Hurricane Helen had a devastating impact on western North Carolina. Many residents are still evacuated. Some of them are currently living in tents.
So why did FEMA and the North Carolina National Guard suspend operations in the areas most affected by Helen?
Mercury One Executive Director JP Decker joins Jill Savage on Blaze News Tonight to share what the nonprofit is doing to fill the gap in government absence.
“The devastation is still there. Nothing has really changed in terms of some of the buildings in Asheville and Black Mountain,” Decker said, adding that they are still “piles of rubble 20 to 30 feet high.” He added that there is.
But looking at the North Carolina National Guard's social media pages, it appears they are working tirelessly to help victims.
But when Decker was on the property with Mercury One, “there was no FEMA, there was no National Guard.”
In addition to other nonprofits, “regular people were standing in the gap doing what the government was supposed to be doing,” he says.
Compounding the situation is the fact that the city of Asheville, North Carolina, recently installed a standalone public restroom at a considerable cost of $400,000.
“The fact that some people are willing to do something like this when there are people suffering and living in tents shows how important local elections are,” Decker said. says.
Blaze News Editor-in-Chief Matthew Peterson points out that recently. article Blaze News investigative journalists Steve Baker and Joseph Hanneman wrote and reported on the same story.
“The Army, Air Force, and National Guard have withdrawn most of their personnel from western North Carolina. As winter approaches, the need for temporary shelter has become 'very urgent,'” they wrote.
Baker, who helped with relief efforts in North Carolina, finds it difficult to talk about the tragic abandonment of North Carolinians.
“We built a relationship with them [government employees] And I became very good friends with them. We met every day. We were out at disaster relief sites…going out with their dog teams, going out with people, helping recover bodies, helping clear debris and clearing people's property as well. ” he says. “And to see these powers taken away…I get very emotional about this.”
“Last week…I drove more than 100 miles through some of the hardest-hit areas in the western part of the state. Mile after mile after mile after tent after tent after tent, people were leaving their properties in fear. They're not going to leave. If they leave, they're going to lose it,” he says. “And there are no military vehicles or troops on the ground.”
Baker said she was shocked by what she saw and called the public relations office to inquire about the horrific abandonment.
“You're right, Mr. Baker,” was the response. we withdrew. ”
But when Mr. Baker asked the obvious follow-up question — “Why?” — he was met with silence.
“There is no answer, because there is no logical answer,” he tells the panel.
For more on the story, watch the clip above.
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