W.G. Peterson collects water from a nearby creek outside his family home after his business was destroyed by Hurricane Helene in Green Mountain, North Carolina, on October 6, 2024. The storm, which struck Florida on September 26, has killed more than 225 people across a handful of states -- making it the deadliest natural disaster to hit the United States since 2005's Hurricane Katrina -- with the toll still rising. (Photo by Allison Joyce / AFP) (Photo by ALLISON JOYCE/AFP via Getty Images)