Hundreds of people may have died as Hurricane Helene ripped through the southeastern United States. The American states of Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia are the hardest hit.
“The data we have suggests that as many as 600 lives may have been lost,” Liz Sherwood-Randall, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, said Monday. She added that this number has not yet been confirmed.
The full extent of the material damage was initially unclear. Reinsurance broker Gallagher Re estimated preliminary private insurance losses could reach between $3 billion and $6 billion.
Wind speeds of 225 kilometers per hour
“Helene” hit Florida Thursday evening with winds of 140 miles per hour, then weakened to a tropical storm and moved north. At more than 500 kilometers, experts said, it was unusually large for a hurricane that originated in the Gulf of Mexico.
US President Biden had already promised help to those affected this weekend. On Monday he again pledged far-reaching support to the victims in Washington. “We will continue to increase resources, including food, water, communications and life-saving equipment,” Biden said. The efforts of authorities and helpers will continue “as long as it takes to complete this work.”
On Wednesday, Biden will travel to the hard-hit state of North Carolina to see first-hand the destruction and the needs of those in need. “I’m going to North Carolina on Wednesday,” he told reporters in Washington on Monday. At the same time, he said there is “no doubt” that the storm’s devastating effects were caused by climate change.
Tropical cyclones form over warm ocean waters. According to experts, increasing global warming increases the risk of severe storms. The Atlantic Ocean hurricane season starts on June 1 and lasts until November 30.
Source: Krone
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