September 27, 2024 news on Tropical Depression Helene

Our live coverage of Tropical Depression Helene has ended. Follow the latest news or read through the posts below.

About 64 people were rescued from the roof of a hospital in rural Tennessee Friday as water flooded the area, making it almost inescapable without the help of rescue helicopters.

“They got us out at the precise moment,” Erwin Police Chief Regan Tilson told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Friday night.

Police were already at the scene trying to evacuate people from Unicoi County Hospital in Erwin, Tennessee, but within 15 to 20 minutes, the water rose to a level that made the roof the only means of escape, Tilson said.

Four helicopters from two state agencies landed on the rooftop to evacuate the remaining patients and hospital staff, which Tilson said was crucial, as he was anxious about how much time they had left.

“I’m not going to lie, it was very - not only chaotic but concerning that we weren’t be able to get anybody, much less the patients out,” he said. “And again, if not for those helicopters, I don’t know what would’ve happened.”

Alan Levine, Chairman and CEO of Ballad Health, was coordinating with the state’s emergency management team to getting people out of the hospital but kept facing issue after issue.

“Each of the steps of the plan, we found were failing,” Levine said. “We couldn’t get the boats in and out safely.”

Despite the hospital only being built five years ago, Levine was concerned about the building not being able to withstand the rushing water.

“There was a lot of praying but really today a lot of people worked together,” he said.

Read more about the rescue here.

A US Coast Guard swimmer, Ted Hudson, rescued a man and his dog from their house boat in the ocean off of Sanibel Island, Florida, during the hurricane as dangerous waves threatened their lives.

In footage of the dramatic rescue captured by Hudson’s helmet camera, he can be seen being hoisted down from a helicopter battling to stay still amid 60 mph winds, until he enters the water. He then swims through terrifying waves to reach the stranded man and his dog. They enter the water and swim toward Hudson, who assists them as they are airlifted into the helicopter.

The dog was nervous to enter the water at first, Hudson said, but eventually jumped in and swam toward him.

The video shows that after they were safely rescued, the man gave Hudson a high five and shook his hand.

“He just said thank you for saving his life,” Hudson said.

“It feels pretty good, it’s what I joined to do,” Hudson said, describing how it felt to save someone’s life. “I say it’s a privilege.”

Watch more:

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Dramatic video shows helmet cam of Coast Guard swimmer rescue efforts

02:35 • Source: CNN

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to media at the Douglas Port of Entry at the US-Mexico border in Douglas, Arizona, on Friday.

The Biden administration has mobilized more than 1,500 federal personnel to support communities affected by Hurricane Helene, Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters while speaking at the southern border in Douglas, Arizona.

Harris said she and President Biden will “continue to monitor the situation closely.” She said the administration is preparing food, water and energy generators for deployment to communities and is working to restore power for “millions of people who are currently experiencing outages.”

The vice president stressed the storm continues to be “dangerous and deadly,” as the risk of flooding still remains high.

Hurricane Helene is causing more disruption to travel and delivery services, beyond airline cancellations and delays.

Several Amtrak trains arriving or departing Florida and Georgia have been canceled, the company said. It includes trains between Washington, DC, and Savannah, Georgia, and between New York City and Jacksonville, Florida.

UPS announced it has suspended service to Florida, North Carolina and Georgia because of the storm.

FedEx also suspended or limited its service in five states, it said on its website. The company said it has activated it “contingency plans” to deliver in areas it can reach safely.

After Hurricane Helene, a number of national and state parks in the Southeast are telling hikers and campers to rethink their weekend plans.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is asking visitors to reschedule their trips, according to a Facebook post. The Smokies was the third most visited park last year, with more than 13 million visitors, according to National Park Service data.

Though the rain has slowed down Friday night, there are still a lot of road closures, including Cades Cove Loop and part of Newfound Gap Road — both popular routes. The Smokies received up to 9 inches of rain and historic flooding in some places, according to the park

In North Carolina, at least 14 state parks are completely closed due to Helene, the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation said.

A large part of the Blue Ridge Parkway is still closed, it said in a post, including now in parts of Virginia. It announced yesterday the entirety of the parkway in North Carolina was closed. But, the parkway urged people to “continue to stay off the Parkway (all uses) until it reopens.”

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a popular scenic route spanning more than 400 miles along the Appalachian Mountains. It passes through several states in addition to North Carolina, including Virginia and Tennessee.

Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky posted a photo on its Facebook page of workers clearing downed trees that fell across the road.

Workers attempt to restore power lines after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Keaton Beach, Florida, on September 27.

The remnants of Helene continued to disrupt electricity for several states across the eastern US on Friday evening, with approximately 4,527,072 customers without power, according to PowerOutage.us.

Winds continue to gust 30 to 50 mph over the Ohio and Tennessee Valley regions Friday evening. More than 35 million people are under wind alerts heading into Saturday as the remnants of Helene continue to bring rain and gusty winds.

Here are the latest numbers from the states affected:

Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference at the State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee, Florida, on September 26.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he thinks Hurricane Helene inflicted more damage than Hurricane Idalia in 2023, which at the time was the strongest hurricane to make landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region in more than 125 years.

“We came from Perry and helicoptered over here, so we went along the coast … I can tell you that is way worse than Idalia.” DeSantis said. “You look at Keaton Beach, I mean I think almost every home was destroyed, or the vast majority, and some totally obliterated. It’s because they had such a massive surge that went in there.”

Officials think the storm surge might have been as high as 20 feet, he said.

Hurricane Helene made landfall near Perry, Florida, on Thursday night as a Category 4 with 140 mph sustained winds and higher gusts, according to the National Hurricane Center. Hurricane Idalia in August 2023 made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane with sustained wind speeds of 125 mph.

There have now been at least 45 deaths in five states from Hurricane Helene.

Here’s what we know:

At least 19 people have died in South Carolina related to storms attributed to Hurricane Helene, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety.

The coroner’s offices in each county provided details on each death, the SCDPS said:

• 2 deaths in Newberry County

• 2 deaths in Anderson County

• 2 deaths in Saluda County

• 4 deaths in Aiken County

• 5 deaths in Spartanburg County

• 4 deaths in Greenville County

Emergency personnel watch as floodwaters rise, in Asheville, North Carolina, on Friday, September 27.

A citywide curfew will be in effect for 12 hours in Asheville, North Carolina starting at 7:30 p.m. Friday, according to the city government.

“The curfew is to ensure the public’s safety and will be in effect until further notice,” the Asheville City Government said in a Facebook post.

A woman who lives in North Carolina said she is “traumatized” by Hurricane Helene, which brought heavy rain and flooding to the Southeast after making landfall Thursday night.

“I witnessed at least one person busting out of their window,” Avery Dull, 20, told CNN. Dull is in Hendersonville, which is about about 25 miles outside of Asheville.

“In my 20 years of living in North Carolina, I never knew anything like this could happen here. I would say myself and most of my neighbors were extremely unprepared for this,” Dull said.

She said since she’s on the second floor, her apartment is OK.

“Luckily we were on high ground but those people lost everything,” Dull said. “Half of my neighborhood is underwater and dozens of families are trapped inside of their homes. Cars have been completely submerged and totaled, and power is out across the county.”

An apartment at Peachtree Park Apartments flooded after hurricane Helene brought in heavy rains overnight in Atlanta, Georgia, on September 27.

Even after a hurricane’s immediate flooding threat goes away, residents could face a host of potential health problems from the water — and what it leaves behind.

Floodwater is more than just rain. It’s often contaminated with sewage, bacteria and chemicals. Sharp objects made of metal or glass can also hide in the murky water.

Here are some of the health dangers to be aware of:

Sickness from floodwater

Floodwater can carry disease. In the US, people who come into contact with contaminated floodwater or eat or drink something that has, could experience bouts of diarrhea and other stomach problems. Floodwater can contaminate drinking water, especially from private wells, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Those wells need to be tested before using if they come into contact with floodwater.

For municipal water, state and local health departments will make recommendations about whether it needs to be boiled or treated before using.

Health-related cleanup challenges

Doctors often see more respiratory infections after floodwaters recede and people are allowed to return to their homes. Contamination from floodwaters and the mold that quickly grows in a warm environment like those in Florida or Georgia can exacerbate asthma or trigger allergies.

The CDC advises wearing rubber boots and gloves when cleaning up homes and avoiding direct contact with any item that has been in floodwater. Experts also recommend wearing a mask or respirator.

Risks from standing water

Floods typically flush out mosquitoes and interrupt their breeding cycle, but when the water recedes, there is an increased risk of infection with a mosquito-borne illness like West Nile or, as one 2019 study showed, Zika.

The CDC suggests people who are working or living near standing water take extra care to use bug spray with DEET or picaridin. Wear long sleeves, pants and socks outdoors, even if it is warm, to prevent mosquito bites.

Standing water can also be electrically charged due to fallen power lines that are submerged or those that are underground but still live. With this comes a risk of electrocution.

Click here to see the full list of health-related flood dangers and tips to stay safe.

At least 28 storm-related deaths have been reported across five states, including Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia.

Two firefighters died in Saluda County, South Carolina, located about 43 miles west of Columbia, Gov. Henry McMaster said at a news conference Friday. Four others died in Anderson and Newberry, he said.

One person died in Craig County, Virginia, in a storm-related tree fall and building collapse, Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Friday.

Officials are reporting eight deaths in Florida, 11 in Georgia and two in North Carolina.

Power in Taylor County and the surrounding counties of the Big Bend area of Florida is “all basically out,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a briefing Friday.

The state will continue to assist in any help needed, he said.

One person has died in Craig County, Virginia, from a storm-related tree fall and building collapse, Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Friday.

“We lift up the family of this victim in our prayers,” the governor said at a news conference. Craig County is located just northwest of Roanoke.

A vast portion of the state is still under tornado watch, extending from central Virginia to the eastern border, the governor said. Swiftwater rescue teams are being deployed in Washington County, which is experiencing significant flooding, he added.

Youngkin urged residents to adhere to evacuation orders, saying: “Your life is too important.”

The Laurel Fork Road bridge is destroyed by floodwaters in the Upper Laurel Fork creek in Vilas, North Carolina, on September 27.

Helene is now a post-tropical cyclone with winds of 35 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

This change means that Helene no longer has an organized center of circulation and is losing its hurricane-like features.

But this change in designation doesn’t alter much of Helene’s overall threat going forward. Helene will continue to unleash heavy, flooding rainfall and gusty winds over hundreds of miles of the East tonight.

Approximately 1.1 million people are under at least 14 different flash flood emergencies, the highest level of flash flood warning issued by the National Weather Service that is reserved for catastrophic flooding that presents a severe threat to human life.

These flood warnings are located in the Southern Appalachians of Western North Carolina and adjacent parts of Tennessee, South Carolina and Virginia.

The flooding is the result of multiple days of extreme rainfall resulting from a combination of a slow-moving cold front and the passage of Hurricane Helene, which has brought widespread and record flooding to the region.

While the rain has largely ended over the area, rivers will continue to rise in some locations as the rainfall continues to flow into the rivers and streams.

A man walks by a flooded area near the Swannanoa River in Asheville, North Carolina, on September 27.

Two Asheville natives described “complete pandemonium” in their city after Hurricane Helene brought several feet of floodwater and pushed large debris into streets overnight.

Maxwell Kline and Samuel Hayes said they went downtown to see the damage Friday morning and described the River Arts District neighborhood as being inundated with oil-contaminated floodwaters, they told CNN’s Isabel Rosales. Several bourbon distilleries in the area are underwater, they said.

Hayes said he woke up with several calls from his employees telling him about fallen trees on their roofs, water pouring into their homes and mudslides. “Complete pandemonium around the city,” he added. “It’s going to take us a long time to clean this up. It’s really going to hurt our businesses as well.”

Kline and Hayes said they haven’t had power, internet or cell phone service for hours. “All the gas pumps are down. Can’t get anything right now – no food you can buy, no gas, nothing,” Kline said.

Asheville is a small, tightly knit community that will band together and rebuild their city, Kline added.

“There’s huge trash floating down the road. I mean, whisky barrels, oil barrels everywhere. Our groundwater is going to be very contaminated, I’m imagining. If you look at the water, you can see oil in it,” Hayes said.

The majority of the people stranded on a Tennessee hospital roof on Friday have been rescued, the alderman of the town said.

Michael Baker, alderman of Erwin, Tennessee, where the hospital is located, told CNN that there are just “a handful” of people left on the roof of Unicoi County Hospital. Erwin is just over 40 miles north of Asheville, North Carolina.

The 54 people, including patients, were stranded after rapidly rising waters from Hurricane Helene made evacuation impossible Friday morning, Ballad Health said in an earlier statement.

“We’ve had a constant stream of helicopters picking them up and dropping them off into the city at safe places,” Baker said.

He added that he thinks most of those left on the roof are first responders.

“This time yesterday, you wouldn’t have been able to see straight to the hospital like we are now. There would have been trees and structures, but all of that is underwater, downstream now,” Baker said.