Some Texas Officials Didn’t Respond to Flood Alerts, Echoing Hurricane Helene Tragedy — ProPublica

North Carolina’s emergency management agency initiated a review of its response to the disaster.The resulting report identified notable understaffing within the state agency but did not delve into aspects like evacuation procedures or the actions of local emergency managers prior to Hurricane Helene’s arrival.

Erika Andresen, an Asheville resident who assists businesses in disaster preparedness, also resides in the mountain city heavily impacted by Helene. A lawyer and former Army judge advocate, Andresen also possesses expertise in emergency management. Following Helene, she was among a limited number of voices in North Carolina to publicly critique the absence of evacuations and other perceived failures in preparedness before the storm.

“My instincts and my experience immediately told me that numerous things had gone terribly wrong,” Andresen stated. When faced with opposition to her criticism of local authorities during a crisis, she asserted, “We need accountability.”