Gov. Josh Stein visited a fire station in Fairview on Thursday to mark the six-month anniversary of Hurricane Helene.
He signed a proclamation honoring the 106 North Carolinians killed by the storm and met with local residents who lost their loved ones.
鈥淏attalion Chief Tony Garrison and his nephew Brandon are two of the 13 of this community who lost their lives, trying to save others,鈥� Stein said. 鈥淚 don't think you can have a better testament to dedication of service than someone who loses their life trying to save the life of someone else.鈥�
Among those gathered for the event were members of the Craig family. were killed in the storm.
While in Fairview, Stein also gave an update on . He called the fires a 鈥渄ouble whammy.鈥�
鈥淎s we gather to remember the impacts of one disaster, we have to recognize the disaster that's underway as we speak,鈥� Stein said.
He praised the work of the North Carolina Forest Service and said the state of emergency he issued this week will help cover the cost of fighting the fires.
鈥淔EMA has been a good partner in fighting these fires and have already assured us of some reimbursement. So we are grateful to them. We鈥檙e grateful to the partnership of the U.S. Forest Service,鈥� Stein said.
No fatalities in the wildfires have been reported.
鈥淭here've been about 11 properties, 11 homes, that have burned to date,鈥� Stein said. 鈥淲e want to have not a single more. Thank God, to our knowledge, no one has died. One firefighter needed to be extracted in an emergency, but within an hour was in a hospital, and all indications are he will recover.鈥�
For the latest updates on wildfires, check out BPR鈥檚 liveblog .
