Sources paint a picture of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene . . .

By Amber Duke

The official death toll from Hurricane Helene rose yesterday to 227 across six states, with about half of the victims being in North Carolina. But sources on the ground in North Carolina tell The Spectator that the true scope of the death and devastation wrought by the storm is not even close to being understood. In addition, the rescue and recovery efforts have been largely undertaken by private citizens, as the state and federal responses have been hamstrung by incompetent public officials.

“It’s so much worse than they’re saying,” said one individual who was in Asheville when Helene hit. “I think there’s a massive cover-up.”

A North Carolina official and former federal official confirmed that deaths have been severely undercounted thus far, partially because many bodies have not been recovered, but also because there are literally piles of the deceased who haven’t been identified and are being transported around the state to find open morgue space. Some North Carolinians have become so desperate that they are burying their own family members in their yards.

“According to folks on the ground — fire, medical, law enforcement officials — they’re way underreporting the numbers. All the morgues are full and they’ve hauled a ton [of bodies] to Greensboro,” the state official said. “People are starting to bury them in their yards because they have no place to put them.”

Locals are “pissed” at the seemingly lackadaisical response from state and federal officials . . .

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