Residents of Western North Carolina are confused about the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s role in helping locals with disaster recovery after Hurricane Helene.

Locals are especially confused as FEMA plans to end temporary housing assistance for about 2,000 North Carolina residents on Saturday — during a snowstorm, when temperatures across the Appalachian Mountain region are expected to be below 20 degrees. 

The housing program was initially supposed to end on Friday, but FEMA pushed the deadline back to Saturday.

“I’m actually talking to several people that are losing the FEMA vouchers,” Ryan McClymonds, founder of volunteer group Operation Boots on the Ground in WNC and Eastern Tennessee, told Fox News Digital on Friday. “They’re terrified that they’re going to have nowhere to stay for their families after today. But we did find out last night pretty late … that FEMA is extending it a whole whopping 24 hours.”

TWO HURRICANE HELENE VICTIMS, A FAMILY OF FOUR AND A VIETNAM VETERAN GIFTED CAMPERS ON CHRISTMAS DAY

FEMA told Fox News Digital that its Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program is providing hotel rooms to thousands of Hurricane Helene survivors in WNC.

On Jan. 3, FEMA began notifying some families checked into hotel or motel rooms that they are no longer eligible for the program due to one of the following reasons: an inspection indicated their home is now habitable, they declined an inspection or FEMA has been unable to contact them to update their housing needs.

About 3,600 households will remain eligible to continue staying in hotel or motel rooms sponsored by FEMA past Saturday — up from the 2,100 eligible households reported by local news outlet WLOS on Thursday.

AMERICANS SPENDING THANKSGIVING IN TENTS AS HEAT, ELECTRICITY, FOOD STILL HARD TO FIND

A section of Swannanoa, North Carolina, destroyed by Hurricane Helene is coated in snow on Jan. 10, 2025. (Steve Antle)

Approximately 2,000 households will still be expected to move out of their hotel rooms on Saturday. Continued eligibility is determined on a case-by-case basis. When eligibility ends, FEMA notifies survivors approximately seven days prior to their checkout date.

The agency is also closing disaster recovery centers in the area until Monday — “due to winter weather.”

“This is unfair and arguably criminal.”

— Karoline Leavitt, Trump spokeswoman and incoming White House press secretary

“Biden and Mayorkas bankrupted FEMA to pay for illegal immigrant housing, and now American citizens who lost their homes in Hurricane Helene are essentially being told to screw,” Trump spokeswoman and incoming White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital. “This is unfair and arguably criminal. The good news is: President Trump will be back very soon to put Americans first again.”

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein “and state emergency officials continue to urge FEMA to grant an additional extension so western North Carolinians have a safe and warm shelter to ride out this storm,” communications director Kate Frauenfelder told Fox News Digital in a Friday statement.

HURRICANE HELENE FORCES NORTH CAROLINA RESIDENTS TO SLEEP IN TENTS WHERE HOMES ONCE STOOD

FEMA said it has provided shelter to 13,000 families displaced by Helene since late September 2024, when the storm made landfall. There are currently 5,600 households currently checked into hotels, the agency told Fox News Digital.

“We are told to expect power outages and possibly water outages. Yeah, I’m not thrilled about that.”

— Asha Wild

“We got this notification on our phone, I think it was yesterday … which was the severe weather notification,” Swannanoa-area resident Asha Wild told Fox News Digital. “We are told to expect power outages and possibly water outages. Yeah, I’m not thrilled about that. And in the cold.”

Swannanoa residents walk through devastating flood damage from the Swannanoa River in western North Carolina on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024.  (Travis Long/The News & Observer/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Wild lost her house to nine feet of flooding when Helene destroyed areas of her hometown and dozens of others in the mountains, leaving 104 dead in North Carolina alone.

Power grids and other critical infrastructure are still very fragile in some areas after Helene, and residents are concerned that they could again be left without power, water, gas and even food. Volunteers in Western North Carolina and across the state have been volunteering in affected areas for months. Generous donors across the country have paid for and delivered campers to those who need housing and storage.

NC FAMILY THAT LOST 11 IN HURRICANE HELENE MUDSLIDES SAYS COMMUNITY SACRIFICED ‘LIFE AND LIMB’ TO SAVE EACH OTHER

A store in Swannanoa, North Carolina, destroyed by Hurricane Helene is coated in snow on Jan. 10, 2025. (Steve Antle)

Long lines of vehicles can be seen lining up to get propane and other necessities from various donation drives in the area. 

