Hurricane Helene: WHERE IS THE SUPPORT?

Sifting through the reports: STOPPED BY THE GOVERNMENT

It has been 6 days since Hurricane Helene ripped through the Florida Panhandle, through Georgia, into parts of South Caroline, North Carolina and Tennessee. The media is largely absent, and seems to downplay the immense toll on lives. 30 victims, 100 victims, and now the media cautiously talks about ‘more than 200’ victims.

People on the ground speak about horrific images, of tens of bodies in streams, in the mud, dangling in trees, all over. About people who started to collect people in body bags (one report talks about one man who pulled 1200 bodies out of the river in Marshall) but give up because they find so many they can’t stomach it anymore. Looking at the many videos from the storm, the floods and flash floods, the destruction afterwards, it is clear that many people died. Whole neighborhoods and towns destroyed. People trying to run, getting caught in flash floods or ‘regular’ floods. People being left without any help.

The stories are absolutely heartbreaking, and very strongly indicate a death toll that is in the thousands, at least. I can’t imagine having to deal with having seen the bodies of babies float by in the water, or washed up on river banks.

The response after hurricane Katrina was very different. The National Guard provides these stats:

By September 1, three days after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, 23 states had National Guard forces in the operating area, with boots on the ground.
Sept. 8, 2005, at the peak of the response, more than 51,000 Army and Air Guardsmen were on the ground in the Gulf region.
More than 17,000 people saved from flooding or other hazards, and 51,000 people airlifted out of the affected areas by the Army and Air National Guard.
The National Guard (both Army and Air) flew approximately 7,000 sorties, and airlifted nearly 11,000 tons of cargo to the affected areas.

Now, after Hurricane Helene, people report that there are almost no government aircraft in the sky. The vast bulk of the helicopters in the sky are from civilians. Local military bases, both from regular army or air force as from national guard, are told to stand down. Biden directed ‘up to’ 1000 active-duty soldiers to help the NC National Guard. Harris promised $750 for people in the disaster zone. Harris spoke on Wednesday Oct 3 in August, Georgia, and stated: "And the federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like. And you can apply now.”

People report that when they tried to apply for this relief, they are being denied.

Right now, 6 days in, and when it is very clear that this disaster is much, much worse than Katrina was, the response is underwhelming: the National Guard stated that “More than 6,700 Army and Air National Guard members from 16 states are assisting with the on-the-ground response, according to the National Guard.”

Biden and Harris seem disinterested, and images over the weekend of Biden on the beach, and Harris fundraising in California, did not help. Only 5 days later did they bother to go down to visit the hardest hit areas.

I don’t think we realize just how bad it all was. In some areas, over 2 feet of water fell in the span of 3 days. That is a foot more than the 1000 level that has been estimated based on observations and modelling. Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Florida Panhandle, went rather quickly through Georgia, but then stalled over North Carolina, where it dumped insane amounts of water. In those mountainous areas, the rainwater very quickly converged in the lowest laying areas, where the water levels reached incredible heights.

Videos show flash floods that come down the hillsides with incredible speed, and force. If you are on foot and caught in one, there is no escape.
This was one of the scariest videos I saw. Notice how incredibly fast the flash flood came down: if you were on the grass, you’d have just about no time to get out of the way…

What used to be calm and small brooks became raging rivers. Some dams that miraculously survived saw insane levels of water. The Nolichucky Dam, near Greenville, Tennessee, saw a water flow of over 1.3 million gallons PER SECOND. For comparison, the peak daily water flow at Niagara Falls is around 700,000 gallons of water per second.

The water going over is TWICE that of Niagara Falls at its daily peak. Let that sink in... We have no idea just how massive the water load was. As Knox News reported, “The river's water level was 9 1/2 feet higher, and the water flow was more than double the previous record set during an Appalachian region flood in 1977.”

Only when grasping the incredible amounts of water that had been dumped in such a short time can we talk about the destructive erosive forces exerted by those floodwaters. A small brook alongside a road at the bottom of a valley became a raging river, eating away at its banks on both sides, eating into the road and often fully eroding it. Bridges became fully flooded, and once the waters streamed over the road, away from the concrete bridge structures, finding sand and dirt, it quickly carved a new channel out, often catastrophically undercutting the bridge or the side of the riverbank.

Mudslides were another huge threat, that could sweep away anything on its path.

The worst part is the many stories of people reporting how law enforcement and government people are actively hindering their attempts to rescue people, bring relief, and provide other services to help those in need and those still cut off from the outside world. Not only that, donated aid items and money are being confiscated and brought under FEMA and government control.

One of the earlier posts about this, was this one:

It called up not to donate to the Red Cross, but to local churches or people you know. They will ensure 100% of your donations reaches those in need.

