The National Hurricane Center is issuing its final report on the power of Helene and the pain of its aftermath. The center's specialists confirm Helene was far and away the most devastating natural disaster in Western North Carolina’s history.
More than 125-thousand homes damaged or destroyed; the worst of Helene's fury in the form of floodwaters from record torrents of rain. Wind was the most destructive element in South Carolina. The strongest observed sustained wind was 55 mph with a gust of 77 mph in Laurens.
But the narrative adds, "It is important to note many of the weather stations along Helene's path in Georgia and South Carolina stopped reporting before peak conditions occurred." That note concludes: "Tree and structural damage suggest wind gusts may have exceeded 103 miles an hour in some of those areas."
The center says Helene accounted for at least 248 deaths, making it the deadliest Hurricane in the U.S. since Katrina.
