Hurricane Helene check-in

[Ann.without.an.e]

25 minutes ago, freesia said:

My dh was asking why we are seeing supplies brought in by mules and horses and not ATVs. My guess is that with the hills and trees and lack of roads that even ATVs can’t get through easily

Also there is no gas up there to power them. People have been stranded trying to leave just because there’s not fuel. 

[kbutton]

1 hour ago, freesia said:

My dh was asking why we are seeing supplies brought in by mules and horses and not ATVs. My guess is that with the hills and trees and lack of roads that even ATVs can’t get through easily

Mules are extremely sure footed. We know people who lived remotely in Mexico who experienced riding back and forth on switchbacks in the Sierras on paths that were sometimes tiny next to sheer drop offs. That’s how they got to an airstrip to travel out or to retrieve supplies a few times per year.

[fairfarmhand]

1 hour ago, freesia said:

My dh was asking why we are seeing supplies brought in by mules and horses and not ATVs. My guess is that with the hills and trees and lack of roads that even ATVs can’t get through easily

Mules and horses can indeed go places where ATVs can't AND they don't require fuel.

[Ann.without.an.e]

57 minutes ago, fairfarmhand said:

Mules and horses can indeed go places where ATVs can't AND they don't require fuel.

Totally off topic. I can’t message you. Is it blocked? Full? 

[kbutton]

My cousin’s husband and a friend(?) took water and fuel to some small communities—some roads were non-existent, and it took hours longer than it should have. They could use prayers to get back home in the same conditions but in the dark. I might not have a status in a timely manner—they can’t get a cell signal easily, and I am just following on social media. 

[gardenmom5]

I don't know where people are, but this came across my feed and I thought I'd share.

[KeriJ]

Update from the friend in my previous post:

 

"Update on my prior post, FEMA has set up shop. A big and impressive mass of trailers and mobile kitchens and people. We are seeing some power trucks on the road working on the lines. Should have been here Saturday, but we are grateful it’s here now.

So many citizens and churches and restaurants stepping up to help people. Search and rescue working day and night. This storm is similar to Katrina, but in the mountains.

The President came today and says that now that he has seen the damage, he is sending 1000 soldiers to help. Nothing has changed since the storm came thru on Friday morning. Why wait so long? Did you really need to fly over in the helicopter to know how bad it is? Didn’t anyone tell you?"

[fairfarmhand]

12 hours ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

Totally off topic. I can’t message you. Is it blocked? Full? 

I’ll check. 
 

eta: just deleted some stuff so give it another go!

Edited Thursday at 12:29 PM by fairfarmhand

[Ann.without.an.e]

This is the first day that I feel like I’ve heard helicopters all day long. They must be going west in droves or something. 

[KeriJ]

22 minutes ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

This is the first day that I feel like I’ve heard helicopters all day long. They must be going west in droves or something. 

I guess that was the point my friend was making. Why today? why not 5 days ago?

[prairiewindmomma]

7 minutes ago, KeriJ said:

I guess that was the point my friend was making. Why today? why not 5 days ago?

It takes time to mobilize stuff. You cant get helicopters up while it is still windy. So, you wait for satellite imagery and local reports to come in. As you gather intelligence, you have to figure out logistics and assess needs. You are calling up workers who all take time to mobilize and pulling in prepositioned supplies. They built up a logistics center in a central location and are working their way outwards. They’ve honestly made a lot of progress in five days.
 

 

[Ann.without.an.e]

12 minutes ago, KeriJ said:

I guess that was the point my friend was making. Why today? why not 5 days ago?

Yes my thought exactly 

[prairiewindmomma]

Decentralized aid by volunteers are almost always more agile. They are using different communication networks (informal) and have more flexibility. It’s why during Hurricane Harvey the Cajun Navy was working off of a spreadsheet some random lady started up. 
 

We need both sets of systems. Governments have easy access to lots of equipment and supplies but are slower. Volunteers are faster but cant do infrastructure support (building roads and temporary bridges, electrical, sanitary systems).

[Ann.without.an.e]

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/yZXAbbwWeZVQYzER/?mibextid=nvWvQA
 

Please watch this 😭😭😭
It is a live that operation air drop just did like an hour ago. It’s bad y’all. 

Edited Thursday at 05:32 PM by Ann.without.an.e

[Pawz4me]

2 hours ago, KeriJ said:

I guess that was the point my friend was making. Why today? why not 5 days ago?

The helicopters have been going full force. My rescue contact who has been working actively in the area since Saturday evening was assigned a hotel room near the Hickory airport, where much of the staging is being done. He wasn't there much (working on minimal sleep), but he reported that sleep was pretty much impossible anyway due to the noise from so many helicopters constantly landing and taking off. That was several days ago. 

