South Carolina live updates: Helene recovery will cost billions, restaurants step up

(This article will be updated. Read our earlier coverage here.)

Relief efforts continue in the Upstate region after Tropical Storm Helene left communities devastated, roads impassable and thousands without power.

Check back for live updates as they roll in throughout the day on Thursday.

McMaster: Helene will cost South Carolina billions

On Wednesday, Gov. Henry McMaster said Tropical Storm Helene has caused the most deaths from a tropical storm in the state and will cost billions of dollars in damage repair.

Helene’s damage has caused the deaths of 39 people, making it one of the deadliest storms to hit the state.

McMaster and several other officials also met with President Joe Biden, who was in the area to assess damage, earlier Wednesday.

“The president promised whatever we needed, he would provide,” McMaster said.

Additionally, McMaster said he’s concerned about the International Longshoremen’s Association strike, which began Tuesday and will impact 36 ports across the country, including Charleston. Biden could seek a court order to pause the strike for 80 days, thanks to the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947.

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This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Upstate SC live updates: Helene recovery will cost state billions