PUPPIES RESCUED FROM HURRICANE HELENE TO BE REHOMED WITH MILITARY MEMBERS, FIRST RESPONDERS

WATCH: Volunteers in North Carolina donate propane to those impacted by Helene

Zach Bumgarner, vice president of Bumgarner Oil, told Fox News Digital that his company has “given away 22,000 gallons of product since the storm hit.” They have hosted six propane drives since late September, allowing people to bring empty propane cylinders to designated locations, where his company fills them up for free.

“You do have people in tents and you do have temporary shelters and that kind of thing. And then you throw really cold temperatures on top of it, and it does make for a dangerous situation,” Bumgarner said. “So, hopefully what we’re doing is helping kind of bridge some of those gaps a little bit and maybe keep somebody warm. That’s really what we’re trying to do.”

HURRICANE HELENE: ‘BACKBONE OF AMERICA’ HELPING FARMERS ACROSS SOUTHEAST WHO LOST BILLIONS IN CROPS, LAND

WATCH: Drivers line up for propane

Wild said she asked her friend, who works at a local grocery store she’s been going to for 18 years, how things were going.

“He said, ‘Yeah, people are kind of losing their minds.’ And I could tell it was cleaned out,” Wild said.

RETIRED NORTH CAROLINA POLICE OFFICER DELIVERS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN SUPPLIES, FOOD TO HELENE SURVIVORS

Mekenzie Craig brushes mud off a photo from her wedding that survived the mudslide that killed her in-laws on Sept. 27. (Adam Eugene Willis for Fox News Digital)

Steve Antle, a retired Asheville police officer who has been in contact with Fox News Digital since the day after Hurricane Helene destroyed parts of WNC, said some areas are recovering well while others remain “frozen in time.” Even wealthy neighborhoods still have piles of debris and trees down, he said.

Antle has partnered with others in and outside his community to buy and deliver thousands of dollars worth of critical supplies across his hometown of Fairview and surrounding towns since immediately after the hurricane. 

HURRICANE EFFECTS POSE ‘TREMENDOUS’ HEALTH HAZARDS FOR AMERICANS, DOCTOR WARNS

An aerial view of destroyed and damaged buildings in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene flooding on Oct. 8 in Bat Cave, N.C. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Some locals are still living in tents or campers, mostly because they do not want to leave their property. Others are still without heat and power, he said.

“I have given up trying to figure out anything about how this administration and FEMA operate.”

— Steve Antle

Advertisement

“I don’t know what goes into their thinking,” Antle said of the agency. “You know, I want to think that it’s government incompetence because that’s the better alternative. … And I hate to think that.”

McClymonds, of Operation Boots on the Ground, became emotional when describing the people he has been helping since September.

A drone view shows damage following the passing of Hurricane Helene, in Asheville, N.C., on Sept. 29. (Reuters/Marco Bello)

“Don’t forget about them,” he said. “I saw a lot while I was in the military. And coming out here and seeing the lack of response and the lack of help is so heartbreaking. I’ve prayed with I don’t know how many people. I’ve heard and held so many family members. They have lost a whole lot and work hand-in-hand with family members that have lost their loved ones due to the storm. And they’re tired. And they need help.”

FEMA said it is important for storm survivors to keep in touch with FEMA and provide regular status updates. Those who have questions regarding eligibility should contact the FEMA helpline at 1-800-621-3362.  

A Tennessee man is facing charges after he allegedly opened fire on a family that was sledding in the snow, purporting that the family was on his property.

Benjamin Cook is facing six counts of aggravated assault in connection with the shooting, according to the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. Additional charges could be filed pending the outcome of the investigation.

The sheriff’s office said deputies responded to the 6300 block of Stoney River Drive on Friday following a report that a man was shooting at a family of six playing outside in the snow.

TN ANNOUNCES NEW EXECUTION METHOD THAT COULD ALLOW STATE TO RESUME EXECUTIONS AFTER LAST ONE HALTED IN 2022

Preliminary information from the scene showed that the parents and their four children walked down the street to go sledding down a hill in their neighborhood, deputies said.

But at around 11:30 a.m., the family said they heard gunshots coming from the direction of a house down the hill near the 10400 block of Birchwood Pike. The mother said she observed snow fly up from the ground just a couple of feet from her one-year-old son.

The parents immediately looked in the direction of where the shots were coming from and yelled at a man, later identified as Cook, to stop shooting. The man claimed the family was on his property, but the family responded that they were not on his property.