Multiple things can be true at one time. It can be true that there has been plenty of helicopter activity and other rescue efforts and also true that your friend hasn't seen any. Surely he's capable of understanding that just because he hasn't seen any in his immediate area doesn't mean that they aren't there? It really sounds like his expectations aren't realistic for the area. Perhaps he'd be better off back in Florida, where the terrain is much easier to navigate and things aren't nearly so remote.

Edited Thursday at 04:35 PM by Pawz4me

[popmom]

24 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

 Perhaps he'd be better off back in Florida, where the terrain is much easier to navigate and things aren't nearly so remote.

I hope this wasn't meant to be snarky because it reads that way to me. It is at least insensitive considering what these people have been through. They are desperate and allowed to feel whatever emotions they are feeling. They are allowed to have unreasonable expectations. 

Edited Thursday at 04:56 PM by popmom

[popmom]

1 hour ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/yZXAbbwWeZVQYzER/?mibextid=nvWvQA
 

Please watch this 😭😭😭
It is a live that operation air drop just did like an hour ago. It’s bad y’all. 

I have found several accounts on social media that are reporting private relief efforts, and it is gutting to watch and hear their accounts.

[Hyacinth]

On 10/1/2024 at 1:24 PM, Ann.without.an.e said:

Right but the problem is that ALL aid is going to Asheville and the other areas like Hendersonville are being overlooked completely.  

I’ve been following a group called Happy Helicopter Tours on FB that is collecting supplies here in Greenville, SC. At least one of their posts specifically mentioned dropping off in Hendersonville. 
 

I know it’s frustrating. 

[Corraleno]

4 hours ago, KeriJ said:

The President came today and says that now that he has seen the damage, he is sending 1000 soldiers to help. Nothing has changed since the storm came thru on Friday morning. Why wait so long? Did you really need to fly over in the helicopter to know how bad it is? Didn’t anyone tell you?"

The idea that Biden had no idea how bad things were and only deployed additional resources after seeing it himself, way too late, is completely false. The deployment of active duty soldiers from Fort Liberty, in addition to the 7000+ National Guard that are already on the ground, was requested by Governor Cooper and was approved by Biden as soon as the request was received, before Biden even visited the area. And Fort Liberty has been preparing for it since Monday, bringing in high water vehicles and other necessary equipment and supplies. You can't just drop off 1000 soldiers somewhere and tell them to "go help," without the logistics and planning to feed, house, and support them, especially when there are thousands of National Guard and local first responders already on the ground who need the same support. 

[Pawz4me]

15 minutes ago, popmom said:

I hope this wasn't meant to be snarky because it reads that way to me. It is at least insensitive considering what these people have been through. They are desperate and allowed to feel whatever emotions they are feeling. They are allowed to have unreasonable expectations. 

Yes, it was in fact meant to be just a bit snarky.

I know multiple rescue workers in the area. What this person is implying is an insult to these extremely dedicated, hardworking men and women and (to me) comes across as whining. I also personally know people who live in the affected areas. They aren't whining. They're natives who know what their choice of living in the area means.

ETA: And I wouldn't think I'd need to say this here, but y'all need to be more than a bit skeptical about things you see on social media. There's a lot of misinformation and disinformation going around. A LOT.

Edited Thursday at 05:11 PM by Pawz4me

[kbutton]

29 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

It really sounds like his expectations aren't realistic for the area. Perhaps he'd be better off back in Florida, where the terrain is much easier to navigate and things aren't nearly so remote.

I think that his experience of FL vs. NC could be super valuable in troubleshooting how a response that is grounded in a previously unlikely scenario can change and shift to be tailored to that area. This scenario has features of varying kinds of disasters, and a response that is probably reflecting that. If this was a typical scenario for this part of NC, it probably would be happening more efficiently in some ways, and there might have been some disaster-specific changes to infrastructure that were in place first even if it were something like designated shelter areas and ways to get to them given that evacuation is fraught in the mountains. Scenarios for flash floods and how to respond to them surely never anticipated this scale of damage and communication loss.

This would have been bad on any scale—it was a horrible storm, but they had a ton of rain just before the hurricane. Conditions were the least helpful that they could have been. The scale of the two together is doubly unfortunate.

 

 

[KeriJ]

10 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

Yes, it was in fact meant to be just a bit snarky.

I know multiple rescue workers in the area. What this person is implying is an insult to these extremely dedicated, hardworking men and women and (to me) comes across as whining. I also personally know people who live in the affected areas. They aren't whining. They're natives who know what their choice of living in the area means.

