North Carolina hurricane victims left without temporary shelter as military leaves, winter looms

The North Carolina victims of Hurricane Helene have been victimized again as the National Guard and the U.S. Army XVIII Airborne Corps have exited areas of the state that are still trying to recover from the storm. Multitudes of people are living in tents and waiting to find out if they can get temporary housing as cold weather approaches, Blaze media reported. Elderly people were unable to wash their hands or shower long after the hurricane moved as they faced weeks of a water shortage.

Joint Task Force North Carolina — a combined force of National Guard and regular force US Army and US Air Force personnel – had 4,000 people deployed to the region as of Oct. 29 but sources told Blaze that they are no longer in the area delivering assistance. National Guard members have all gone home. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers remains on-scene completing a water treatment system near Asheville.

Major Aimee Valles, a public affairs officer with the XVIII Airborne Corps, confirmed that all airborne members went back to base “a little more than a month ago.” The North Carolina National Guard was unable to tell Blaze about the evacuation of its members but suggested the media outlet talk to the

North Carolina Department of Public Safety, which has not bothered to respond to the query. Gov. Roy Cooper (D-NC) was no more helpful with information.

The commander of Joint Task Force North Carolina, Brig.-Gen. Wes Morrison, posted his thanks to his deployed personnel on X: “This Joint Task Force rescued over 865 people, delivered over 22,000 tons of relief supplies, cleared over 1,600 obstacles while repairing an untold number of roadways, bridges, and culverts,” Morrison wrote. “Over 6,200 National Guardsmen from North Carolina and 15 other states, along with active-duty soldiers, have served in 17 affected counties.”

Some residents had been living in hotels as part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) response but have been forced to live in tents when told it was time to move out of the hotels. FEMA has been roundly criticized for a disaster assistance posture that is based on “equity” and a hostility to supporters of President-elect Donald Trump.

A National Guard officer told Blaze that some people are choosing to live in tents. “They are afraid to abandon their properties [for fear] their land is going to be taken from them. True or not, that is what they’re afraid of.”

A Colorado-based charity called EmergencyRV.org, and run by Woody Faircloth has given 35 free recreational vehicles to Western North Carolina residents since Helene first hit the area. More will be required as winter gets closer and tents prove inadequate for the falling temperatures.

“It’s going to get worse before it gets better,” Faircloth told Blaze Monday. “There’s a cold front coming in. That is going to be a problem for everybody there. Even ones in RVs. We’re going to have to make sure they get some insulation underneath them.

“People are staying in hotels that got denied by FEMA, and they’re going to run out of money,” Faircloth told Blaze. “When you live in a hotel, you’re going out to eat every night because you can’t make a meal. These RVs kind of solve that, but we won’t be able to help everybody up there. We wish we could. The need is increasing, not decreasing.”