In the wake of Hurricane Helene, questions about government response emerge

Hundreds of miles from where it made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend, Hurricane Helene caused unprecedented damage in western North Carolina, where at least 49 people have died and dozens of others are missing. “The devastation was beyond belief,” North Carolina Gov. “And even when you prepare for something like this, this is something that’s never happened before in western North Carolina.” The Federal Emergency Management Agency reported Monday that it had delivered about 1 million liters of water and more than 600,000 meals to North Carolina. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, who joined Cooper in Asheville on Monday, said more than 1,200 federal workers are now on the ground, responding to one of the worst disasters in North Carolina’s history, vowing: “We are going to be here as long as it takes to finish this response and continue through the recovery.” But some residents have criticized what they view as a lack of preparation for the catastrophic storm. Devonna Brown, an Asheville business owner, said she felt the city failed its residents. They knew that this storm was coming,” she said. I mean, there’s no way to get in, no way to get out.” Sara Legatski, another Asheville business owner, said officials should have expressed more urgency and brought in emergency water supplies earlier. “There should have been a more urgent call for people to be prepared,” she said. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/wake-hurricane-helene-questions-emerge-government-warnings-response-rcna173347