Volunteers were turned away, and could only help if they were trained by United Way.

This post went viral, and elicited a lot of response. Robby Starbuck, who does good things, countered this. He posted on his X account the following tweet:

“ATTENTION: If you’ve seen the viral below post, it is NOT true. I’ve confirmed this at multiple levels of government in TN including TEMA and this was confirmed by my private team on the ground. NOTHING is being confiscated.

This post is not even on this lady’s FB page. Support our flood victims without any fear of supplies being confiscated. For East TN you can order supplies from any retailer and mail it to this church in the name of their local representative and we will ensure it reaches people who are most in need:

Representative Jeremy Faison
424 Heritage Blvd.
Newport, TN 37821”

TEMA is the ‘Tennessee Emergency Management Agency’, or the state version of FEMA, the ‘Federal Emergency Management Agency’.

He added a screenshot from a TEMA communique that strongly denied the accusation of confiscation.

I understand the desire to prevent people from NOT giving aid and money to help those in need. However, there is a lot more to this.

First, I checked the Facebook account of that woman.

She did post it, and stands by it. She clarified, stating that the big-name organizations, including Red Cross and FEMA, typically don’t give 100% of your donations to those in need. She explained how FEMA/TEMA does not ‘confiscate’ the aid and throws it out, but instead took control over the items, so they could control who got what, when, how much, where, etc. Her story is one of blind and heartless bureaucracy.

Again, who to trust?

With this post, I am offering a long series of posts, videos and testimonies of people who either live in the affected areas or who have been on the ground, trying to help, and speak as eyewitnesses. They all point at the same reality: the government is very slow in sending support, and tries to take full control of the aid. Efficiency and common sense are out.

In a now deleted post, TEMA makes it clear: they don’t want volunteers or donations for now, and want to control that inflow, instead of work with it.

A man who works for the Florida State Guard Special Missions Unit says that the stories told on the news, including by various politicians, is false. He puts the ratio of civilian vs government aircraft at 20 civilian aircraft for every single government aircraft.

Cynical Publius, a retired Colonel with a very sharp pen on X (give him a follow!), lashes out:

This is unbelievable.

XVIII Airborne Corps is located on Fort Bragg (I refuse to call it by that other woke name), a mere 268 miles from Asheville and the worst flooding areas of this Biblical-level tragedy.

The Corps’ capabilities include:

-Extensive medium and heavy lift rotary wing aircraft.

-A theater sustainment command with incredible capabilities for delivery of food, potable water, fuel and construction materials.

-A medical brigade with Level III surgical capabilities.

-An engineer brigade with robust heavy construction assets.

-A military police brigade that can provide traffic control and assist local LE.

-An Airborne Infantry division that has routinely supported disaster relief in years past.

-A world-class command, control and communications HQ capability to make it all work.

NONE OF THAT has been ordered to assist civil authorities? NONE OF IT??????

Fort Bragg has routinely supported domestic disaster relief for DECADES—Katrina, Homestead, you name it.  Hell, I myself have a Humanitarian Service Medal for support to Hurricane Fran relief out of Bragg.

Now we can’t do anything for an epic disaster in the SAME FREAKING STATE?

WTF, over?

This goes beyond mere negligence.  It must be malicious.  Perhaps Kamala and Joe don’t want NC’s rural GOP counties to be able to vote on November 5th? 

This is an abomination, and one of the worst derelictions of Presidential duties in US history.

A number of videos and posts from people in the affected area are desperate, and they wonder how come no one cares about them, no one is coming to help them. They remember previous disasters, and how Americans from all over flocked to those disaster sites to help in any way they could. Where is everyone?

Luckily, Americans DO help, and the polarization that exists politically is not so deep to draw lines on a human level (with some exceptions, sadly).

The outpouring of help, love and support, in time, sweat (often at risk of their own lives), money and prayer, is huge. One aid mission is run by Representative Cory Mills of Florida, renting helicopters and bringing food, water and medicine where needed, helping stranded people, and so on. “We're not defined by the federal government, we're defined by We the People!”

Robby Starbuck is another such example. He did take the advice of that woman he chided earlier to heart, after all, and has people order donations and have them send to a local representative, instead of to one of the big (government) organizations. The outpouring is strong!

Many other examples attest to that generous and caring attitude of Americans.

People of various walks of life and levels of fame step up. General Flynn is one of them (notice, however, the little tidbit about FEMA, and the uncharacteristic silence on their part, not recruiting the help of even other rescue/search teams. Inexplicable, and in stark contrast with the selfless can-do attitude of normal Americans.

And what happens if you put veterans in charge of a ‘support mission’? They set up a Forward Operations Base, and do what they do best: logistics, missions, organizing. Yet again, however, a wry remark: “When I asked about the feds response, one guy said: What response?”

