Widespread devastation left behind by Hurricane Helene came to light on Monday across the south of the United States, revealing a wasteland of splintered houses, crushed cargo containers and mud-covered highways in one of the worst storms in the country’s history.
The death toll topped 125.
A crisis was unfolding in western North Carolina, where residents stranded by washed-out roads and by a lack of power and mobile service lined up for fresh water and a chance to message loved ones days after the storm that they were alive.
At least 128 deaths in six south-eastern states have been attributed to the storm — a number that climbed on Monday as a clearer picture emerged of the damage it inflicted on an area stretching from Florida’s Gulf Coast northward to the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia.
A street flooded by Hurricane Helene (Mike Carlson/AP)
North Carolina’s governor, Roy Cooper, predicted the toll would rise as rescuers and other emergency workers reach areas isolated by collapsed roads, failing infrastructure and widespread flooding.
During a briefing, White House homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall suggested as many as 600 people had not been accounted for as of Monday afternoon, saying some might be dead.
Government officials and aid groups were working to deliver basic supplies by air, truck and even mule to the hard-hit tourism hub of Asheville and its surrounding mountain towns.
At least 40 people died in the county that includes Asheville.
Debris is seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene (Mike Stewart/AP)
The destruction and desperation were unimaginable. A flattened cargo container sat atop a bridge crossing a river with muddy brown water.
Overturned pontoon boats and splintered wooden docks and tree trunks covered the surface of a picturesque lake tucked between the mountains.
The North Carolina death toll included one horrific story after another of people who were trapped by floodwaters in their homes and vehicles or were killed by falling trees.
A courthouse security officer died after being submerged inside his truck. A couple and a six-year-old boy waiting to be rescued on a rooftop drowned when part of their home collapsed.
Rescuers did manage to save dozens, including an infant and two others stuck on the top of a car in Atlanta. More than 50 hospital patients and staff in Tennessee were plucked by helicopter from the hospital rooftop in a daring rescue operation.