Emergency workers from Pennsylvania, New Jersey deploying in response to Hurricane Helene
Emergency workers and first responders from across the Delaware Valley are mobilizing in response to Hurricane Helene, a potentially major hurricane that the National Hurricane Center says could bring "catastrophic winds and storm surge" to Florida's northeastern Gulf Coast.
Both Pennsylvania Task Force 1 and New Jersey Task Force 1 were activated Wednesday night and began deploying to North Carolina early Thursday morning, where a state of emergency is effect.
States of emergency were also declared in South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and Florida, which is forecast to take a direct hit from Helene Thursday night as at least a Category 3 storm.
Before the sun came up Thursday, 45 members of PA TF-1 began their trip to Greensboro, North Carolina. It's the second time this year that the force has deployed to help with a hurricane response; In August, PA TF-1 went to North Carolina to assist with recovery from Tropical Storm Debby.
Capt. Brian Booth said the task force is prepared to stay in North Carolina up to two weeks, but could stay longer depending on the need.
Helene upgraded to a Category 2 hurricane early Thursday. It is forecast to rapidly intensify through the day as it moves over record-warm water in the Gulf of Mexico. According to CBS News Philadelphia meteorologist Kate Bilo, Helene is a particularly massive storm that extends nearly 350 miles from its center, and is larger than nine out of 10 storms in the last 20 years.
"We expect the worst and hope for the best," Booth said. "We could see anything from large scale destruction from winds, catastrophic flooding, people trapped in collapse buildings, people trapped by flood waters. So we have to be prepared for anything."
Delmarva Power is also sending crews and support teams to Georgia to help Georgia Power as the electric utility company deals with the impacts of Helene. Delmarva said in total, 32 line workers and additional staff that specialize in fleet, safety and supervision started traveling to Georgia on Wednesday.