ETA: And I wouldn't think I'd need to say this here, but y'all need to be more than a bit skeptical about things you see on social media. There's a lot of misinformation and disinformation going around. A LOT.

It wasn't "from social media", it is a personal,  long time friend who is in Hendersonville who is just relaying his actual experience and asking rhetorical questions.  I was just trying to give insight as to how some of the victims were feeling and what they were experiencing on the ground.

Edited Thursday at 05:19 PM by KeriJ

[Pawz4me]

1 minute ago, kbutton said:

I think that his experience of FL vs. NC could be super valuable in troubleshooting how a response that is grounded in a previously unlikely scenario can change and shift to be tailored to that area. This scenario has features of varying kinds of disasters, and a response that is probably reflecting that. If this was a typical scenario for this part of NC

 

 

It is NOT an unlikely or unusual experience in WNC. Just from my memory this is the third similar event in the last four or five years. There were two hurricane remnants that caused widespread flooding (I've forgotten their names) and then what I remember to be Tropical Storm Fred, although my memory could be wrong on that name.

That's what some of us who actually live in NC have been trying to tell the rest of you -- this is not an unusual event. It's just the scale of it that's unusual. But nobody's listening, 'cause you all think you know better (sigh).

[Carrie12345]

It seems (to me) that maybe the isolated people aren’t fully aware of the degree and vastness of this unimaginable damage. I mean, they’re probably focused on their own literal survival and not the reality of the number of helicopters per household impacted. 

[popmom]

7 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

It is NOT an unlikely or unusual experience in WNC. Just from my memory this is the third similar event in the last four or five years. There were two hurricane remnants that caused widespread flooding (I've forgotten their names) and then what I remember to be Tropical Storm Fred, although my memory could be wrong on that name.

That's what some of us who actually live in NC have been trying to tell the rest of you -- this is not an unusual event. It's just the scale of it that's unusual. But nobody's listening, 'cause you all think you know better (sigh).

The scale of it is the whole point. I’m happy for you that you would be so much more reasonable and cool- headed knowing that just a few miles away there are likely trapped human beings and animals that are actively dying. Right now at this moment. 
I don’t know why this is turning political. Every administration of both parties that has ever had to deal with a natural disaster gets horribly criticized. 

[Carrie12345]

Adding, I only know about some areas because of TikTok. Asheville, which would be broad enough itself, is the main focus of most national outlets.

[Corraleno]

11 minutes ago, KeriJ said:

It wasn't "from social media", it is a personal,  long time friend who is in Hendersonville who is just relaying his actual experience and asking rhetorical questions.  I was just trying to give insight as to how some of the victims were feeling and what they were experiencing on the ground.

But he is spreading misinformation by putting a "spin" on his experience that is not based in fact.  The deployment of troops from Fort Liberty has been in the planning stage for days and was formally approved when requested by the governor of NC. Telling people that the idiot president somehow didn't understand the magnitude of the damage and only did something about it on Wednesday is false and unhelpful.

[Ann.without.an.e]

29 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

But he is spreading misinformation by putting a "spin" on his experience that is not based in fact.  The deployment of troops from Fort Liberty has been in the planning stage for days and was formally approved when requested by the governor of NC. Telling people that the idiot president somehow didn't understand the magnitude of the damage and only did something about it on Wednesday is false and unhelpful.

I don’t think it is political and I don’t want this convo to go to politics. 
 

But what @popmomis saying isn’t being pulled out of someone’s back end. We know lots of people who are there with boots on the ground and so many people are saying the same thing. Where is FEMA? I have no doubt that some relief came to some areas fairly quickly but a lot of people are feeling completely abandoned and still have no help for many reasons. They are allowed to feel however the heck they want to feel. And they are looking around and seeing that the help that finally came was churches and volunteer organizations and individuals literally coming in vans but haven’t seen any government help and yet the government is taking credit for the help. That has to be maddening. 

[kbutton]

28 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

It is NOT an unlikely or unusual experience in WNC. Just from my memory this is the third similar event in the last four or five years. There were two hurricane remnants that caused widespread flooding (I've forgotten their names) and then what I remember to be Tropical Storm Fred, although my memory could be wrong on that name.

That's what some of us who actually live in NC have been trying to tell the rest of you -- this is not an unusual event. It's just the scale of it that's unusual. But nobody's listening, 'cause you all think you know better (sigh).

I am aware of the fact that the scale is unprecedented. 

Quoting myself here:

34 minutes ago, kbutton said:

The scale of the two together is doubly unfortunate.

I would think that the scale could turn into lessons learned. Not because rescuers are doing a poor job but because the scale creates specific difficulties and might lead to changes for the next time.

