Caravans of food, water and supplies were moving into western North Carolina on Monday as residents and local officials grappled with devastation never before seen in the region. The big picture: Hurricane Helene has left officials in six Southeastern states struggling to respond to the widespread destruction it caused after hitting Florida as a Category 4 storm last week,

Some 324 people had been evacuated by air in flooded parts of western North Carolina, the National Guard said Monday.