President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris made their first visit to areas impacted by Hurricane Helene on Oct. 2. Biden visited North Carolina and South Carolina, while Harris traveled to Augusta, Georgia. More than 50 counties across Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina have been designated as major disaster areas by Biden.
During his visit, Biden toured the damaged areas of both Carolinas aboard Marine One. He was joined by North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer, and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. In a briefing in Raleigh, North Carolina, Biden announced that he had approved Cooper’s request for federal reimbursement of all costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures.
Harris visited Augusta’s emergency operations center where she met with impacted families and business owners. She praised federal, state, and local responders for their work so far and promised residents that the federal government was “here for the long haul.”
Recovery efforts at the federal, state, and local levels have been underway for nearly one week. The Department of Defense announced the deployment of 1,000 active-duty soldiers to support North Carolina’s National Guard.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas warned that recovery will take years and cost billions of dollars. He stressed that FEMA will run out of money in the event of another storm.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Congress had already authorized the disaster relief funds needed for the immediate response.
Several lawmakers in states hit by Hurricane Helene are pushing for Congress to return from its October recess to pass additional disaster relief.
Overall response efforts include more than 4,800 personnel deployed from across the Federal workforce supporting state-led response efforts across the region. FEMA has shipped millions of meals, liters of water tarps ,and generators to affected areas.
The American Red Cross is housing displaced individuals in shelters from Florida to North Carolina.
