A swiftwater rescue team from Vermont is now supporting public safety efforts east of Asheville, North Carolina, after being deployed last week to the Tampa, Florida, area for rescues in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, state officials said on Wednesday. They are assisting local rescue teams there that themselves deployed to Vermont after the state’s own disastrous storms this year and last.
Hurricane Helene hit the northern Gulf coast of Florida late last week before traveling inland through Georgia and across the eastern edge of the Carolinas, bringing torrential rain and flash flooding to the mountainous region.
Gov. Phil Scott used part of his weekly press conference on Wednesday to draw attention to the suffering caused by the disaster and to the Vermonters now working there to help.
“Last year and again this year when we saw flood waters rising and asked other states to come to Vermont and help out, many did so without hesitation,” Scott said. So when Vermont’s help was requested “we didn’t hesitate,” he said.