Helene kills nearly 100, creates ongoing crisis in western N.C.

HURRICANE HELENE: Hurricane Helene wreaks damage across the Southeast, killing nearly 100 people across six states and cutting off much of western North Carolina, where a crisis continues to unfold. (Associated Press, New York Times, Blue Ridge Public Radio, Asheville Citizen-Times)

ALSO:

• Federal and state programs open to offer government assistance to people affected by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina, while other groups spring into action. (The Assembly, Blue Ridge Public Radio)
• Helene marks the third major hurricane in 13 months for Florida’s Big Bend region, with many places still repairing damage from hurricanes Idalia and Debby. (E&E News)
• The Tennessee Valley Authority manages record amounts of water at a Tennessee dam where three rivers at the epicenter of the flooding converge. (Knoxville News Sentinel)
• Duke Energy projects power restoration for most North Carolina customers by Friday, but details still are blurry. (Asheville Citizen-Times)
• More than 100,000 people in Virginia were still without power Sunday, while Florida Power & Light says it’s restored power to 95% of its customers who lost it. (Cardinal News)

PIPELINES: Emails and other documents show how oil and gas lobbyists helped shape a 2020 West Virginia law that sharpened penalties for people protesting the Mountain Valley Pipeline, oil rigs and other so-called critical infrastructure. (Guardian)

SOLAR: A company proposes a 28.7 MW solar farm in a Virginia county, and a nearby city sees a setback in its push to develop an 8 MW solar farm at a former golf course. (Martinsville Bulletin)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Documents show how North Carolina officials courted new electric vehicles factories from Vietnamese startup VinFast and South Korean automaker Hyundai, but secured only the first. (Raleigh News & Observer)

WIND: Dominion Energy reports construction of its $9.8 billion offshore wind farm near Virginia is ​“on time and on budget,” and should be about halfway done when construction pauses for the winter in November. (Virginia Business)

GRID:

• South Carolina lawmakers wrap up a month of hearings and begin to develop concrete policy responses to the state’s looming power supply issues, including the question of whether to fast-track construction of a gas-fired power plant. (Post and Courier)
• Texas regulators approve an electric reliability plan for the Permian Basin as data centers, the oil and gas industry, and other large users are projected to push demand to 26 GW by 2038. (Utility Dive)

TRANSITION: A Shell vice president leaves her longtime job in the oil and gas industry to work with her daughter at a Houston geothermal start-up. (Associated Press)

POLITICS: The response to Hurricane Helene is already becoming an issue in the presidential campaign. (Politico, Washington Post)

COMMENTARY: As Florida begins the familiar process of digging out from yet another hurricane, state leaders must acknowledge climate change and begin to develop policies to better address its effects, writes an editorial board. (Palm Beach Post)