SpaceX is sending Starlink satellite broadband systems to North Carolina to help those impacted by Hurricane Helene get online. “Since the Hurricane Helene disaster, SpaceX has sent as many Starlink terminals as possible to help areas in need,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote in a post on the social media platform X.
FEMA provided 50 Starlink satellite terminals to North Carolina to help with responder communications, and 65 satellite phones have been shipped. An additional 140 terminals are on the way to help communications infrastructure restoration, the White House said on Wednesday. One Starlink will be deployed for every county’s emergency operations center to help with communications, according to The Hill.
North Carolina State Senator Danny Britt (R-District 24 Hoke, Robeson and Scotland) said he contacted a member of former President Donald Trump’s staff for help in making the request. Britt said first responders will primarily use the Starlink devices, reports WRAL-TV. “[They will also be used for] communication from people to their families to let them know they’re OK,” Britt said. “[They will still provide] communication from people who may still be in danger or may still be stranded.”
Millions have been left without power since Helene made landfall last Thursday in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, bringing heavy winds and rainfall to multiple states across the south. More than 1.6 million customers still had no power Wednesday morning in the Carolinas and Georgia, where the hurricane ravaged several inland areas in the states, the White House stated. That’s down from 4.6 million on September 27.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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