(WSPA) – Almost 50 storm-related deaths have been reported in the Upstate and Western North Carolina following Tropical Storm Helene.
On Sunday afternoon, officials announced that 30 people have been confirmed dead in Buncombe County. County officials said less than 600 people remain unaccounted for.
Buncombe County has extended its state of emergency and will provide an update Monday at 10 a.m.
As of Monday morning, at least 16 deaths have been reported in the Upstate.
Spartanburg County
Six deaths related to Tropical Storm Helene were reported Friday morning in Spartanburg County. The Spartanburg County Coroner’s Office said the deaths were at five separate locations in the county.
A tree fell on 34-year-old Anna Maria Smith’s home in Inman while she was inside. 64-year-old Christopher Mark Owens and 70-year-old Derrill Eugene “Gene” Pitts were riding in a golf cart when the individuals were hit by a fallen tree in Landrum.
A rescue team recovered the body of 88-year-old Ralph Selle, of Columbus, who was attempting to go across water that had overtaken Highway 14 near Earles Fort Road.
A tree fell on a camper in Chesnee where 41-year-old Alvaro Burgos-Guitierrez was located inside. Another death was reported in Chesnee after 68-year-old Jimmy Lee Wall died from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Greenville County
Six deaths related to Helene have been reported in Greenville County.
Sunday, 47-year-old James Walter Parrish was traveling on New Easley Highway when his motorcycle swerved to miss a downed tree in the roadway and collided with another vehicle. Parrish succumbed to his injuries at Prisma Health Memorial Hospital.
A deadly fire is being investigated as a possible weather-related incident after 54-year-old Ceresa Butler was found in a home on Pleasant Ridge Avenue.
Four deaths occurred Friday due to falling trees. Three of the deaths occurred when people were inside their homes. The Greenville County Coroner’s Office identified the victims as 56-year-old Lornder Lee Palmer, 59-year-old Charles Day Dean III and 68-year-old Morena Arnez Maddox.
The fourth death occurred when 40-year-old Aaron Marshall Lance was outside and a tree fell on him.
Anderson County
Four deaths related to Helene have been reported in Anderson County.
Two people have died after trees fell on two separate homes Friday morning. The Anderson County Coroner’s Office identified the victims as 55-year-old Christine Lynn Schmeiske and 54-year-old Lee Fisher.
Saturday morning, 83-year-old Bobby Jean Foster died in a head-on crash on Main Street in Pelzer. The road was down to one lane due to Helene.
Karen Denise McCall was reported missing Friday after last speaking with her family Friday morning during the storm. Officials located McCall’s vehicle overturned down the river a mile from Harbin Road. She was extracted from a wooded area via helicopter.
10 other storm-related deaths have been reported in South Carolina following Helene.
Saluda County Fire Service announced Friday that 53-year-old Fire Chief Chad Satcher and 18-year-old Landon Bodie were responding to a fire during Helene when the fire engine was hit by a falling tree.
Services for Chief Satcher will be held Saturday, October 5, at 11 a.m. at the Batesburg-Leesville High School Fine Arts Center with interment to follow in Ridge Crest Memorial Park. The family will receive family and friends from 4-6 p.m., Friday, October 4 at the Milton Shealy Funeral Home of Batesburg.
Service information for Firefighter Bodie is pending at this time.
Four deaths have been reported in Aiken County, one in Chesterfield County, two in Newberry County and another in Saluda County after Helene which brings the death toll to 26 in South Carolina.
Officials have not revealed their identities at this time.
