Biden takes stock of Helene damage in South Georgia, tells residents 'I have your back'

VALDOSTA, Ga. — Upon viewing some of the wreckage in Lowndes County on Thursday afternoon, President Joe Biden’s motorcade ventured west toward the town of Hahira and the pecan grove of farmer Buck Paulk, where trees were flattened.

The route there also consisted of a roadside scene that looked like a planet of dead trees. Forests of shredded limbs and branches littered the road for miles.

At Paulk’s farm, standing at a podium in front of a John Deere tractor, the president told locals: “You’ve been through hell. … And I want you to know I see you, I hear you, I grieve with you and I promise you I have your back.”

As a rooster crowed, the president recounted how the federal government was working to meet the needs of families and businesses affected by Hurricane Helene, which tore a path through the Southeast roughly a week ago. He mentioned his approval Wednesday of a plan calling for the federal government to shoulder 100% of the costs of debris removal over the next few months.

Joining Biden at the farm were Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, Democratic U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop of Albany and Republican U.S. Rep. Austin Scott of Tifton. They all wrote letters encouraging the Biden administration to do all it can to free up resources for residents and farmers impacted by the storm.

Paulk said his business is just one of many in the community that has been hit, and his community was among many across the state and nation that must pick up the pieces.

“It’s a difficult situation,” he said. “It’s been a struggle, a mighty struggle. It’s disheartening. It’s expensive. ... We’re just not going to snap back from this.”

Many people here are still without power. And that means many were unaware that Biden was making a trip to the area after stops in North Florida.

Told of Biden’s afternoon arrival, Jesse Evans, who was filling fuel tanks at a gas mart just north of Valdosta, said: “It’s a good thing for him to see firsthand. It’s the most devastating thing I’ve ever seen.”

Evans, 63, was awake when Helene and its 100-plus-mph winds came calling on her Berrien County home in the wee hours last Friday.

“I was sitting out in it,” Evans said, “because I don’t sleep good in bad weather. And when it hit … I went to hollering out for God to help me, because trees went to falling and breaking and tearing up stuff.”

The heart of Helene had by then roared over I-75, leveling a direct, crippling hit on Valdosta before veering northeast.

“There’s no telling when we’re going to get power again,” Evans said.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told journalists Thursday morning that Gov. Brian Kemp was invited to join Biden but would not be doing so. The two spoke by phone instead.

Biden’s administration has approved federal disaster assistance for individuals, local governments and some nonprofits in Lowndes and 40 other hard-hit Georgia counties. Other areas could be added as federal and state emergency management officials continue to assess damage.

In the town of Cecil in Cook County, a dozen or so miles north of Valdosta, resident Helen Jewel Coley was getting by on generator power. Her front yard, next door to the tiny Jerusalem Baptist Church and home to a stand of 60-plus pine trees, only saw two felled by Helene. But one of them snapped power lines.

Coley, 79, and her sister, Evelyn Daniels-Hopkins, also had not heard the president was touring their region. Their cable TV was out and they hadn’t followed the news closely, but they welcomed word of Biden’s visit.

“It means that he cares about us, what’s going on with us down here in this little area,” said Daniels-Hopkins, 79.

“He reminds me so much of Jimmy Carter and his work,” Coley added. “Jimmy Carter cared about little people in little towns.”

Biden also mentioned Carter in his remarks, saying his chat with Paulk upon arrival at his farm had shown his resilience, which reminded Biden of the former president and longtime friend.

“President Jimmy Carter once said, ‘Tremendous progress can be made when we persevere through difficult challenges,’ ” Biden said. “This is a difficult challenge we’re facing. … We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”

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