By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden pledged to stand with residents across a wide swathe of the US southeast devasted by Hurricane Helene, saying Thursday "we're going to stay until you're restored."
The rebuilding effort is expected to cost billions of dollars, and Biden said residents have "been through hell" after Helene brought massive flooding and destruction as it ripped north from Florida and tore through hundreds of miles of inland communities.
"I want you to know: I see you. I grieve with you. And I promise you we have your back," Biden said in remarks delivered in Ray City, Georgia.
"Our job is to help as many people as we can, as many as we can. And also, by the way, when you do that, I hope again to break down this rabid partisanship that exists. I mean this necessarily; there's no rationale for it," he added.
Biden had earlier surveyed damage in Florida before doing the same in Georgia.
White House figures indicated that over 40,000 people have applied for disaster assistance after Helene made landfall in Florida late Sept. 26 before bringing widespread devastation to southern Appalachia. Biden has directed up to 1,000 US troops to help aid in the recovery effort,
NBC News reported earlier Thursday that the death toll from Helene has reached 202, including at least 98 deaths in the state of North Carolina, 19 in Florida, 33 in Georgia, 39 in South Carolina, 11 in Tennessee and two in Virginia.
Hundreds are still missing in the aftermath of the storm. Helene is now the deadliest hurricane to hit the US since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris surveyed the devastation Wednesday in separate trips to the affected states of North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.
Biden’s visit to the Carolinas included an aerial tour above Asheville, North Carolina -- one of the hardest-hit regions.