22 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

It seems (to me) that maybe the isolated people aren’t fully aware of the degree and vastness of this unimaginable damage. I mean, they’re probably focused on their own literal survival and not the reality of the number of helicopters per household impacted. 

This. How could they know? They might think they’ve been missed. 

And maybe something can be done before another event like this (there or in another community) to make it easier to recover the ability to communicate. I don’t know anything about sat phones and service, but maybe for areas that are hard to evacuate, the safest spot in each small community gets a sat phone as part of infrastructure. If they are dropping them from airplanes post storm, maybe there are ways to have them in place first even if someone has to walk a few miles to get to one. In coastal hurricanes, many communities have evacuation centers. Maybe these communities need some place that is at least a centrally located xyz list of literal stuff that was missing this time around. Obviously some communities had no safe place at all, but in some places people are able to get to stuff on foot or ATV. Maybe that could be worked into community preparedness plans.

None of that is a critique of people on the ground working hard. Every disaster leads to improvements. It is my understanding that lots of things changed in NOLA after Katrina. In my home state, lots of things changed after a hurricane in the 70s when storms spawned from a hurricane stalled over an area that is far inland. 

Even conversation on these forums has evolved about the feasibility of evacuation for hurricanes. There is a lot less blame and a lot more understanding of how people weigh those decisions and how there is a point of no return for staying or going that can’t always account for changes in conditions that happen fast.

[Ann.without.an.e]

Ok so why would FEMA be taking supplies from volunteers?? I’m not a conspiracy theorist but I’m starting to get concerned here. A group that I know personally is sending a van there today and the driver’s bother in law said that FEMA is now stopping them and taking supplies from non-government organizations and not letting them enter? They are literally confiscating them and saying they will distribute them how they see fit. 
 

why?  It’s the work of individuals and non profits that have gotten supplies to smaller areas. FEMA is now there but they are stopping people from helping and taking their supplies? This is not hearsay… or social media. These are people I know! As much work as FEMA needs to do, this is their concentration? Keeping supplies from coming in??

Edited Thursday at 06:23 PM by Ann.without.an.e

[mommyoffive]

Well this just broke my heart.

https://people.com/couple-killed-by-tree-hurricane-helene-found-hugging-in-bedroom-south-carolina-8722511?hid=e29223e5c3eddfd4a2c8c0f58b17511036c2d98c&did=14814412-20241003&utm_campaign=ppl_relationship-builder&utm_source=ppl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=100324&lctg=e29223e5c3eddfd4a2c8c0f58b17511036c2d98c&lr_input=29d633aae90dc05f4b0bbcc8984257f70188fddb1ba0399390b3f65f9eebc5d1&utm_term=news-alert

[Pawz4me]

5 minutes ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

and not letting them enter?

People who mean well are causing all sorts of safety and logistical issues and are hindering the ability of approved rescue groups and workers to do their jobs and help people. My rescue contact is quite literally begging people who aren't affiliated with an approved group to stay out of the area. They're having to spend too much time helping do-gooders who get themselves into trouble. It's greatly hindering their ability to help residents.

People mean well. They want to help. But many are making things worse because they really have no idea what they're doing or what the dangers are. Does that mean none of them are being productively helpful? No, of course not. But enough of them are creating additional headaches that it's really best for all of them to stay out unless they've been approved to be in the affected areas.

[Ann.without.an.e]

3 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

People who mean well are causing all sorts of safety and logistical issues and are hindering the ability of approved rescue groups and workers to do their jobs and help people. My rescue contact is quite literally begging people who aren't affiliated with an approved group to stay out of the area. They're having to spend too much time helping do-gooders who get themselves into trouble. It's greatly hindering their ability to help residents.

People mean well. They want to help. But many are making things worse because they really have no idea what they're doing or what the dangers are. Does that mean none of them are being productively helpful? No, of course not. But enough of them are creating additional headaches that it's really best for all of them to stay out unless they've been approved to be in the affected areas.

This was all that I could think. It’s the only thing that made sense to me. This is a non profit and they have a disaster certificate and I think their contact in Asheville is just confused. I told them they probably just mean individuals who are clogging roads and causing issues and they should still go. 

[popmom]

My neighbor had bad information about Newland. Man, I had to dig to find this. None of the national media outlets I checked have much on their “front page”. I am very relieved to read this, but there are still many unaccounted for. Avery County has 5 deaths so far. I’m sure in the beginning there was a lot of confusion over unaccounted for people. 
 

