Biden directs up to 1,000 troops to assist with relief efforts; 179 people died as a result of the storm

Biden attended a briefing on Hurricane Helene relief efforts in Raleigh after spending the day touring Greenville, South Carolina, and surveying damage in North Carolina.

Biden called the disaster a “storm of historic proportions” and noted that damage was still being assessed as people remained unaccounted for.

He thanked Carolina governors and elected officials who have “focused on the task at hand.”

“The nation supports you,” Biden said. “There are no Democrats or Republicans, only Americans” when it comes to aid for those affected by the storm.

Biden said the federal government is trying to help as “quickly and as thoroughly” as it can and discussed approving requests from governors to provide aid and resources.

Today, Biden said he has ordered the Department of Defense to transfer 1,000 troops to reinforce the North Carolina National Guard. He said this should speed up the delivery of life-saving supplies such as food, water and medicine.

Biden also said FEMA is sending helicopters and trucks every day to provide meals and liters of water to these communities, and is knocking on doors and visiting shelters to register residents for needed funds and assistance.

Biden said the storm’s recovery would cost billions of dollars.

“We have the capacity to get this job done and we will do it as quickly as possible,” he said.

He also talked about the role of climate change in the storm and said scientists have reported that “storms like Helene will continue to get stronger.”

Biden said he saw the “results of this rage” today in North Carolina, specifically in the “beautiful city of Asheville,” which went underwater a few days ago and “reduced to rock and rubble,” he said.

He called for “volunteers and first responders” who stand “side by side” to help these communities.

“Every time we have worked together, we have never failed to accomplish something,” Biden said.