FEMA Staff in North Carolina Will Resume Normal Operations and Outreach, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell Address Operational Updates

NORTH CAROLINA -- The State of North Carolina and FEMA continue to work together to help communities recover from Hurricane Helene and provide assistance to survivors.

Over the past weekend, out of abundance of caution, FEMA made operational changes based on threat information. The changes did not impact ongoing search and rescue and life-safety operations, and Disaster Recovery Centers remained open. The threat was more limited than initially reported and mitigated by law enforcement.

Today, FEMA officials remain in communities and survivors are encouraged to continue to register for assistance. Disaster Survivor Assistance teams will resume normal operations in the field and housing inspectors will resume scheduling inspections to ensure survivors get the assistance they need and deserve.

"State, federal and local response workers, including FEMA, are working around the clock to bring assistance to western North Carolina," said Governor Roy Cooper. "We know that significant misinformation online contributes to threats against response workers on the ground, and the safety of responders must be a priority. At my direction, the North Carolina Department of Public Safety is helping partners like FEMA to coordinate with law enforcement to ensure their safety and security as they continue their important work."

"Keeping FEMA staff safe while they are helping people in disaster impacted communities is always my top priority. I wanted to make sure we protected our staff on the ground while we worked diligently with local law enforcement to understand the full situation," said FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. "Thanks to our close partnership with Governor Roy Cooper and his team, as well as local law enforcement, FEMA teams will soon be back doing what they do best - meeting people where they are and going door to door to register survivors for assistance. FEMA and the entire federal family will be in North Carolina for as long as it takes to help these communities recover. Together, we will continue to reach as many North Carolinians as possible and get them the help they need, while ensuring the safety of our FEMA employees and state partners."

As of today, FEMA has provided more than $96 million in housing and other types of assistance for over 75,000 households and the agency continues to work closely with the State of North Carolina to reach as make people as possible where they are. Additionally, FEMA and the State continue to operate four Disaster Recovery Centers in Asheville, Lenoir, Marion and Sylva where survivors can speak directly with FEMA and state personnel for assistance with their recovery. To find the nearest center, visit FEMA.gov/DRC.