Helene kills 64, submerges historic village; hundreds of roads closed in North Carolina  (2025)

At least 64 dead due to Helene

At least 10 storm-related deaths have been reported in North Carolina, the latest being a man who drove his truck through flooded roads, Gov. Roy Cooper said in a statement tonight.

The governor said crews have rescued more than 200 people since Helene made landfall on Thursday.

“The catastrophic devastation to western North Carolina is like nothing we have ever seen,” Cooper said. “Emergency responders are working around the clock coordinating rescues and getting resources to help people with their immediate needs as they work to save lives.”

Though "many of the rivers and tributaries are still far above flood stage," waters are receding, state officials said according to the statement. Water levels are expected to be near-normal by late Monday.

Officials in Pinellas County, Florida today expressed concern about electric vehicles left behind by those fleeing Helene.

In a post on social media platform X, the county government in the Tampa Bay area said electric vehicles submerged in salt water can erupt in flames. It asked residents who left such cars, SUVs and golf carts behind to check in with the county information center.

The post included a video of a Tesla ablaze in a closed garage.

"If you evacuated and left an electric vehicle or golf cart in your garage or under a building and you are not able to get to it or move it, we want you to let us know," the county government said.

The location of any EVs left behind would be given to local fire officials so they can prepare properly should they have to respond to fire that happens to involve electric vehicle batteries, it said.

The National Transportation Safety Board says lithium-ion battery fires "pose the risk of electric shock to emergency responders from exposure to the high-voltage components of a damaged lithium-ion battery."

The National Volunteer Fire Council adds that such fires post additional risks including high heat, ejecting pieces of battery components, and "toxic byproducts of combustion such as hydrogen fluoride or phosphoryl fluoride."

Reporting from Asheville, N.C.

The Carolinas and Tennessee are reeling from catastrophic flooding and mudslides that knocked out homes, roads and bridges. Food and water are running low in some areas. NBC News’ George Solis reports from Asheville, North Carolina.

Officials in North Carolina are continuing to encourage residents to avoid traveling anywhere in the western part of the state "as about 390 roads and dozens of main highways remain closed Saturday due to flooding, downed trees, landslides or storm damage," Gov. Roy Cooper said in an update this evening.

Interstate 26 in North Carolina, south of Asheville, was open, but remains the only major road leading to the area because of damage to Interstate 40, as well as other routes, Cooper said.

The state Department of Transportation is working to reopen interstates and highways before getting to smaller roads, but is also working in conjunction with utility companies and local emergency officials to "find alternative routes and to assist in maintaining access to shelters and restoring power," Cooper's statement said.

Emergency crews in the state are also focused on supplying drinkable water to residents.

According to the statement, seven water plants in the state are closed, impacting 70,000 households.

An additional 17 water plants have no power, and 23 more are "operating on backup power" and there are 50 boil water advisories in effect across the western part of the state, the statement said.

Reporting from Clearwater, Fla.

A shelter on Florida's Gulf Coast is the only thing some people have left after Helene tore through the state, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

"Our entire house is flooded. Everything that we have is gone," Rasheedah Miley of St. Petersburg said outside a shelter in Clearwater. "This is what we have left right here, the shelter. Thank God for them because they’re amazing."

Miley, and her wife, Imani, had to flee their home with their dog, Sasha, after water came crashing in.

"The water was literally coming up. It was just rising,” Rasheedah Miley said.

There have been deaths confirmed in Asheville, North Carolina, although an exact number has not been released.

"We can confirm that fatalities have been suffered and we continue to recover bodies," Asheville Police Department chief Mike Lamb said in a statement.

There have been at least seven Helene-related deaths in the state, although none of those were from Asheville. A majority of those deaths were attributed to falling trees.

After Helene made Florida landfall Thursday and moved north into Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and North Carolina, it delivered astonishing amounts of rain, with one location registering 30 inches.

That storm total was measured at a remote automatic weather station in the community of Busick, near Mount Mitchell State Park in eastern North Carolina. The park registered a storm total of 2 feet of rain.

The numbers were released in a National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center storm summary that includes rainfall measurements for the entire "weather event" from Wednesday, a day before landfall, to today.

Though rain has been moving out, the figures are preliminary, the weather service said.

Three other North Carolina locations posted rain amounts of 20 inches or greater: Spruce Pine (23 inches), Foscoe (21), and Boone (20), according to the summary. A handful of locations received more than a foot of rain, including Asheville, which got 13.15 inches.

South Carolina had six locations with rainfall of a foot or greater, the summary said. Georgia had a dozen such locations, with the remote automatic weather station at Tallulah recording 14 inches.

