The hurricane Helene caused at least 44 deaths in the southeast of the United States, according to a provisional report. Five states had to declare a state of emergency.
Thursday evening, all eyes were on Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, where a Category 4 hurricane was expected to make landfall.
Helene instead hit the Big Bend region, a little further north, in a more rural region. Downpours and winds of up to 225 km/h were recorded.
Although it lost momentum after making landfall and was downgraded to tropical storm status, Helene brought “historic” and “catastrophic” flooding, the US Hurricane Center (NHC) said, urging people to be wary of possible landslides into Friday evening.
PHOTO JONATHAN DRAKE, REUTERS
A man helps free a car stuck on a flooded road outside Boone, North Carolina, Friday.
At least 20 people died in South Carolina, 15 in Georgia, 7 in Florida, one in North Carolina and one in Virginia, according to a report compiled by AFP from statements by local authorities.
Entire neighborhoods ravaged
In Florida, the damage caused by Helene appear greater than the combined damage from the hurricane Idaliaoccurring in 2023, and the hurricane of the hurricane Debby (mid-August).
“It’s demoralizing,” admitted Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
PHOTO TED RICHARDSON, THE WASHINGTON POST
The hurricane Helene pushed boats into homes on Treasure Island, Florida.
US President Joe Biden urged people “to take every precaution to keep their families safe.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) dispatched 1,500 employees to the devastated regions.
In Florida, in places, sea levels have risen by more than 4.5 m.
At Treasure Island, near Tampa, Florida, pleasure boats have washed up in gardens. Off the coast of Sanibel Island, a man and his dog, in the open sea, were saved by the Coast Guard — the sailboat had capsized.
U.S. COAST GUARD PHOTO, PROVIDED BY REUTERS
The Coast Guard rescued a man and his dog off the coast of Sanibel Island, Florida, on Thursday.
In the St. Petersburg area, at least five people lost their lives. As Sheriff Bob Gualtieri indicated, they were in neighborhoods where there had been numerous evacuation notices. “We tried to send boats to rescue them, but in vain. There were too many obstacles to save them. »
In the Tampa Bay area, entire neighborhoods found themselves underwater due to a particularly strong storm surge.
According to the site poweroutage.us, which documents power outages, some 4 million homes and businesses in the southern United States were without power Friday morning.
Relief operations
Emergency teams were working Friday to rescue residents still trapped in damaged buildings in affected states, including Georgia.
The authorities are “having difficulty getting to the site” and teams equipped with chainsaws are “working to clear the roads,” said Brian Kemp, governor of Georgia, on Friday.
PHOTO AUDRA MELTON, THE NEW YORK TIMES
Cars trapped in a flooded area in Atlanta on Friday
Atlanta, generally spared from hurricanes and larger storms, experienced the first flash flood warning in its history. Curfews have also been imposed elsewhere in Georgia.
Réal Lamarche, a Quebecer who lives in the suburbs of Atlanta, explained to The Press that as always in these circumstances, the grocery stores have been stormed in recent days and that almost nothing was left on the shelves when he tried to stock up on some supplies himself.
These last two days, says Mr. Lamarche, life has stopped a bit. There was no class, businesses were closed.
Himself spared, he said he was worried about one of his children who returned a little late, Thursday, from work. “Some streets in the city center were already flooded in the evening. »
But on Friday, the sun had returned and while rescuers were still working in parts of Georgia, life was returning to normal in Atlanta. “The Braves are in the race for the championship, there will even be baseball tonight. »
A most intense season
In Tennessee, around sixty people who took refuge on the roof of a hospital in the small town of Erwin had to be evacuated by helicopter.
PHOTO TENNESSEE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, PROVIDED BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
A helicopter sits on the roof of a hospital in Erwin, Tennessee, where patients and staff had to be rescued afterHeleneFriday.
In affected states, authorities were warning people still stuck in flooding to wait for help. After such storms, it is not uncommon for people to die when they venture into waters where live electrical wires or debris may be present.
In North Carolina, where as many as 300 roads have been closed, weather services estimate the flooding will be worse than anything seen in the 20th century.e century.
South Carolina announced the death of two firefighters.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted a more intense Atlantic hurricane season than usual this year due to record ocean temperatures.
With the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse