Evacuations ordered in the Asheville area

Editor's note: This live coverage is continually updated.

Helene brought heavy rain and strong winds to North Carolina overnight and into Friday morning after making landfall in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane.

The storm left thousands across the state without power. Follow us here for live updates.

Emergency shelters have been set up in some of North Carolina's hardest-hit areas for residents who cannot evacuate. Shelters are located at the WNC Agriculture Center at the WNC Agricultural Center: 1301 Fanning Bridge Road, Fletcher and at Harrah's Cherokee Center, 87 Haywood St., Asheville.

There are also Code Purple shelters available through ABCCM for unoccupied residents, and transportation via ART to Code Purple shelters is free.

Residents should bring essential items such as medications, important documents and personal items, according to a news release.

In response to the increasing threat from Tropical Storm Helene, Buncombe County officials have issued an immediate and mandatory evacuation order for residents along the Swannanoa River, starting at the North Fork Reservoir where water has overflowed the spillway. All residents in the following areas are required to evacuate: North Fork Road south to US 70, US 70 west to Old Farm School Road, Old Farm School to Azalea Road, Azalea Road to Swannanoa River Road and Swannanoa River Road to Biltmore Village.

Due to flooding of a lake near the camp, mandatory evacuation orders were also issued for 105 Balsam Road from Camp Ridgecrest for Girls south to US 70 in Black Mountain.

At the height of the storm in North Carolina, more than 450,000 people in the state were without power.

Particularly affected was Buncombe County, where more than 100,000 Duke Energy customers were without power as of 8:30 a.m., while there were more than 63,000 Henderson County customers without power. Meanwhile, Haywood EMC reported more than 15,000 members were without power.

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