Helene made landfall near Perry, Florida, and wrought destruction from the Tampa Bay area to the Big Bend coast. Only one location in the state recorded a foot or more of rain: Sumatra, roughly 30 miles inland of the Big Bend coast, which registered nearly 16 inches.

Reporting from Asheville, N.C.

Military members were seen retiring an American flag found in mud and debris amid the devastation in historic Biltmore Village in Asheville, North Carolina.

Out of respect, the military personnel picked up the flag and folded it amid the mud and rubble.

Helene was fueled by its tropical origins and the unusually warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, but the strength-sapping affects of normally dry land didn't stop it from producing structure-crushing winds.

Perry, Florida, just inland of Thursday's landfall, recorded peak wind gusts of 99 mph during the weather event, which spanned from Wednesday to today, according to the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center.

That's well within Category 1 hurricane status, which requires maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph.

Hurricane-force wind gusts were recorded from Clearwater Beach, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay region, to the Big Bend coast south of Tallahassee, according to the prediction center's roundup of Helene data.

Mount Mitchell State Park in North Carolina registered gusts of 106 during the event, the weather service said.

Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort in South Carolina measured wind gusts of 75 mph, just surpassing hurricane-force status.

Even Savannah, Georgia, on a coast not struck by Helene, posted hurricane-force gusts of 76 mph, the prediction center said.

Residents and beach business owners can return to their property in Clearwater, Florida, beginning at 4 p.m. today.

"Residents and business owners should proceed with caution. There are a large amount of clean-up and response vehicles on the beach roadways, and vehicles should proceed with caution," Clearwater Public Safety said. "Additionally, a portion of the traffic signals are not operating, and drivers should treat intersections without power as a 4-way stop. Some roads are still impassable."

Public safety officials said residents and business owners must have their Barrier Island re-entry passes or reasonable proof that they reside or have a legitimate business in order to gain entry.

Officials also cautioned the area may still be without power but said the water is "operational and drinkable."

"The stormwater system is working at capacity, and residents are asked to reduce their use of water. Residents are also asked not to drain pools, do loads of laundry, or take baths (short showers are preferred)," public safety said.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency performed multiple rescues in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

Tennessee communities in eastern Knox County and Sevier County near the North Carolina border were warned today that a dam release could swell nearby waterways and cause flooding.

The National Weather Service issued a flood warning for areas of both counties near the French Broad River and adjacent waterways through 8 p.m.

The communities of Sevierville, Kodak, and Kimberlin Heights could experience flooding, the weather service said. Evacuations were ongoing at Deerfield Trailer Park near Boyds Creek in Sevier County, it said.

The Knoxville-Knox County Emergency Management Agency said in an urgent notice the French Broad River could swell 2 to 2.5 feet and flood adjacent property as a result of the release.

The swelling is projected because Douglas Dam officials were increasing the release of floodwater to relieve the structure, the agency said.

The dam's release rate was to increase from 55,000 cubic feet of water per second to 66,000, a rate expected to be maintained for 2 to 3 days, emergency management officials said.

The agency warned residents to standby for possible news on the river, be packed and ready to evacuate, and avoid driving through floodwaters.

There are at least eight people missing after flash flooding in Unicoi County, Tennessee, caused by Helene, officials said today.

No deaths have been confirmed. The number of missing had been 33 this morning, but 25 of the people were found safe, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Myron Hughes said.

About 75% of the water in the county has receded, which has allowed search and rescue crews to conduct operations, the agency said.

The Nolichucky River, which flows through parts of Tennessee and North Carolina, swelled about 30 feet with the heavy rain, causing widespread destruction, the agency said.

In Unicoi County, more than 50 patients and staff had to be rescued yesterday from a hospital as water rose around them.

There was also concern the Nolichucky Dam could face an imminent breach, but water levels have been falling and the Tennessee Valley Authority said today the dam is "stable and secure."

Greeneville Community Hospital in Tennessee is suspending services due to water supply issues in the city.

At the direction of the local emergency management agency, inpatients are currently being evacuated and will be transferred to other facilities within the Ballad Health system.

The hospital is also suspending all operations except the emergency room, Ballad Health said in a post on X.

Sycamore Shoals Hospital in Elizabethton, Tennessee, also suspended inpatient services and operations except for the emergency room. Nearly 40 patients were evacuated yesterday.

Flooding caused Unicoi County Hospital to temporarily shut down. All patients and team members were successfully moved yesterday, Ballad Health said.

"The hospital remains closed until further notice," the post on X stated.

Damage from the storm also caused intermittent phone outages for incoming and outgoing calls for all facilities within the healthcare system. As of now, all elective surgery cases at all facilities have been postponed.