At least 88 people are believed to have died as a result of Hurricane Helene, as authorities in the southeastern US struggle to deliver vital supplies to isolated areas.

days after A Category 4 hurricane hit the Florida coastAccording to Sky News’ US partner channel NBC, many areas remain flooded, with blocked roads, poor infrastructure and more than two million people without power.

One of the hardest-hit states is North Carolina, where a third of deaths caused by the hurricane were reported in the state’s Buncombe County, according to NBC.

Deaths have also been reported in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia.

Thirty people are said to have died in the mountain town of Asheville in the US state of North Carolina. The state’s governor, Roy Cooper, predicted the number would rise, with more than 50 search teams across the region looking for stranded people.

Supplies were also being airlifted to the region, and District Manager Avril Pinder promised she would bring food and water to Ashville, known for its art, culture and natural attractions, by Monday. Elsewhere in the city, residents waited in line for $15 worth of gas.

One resident told NBC that the last natural disaster she experienced in the city was a snowstorm in the ’90s, but added, “It wasn’t that bad though…this is a disaster.”

Free meals were also provided in three states: Florida, North Carolina and Georgia, by the charity World Central Kitchen, to help communities affected by Helene.

President Joe Biden described the storm’s impact as “breathtaking” in a post

He approved a disaster declaration for North Carolina and made federal funding available for affected individuals.

Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris also plans to visit areas affected by the hurricane, a White House official said.

While Donald Trump’s campaign team announced he will travel to Valdosta, Georgia, to study the impact Helene has had on the state – which is one of several hotly contested battlegrounds that will be crucial in November’s election.

The damage caused by Helene is estimated at between $15 billion and over $100 billion (£74 billion), insurers and forecasters said at the weekend, as water systems, communications and key transport routes were affected.

In Horseshoe Beach on Florida’s Gulf Coast, resident Charlene Huggins said she lost many memories as she looked through the rubble of her destroyed home.

“Five generations have lived in this house, from my grandmother, my father, myself, my daughter, my son and my granddaughter,” she said, holding a chipped glass cake stand. “So there are a lot of memories here. It just breaks your heart.”

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The storm hit the area known as Big Bend on Thursday, bringing winds of 140 miles per hour and, in some places, a storm surge – a wall of seawater pushed ashore by the wind – up to 15 feet (4.5 m) high itself.

It has now been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, according to the National Hurricane Center, but multiple flood and flash flood warnings remained in effect across parts of the southern and central Appalachians.

Strong wind warnings also covered parts of Tennessee and Ohio.