Helene recovery efforts continue; Biden orders another 500 active-duty troops for western NC

Around 125,000 are still without power across North Carolina one week after Helene swept through the state

According to Duke Energy, in western North Carolina, restoration "may be extended in particular areas where catastrophic damage has occurred to electrical infrastructures, roads/bridges, or both."

"We've never had anything like this. Never. I've talked with guys who have been 40, 50 years in this field, each one of them says never before," Duke Energy spokesperson Bill Norton told WLOS last week.

The Department of Transportation announced Saturday it is sending $100 million in emergency funds to help repair roads and bridges in North Carolina.

This comes after the state suffered extensive damage from Hurricane Helene.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg called the emergency aid an initial road of funding. He said the goal is to get roads repaired and reopened quickly.

The government is using the Federal Highway Administration's Emergency Relief Program money to pay for repairs.

CNN contributed to this report.

The facts emerging from Hurricane Helene's destruction are heartrending: Businesses and homes destroyed, whole communities nearly wiped out, hundreds of lives lost, hundreds of people missing.

Yet this devastation and despair is not enough for the extremist groups, disinformation agents, hucksters and politicians who are exploiting the disaster to spread false claims and conspiracy theories about it and the government's response.

According to former President Donald Trump, the federal government is intentionally withholding aid to Republican disaster victims. Far-right extremist groups warn on social media that officials plan to bulldoze affected communities and seize the land from residents. A tale straight from science fiction asserts that Washington used weather control technology to steer Helene toward Republican voters to tilt the presidential election toward Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

The claims, according to experts and local officials dealing with disaster response, say less about the reality of the widespread damage from Helene than they do about America's fractured politics and the fear and distrust shadowing an election year marked by assassination attempts and escalating global tension.

Read more.

Residents in western North Carolina are still working to salvage what is left of their homes on Saturday a week after Helene.

In Swannanoa, recovery efforts continue after roads were broken apart, foundations were ripped off of homes, and entire areas were swept away by the river.

"We're gonna praise God through the storm, it's been rough," said resident Regae Eager.

She and her husband rode out the storm in Swannanoa. Water did not enter into the Eager's home but across the street, they said a condo had people that were stuck on the second floor.

Another home was swept off its foundation and water flooded inside.

"We just need people to come and offer help," one resident said.

The whole town is full of demolished homes and cars and just down the road, National Guard crews are deploying from a field near I-40 to more remote areas that are even worse.

In nearby Black Mountain, a one-stop shop was mobilized to get residents essentials and send crews to clean up debris.