September 28th 2024.
As Hurricane Helene continues to make its way up the East Coast, thousands of people in North Carolina have been instructed to leave their homes and seek safer ground. This powerful Category 4 storm has already caused extensive damage as it swept through Florida and other southern states in the past few days.
Sadly, the toll of this hurricane is not just limited to property damage. At least 44 people have lost their lives due to Helene's wrath, with victims ranging from firefighters to a woman and her newborn twins, and even an elderly woman. The devastation caused by this storm is being compared to the most powerful one to hit Florida's Big Bend region in recorded history.
The state of Florida, in particular, has been hit hard with strong winds and flooding. In Newport, North Carolina, residents were ordered to evacuate on Friday as the nearby Waterville Dam was deemed to be in a state of emergency. Similarly, in Rutherford County, the Lake Lure dam was facing a potential failure, prompting officials to issue evacuation warnings. Fortunately, it was later reported that the dam was holding up.
Initially a Category 4 hurricane with "unsurvivable" conditions, Helene has now been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone. However, the aftermath of this storm is still expected to leave behind a trail of destruction worth billions of dollars in property damage.
In the midst of all this chaos, a remarkable rescue effort took place in north east Tennessee. 54 individuals were stranded on the roof of Unicoi County Hospital as it became flooded, and they were eventually rescued by a helicopter. The situation was described as "dangerous", but thankfully everyone was successfully brought to safety.
Meanwhile, in Atlanta, the city faced a record amount of rainfall in just 48 hours. The Office of the State Climatologist in Georgia shared that 11.12 inches of rain had fallen, breaking the previous record set in 1886. This is the most rain the city has seen since records began in 1878.
As the storm continues to move north, the damage and devastation left in its wake serve as a reminder of the immense power of nature. Our hearts go out to all those affected by Hurricane Helene and we hope for a speedy recovery for the affected regions.
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