The head of the U.S. disaster response agency continued to forcefully push back Monday against about her agency鈥檚 response to Hurricane Helene as the death toll from the storm continued to climb.
Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell pointed to the agency's massive, collaborative effort that keeps growing, and she strongly urged residents in hard-hit areas to accept the government鈥檚 offer for assistance.
鈥淲e have thousands of people on the ground, not just federal, but also our volunteers in the private sector,鈥� Criswell said at a news conference in Asheville, North Carolina. 鈥淎nd frankly, that type of rhetoric is demoralizing to our staff that have left their families to come here and help the people of North Carolina. And we will be here as long as they鈥檙e needed.鈥�
Misinformation has spread over the past week in communities hit the hardest by Helene, including that the federal government is to people in Republican areas. Former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have and is going to migrants or foreign wars.
FEMA has dedicated part of its website to providing to questions and on its response to Helene.
On Friday, the agency put out a statement that it will only provide $750 to disaster survivors to support their recovery. Criswell said that initial money helps residents with expenses for medicine or food. She said additional funding will be available to reimburse them for the cost of home repairs, personal items lost, post-hurricane rental units and hotel stays.
鈥淏ut I can鈥檛 give it to them if they don鈥檛 apply,鈥� Criswell said. 鈥淎nd if people are afraid to apply, then it is hurting them.鈥�
When asked directly about a circulating claim that FEMA would seize people鈥檚 property if they don鈥檛 pay back the $750 in within one year, Criswell said that was 鈥渁bsolutely false.鈥�
The cleanup and response to the storm that killed at least 230 people continued Monday, while Milton into a Category 5 hurricane on a path , the same area battered by Helene less than two weeks ago.
More than 130,000 customers in western North Carolina were still without electricity Monday, according to .
Also in North Carolina, more than 1,600 local and state search-and-rescue team members have been joined by about 1,700 members of the state National Guard, according to Gov. Roy Cooper鈥檚 office.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon said Monday that an additional 500 active-duty troops have been deployed to North Carolina. Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, said troops with advanced technological assets will be arriving, bringing the total number of active-duty forces to about 1,500. The troops are bringing surveillance equipment to allow officials to get a better overview of the region.
Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot, commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, said search-and-rescue aircraft were flying 10-hour sorties providing wellness checks, medical care and evacuations. He called the military鈥檚 operations the 鈥渕ost important and honorable mission for us, which is to help fellow citizens.鈥�
Cooper said more than 50 water systems were destroyed or impaired by the storm and that the pace of restoring service varies by community. He said he couldn't give a specific timeline but said the process might take longer in Asheville and , where at least six dozen people died.
鈥淚t鈥檚 still going to be a while,鈥� he said.
Cooper also visited the towns of Chimney Rock and Lake Lure in Rutherford County, which both experienced devastating damage.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to help western North Carolina come back,鈥� Cooper said as he stood with Lake Lure鈥檚 mayor, Carol Pritchett. 鈥淚t鈥檚 too important to our economy, to our state, not to do it.鈥�
Pritchett told Cooper that the tiny town would need all the help it could get. Its sewer and wastewater treatment systems needed complete replacements, and the lake would have to be completely dredged. She estimated the costs would be in the tens of millions of dollars.
鈥淲e鈥檙e a town of 1,300; we certainly can鈥檛 do it on our own,鈥� Pritchett said.
Without restoring major infrastructure, Pritchett said the tourism on which the town depends could not come back.
鈥淭he town鈥檚 name is Lake Lure. With no lake here, the 鈥楲ake Lure鈥� kind of begs the question,鈥� she said.
In South Carolina, officials estimate $250 million has been spent on debris cleanup, infrastructure damage and emergency response. More than 300 homes were destroyed and 5,200 damaged, state Emergency Management Division Director Kim Stenson said Monday.
The state's largest school district, Greeneville County, plans to reopen Wednesday after shutting down for seven days. The district said it has had to modify bus routes because of blocked roads, closed bridges, sinkholes, and traffic signal outages at major intersections.
In Tennessee, where at least 12 people died from Helene, Gov. Bill Lee on Monday visited Bristol Motor Speedway, now a hub for collecting donations for victims and centralizing other operations in the wake of the flooding. Lee met with coordinators and volunteers who were sorting through donations.
鈥淭hese are Tennesseans and they鈥檙e hurting,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淣ot only are they hurting, but they鈥檙e helping.鈥�
