CNN —A group of about 100 volunteer helicopter pilots is flying around 400 relief missions a day over North Carolina in the wake of Hurricane Helene, one of its co-founders says. The pilots also perform helicopter medical evacuations and search and rescue operations, according to the organization’s Facebook page and website. At least 117 people have died from Helene in North Carolina, according to a CNN tally. In a remote North Carolina town, the team encountered an elderly couple sitting in front of a damaged brick storefront. It was taken outside of Whitson Furniture and General Store in Green Mountain, North Carolina, which took a hit from the storm.

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Persons: Hurricane Helene, Matt McSwain, We’re, ” McSwain, “, McSwain, CNN’s Omar Jimenez, Helene, Deanne Criswell, Lillian Govus, ”, It’s Organizations: CNN, Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, Whitson Furniture Locations: North Carolina, Hurricane, Hickory , North Carolina, Helene, Buncombe County, Whitson, Green Mountain , North Carolina