OAN Staff James Myers
10:23am – Friday, September 27, 2024
Hurricane Helen continues to batter Florida, leaving at least 26 people dead as the Category 4 storm batters multiple areas into “unsurvivable” conditions.
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Helen has since been downgraded to a tropical storm, but is still experiencing “life-threatening” conditions and is causing emergency emergency response to flash flooding across the region, from Atlanta, Georgia to Appalachia, Kentucky. A warning has been issued. Heavy rain and landslides.
Meanwhile, parts of Georgia and the Carolinas continued to experience hurricane-force wind gusts, and heavy rain continued across much of the southeastern United States.
The storm caused catastrophic damage, with several homes submerged up to their roofs and boats destroyed. Damaged trees, power lines and other debris made it difficult for emergency workers to rescue stranded people.
Meanwhile, about 4 million people from Florida across the East Coast to Virginia were without power.
Shortly after 11 p.m. local time on Thursday, a super hurricane devastated the Big Bend area of Florida with 160 mph winds and a 15-foot storm surge.
Residents in Asheville, in western North Carolina, are being required to evacuate as “devastating rains” cause severe flooding in the area.
More than 100 people have been rescued from rising waters and numerous landslides have been reported during “severe storms,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Friday.
“People in western North Carolina should assume all roads are closed unless they are seeking higher ground,” he said.
Meanwhile, five states are under flash flood emergencies: Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
But water levels are beginning to recede along Florida's Gulf Coast after the intense storm surge caused by Hurricane Helen.
Additionally, as of Friday morning, more than 800 flights were canceled nationwide.
This is a developing story. Please check back for the latest information.
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