Definitely need to be skeptical of individuals posting on social media right now. 
 

https://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2024/10/03/helene-asheville-north-carolina-flooding-live-updates-recovery-thursday/75488721007/

Edited Thursday at 07:49 PM by popmom

[Carrie12345]

1 hour ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

Ok so why would FEMA be taking supplies from volunteers?? I’m not a conspiracy theorist but I’m starting to get concerned here. A group that I know personally is sending a van there today and the driver’s bother in law said that FEMA is now stopping them and taking supplies from non-government organizations and not letting them enter? They are literally confiscating them and saying they will distribute them how they see fit. 
 

why?  It’s the work of individuals and non profits that have gotten supplies to smaller areas. FEMA is now there but they are stopping people from helping and taking their supplies? This is not hearsay… or social media. These are people I know! As much work as FEMA needs to do, this is their concentration? Keeping supplies from coming in??

There’s a whole curriculum for managing volunteers and donations in emergencies. Free courses are available here: https://training.fema.gov/is/curriculum.aspx

More people is not always better, and often cause more chaos and delays in delivering aid. 

[Corraleno]

2 hours ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

Where is FEMA? I have no doubt that some relief came to some areas fairly quickly but a lot of people are feeling completely abandoned and still have no help for many reasons. They are allowed to feel however the heck they want to feel. And they are looking around and seeing that the help that finally came was churches and volunteer organizations and individuals literally coming in vans but haven’t seen any government help and yet the government is taking credit for the help. That has to be maddening. 

Helene has affected millions of people across 5 states. The fact that someone in a small mountain community that was completely cut off did not see FEMA on the ground in their little town immediately after the hurricane doesn't mean they weren't on the ground in many other places! Helene made landfall Thursday night and then moved through the southeastern states on Friday. This is just some of what FEMA already had in place by Saturday:

"FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell is on the ground in Florida today surveying damage and assessing the need for federal resources.  FEMA has more than 800 deployed staff supporting states affected by the hurricane. Our distribution centers are fully stocked and ready to provide commodities and equipment to any impacted state as required. 

FEMA is coordinating a federal force of more than 3,200 personnel each contributing their expertise and manpower to this mission.  Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas activated the Surge Capacity Force (SCF). The SCF makes rostered federal employees available to support FEMA’s response and recovery missions. 

Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) deployed a total of 24 teams (over 1,270 personnel) to affected states. In Florida, eight US&R teams are actively responding. All teams are equipped with Swift Water Rescue Capabilities. In Georgia, two teams are deployed to support rescue operations. In North Carolina there are four teams. Additional teams and four Swift Water Mission Ready Packages are in route to the impacted areas.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has teams positioned to provide temporary emergency power, with others prepared to deploy if needed. In addition to temporary emergency power, personnel assist the states with assessments of critical infrastructure including water/wastewater treatment facilities, debris management and road and bridge inspections as needed. They have activated six emergency operation centers in the region to coordinate operations. 

Department of Energy (DOE) activated the Energy Response Organization (ERO) and is closely monitoring impacts and restoration efforts related to Helene, including power, fuel and supply chain interruptions. The ERO and field responders are in contact with industry partners and local officials. DOE responders deployed to the Florida Emergency Operations Center, Georgia Emergency Operations Center and the North Carolina Emergency Operations Center. "

Every response to a major disaster begins with the first responders and local officials who are already on the ground, followed by state emergency resources and the National Guard, and then federal resources. First responders were very clear that their top priority in the immediate aftermath was search and rescue of people who were injured or in imminent danger, then the next priority was providing food and water, clearing blocked roads, etc. Being hungry for a few days sucks, but not as much as lying injured in a pile of debris or desperately clinging to the top of a car or house roof waiting for help. One sheriff choked up while saying they had to leave dead bodies in the water because their first priority was pulling out people who were still alive.

The governors of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina [ETA: and North Carolina] requested pre-landfall declarations of emergency, which were approved by Biden before Helene even hit. Gov. Kemp was asked about claims by a certain political candidate that he had been unable to reach the president, who wasn't returning his calls, and Kemp absolutely refuted that, saying he'd spoken to the president over the weekend and he had offered any and all support the state needed.  Gov. Desantis was already meeting with FEMA officials on the ground in Florida on Saturday. Gov. Cooper said on Monday that FEMA had already "delivered about one million liters of water and more than 600,000 meals to North Carolina." 

The fact that FEMA had so many people and resources already on the ground one day after the disaster is hardly a failure. And folks can pretend "this isn't political," but it's a fact that a certain candidate and the media outlets that support him have been spreading lies that the federal response to Helene has been "a disaster," the President was "sleeping" and "not responding to calls," etc., which have been completely refuted by the governors involved. Perpetuating lies about a terrible tragedy like this for political gain is reprehensible, and continuing to spread misinformation is divisive and unhelpful.

