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Helene live updates: Death toll rising in hard-hit Asheville with 200 missing

Hurricane Helene's inland flooding has been catastrophic.

ByEmily Shapiro, David Brennan, Leah Sarnoff, Julia Reinstein, and Meredith Deliso
Last Updated: October 3, 2024, 4:54 PM EDT

More than 200 people have been killed from Hurricane Helene, which unleashed devastation across Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.

Helene, which made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region last week as a massive Category 4 hurricane, has become the deadliest mainland hurricane since Katrina in 2005.

In the wake of Hurricane Helene, ABC News' "Good Morning America" is set to provide five days of special coverage titled "Southeast Strong: Help After Helene"(#SoutheastStrongABC), spotlighting communities across the Southeast impacted by Hurricane Helene and the urgent efforts to help them recover.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
4:23 PM EDT

Over 40K have applied for disaster assistance in North Carolina: White House

Over 40,000 people in North Carolina have applied for disaster assistance, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency has paid out more than $6.2 million to survivors in the state, according to the White House.

Community members unload relief supplies at Ridgeline Heating and Cooling, which has turned into a relief area and community coordination center in Bills Creek, North Carolina, Oct. 3, 2024, after the passage of Hurricane Helene.
Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images

Senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said President Joe Biden has asked FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell to stay in North Carolina "until the situation has stabilized."

"With her are over 1,200 FEMA and other federal personnel, with more resources and staff arriving daily," he said in a post on X. "Search and rescue teams have rescued or supported 2,120 people. Roughly 7,900 crews from across the country and Canada are working on power restoration. The NC National Guard has delivered more than 100,000 lbs of food and over 38,000 lbs of water to Asheville."

-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez

4:05 PM EDT

Death toll rises to 72 in Asheville area

At least 72 people have died in hard-hit Buncombe County, North Carolina, which encompasses Asheville, Sheriff Quentin Miller said Thursday.

An aerial view of flood damage along the French Broad River in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Oct. 2, 2024, in Asheville, North Carolina.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Over 200 others are missing, the sheriff said.

To the residents of Buncombe County, the sheriff said, "You are the heart of everything we do. We know these are hard times. But please know we're coming to get you."

Brit Oie, an artist originally from Norway, searches through damage at Riverside Studios in the aftermath of flooding of the French Broad River caused by Tropical Storm Helene in Asheville, NC, Oct. 2, 2024.
Erik S Lesser/epa-efe/shuttersto/ERIK S LESSER/EPA-EFE/Shuttersto

3:21 PM EDT

North Carolina's infrastructure suffered 'complete devastation'

Hurricane Helene has caused "complete devastation" to North Carolina's roads, bridges and water systems, Gov. Roy Cooper said on Thursday.

Terry Robinson retrieves personal belongings from his home, which was swept away in the flood in the aftermath of catastrophic flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene in Swannanoa, NC, Oct. 3, 2024.
Erik S Lesser/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

"Our focus right now is on restoring primary arteries for supplies, medical aid and utility crews," Cooper said, noting that billions of dollars will be required to fully rebuild the region’s infrastructure.

"We need to rebuild in a more resilient way, understanding that this kind of destruction is now a real possibility,” he said.

The remnants of a home are seen in Lake Lure, North Carolina, Oct. 2, 2024, after the passage of Hurricane Helene.
Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images

Over 1,000 National Guard troops and 32 aircraft are delivering supplies daily, Cooper said, and the government has "surged hundreds of thousands of pounds of food and water" to impacted communities.

Search and rescue are still ongoing, Cooper added.

The governor stressed that recovery will be a long-term process.

"We know people will need assistance for a while, especially with power and water systems down," he said.

-ABC News’ Jason Volack

3:19 PM EDT

Biden surveys damage in Florida with GOP Sen. Rick Scott

President Joe Biden continued to survey damage caused by Hurricane Helene on Thursday, taking part in an aerial tour over impacted communities in Florida and meeting with families whose homes were destroyed.

A view of damaged homes affected by Hurricane Helene near Keaton Beach, Florida, Oct. 3, 2024.
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

President Joe Biden speaks with a first responder, as he visits storm-damaged areas in the wake of Hurricane Helene, in Keaton Beach, Florida, October 3, 2024.
Tom Brenner/Reuters

It was a bipartisan show of support, as vocal Biden critic Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., joined the president in Keaton Beach to see the devastation on the ground and provide an update on response efforts.

President Joe Biden greets Sen. Rick Scott, and other officials, in Keaton Beach, Fla., Oct. 3, 2024, during his tour of areas impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Susan Walsh/AP

After his briefing, Biden met with a husband and wife who lost their home in the storm, and they thanked the president for visiting. The president then met with local officials and first responders.

Biden made no remarks to the press pool.

-ABC News’ Justin Ryan Gomez