Helene devastated towns in western North Carolina. Three weeks later, dozens of people are missing and thousands are without power. Volunteers, donations and search and rescue teams have poured in.

BURNSVILLE, North Carolina — When Hurricane Helene swept through Yancey County, the flood waters took Byrdene Byerly’s home and nearly all her possessions. She escaped from her house with only the muddy clothes on her back and her pocketbook.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has signed the state’s first relief package to address Hurricane Helene’s devastation.