Oct. 3 (UPI) — President Joe Biden planned on continuing his tour of areas devastated by Hurricane Helene Thursday as emergency crews unblocked roads and the death toll from the storm soared to more than 200.
Biden will arrive in Tallahassee, Fla., to take an aerial tour of Florida’s Big Bend area on the way to Perry, Fla., where Helene hit as a dangerous Category 4 hurricane. Biden will then cross the border into Georgia where he will visit hard-hit Ray City.
There, he is expected to hear from local leaders about the damage and talk about the role the federal government is playing in recovery.
On Wednesday, Biden visited hurricane damage in North Carolina and South Carolina. By air, she saw flooding damage from Asheville, N.C. to Greenville, S.C.
Hundreds remain missing from the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia Tennessee and Virginia, while thousands of others remain without running water and other necessities.
White House officials said Biden has been carefully planning his trips in a way to not take away any personnel or resources from the rescue and recovery effort.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Biden wanted to make sure he can visit the devastation firsthand “without disrupting the emergency operations. What he does not want to do is impact the rescue that we are providing.”
Biden did announce on Wednesday that the Defense Department will call 1,000 active-duty soldiers to help distribute food, water and other supplies.