Edited Thursday at 09:07 PM by Corraleno

[Pawz4me]

42 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

 

The governors of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina requested pre-landfall declarations of emergency, which were approved by Biden before Helene even hit.

NC Governor Cooper declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, September 25, and it was promptly approved by President Biden. My rescue contact (who is most active with NC emergency operations, but is also a FEMA certified damage assessor) was on the ground doing prep work on Thursday, September 26.

[Carrie12345]

Thought exercise:

Imagine you have spent 3 months preparing to throw a fancy dinner party for 50. The menu, the drinks, the decor, lighting, music, timing, etc. Then 10 random strangers show up in your kitchen saying they’re going to help and you’re an ass if you send them away.

Now make those numbers insanely larger and your party has to go off without a hitch or people die.

Then remember that protocols have been developed over years of study and experience and are being implemented by professionals. 

Edited Thursday at 08:56 PM by Carrie12345

[Pawz4me]

A very recent update from my rescue contact. I'll delete it soon, but some of you really need to read this and pay attention:

Quote

After being deployed for Hurricane Helena for the past 7 days and not having time to look at FB (or anything else) I cannot believe the amount of fake news, sensationalism and conspiracy crap being spread. 
Driving home from Hickory this morning was the first time I have had a chance to listen to the "news" and happened to tune to a nationally syndicated talk show that was putting their political "spin" on the events going on in western NC. Based on the half-truths and misinformation that the station was broadcasting it has been permanently removed from my playlist. When I got home and took a nap and turned on the computer to "catch" up on the news and logged into FB and I see the same crap.
If you want factual information tune over to one of the local news media outlets in the Asheville area for your news and skip FB and the mainstream media.   
Let me make this clear - I have travelled from Hickory to as far west as Hayesville in Clay County and this is a disaster of unimaginable size.  These are North Carolinians who have lost everything, and their lives have been changed forever and they will need our prayers and support for a very long time to recover. 
A few comments:
Last Saturday there were over a million electric customers without power, today there are still around 350,000 without power.  The utility companies are doing everything they can to restore power, but with no roads that is hard to do.  
Cellular / land line / internet service is still out in many areas.  Before any of this can be restored the power grid has to be rebuilt and back on before the telecommunications people can get in and start pulling new cable wires, which will take time weeks or months.  In the short term Starlink is about the only reliable communications source.  Ham radio is also a communications option but many of the repeaters in the area are without power. 
NC DOT has thousands of workers on site doing their best to clear the roads and gain access to the communities that are cut off from the rest of the world.  There are still many areas that are still only accessible by foot or by helicopter.
Contrary to "media" reports there are thousands of highly trained first responders from across the state and the nation working 16-to-20-hour days and the best thing we can do is to stay out of the area and stay out of their way.  Please do not try and go site seeing in western NC right now, the first responders need unimpeded access to do their jobs and every extra vehicle on the roads slows them down.
FEMA is indeed on the ground and doing their job in spite of what the media is saying.  I saw resources from every corner of the US, some from as far away as California and Arizona.   
Contrary to some of the FB posts there are not thousands of bodies being carried off and hidden somewhere. The USAR teams on the ground are doing a methodical house by house search right now and this is takes time. 
Yes, there are many people still trapped and isolated due to the washed-out roads and bridges and can only be accessed by foot or by air. Please do not share the "sensational" FB posts saying stuff like "there were 2,000 people trapped in a church in XXX town and they have not had any food or water in 6 days."  I went through the particular town mentioned in the FB post last Sunday and yes, they have many structures damaged, but I doubt there are 2000 people in the whole town and there was not church within 25 miles that could hold two thousand people.
Several people have texted me about making donations, I would recommend Baptist on Mission, https://baptistsonmission.org/ or another local NC based charity.   Baptist on Mission are serving thousands of meals each day in the Asheville area. If you do make a donation, I would recommend that you keep your donation local, so your money doesn't go to pay a huge salary of the President of some large national charity.

 

[KeriJ]

For the record, I didn't share my friend's comments because I agreed with everything he was saying.  I realize that he put a bit of a spin on it. However, I do remember being in the middle of hurricane Michael, having the grid for our entire county wiped out completely, and feeling very vulnerable, isolated, and wondering if the rest of the country knew what was happening. 

He he and his wife moved to NC from FL to take care of her elderly mother, and then after she died, they stayed because they grew to love it.  So for the suggestion that he should go back to Florida...  In his recent post, he was very honest that FEMA was now there and active.  

