[The Epoch Times, September 27, 2024](Comprehensive report by Epoch Times reporter Li Yan) After the super-strong “Hurricane Helene” made landfall in Florida, it brought violent storms and rain, becoming the worst storm to hit Florida’s Big Bend in recorded history. (Big Bend)’s strongest hurricane. As the hurricane continues its path toward Georgia and the Carolinas, it has killed at least 26 people and left millions without power.
Helen was one of the largest storms to hit the Gulf of Mexico since the last century, with a wind field that spanned roughly the distance between Indianapolis and Washington, DC. 60 million people in 12 states in the United States have received surveillance and warning notices, and six states have entered a state of emergency: Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama and Virginia.
The storm has now weakened from Category 4 to Category 1, but heavy rains and high winds have caused widespread damage to homes and infrastructure and will continue to cause deadly storm surges, flooding and damaging winds.
The massive storm has moved through Florida into Georgia and the Carolinas, which are facing severe flooding threats, with more rain expected on Friday as Helen heads toward Tennessee.
Multiple deaths, millions without power
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said 11 people died in Georgia, including one first responder who was trying to save others.
A mother and her twin infants were killed in McDuffie County, west of Augusta.
A man and a woman died after their mobile home overturned in Wheeler County, southeast of Macon, local officials said.
In Florida, seven people have died.
Florida Governor Ron Desantis said a tree fell on a house in Dixie County in the Big Bend region, killing one person. Another person was killed when a sign struck a car on I-4 near Tampa, the governor said.
Pinellas County, Florida, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said the county reported five storm-related deaths Friday morning, including two on Treasure Island. Two were at Indian Rocks Beach and one was in Dunedin.
“Not everyone evacuated, unfortunately, they called for help, and we couldn’t help a lot of people who called for help because the conditions were so bad last night that there was no way to enter (the disaster area),” Gualtieri said.
The chief said first responders continued to go door-to-door Friday morning calling for help. “I don’t know if the death toll will increase, but it’s possible,” he said.
In Charlotte, North Carolina, a tree fell on a house, killing one person, according to the Mecklenburg EMS Agency; in Catawba County, officials said Catawba) and another died in a traffic accident.
Officials said six people have died in South Carolina: two in Anderson County and four in Aiken County.
On September 27, 2024, debris left behind after the Category 4 “Hurricane Helene” made landfall was visible in Cedar Key, Florida. Helen also left behind flooded roads and homes. (MIGUEL RODRIGUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)
According to PowerOutage.US, as powerful Hurricane Helene swept through the Southeast, as of 2:22 a.m. ET on Friday, more than 1.8 million customers in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas were without power. Roads were flooded everywhere, putting residents at risk while traveling, and emergency services in some counties were disrupted.
The Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office in Florida said extensive damage was reported on the west side of the county. Trees fell on homes, causing severe structural damage. There were also reports of numerous downed trees and power lines, causing a “100% power outage” across the county.
‘Worst situation in 100 years’
On September 26, 2024, Hurricane Helen rolled off the coast of St. Petersburg, Florida, and an overturned ship washed ashore. That night, Helen made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Florida Governor DeSantis said that 61 of Florida’s 67 counties are currently in a state of emergency.
All 159 Georgia counties are under a state of emergency, allowing emergency management teams to make necessary arrangements and deploy needed resources ahead of the storm.
President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for Alabama and ordered federal aid to be provided to those affected by Helen.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said the state “cannot ignore the fact that we have had a significant flooding event.”
Residents of Lowndes County in southern Georgia were asked to shelter in place due to power outages caused by Hurricane Helene.
“Due to Hurricane Helen, 63,000 customers in Lowndes County are currently without power! Lowndes County hangs in there and (residents) continue to shelter in place.” Lowndes County Emergency Management Communications said on social media.
Lowndes County is located on the border of Georgia and Florida, about 60 miles from Tallahassee.
Clearwater Mayor Bruce Rector said Hurricane Helene flooded the city’s coastal communities in an unprecedented way.
All roads in the city were flooded, the mayor said, citing police and fire department reports.
“We were about 100 miles from the center of the storm, but the storm surge record was still almost a meter higher than the previous record,” Rector said. “This caused unprecedented flooding in our coastal communities.”
Continue to bring heavy rain to the interior
On September 27, 2024, law enforcement officers used a special vehicle to patrol after Hurricane Helene passed near Steinhatchee, Florida. Helen made landfall nearby as a Category 4 hurricane overnight.
(Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Although Hurricane Helene has now weakened to Category 1 intensity, it will continue to bring heavy rains to the interior as it passes through Atlanta, Georgia and moves towards Tennessee.
Helen has already brought significant rainfall of more than a foot of rain in some areas, according to the Weather Prediction Center. In Sumatra, Florida, 15.50 inches fell, in Busick, Georgia, 13.74 inches, and in Lake Toxaway, North Carolina, 13.73 inches.
The hurricane is moving rapidly northeastward at 26 mph and is expected to turn north overnight, bringing the center of the storm to central and northern Georgia on Friday morning.
Thereafter, Helen is expected to turn northwest and slow over the Tennessee Valley late Friday and Saturday.
The hurricane center warned that “although winds are expected to weaken further, fast-forwarding winds, especially gusty winds, will still be able to penetrate deep into the interior of the southeastern United States, including the higher areas of the southern Appalachian Mountains.”
Tornado warnings remained in effect for nearly 20 million people in parts of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida for the next several hours.
Sarasota, Florida Mayor Liz Alpert said Hurricane Helene may be the strongest storm the state has experienced in the past century.
Alpert told CNN that her city “actually still looks pretty bad” despite the storm weakening after landfall.
“This is probably the worst our region has seen in 100 years,” she said. “I’ve been in Sarasota for 22 years and I’ve never seen anything like this.”
She said she was “absolutely” worried about the consequences of the sun and said the city’s low-lying barrier islands were completely submerged.
(This article refers to CNN and ABC reports)
Editor in charge: Lin Yan#
