President Joe Biden is sending 1,000 active-duty soldiers to North Carolina to help with the response to Hurricane Helene, the White House announced.
The troops, who are stationed at Fort Liberty, N.C., will help with the distribution of food, water and other supplies.
‘They have the manpower and logistical capabilities to get this vital job done, and fast. They will join hundreds of North Carolina National Guard members deployed under State authorities in support of the response,’ Biden said in a statement.
Biden made the announcement shortly before departing for a tour of North Carolina and South Carolina, where he’ll tour the storm damage. He was spotted wearing brown hiking boots with blue jeans and a blazer as he boarded Air Force One.
North Carolina was hit hard by the storm, particularly in its western mountain region.
The tourist-heavy town of Asheville suffered terrible flooding and destruction.
Compounding the problem, several main routes into Asheville were washed away or blocked by mudslides, including a 4-mile section of Interstate 40. Additionally, broken water systems, downed power lines and poor cellphone service are making rescue efforts more complicated.
The Department of Defense already has activated 22 helicopters to aid in search and rescue operations and provided dozens of high-water vehicles.
In total, FEMA has shipped over 8.5 million meals, more than 7 million liters of water, 150 generators and over 220,000 tarps to aid response efforts for this historic storm, the White House said.
‘It’s going to take a long haul to restore these communities,’ Biden said Tuesday.
Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are making separate trips south on Wednesday to see a trio of states devastated by Hurricane Helene.
‘I’ve ensured my travel will not disrupt the ongoing response,’ Biden posted on X on Tuesday.
The White House said he will visit Georgia and Florida on Thursday.
Biden will take an aerial tour of South Carolina before being briefed by emergency responders in Raleigh, N.C. His flyover time should include the highly-impacted areas of North Carolina.
Harris will visit Georgia to see the storm damage and be briefed there. The Democratic presidential nominee canceled plans to campaign in Pennsylvania on Wednesday so she could visit the areas impacted by the hurricane.
Donald Trump, who visited Georgia on Tuesday, has been critical of the administration’s response to Helene, falsely claiming Biden wouldn’t speak to the state’s governor.
But Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, confirmed he had spoken with the president.
Trump also claimed without evidence that Democratic leaders were withholding help from Republican areas. Biden is traveling to South Carolina, a Republican-led state, to see the storm damage.
More than 130 people in six states, from Florida to Tennessee, died. Additionally, power and cellular service remains unavailable in many places.
Biden has said the administration is sending ‘every available resource’ to those areas.