SWANNANOA, N.C. — Nearly a year after Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina, the region has received less than $5 billion of the estimated $60 billion needed for full recovery , leaving communities like Swannanoa struggling to rebuild while navigating a complex web of federal bureaucracy.

Since he took office, post-Helene recovery President Donald Trump, both in his inauguration speech and in a January visit to Swannanoa.

While there, he toured the damage and promised to overhaul the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which he blamed for the sluggish disaster response.

"FEMA's turned out to be a disaster," Trump said during his visit. "Whether it's a Democrat or a Republican governor, you want to use your state to fix it and not waste time calling FEMA and they don't know

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