ASHEVILLE, NC – A historic village in western North Carolina is underwater after bearing the brunt of devastating flood damage from Hurricane Helene.
Tree branches, logs and a dumpster floated through Asheville's Biltmore Village, known for being built and owned by one person.
Resident Tammy Borgesen was one of dozens of people standing outside a downtown hotel, one of the few places with Wi-Fi, hoping to connect with loved ones.
“We tried to send an email or text message to let everyone know that we are doing well,” said Borgesen, who had water at home but no power.
She said she plans to wait out the storm and “hope for the best.”
“We are in a strange situation,” Borgesen said.
Water levels reached several feet, with some areas approaching the tops of street signs. Fast-moving water poured over the front door steps, flooding buildings and small businesses as Asheville appeared to be nearly leveled by Helene.
“We knew the flood was coming, but we didn't know it would be so catastrophic,” a woman at the scene told NBC News. “All the loss and destruction is just heartbreaking.”
Asheville, with a population of 95,000, is about 140 miles west of Charlotte.
“This surprises me, and I'm really concerned for friends, neighbors and businesses here on the river,” one man told NBC News, partially blaming climate change for the destruction. “It just reminds me that climate change will affect us all. No one is safe from the effects of climate change and we really need to take action now.”
The devastation comes as Hurricane Helene made landfall in Georgia on Thursday night, leaving widespread devastation across the southern US
At least 53 people have been killed since Saturday and about 3 million customers are without power in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Virginia, according to Poweroutage.us.
The storm, now a post-tropical cyclone, has had severe consequences for the southeast.
More than 50 people were stranded at an eastern Tennessee hospital Friday due to rapidly rising waters and high winds after several attempts to airlift them failed in a dangerous rescue operation.
President Joe Biden has already approved emergency declaration requests from the governors of several Southern states affected by Helene.
Georgia, Florida, Alabama, North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina will receive various federal government aid after the storm made landfall as a highly destructive Category 4 hurricane.
Biden has also ordered the deployment of more than 1,500 federal personnel to the region, including search and rescue teams, medical teams and power restoration teams.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