Local firefighters are not being outdone, and respond to the call as well:

It is remarkable, and infuriating, to see the glaring absence of a proper, coordinated government response. So much more could and should be done. Georgia governor Brian Kemp exposes how the federal disaster declaration by FEMA only included 11 out of at least 90 affected counties, ignoring the rural communities.

There are so many witnesses of people running into the red tape and bureaucracy of the government, mostly on federal level, but also at state and local level. FEMA restrictions prevent doctors from holding clinic, at a time like this. Make it make sense.

Another story that is heard from several sources, is how trucks are turned away, or have their cargo of aid taken over.

A local woman tells how they get several messages from FEMA:

“Messages saying “We don't want you to donate stuff to other people. You need to just donate money and stuff to us and get your instructions from us and listen to us.”

“They were like, do not donate your time.”

“If you think you're gonna come here and bark orders at us, and then expect the people just to give you the money and us trust that you're gonna try to take care of us””

Let’s repost that now deleted TEMA notification: they do think and act like that...

Worse, local officials threaten with arrest, in an attempt to curb or control the people trying to help, even certified professionals with materiel and know-how that is in very sore need right now.

A drone pilot, with drones that have thermal cameras, ideal to help find bodies of survivors, kept being told to ‘stand down’. He cannot understand why such a valuable tool was refused in those early days right after the hurricane hit, when that technology could have saved lives...

More truckers complain about being turned around, and having their cargo off-loaded...

The internet is merciless in their judgment, expressed through memes:

People with connections who are in the know relay desperate messages:

The government is in the way, on purpose or not, and normal Americans are stepping up, regardless. That is, doubtlessly, a golden lining to this dark cloud. Yet others are driven to more extreme positions and thoughts, unable to understand how people can be so dense, so heartless, so stupid, and so inhumane to block aid, send people back, and confiscate donations... No, we do NOT need militias fighting against governmental organizations. However poorly executed and planned from the top down, those on the ground often really want to help, and are likely as frustrated as the rest. Follow the proper channels to expose those who are part of the problem. Make videos of their stupidity and inhumanity go viral. But remain peaceful!

But the news about unreal decisions keep coming in:

Not just helicopters, but ambulances as well:

The governor of North Carolina has completely bungled the response of his state, not in the least by his delays and very limited use of national guard and calling for other military support, such as from Fort Bragg.

People online call him out:

It does not stop there: even on federal level, coming in with aid and support is made very difficult, if not impossible. Federal Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has shut down aid flights to Western North Carolina. I checked the NOTAM, it is indeed there, active from October 2^nd through October 10^th.

The airspace is also closed for drones. This is inexplicable: the area affected is so vast, that there is little to no reason to prevent people from flying drones. What it does do, is limit people in their ability to shoot footage of the extent of the destruction, and thus preventing them from showing the United States, and the world, just how bad the situation is (and how insanely the government is botching their response).

At the same time, FEMA is signaling they have no money. Immediately, people pointed out the millions and even billions of dollars FEMA has spent on illegal immigrants the last few years. All the while the federal government sends tens of billions to Ukraine, Israel, and other countries, and very limited funds for their own people. Make it make sense.

On another front, the same government micromanagement that undermines everything is visible. There is a huge amount of debris that needs to be cleared, not just that from fully destroyed houses, but also from the much higher number of houses that ‘only’ got flooded. Wet and destroyed furniture, clothing, sheetrock, wood, etc. needs to be thrown out. FEMA/TEMA has stepped in, and closed local dumping areas. In the very few FEMA allowed dumping zones, only civilians can dump garbage, and every commercial grade truck or dumpster, anything with lettering and logo’s, is being turned back. They are told to dump the garbage in their trucks back on the lawns of the people it came from. “We will take care of it all in the next year!”

That mold and rat infestations are already apparent, as well as the stench, is irrelevant. Government is here to help us all!

Other decisions that seem political in nature are now coming into the light. A winning bid by SpaceX to provide Americans in rural areas with reliable internet connection was denied, because Elon Musk was the head of SpaceX. Their Starlink solution is now being brought in by so many civilians, donated, with only limited and misplaced government use of that same technology. If they had not made such a pigheaded refusal, many more people in those areas would still have connectivity, and let first aid crews know where they were, and what they needed.

In good news, Musk has made his service free in a large area in the path of the Hurricane:

Yes, there is even already video of police threatening people who tried to salvage whatever was left of their homes and businesses with prison time...

Yet again, there is a glaring absence...

Why?

People start talking, trying to make sense of it all, as they struggle to process the absolute devastation, the deaths, the insanity. The fact that the affected area is Trump country surely has something to do with it, no?

