Power has been restored to all but 20,000 people in Florida following Hurricane Helene, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday.
DeSantis held a news conference in Madeira Beach in Pinellas County to give an update on the state's response to the storm.
He said about 2.38 million in Florida have had their power restored. Most of those without power are in the more remote areas of the state including the Big Bend region, DeSantis said.
DeSantis said around 50,000 cubic yards of sand moved by Helene have been removed in Pinellas County alone.
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Hurricane Helene roared ashore late Thursday in the Big Bend region as a Category 4 hurricane with 140 mph winds. A weakened Helene quickly moved through Georgia, then soaked the Carolinas and Tennessee with torrential rains that flooded creeks and rivers and strained dams.
The storm's death toll surpassed 150 on Tuesday. Nearly half of the deaths were in North Carolina, while dozens of others were in South Carolina and Georgia.
DeSantis had announced Tuesday that Florida was sending recovery assets to help in North Carolina and Tennessee.
