Firefighters killed by a fallen tree as they rushed to stamp out a blaze. A retired father with plans to travel abroad drowned in his coastal Florida apartment. Factory workers swept away by floodwaters after hours holding on desperately to a semi-truck.
Hurricane Helene and its remnants have killed at least 162 people since the storm made landfall along the Florida Gulf Coast before barreling through multiple states, unleashing record rain and unprecedented flooding across the entire Southeast. With hundreds still missing throughout the region, and exhaustive searches underway, officials expect the death toll to rise.
Storm-related fatalities have been reported in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Tennessee and Virginia. The victims include first responders, parents, grandparents, children…