Southeastern U.S. — Dr. Phil headed to North Carolina this weekend to help with disaster relief efforts there.
The state is still reeling from Hurricane Helene’s impact, now considered one of the deadliest storms to hit the U.S. this century. The Category 4 storm that first struck Florida’s Gulf Coast on September 26 dumped trillions of gallons of water across several states, leaving a catastrophic trail of destruction that spans hundreds of miles inland.
Businesses and homes were destroyed, whole communities nearly wiped out, hundreds of lives lost, with many more still unaccounted for. Massive flooding wiped out buildings, roads, utilities and land in a way that nobody expected, let alone seem prepared for.
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris also visited North Carolina on Saturday. She arrived a day after Republican nominee Donald Trump came and went. Until this week, Harris had not visited the scene of a humanitarian crisis as vice president. That duty was reserved for President Joe Biden, who has frequently been called on to survey damage and console victims after tornadoes, wildfires, tropical storms and more. But Biden made stops over two days in the Carolinas, Florida and Georgia, surveying the damage and meeting with farmers whose crops were destroyed.
This week, FEMA announced it could meet the immediate needs of Helene but warned it doesn't have enough funding to make it through the hurricane season, which runs June 1 to Nov. 30 though most hurricanes typically occur in September and October. Even if a homeowner does have it, FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program only covers up to $250,000 for single-family homes and $100,000 for contents.
More than 200 people have died due to Helene. It's the worst storm to hit the U.S. mainland since Katrina in 2005, and scientists have warned such storms will only worsen in the face of climate change.
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