After a flood of lies: disinformation and hoaxes hinder Helene’s recovery

WASHINGTON —

The facts emerging from the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene are heartbreaking: businesses and homes destroyed, entire communities nearly destroyed, hundreds dead, hundreds of people missing.

But this destruction and despair is not enough for extremist groups, disinformation agents, traffickers and politicians who are exploiting the disaster to spread false claims and conspiracy theories about it and the government’s response.

Former President Trump falsely claims that the federal government is intentionally withholding disaster aid among Republicans. Far-right extremist groups have falsely warned on social media that officials plan to bulldoze affected communities and seize land. The science fiction story goes that Washington used weather control technology to steer Helene toward Republican Party voters in order to tip the scales in the presidential election.

These claims, experts and local officials say, say less about the reality of Helene’s widespread damage than about America’s fractured politics and the fear and distrust that have accompanied an election year marked by assassination attempts and escalating global tensions.

As the rescue operation continues and authorities try to separate fact from fiction, conspiracy theories are not helping. Elected leaders from both parties had to explain the situation and urge people not to give in to fear and rumors.

“If everyone could put aside their hate and join together to help, it would be great,” wrote Glenn Jacobs, a retired professional wrestler known as Kane who is now the Republican mayor of Knox County, Tenn. The post was intended to refute false rumors that employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency were taking over humanitarian aid from private citizens.

Many conspiracy theories focus on hard-hit North Carolina, a key state in winning the White House. There were rumors that FEMA was raiding storm donations and seizing body bags. One claim suggested that federal authorities would condemn the entire town of Chimney Rock and prohibit relocations to take over a nearby valuable lithium mine.

Elon Musk, owner of Tesla, SpaceX and social media platform X, has made claims dismissed by officials as false. So does North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the struggling GOP candidate for governor. In his claims, Trump ignored reports and photographic and video evidence of relief and recovery efforts taking place across the region.

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones – the founder of InfoWars who popularized the false belief that the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut that killed 20 children was faked – supported Trump’s fact-free allegations.

State media and disinformation campaigns by China and Russia amplified false and misleading claims about the response to the storm. Both countries have used social media and state news to criticize the response to past U.S. natural disasters, part of a broader effort to stoke division and distrust among Americans.

State and local officials from both parties condemned the conspiracy theories, saying the focus should be on fixing the situation rather than on political divisions and rumors. Responding to fraud takes up time that should be spent helping victims, said North Carolina state Sen. Kevin Corbin, a Republican who urged his constituents not to fall for the scams.

“Friends, can I ask you for a little favor?” Corbin posted on Facebook Thursday. “Will you all help STOP these garbage conspiracy theories circulating on Facebook and the Internet… Please don’t let these crazy stories consume you.”

North Carolina officials say the response to Helene is the largest in the state’s history, with thousands of National Guard members and other relief workers, millions of reinforcements, dozens of planes and more than 1,000 chain saws.

Trump tried to link the hurricane’s aftermath to immigration, a central issue of his campaign. He falsely claimed that FEMA had run out of money because it had all gone to illegal immigrant programs.

The agency’s disaster relief funds are limited, but that’s because many parts of the country are dealing with the effects of hurricanes, wildfires and other disasters. Disaster relief is funded separately from other Department of Homeland Security programs that support immigration-related expenses.

Bizarre stories suggesting the government used weather-control technology to target a hurricane at GOP voters quickly gained millions of views on social media. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) supported the idea, posting on X on Wednesday: “Yes, they can control the weather.”

Faraway tales of space lasers, artificial snow and weather-control technology – sometimes tinged with anti-Semitism – have spread in the wake of recent natural disasters, including a snowstorm in Texas and wildfires in Hawaii and California.

Experts who study conspiracy theories say that major events such as disasters – the September 11 attacks and the Covid-19 pandemic – create ideal conditions for conspiracy theories to spread as large numbers of concerned people want to find explanations for shocking events.

In response to the number of false claims about Helena, the Red Cross urged people to seek credible sources of information and think twice before posting conspiracy theories.

“Sharing rumors online without first checking the source and checking the facts ultimately hurts people – people who have just lost their homes, their neighborhoods, and in some cases, their loved ones,” the organization wrote in a public appeal.

Klepper writes for the Associated Press.