Others claim that it is a form of election interference. How will those people be able to vote? What is being done to quickly and efficiently unlock that whole, huge area, so normal voting can be held, come November?

Others yet claim it was a naked land grab.

The reason? The huge ore deposits underground, of lithium, vital for batteries, and of very pure quarts, vital for the manufacture of photovoltaic cells, semiconductors, silicon production and other high-technology applications.

I don’t dare speak out on that yet. Either claim, about the voting preferences of the areas affected or about the mines and land grab, are very serious accusations that need a lot more substance and actual proof than ‘it looks like’ to make.

Is this botched aid mission suspicious? Yes.

Can such accusation be confidently made at this point? No.

What I can and will say, is that the government does what the government does best: stand up for her own interests. Or better, the bureaucrats in the unelected agencies are very adept at self-preservation. They need to be in control, to have the money and power, to justify their positions and salaries.

Plain old corruption is also part of the mix.

Ryan Tyre, involved in large support and aid missions for almost a decade, sheds light on this, through his own direct experience. When Hurricane Irma hit Florida in 2017, he went from Texas (hit by Hurricane Harvey) to the Florida Keys to help. Similar stories about trucks being stopped and turned around, and with FEMA teams that did not seem to be in a hurry to help.

He snuck in anyways, over water, and was able to contact local authorities that let in his trucks. He witnessed first-hand the ineptness of FEMA, not really helping anyone. There was red tape everywhere, hindering the help from reaching the places it was most needed. During a meeting, however, he was told his trucks were not allowed to be unloaded and distributed. The reason is shocking: the items were not from ‘preferred vendors’. IT WAS ABOUT THE MONEY! People and businesses with the right contacts had gotten lucrative contracts with monopoly position to provide aid in case of emergencies.

THE REASON they gave us, was that these donations were not from companies on their "preferred vendors list" and that they would not accept them or give them to the residents of the keys impacted by the storm.

It was at that point that I realized, this is ALL ABOUT MONEY.

These 'preferred vendors" are getting part of the money being released by the state and federal govt for each disaster. In turn, some of the "vendors" make it on the list because a friend gets them on the list, and in return for getting ridiculously outlandish amounts of compensation for the services they render, they give kickbacks.

So [instead of] accepting outside donations, even though they are on location and can help people NOW, they would rather let people suffer so they can get their kickbacks.

Ryan concluded:
“The common theme though, is that the federal government always tries to keep citizens from helping and the local authorities, the ones that live and work in the area are always happy to have outside help.

[...]

Help us sidestep the red tape and get the people the relief they need.

We are willing, and we are many, and we are ready.”

It shows the dark side of the ‘deep state’ and the unelected bureaucratic apparatus (for good part neutered by the recent slate of SCOTUS decisions!). They want to control, not help. They want to take, ultimately, rather than give.

Others point out how all those inexplicable government actions are purposeful.

They intent “to drive a wedge in by breaking the community’s unity;

increase individual isolation from family, neighbors, & community; and

push collective dependence upon the government & remove individualism.”

We the people, united, are the biggest threat to those bureaucrats who want to keep us divided and distracted.

While there certainly is a lot going wrong, and the people in Tennessee and North Carolina most definitely need more help, money, support and prayer, there are encouraging signs. America is less divided than a purely political analysis would suggest, and Americans still step up to answer the call, selflessly serving. Truly amazing to watch!

Anyways, I thought a little article to put some of those thoughts and collection of relevant posts and videos could be helpful.

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If you liked this article, please forward it!

On another note, reports talk about over 360 substations and transformers that are damaged or destroyed, leaving close to half a million people in North Carolina without power.

To repair this, a lot of equipment is needed we simply don’t have at hand, as an article by VNN: “Jesse D. Jenkins, an assistant professor and macro-energy systems engineering and policy expert at Princeton University, responded to the dire situation of a grid apocalypse playing out in the Southeast US:”

How come we don’t have the needed transformers? We shipped them to Ukraine.

This is confirmed through other official sources:

The dock worker strike that just got averted (at least for now, it got postponed until January while negotiations are underway) started to point out how dangerous it is to outsource too much of our needed production, and this disaster with hurricane Helene shows this as well, with a geopolitical side. How can our government defend sending billions (and transformers) to other countries, while letting millions of their own people stranded, with peanuts, and without electricity, with winter soon on the way?

Our society is very fine-tuned, and can easily be disrupted. Can we take back control over the manufacturing of the basic needs we have? Can we rebuild our own industrial base?

Strange, either way, how our media is so silent about what is really going on in North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina and Georgia. The devastation is real, and brings to the fore the policies of the Biden administration. It was easy to lambaste Bush after Katrina hit, which makes the current silence all the more stand out.