In a Facebook post shared on Sunday, Sept. 29, Sam Perkins, of Charlotte, wrote about not having heard from his parents in 48 hours as Helene wreaked havoc on his state — so far claiming at least 35 lives in Buncombe County, per ABC affiliate WLOS.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (Gray News) – A man in North Carolina hiked 11 miles up a mountain to check on his parents after Hurricane Helene. Sam Perkins said his parents are in their 70s and live in a remote area about an hour outside of Asheville.

It had been 48 hours since the winds and rains from Hurricane Helene ripped through western North Carolina and Sam Perkins still had not heard from his parents.

( NewsNation) — One man trekked 11 miles to check on his parents after Hurricane Helene ravaged North Carolina, and he didn’t hear from them for two days. Sam Perkins said on “ NewsNation Now ” that the situation in Ashville is “dire.”

North Carolina residents are devastated after Tropical Storm Helene brought floods to the state. Anastasiia Riddle. More Videos. Biden speaks on Helene response efforts

Hurricane Helene has caused significant disruptions for election officials in North Carolina and across the southeastern U.S., scrambling voting preparations.

"Then it filled up the valley with mud." It took him a full day to dig to the main road with a farm excavator. He found roads strewn with downed power lines, fallen limbs, thick mud, and debris.

North Carolina was a "post-apocalyptic" landscape on Monday in the wake of Helene, with hundreds of people still cut off from communications and unaccounted for amid flooded roads and a lack of basic services.

At least 116 people have died nationwide but North Carolina has endured some of the worst of the storm's destruction.