Hurricane Helene cut power to more than 4 million homes and businesses as it moved across the Southeast after hitting Florida’s Big Bend region as a powerful Category 4 storm on Sept. 26, 2024. As Helene’s rains moved into the mountains, causing devastating flooding, officials warned that fixing downed utility lines and restoring power would take several days.
Electricity is essential to just about everyone – rich and poor, old and young. Yet, when severe storms strike, socioeconomically disadvantaged communities often wait longest to recover.
