Hurricane Helene killed and destroyed far and wide – from Tampa to Atlanta to Asheville, North Carolina, its high winds, heavy rains and sheer size created a perfect mix for devastation.
The storm made landfall late Thursday along a largely undeveloped expanse of pine trees and salt marshes on Florida’s Big Bend coast, but it immediately displayed its far-reaching power several hundred miles away. As of Sunday morning, at least 64 people were confirmed killed.
Tampa Bay was inundated with a massive storm surge that sent water up to people’s attics. Atlanta got more than 25 cm of rain, more than any 48-hour period in recorded history. So many trees were toppled in South Carolina that at one point more than 40% of the state lost electricity. In North Carolina, dams were in jeopardy of failing and entire communities are cut off by floods. Floodwaters submerged a hospital in Tennessee so quickly that more than 50 patients had to be rescued from the roof via helicopter.
How did a single storm unleash destruction so far away?
Dan Brown, a specialist at the US National Hurricane Center near Miami, said Helene had all the attributes that make a storm widely destructive.
- It was large, about 560 km wide.
- It was strong, with winds reaching 225 kph when it made landfall late Thursday, creating widespread storm surge.
- It carried heavy rains.
- And it was fast, speeding north at up to 39 kph offshore and 48 kph inland.
Brown compared the geographic scale of Helene’s destruction to 1972’s Hurricane Agnes, 1989’s Hurricane Hugo and 2004’s Hurricane Ivan.
“Systems that get very powerful, large and fast moving unfortunately do bring the potential for impact and damage well inland,” Brown said.
Here is a look at the many deadly tentacles of Helene:
FLORIDA
Helene’s devastation began Thursday, hours before it made landfall, as it swept through the Gulf of Mexico. Its then-193-kph winds created storm surge that pushed 2-to-4.5 metres of water into island and coastal neighbourhoods all along Florida’s west coast.
Nine people who drowned were residents who stayed behind after their Tampa Bay area neighbourhoods were ordered evacuated.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri expressed his frustration – issuing evacuation orders isn’t a decision that’s made lightly, he said. Many who ignored officials then called for help as some sought refuge in their attics from the rising waters. Deputies tried to help, using boats and high-profile vehicles, but they couldn’t reach many neighbourhoods.
Late Thursday, Helene’s eye slammed into the northwest Florida coast in the Big Bend area, the spot where the Panhandle makes its westward jut from the peninsula – Hurricanes Idalia and Debby had previously hit the area within the last 13 months.
GEORGIA
After making landfall, Helene sped into Georgia. Among more than 20 dead were a 27-year-old mother and her one-month-old twins died Friday when trees fell on their house in Thomson, just west of Augusta.
Atlanta was hit with 28 cm of rain, the heaviest 48-hour downfall since the city began keeping records in 1878. Streets flooded, submerging cars. Firefighters rescued at least 20 people.
NORTH CAROLINA
Helene’s heavy rains in the state’s western mountains caused massive flooding and mudslides in the Asheville region, cutting off most communication and making the roads impassable. Video posted online shows large portions of the city underwater.
SOUTH CAROLINA
The storm was especially deadly in South Carolina. The biggest impact appears to be falling trees, which killed several people. The storm also produced tornadoes in the state.
TENNESSEE
Helene’s heavy rains caused the state’s eastern rivers to overflow their banks and threatened to break dams, endangering those living nearby and forcing them to flee. Patients and others at a hospital near the North Carolina border had to be evacuated to the roof Friday when torrents from the overflowing Nolichucky River rushed into the building.
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