Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy visited North Carolina and Tennessee to assess the damage left by Hurricane Helene and spoke with residents who express feeling forgotten by the nation as they rebuild their communities.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy toured the wreckage left by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and Tennessee, illuminating the sentiments of residents who feel overlooked by the nation as they grapple with the aftermath of the catastrophic storm. Duffy engaged in an exclusive interview with 'The Faulkner Focus' from Pigeon River Gorge, a location where a significant portion of Interstate 40, a crucial highway, was obliterated by Helene's floodwaters.
He aimed to shed light on the condition of communities and address the pervasive feeling of abandonment they experience months after the storm. 'When you live in small town America, like many of the communities here in western North Carolina, they feel forgotten,' Duffy conveyed to Harris Faulkner on Monday. 'They feel like the federal government doesn't care. Their state governments haven't cared about them. And I think with this administration, they understand that they might be from a small town, they might not be the richest people. But you know what? We have not forgotten about them because they're Americans, and they deserve our help and our aid, and we're going to provide it to them.' Duffy firmly pledged to rebuild the damaged stretch of the highway, emphasizing that it would be a billion-dollar undertaking requiring considerable time for complete restoration. 'This is going to be the most expensive emergency relief project that the Department of Transportation has done in its 50-year history,' Duffy stated. 'That's how big this project is and how important it is to get the rebuild right.' 'Donald Trump, he doesn't move at the speed of prior administrations. He moves lightning quick, so we want to go fast,' he continued. 'We want to go cheap, and we want to go safe.' Meanwhile, President Trump has considered shutting down the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and redirecting federal disaster relief funds directly to states. The agency has faced scrutiny over its operational efficiency and alleged biases. He issued an executive order last month aimed at 'drastically' enhancing the agency's effectiveness, priorities, and competence following a visit to communities affected by Hurricane Helene. Trump's executive order establishes the FEMA Review Council, composed of no more than 20 members co-chaired by the secretaries of Homeland Security and Defense. This council's formation stems from FEMA's response to Hurricane Helene and other recent disasters, revealing the need to improve 'efficacy, priorities, and competence, including evaluating whether FEMA’s bureaucracy in disaster response' hinders its ability to respond effectively. 'Despite obligating nearly $30 billion in disaster aid each of the past three years, FEMA has managed to leave vulnerable Americans without the resources or support they need when they need it most,' the executive order asserts. Duffy explained that smaller infrastructure projects within local communities would also receive attention, emphasizing the importance of community connectivity as residents embark on the rebuilding process. 'This is a major artery like we talked about, but there are so many small roads and bridges that connect the communities up in the mountains,' Duffy said. 'Many of them have been partially washed away there. The mudslides and the rockslides that have devastated their homes, their churches, their stores, their coffee shops. And so it's... that infrastructure as well that we're going to look at and figure out how we can help them rebuild.' 'Again, sometimes people don't think about this part of our government as being so critical, but if it doesn't work, if you don't have the infrastructure that connects people, again, it affects people's lives in profound ways,' he continued. More than 100 people perished during Hurricane Helene in North Carolina alone, and tens of thousands of homes were either damaged or destroyed. Despite the traumatic disaster, Duffy shared that those affected remain resolute in their desire to remain in their homes. 'This is their home. This is where their families have been for generations. They want to stay here,' Duffy said. 'And that's why our work is so important, to help them continue to stay in the places that they love and the communities that they've enjoyed for so long.' 'We're going to do our work to make sure that dream can continue to live on.' Fox News' Greg Wehner contributed to this report
HURRICANE HELENE FEMA NORTH CAROLINA TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE DONALD TRUMP DISASTER RELIEF
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