Kemp, McMaster extend state of emergency in aftermath of Helene

• Deaths: CSRA’s toll rises as Helene claims more older adults
• Electricity: After fixing Helene’s outages, utilities brace for Milton
• FEMA: Aid surpasses $286 million for Hurricane Helene survivors
• Election: Groups sue to extend Ga. voter deadline after Helene

AUGUSTA, Ga. - The governors of Georgia and South Carolina have both extended the state of emergency in Georgia after Hurricane Helene ripped through the region two weeks ago.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp extended the state of emergency for counties hit hardest by the storm.

In the CSRA, those counties are Burke, Columbia, Emanuel, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, Jenkins, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond, Screven, Taliaferro, Warren, Washington and Wilkes counties.

The state of emergency will expire on Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 11:59 p.m. Before the extension, it was set to expire on Wednesday.

After coming ashore in Florida as a major hurricane on Sept. 26, Helene hit Georgia, leaving damage and power outages across the state as it barreled toward the Carolinas.

In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster announced Thursday morning that South Carolina’s state of emergency has been extended for another 15 days.

In a statement posted to X, the governor said ongoing assessments show Helene “damaged over 5,550 homes and businesses...caused nearly half of all South Carolinians to lose power...and most tragically, resulted in at least 49 weather-related deaths.”

The extension means the South Carolina Emergency Management Division will continue to coordinate with state agencies to prepare for potential requests from local and county officials.

“We will work as long as it takes to ensure all South Carolinians get the support they need,” said McMaster.