Residents in US Asheville complain about slow recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene

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Residents in US Asheville complain about slow recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene

2024-10-07 09:45 Last Updated At：19:57

Many residents in Asheville of southeastern U.S. state of North Carolina were severely impacted by Hurricane Helene and expressed concerns about the government's slow recovery efforts and the difficulties in restoring their life after the disaster.

At least 227 people died as a result of the destruction caused by Hurricane Helene since it made landfall in Florida on September 26, according to U.S. news outlets on Saturday.

More than 70 people are still missing in Asheville as of Saturday, and local emergency authorities reported that search and rescue efforts are ongoing. Helene has become the deadliest hurricane to strike the U.S. mainland since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

After the disaster, local communities, along with organizations from other states, spontaneously organized to provide material assistance to the affected residents in Asheville. The Biden administration declared a major disaster in North Carolina, but federal assistance has yet to arrive, leaving many residents worried about rebuilding their homes.

They said water and power outages have become their biggest challenges.

"Right now, most people are without power, they have no water. And I'm hearing that the water is going to be a month before we have water back up into residents. And there's been very limited cell phone service, also, no internet really anywhere either, so most people can't communicate with one another. Most people can't cook right at home, especially they don't have gas. We're feeding everybody hot meals right now," said Dave Jackson, head of a local NGO.

Additionally, the National Hurricane Center warned that Tropical Storm Milton formed in the western Gulf of Mexico on Saturday local time, with winds expected to strengthen rapidly and reach the western coast of Florida by Tuesday or Wednesday. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 35 counties in the state on Saturday.

Xuelong 2 sails 10,000 nautical miles on current Antarctic expedition

2024-12-30 17:33 Last Updated At：18:07

Chinese research icebreaker Xuelong 2, or Snow Dragon 2, has sailed more than 10,000 nautical miles since it departed for China's 41st Antarctic expedition on November 1, completing one third of the planned voyage.

The 41st Antarctic expedition set sail from Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong in south China on Nov. 1, and the whole mission will take nearly seven months.

The expedition team is composed of more than 460 people and three ships, including research icebreakers Xuelong and Xuelong 2, and cargo vessel Yongsheng.

Xuelong and Xuelong 2 arrived at China's Zhongshan Station in Antarctica on Nov. 28 and unloaded there.

Xuelong 2 left the Zhongshan Station for the Qinling Station on Dec 11 and met with cargo vessel Yongsheng on Dec 21.

"Since we officially departed from Guangzhou on Nov 1, we have sailed through the South China Sea, the Sulu Sea near the Philippines, the Lombok Strait before we sailed on the Indian Ocean. After crossing the westerlies, we arrived at the Zhongshan Station and completed the first stage of the mission. Then we sailed eastward along the Antarctic continent and have now arrived at the Ross Sea where the Qinling Station is located," said Xiao Zhimin, captain of Xuelong 2.

Xuelong 2 and Yongsheng arrived at the Qinling Station on Dec. 25.

The Zhongshan Station, set up on Feb. 26, 1989, is located in the Larsemann Hills in East Antarctica with a total area of 378 hectares.

As the second Chinese scientific research base in Antarctica, the Zhongshan Station serves as a key hub for inland expeditions and supports research in meteorological observation, oceanography, geology, and other fields.

The Qinling Station is China's fifth research station in the continent. It started operation on Feb. 7, 2024.

Apart from investigating the impact of climate change on the Antarctic ecosystem and conducting international research and logistics cooperation, the 41st Antarctic expedition will build the supporting infrastructure for the Qinling Station.