But I mostly posted because I knew someone here would have answers for his questions.  So to those of you that shared facts, thank you!  That was very helpful!!

 

 

[Pawz4me]

11 minutes ago, KeriJ said:

For the record, I didn't share my friend's comments because I agreed with everything he was saying.  I realize that he put a bit of a spin on it. However, I do remember being in the middle of hurricane Michael, having the grid for our entire county wiped out completely, and feeling very vulnerable, isolated, and wondering if the rest of the country knew what was happening. 

He he and his wife moved to NC from FL to take care of her elderly mother, and then after she died, they stayed because they grew to love it.  So for the suggestion that he should go back to Florida...  In his recent post, he was very honest that FEMA was now there and active.  

But I mostly posted because I knew someone here would have answers for his questions.  So to those of you that shared facts, thank you!  That was very helpful!!

 

 

And I apologize to you for being too snarky. There’s much stress going on here (not weather related), and feeling like people I know who give so generously with their time and skills were being unfairly criticized just added one more straw. I’ll try to do better. 

[KeriJ]

6 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

And I apologize to you for being too snarky. There’s much stress going on here (not weather related), and feeling like people I know who give so generously with their time and skills were being unfairly criticized just added one more straw. I’ll try to do better. 

That is very kind of you. 

I'm sorry you are going through much stress!

[Brittany1116]

Just got contact with my childhood bestie in NC and she said it's like Katrina. She is safe. 

[Corraleno]

AP had a good article today, discussing how difficult it is for search and rescue teams to get into some of the small communities that have been totally cut off by landslides and washed-out roads and bridges. One bit of good news for those in NC: "The administration announced a federal commitment to foot the bill for debris removal and emergency protective measures for six months in North Carolina and three months in Georgia. The money will address the impacts of landslides and flooding and cover costs of first responders, search and rescue teams, shelters, and mass feeding."

Excerpt from the article:

"PENSACOLA, N.C. (AP) — Rescue crews and volunteers facing obstacles at every turn in North Carolina’s remote mountains paddled canoes across swollen rivers and steered horses past mudslides in the rush to reach those stranded or missing by Hurricane Helene’s rampage that killed more than 200 throughout the Southeast. Now a week since the storm first roared onto Florida’s Gulf Coast, the search continued for people who have yet to be heard from in places where phone service and electricity were knocked out. Pleas for help came from people running low on medicine or in need of fuel for their generators.

How many people are missing or unaccounted for isn’t clear. The death toll soared to 215 people on Thursday as more victims were found, making Helene the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Katrina in 2005. Roughly half the victims were in North Carolina, while dozens more were killed in South Carolina and Georgia. 

Each road presents a new challenge for rescuers. Along the Cane River in western North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, rescuers from the Pensacola Volunteer Fire Department were cutting their way through trees at the top of a valley nearly a week after a wall of chocolate-milk colored water swept through for hours. Pensacola, which sits a few miles from Mount Mitchell, the highest point east of the Mississippi River, lost an untold number of people, said Mark Harrison, chief medical officer for the department.  “We’re starting to do recovery,” he said Thursday. “We’ve got the most critical people out.”

Harrison was helping dispatch volunteers driving all-terrain vehicles on supply runs to people still on ridgetops. Many don’t want to leave their houses, while others lost their vehicles and need help getting to town. Bradley Billheimer, who hiked down to the fire station to access the internet, said he just talked to his mom for the first time since the storm. He feared his house will be without power for months. “I think we’re going to walk out in a couple of days,” he said.

In another county that sits alongside the Tennessee state line, crews were just finishing clearing main routes and reaching side roads that wind through switchbacks and cross small bridges that can be tricky to navigate even in the best weather. Each road presented a new challenge. “Everything is fine and then they come around a bend and the road is gone and it’s one big gully or the bridge is gone.” said Charlie Wallin, a commissioner in Watauga County. “We can only get so far.” Most people the crews come across turn out to be fine and just in need of water, but every day there are new requests to check on someone who hasn’t been heard from yet, Wallin said. When the search will end is hard to tell, he said.  “You hope you’re getting closer, but it’s still hard to know,” he said.

A week into the search and rescue operations in Buncombe County, which includes the hard-hit tourist city of Asheville and where more than 72 have been killed, the county doesn’t have an official tally of people who are unaccounted for or missing. The county sheriff said his office believes more than 200 people are missing, although other officials said the number is constantly changing when crews make contact with people who hadn’t been accounted for or receive new names of people who may be missing. “We’re continuing to find people. We know we have pockets of people who are isolated due to landslides and bridges out,” said Avril Pinder, the county manager. “So they are disconnected but not missing.”

