Government emergency workers in the US responding to the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina were relocated over the weekend amid concerns that “armed militia” could pose a threat to their safety.
According to an email obtained by the Washington Post, a US Forest Service official sent out a message warning that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) “has advised all federal responders Rutherford County, NC, to stand down and evacuate the county immediately”.
The message said that soldiers with the national guard “had come across x2 trucks of armed militia saying there were out hunting FEMA”.
The Appalachian county of Rutherford incorporates the mountain towns of Rutherfordton, Forest City and Chimney Rock, which were badly hit by Helene floodwaters that tore away homes, washed out roads and killed dozens.