After Hurricane Helene, questions arise about the government’s warnings and response

Spokespeople for the city and Buncombe County, which includes Asheville, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on residents’ criticism.

Cooper said at a news conference Monday that people were working nonstop to provide food, water and assistance. He said flooding and ever-rising rivers have prevented first responders from entering some communities.

At a news conference early Monday, Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder expressed frustration with what she described as a slow response to requests for supplies.

“We have asked for water, but we are currently receiving water and it is still in small quantities,” she said. “There is a great need in our community and we would like to see a different response from our state partners, a better response from our state partners” to meet those needs through FEMA.

At the White House briefing on Monday, Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall told reporters that FEMA had focused its advance positioning efforts on the Big Bend, Florida, area and that those efforts had saved lives. After landing, “capacity increased to where it was needed most.” She noted that western North Carolina has now been identified as the hardest-hit area.

Rep. Chuck Edwards, a Republican who represents western North Carolina, said the state’s emergency officials couldn’t tell him where 400 pallets of FEMA food and water intended for hurricane relief went. Edwards’ staff says two counties in particular, Haywood and McDowell, are in dire need of water. FEMA said in a news release that it sent 25 trailer loads of food and 60 trailer loads of water to North Carolina.

State officials are distributing them now, but Edwards employees say they haven’t been able to figure out where or when they’re going. A state official told Edward’s team via email Sunday that the state is making no announcements about where food and water will be distributed to counties. “If only the public were told that water, etc. at point

Asked by NBC News on Monday whether FEMA knows what happened to the water and why it isn’t getting quickly to those who need it most, Criswell said the agency is sending “as many resources as it asks for.” and try to “push”. Put the water in.”

“We all need to come together to make sure we understand where the communities are that we may not have yet provided the resources they need,” she said.

NBC News also asked FEMA spokeswoman Jaclyn Rothenberg about a request for more resources sent Sept. 17 that cited “severe shortages” among some disaster response teams. Rothenberg acknowledged that staffing has been an issue. “It is true that we conduct many operations in many disasters,” she said, which is why the agency declared a so-called “Surge Capacity Force” in mid-September.

On Monday, about three days after Helene hit Florida as a Category 4 storm, survivors in North Carolina searched for food and clean water and shuffled from shelter to shelter.