from evacuating patients and others, as reported by the Unicoi County Emergency Management Agency on social media. Rescues were being carried out by emergency crews using boats and helicopters.
In another part of Tennessee, Cocke County Mayor Rob Mathis posted on social media about a "catastrophic failure" at the Walters dam, prompting evacuations in the downtown area of Newport, which has a population of 36,000. However, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency corrected this on social media, stating that the Walters dam, located just across the state line in North Carolina, had not failed. This information was verified by Duke Energy, which manages the dam.
Madison McDonald, a spokesperson for Duke Energy, commented, "we are aware of the situation and we're sorting out the facts."
In western North Carolina, emergency officials in Rutherford County urged residents near the Lake Lure Dam to evacuate immediately, warning that a "dam failure [was] imminent."
Additionally, landslides in nearby Buncombe County resulted in the closure of interstates 40 and 26, as announced by the county on X.
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
