(This story has been updated with the latest information.)

On Tuesday afternoon, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced that 81 people are still unaccounted for in the western part of the state following Hurricane Helene.

During a press briefing earlier in the day, Cooper revealed that a task force had been established to search for 92 missing individuals in Western North Carolina, although he warned that this number could change. Later, during a tour of Swannanoa at 3:30 p.m., he adjusted the count to 81.

“The task force, along with law enforcement and other partners, will keep working to find those who are missing, and I appreciate their dedication,” Cooper stated.

He also shared that 77,000 people have sought assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which has distributed $99 million and is providing temporary accommodations for 1,900 individuals.

Cooper tackles misinformation and threats to recovery

Cooper addressed ongoing misinformation and recent domestic threats against recovery initiatives.

“If you’re involved in spreading misinformation, please stop,” Cooper urged. “Regardless of your intentions, you’re harming those in Western North Carolina who need support.”

Cooper accused Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who is running for governor as a Republican, of contributing to the spread of false information.

“Candidates like Robinson are exploiting people’s suffering to create chaos for their own political gain, which is unacceptable,” Cooper remarked. “It’s disheartening to see candidates continue this misinformation, fully aware of its falsehoods.”

In response to threats against FEMA’s operations, Cooper instructed the North Carolina Department of Public Safety to enhance security for the agency.

Individual arrested for terroristic threats amid misinformation

William Jacob Parsons was taken into custody on terror-related charges on Saturday after threatening to “go mess up some FEMA personnel,” according to Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jamie Keever. Parsons was reportedly in possession of an AR-style rifle and two handguns at the time of his arrest.

Parsons, 44, was arrested following a report to the Rutherford County Communications Center about an armed man making threats to FEMA workers. He faces a charge for carrying a weapon in a way that threatens the public, according to an arrest warrant. Parsons has been released on a $10,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.

On the same day, the U.S. Forest Service received an email from FEMA mentioning that a National Guard unit encountered militia members claiming they were “hunting FEMA,” as reported by Jason Nedlo, a spokesperson for the Forest Service’s Southern Area Blue Incident Management Team. This email was first highlighted by The Washington Post.

In light of the threats, FEMA instructed all federal responders in Rutherford County, NC, to cease operations and evacuate the area immediately, an official with the U.S. Forest Service communicated to other federal agencies, according to The Post. “The message indicated that National Guard personnel had encountered two trucks filled with armed militia stating they were hunting FEMA,” the official wrote.

Consequently, FEMA employees have paused in-person application processes for federal aid in some mountain communities in North Carolina, as stated in a social media post by the Ashe County Emergency Management Department, which noted that FEMA workers would not be present in the towns of Lansing or Riverview.

A senior FEMA official in Washington confirmed to YSL News on Monday that the agency’s staff have stopped door-to-door outreach, which is their typical method of assisting in disaster-struck areas, and are now operating from Disaster Recovery Centers, “as we navigate this situation.”

This official, who requested to remain anonymous for security reasons, clarified that FEMA personnel were “not completely evacuated” but rather were relocated to centers with security measures in place.

During the press conference, Cooper expressed that he wasn’t aware of additional threats but noted that the spread of misinformation had depressed volunteer morale and hindered those eligible from applying for assistance.

Progress in recovery efforts reported

Cooper also highlighted that some areas affected by Hurricane Helene are now ready to welcome visitors back, emphasizing that tourism would be “essential for the revival of western North Carolina’s recovery.”

According to the YSL News Power Outage tracker, over 13,000 residents still lack electricity in the state, although Cooper did not specify a timeline for restoration. “The recovery of these last-mile areas will be more challenging,” Cooper added.