A newlywed British couple were stranded on the side of a mountain for four days after Hurricane Helene struck the US.
Chris Playfoot, 35, and Retha Ritter, 40, were left in a “post-apocalyptic” scenario on their honeymoon with no electricity or running water after the deadly hurricane battered the southeast of the country killing at least 215 people.
The couple described how “entire towns were literally wiped off the map” during the storm, as devastating floods and multiple tornadoes hit where they stayed in Swannanoa in North Carolina.
“The destruction is overwhelming. Homes, businesses and critical infrastructure were either washed away or severely damaged by flooding and fallen trees,” the pair wrote in a fundraiser set up to support Hurricane victims.
“Tornadoes ripped through the forests, snapping trees like matchsticks. Landslides blocked roads, bridges collapsed, and mobile communications became nonexistent.”
The couple had been driving through North Carolina when their campervan broke down on September 26 - hours before the hurricane made landfall in Florida.
But when they eventually fixed the vehicle and reached the campsite they were staying at they discovered the area had been evacuated ahead of the storm.
Mr Playfoot, from Manchester, and Ms Ritter, who was born in South Africa but is a British citizen, instead booked a mountainside cabin nearby.
Speaking on SkyNews, Ms Ritter added: "The thing that was really frightening was the rivers that formed overnight when first light came and we could see there had been a landslide.
"That's the moment where we thought, wow, we think we might be in danger here... cell phone service went out but luckily we had a Garmin inReach, which is a satellite texting device.
"When we realised we were in danger we were able to send a text to my mother with our location. We told her we would check in every four hours, and if she doesn't hear from us to please call for help."
Ms Ritter continued: "What we saw was post-apocalyptic, we were cut off, the destruction was enormous. What got us through was the kindness of the neighbours - they gave us food, cakes, even a bottle of prosecco.
"The resilience they showed was incredible."
The couple were finally able to leave the cabin on Tuesday after the roads had been cleared.
The search for victims of Hurricane Helene entered its second week on Friday, as exhausted rescue crews and volunteers continued to work long days, navigating past washed-out roads, downed power lines and mudslides.
"We know these are hard times, but please know we're coming," Sheriff Quentin Miller of Buncombe County, North Carolina, said at a Thursday evening press briefing. "We're coming to get you. We're coming to pick up our people."
Helene is already the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland US since Katrina in 2005, and dozens or possibly hundreds of people are still unaccounted for.
Roughly half the victims were in North Carolina, while dozens more were killed in South Carolina and Georgia.
In Buncombe County alone, 72 people had been confirmed dead as of Thursday evening.
