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At least 30 people were reported dead across the Southeastern United States after Helene made landfall Thursday night as a Category 4 hurricane. More than 4.6 million customers were without power in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas on Friday.
Now a weakened tropical depression, Helene came ashore in Florida’s Big Bend region, bringing winds up to 140 mph and life-threatening storm surges of 15 feet in some locations.
The National Weather Service called for a mandatory evacuation for all residents near Lake Lure Dam in Rutherford County, N.C., saying it was at risk of “imminent” failure.
Forecasters have said Helene “is expected to turn northwestward and slow down over the Tennessee Valley later today and Saturday.
Despite earlier reports that the Walters Dam in Waterville, N.C., had experienced a “catastrophic failure” Friday afternoon as heavy rains from Helene pounded the area, officials with the state’s Emergency Management Agency said hours later that the dam had not given way.
Evacuations continue to be underway in neighboring Newport, Tenn, whose downtown remains under several feet of water.
A record number of Americans now find themselves under flash flood emergencies, the National Weather Service said, many of which extend into Friday evening.
That designation is the highest level of threat, representing what are considered catastrophic flooding levels, that the NWS reports in nationwide warnings. The spate of warnings currently posted span multiple states, including Tennessee, South Carolina and Virginia.