A man is facing charges after he allegedly opened fire on a family that was sledding in the snow. (Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office)

The family then gathered their belongings and went home before reporting the incident to authorities.

Deputies responded to the shooter’s house and spoke to Cook. They also obtained pictures from a neighbor showing Cook in matching clothing walking through the woods carrying a black rifle slung across his back.

Cook was then arrested on aggravated assault charges.

TN LAWMAKER PROPOSES SENDING ILLEGAL MIGRANTS ACCUSED OF MINOR CRIMES TO SANCTUARY CITIES INSTEAD OF DEPORTING

An investigation also revealed that the family was not on Cook’s property when he began shooting. (Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office)

An investigation also revealed that the family was not on Cook’s property when he began shooting.

A search warrant was executed at Cook’s home, where several rifles were found inside.

Amid the many acts of courage in kindness we have witnessed during the Los Angeles infernos, a darker side of human nature has also emerged as cases of looting rise. Unfortunately, in virulently anti-gun California, homeowners are left with few self-defense options.

Police have already charged more than 20 people with looting. One pernicious pair went so far as to dress up as firefighters to help themselves to the valuables of victims whose homes were abandoned or destroyed.

LOOTERS POSING AS FIRE OFFICIALS, UTILITY WORKERS TO RANSACK ABANDONED LA HOMES

Obviously, with the winds still whipping the deadly fires around Tinseltown, all resources, including police, are stretched to the breaking point, providing hard-hearted thieves with a target-rich environment for their crimes.

One thing that these thugs in Los Angeles can count on is that if they encounter a homeowner amid their looting, there is little chance that person will be pointing a gun at them.

In the free state of Florida, where the Second Amendment protecting gun rights is revered, not reviled, potential looters, after hurricanes for example, know that stealing from the wrong house could be a death sentence.

They know because Gov. Ron DeSantis told them so after the damage done to thousands of homes by Hurricane Milton last year.

“If you go into somebody’s house after the storm passes, think that you’re going to be able to commit crimes, you’re going to get in really serious trouble.” DeSantis promised, adding, “And quite frankly, you don’t know what’s behind that door in a Second Amendment state.”

Hear, hear.

There are really two ways in which the unarmed people of Los Angeles are put at risk by the Draconian anti-gun laws in the Golden State. The first is that individuals are unable to protect themselves and their property, but the second, and it might be worse, is that criminals are very well aware of this.

When we think about the reasons why we have the Second Amendment, it is often noted that it is for self-defense, and also a check on the power of the government. But in California, we are seeing a third reason, which is exactly this kind of emergency.

Florida’s Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd has a warning for looters attempting to take advantage of areas affected by Hurricane Milton.  (Fox News Digital)

Angelenos don’t need guns to overthrow their government, not yet anyway, but they do need them to hold down the fort, or the house, so to speak, while the government pours all of its resources into disaster management.

In fact, when you look at rates of gun ownership by state, it is rural states such as Montana that have the most guns per capita. This is precisely because, while in a city, government protection in the form of police is always minutes away, in rural areas, it often is not.

This is precisely where Los Angeles residents find themselves today. The city and state governments are overwhelmed, people need to protect themselves and short-sighted, anti-gun policies are preventing them from doing that.

This is why we see reports of some of the wealthy in LA paying for private security to protect their homes, which I guess is great if you are a millionaire, but if not, it leaves you even more vulnerable.

Frankly, in many cases, all it would take to dissuade would-be looters from rolling the dice with their lives is a handful of openly armed men in a neighborhood watch patrolling their neighborhood.

But the progressive leadership of California, who, by the way, also have armed protection at taxpayer expense, will not allow the average Joe to protect his family with a gun of his own.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

Progressive gun policies such as those in California, like so many other progressive policies, are intended to make citizens weaker, more vulnerable, and more dependent on the state. That is on open and clear display in LA today.

Hopefully, once this emergency passes, Californians will realize how essential their gun rights really are and demand their restoration. In the meantime, thousands and thousands are simply helpless.

Los Angeles District Attorney Nate Hochman was elected to get tough on crime. Here is his first chance. If the city does not allow its citizens to protect themselves, then the penalty for looting must be massive, as in years in prison.

But honestly, that is not and never will be an adequate replacement for an armed population, which is precisely what the founding fathers understood when they enshrined our God-given right to gun ownership.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE DAVID MARCUS