Storm Helene caused flooding in large parts of the southeastern United States this Friday (27). The phenomenon flooded neighborhoods, caused landslides, threatened dams and left more than four million homes and commercial establishments without electricity.
The storm was downgraded to a tropical depression, with maximum winds of 55 km/h, after hitting Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, with winds of 225 km/h, the US National Hurricane Center said.
There have been at least 45 storm-related deaths across five states, and more than 4.5 million people are without power in the Southeast.
Life-threatening floods
Several US states recorded more than a foot of rain, with numerous flash flood emergencies issued across the Southeast, including Atlanta.
In the state of Tennessee, fears that a dam would break near the city of Newport led authorities to demand the evacuation of people from the center. Another dam, this time in North Carolina, was on the verge of bursting.
Supercharged by climate change
The storm’s intensity was fueled by warm waters due to fossil fuel use.
Helene was the strongest hurricane on record to hit the Big Bend region of Florida.
With information from Reuters.
This content was originally published in Hurricane Helene, now a tropical depression, leaves a trail of destruction in the USA on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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