Rescue missions underway in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene brings ‘historic’ flooding, landslides

Rescue efforts are underway across western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene brought unprecedented flooding and landslides to the region over the weekend. Deanne Criswell, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administrator, described the catastrophic flooding as “historic” during an appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “I don’t know that anybody could be fully prepared for the amount of flooding and landslides that they are experiencing right now,” Criswell said. Roy Cooper said during a press conference on Sunday that the death toll of 11 was expected to rise as search teams reached areas left isolated from the storm. HURRICANE HELENE: FOX WEATHER METEOROLOGIST RESCUES WOMAN FROM CAR DURING LIVE SHOT AS FLOODWATERS RISE “This is an unprecedented tragedy that requires an unprecedented response,” Cooper said, adding “we know there will be more” deaths. VIDEOS: HURRICANE HELENE PRODUCES RECORD STORM SURGE ALONG FLORIDA’S GULF COAST Supplies were being airlifted to the region around Asheville, a popular tourist city in the western North Carolina mountains. “We have sent bottled water in, but we also have the Army Corps of Engineers that’s getting ready to start assessments today to see what we can do to help get those water systems back online quickly,” she said. “And we’re also moving in, satellite communications, Starlink satellites into the area to help facilitate the lack of communication that that part of the state is experiencing.” When asked about climate change and the storm’s impact, Criswell said that the storm intensified quickly due to warmer water temperatures. “It’s creating more storms that are reaching this major category level than we’ve seen in the past,” she said. It’s creating greater amounts of rainfall, as it moves up north.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “And so in the past, when we would look at damage from hurricanes, it was primarily wind damage with some water damage,” Criswell continued. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.foxnews.com/us/rescue-missions-underway-north-carolina-after-hurricane-helene-brings-historic-flooding-landslides