<snip>"

 

 

 

[kbutton]

On 10/2/2024 at 8:25 PM, kbutton said:

My cousin’s husband and a friend(?) took water and fuel to some small communities—some roads were non-existent, and it took hours longer than it should have. They could use prayers to get back home in the same conditions but in the dark. I might not have a status in a timely manner—they can’t get a cell signal easily, and I am just following on social media. 

He is home safely. They took in some semi-heavy equipment to help regrade private roads so that people can get out—they spent a lot of time working on a road for a couple who were stranded (one of them has health problems). They had local contacts that they took supplies to, including gallons and gallons of fuel and some stuff for the local authorities to distribute. They had some morbid jobs that he declined to describe. I assume maybe moving stuff for people to recover bodies since he had equipment, but I am not sure.

His friend is going back again. They appear to have enough local information, equipment, and skills to do targeted jobs and stay out of the way.

[Ausmumof3]

6 hours ago, Ann.without.an.e said:

Ok so why would FEMA be taking supplies from volunteers?? I’m not a conspiracy theorist but I’m starting to get concerned here. A group that I know personally is sending a van there today and the driver’s bother in law said that FEMA is now stopping them and taking supplies from non-government organizations and not letting them enter? They are literally confiscating them and saying they will distribute them how they see fit. 
 

why?  It’s the work of individuals and non profits that have gotten supplies to smaller areas. FEMA is now there but they are stopping people from helping and taking their supplies? This is not hearsay… or social media. These are people I know! As much work as FEMA needs to do, this is their concentration? Keeping supplies from coming in??

I don’t know the ins and outs of American agencies. I know post-bushfire here police did roadblock and initially prevented anyone from entering then softened it to allow people who could prove residence in. unfortunately people came in with trailers and a small amount of animal feed claiming to be distributing relief efforts and actually looting. Also theres those who go with good intentions but get themselves in trouble because they really have no idea what they’re doing. 
 

I don’t know that roadblocks are the right answer but there is often good reason for them. 

[Ann.without.an.e]

I think the town just east to me is the closest warehouse store to the western areas and thankfully they have now rushed water to it and it’s in pallets everywhere at Sam’s. Even in the middle of the aisles. This is wonderful because we wanted to send some yesterday and there was none anywhere. I hope they are doing this in Charlotte too! 

[Corraleno]

Just a heads-up that there is a widespread disinformation campaign claiming that FEMA wlll only be providing hurricane victims with a maximum of $750 to help with rebuilding. That is absolutely not true, and it's based on a deceptively edited video clip in which the Vice President stated that FEMA was going door to door in order to provide immediate cash relief payments of $750 to victims — certain media outlets purposely edited the clip to exclude the part where she said FEMA would also be providing "tens of thousands more dollars for folks to help them with home repair, to be able to cover a deductible when and if they have insurance, and also hotel costs."

Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, and Sean Hannity all played the deceptively edited clip on their shows, although Fox News had carried Harris’s full speech earlier in the day, and the lie that victims will only get $750 is being combined with anti-Ukraine sentiment, as in this Twitter post by the offspring of a certain candidate: "$750 for Americans in desperate need many of whom lost everything including family. $250 BILLION spent in Ukraine with a population of +- 38 million equals a bit more than $6500 per person in F$&?ing UKRAINE!!! For what? Enough of this madness!"

This claim is already being spread by bots and human idiots all over social media and in comments on news stories, and will undoubtedly cause a great deal of stress for victims who believe these false claims and think they will not be getting any financial help with rebuilding. 

This is what's popping up all over Twitter, FB, comments on news stories, etc. right now:

Edited 20 hours ago by Corraleno

[Ann.without.an.e]

We are headed up in the morning as registered volunteers. We chose a team going to Watauga County. DD, DH, DS, my mom, and I are all going.

I think I will print maps, we will take food and water, change of clothes because we will most likely get really muddy, change of shoes, extra fuel maybe (but it is only 60 miles or less so we may be fine). What else? What am I not thinking of. 

[Ann.without.an.e]

26 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

Just a heads-up that there is a widespread disinformation campaign claiming that FEMA wlll only be providing hurricane victims with a maximum of $750 to help with rebuilding.

 

As someone so close to this, it makes me sick to see it turned political from either side. I am SO over this political polarity and either side saying whatever the heck they want to further their agenda. 

 

ETA: and victims are believing it!! That is why I thought it might be true. I didn't believe it at first and wrote it off as a lie, but then when someone in Asheville said that we can't come because of it, I wondered if it was true for a minute there. I really don't think it is. I guess I will know tomorrow.

Edited 21 hours ago by Ann.without.an.e