Helene: Discovery raises number killed to 230 across 7 states
(The Center Square) – Hurricane Helene’s death toll is 230 for seven states primarily in the South and 101 in North Carolina.
This is the sixth week of recovery from the storm that came ashore in Florida on Sept. 26 as a Category 4 hurricane. North Carolina Emergency Management says the number unaccounted for or missing is seven, according to a Monday morning email to The Center Square.
The body of a missing worker in Tennessee was discovered last week and her death announced late Friday, pushing the total fatalities in the state to 18.
Respective state officials say 49 were killed in South Carolina, 34 in Georgia, 25 in Florida, two in Virginia and one in Indiana. Numbers were confirmed by The Center Square based on information supplied by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services; South Carolina Department of Public Safety; Georgia Emergency Management Agency; Florida Department of Law Enforcement; Tennessee Emergency Management Agency; Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin; and the Gibson County Sheriff’s Office in Indiana.
Helene is the fourth most deadly hurricane from the Atlantic Basin in the last three-quarters of a century. Only Katrina (2005, deaths 1,392), Audrey (1957, deaths 416) and Camille (1969, deaths 256) killed more people.
Helene was one of the three hurricanes to land in Florida over a span of 66 days, and subsequently generated damage across the South.
Debby made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near Steinhatchee, Fla, on Aug. 5, Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Dekle Beach, Fla., on Sept. 26, and Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane near Siesta Key, Fla., on Oct. 9.
Helene dissipated over the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee, dumping more than 30 inches of rain in multiple places. Flooding was catastrophic, arguably the worst storm for North Carolina since Hurricanes Floyd in 1999 and Hazel in 1954 – the latter the only Category 4 hurricane to make landfall on state shores, the former causing a once in 500 years flood.
According to PowerOutage.us late Monday morning, the total without power in Yancey County is 591. Madison, Rutherford and Cleveland are the only other western counties with at least 100 customers without power.
At the height of the storm the last weekend of September, more than 1 million lost power.
According to DriveNC.org, the total road closures because of Helene is 294. The number of secondary roads was trimmed by six from Friday to 243. Also with road closures are one interstate, 22 federal highways and 28 state roads.
