Nearly 100 people still unaccounted for in North Carolina following Helene

By the numbers: At least 125 deaths in North Carolina have been attributed to Helene, Blue Ridge Public Radio reported. Across the Southeast, 243 have been killed, per NBC News.

• FEMA has approved more than 71,000 applications for its assistance program, while more than 171,000 people have applied for aid, The News & Observer reported.

State of play: The storm wiped out bridges and roads across the region, making some communities difficult to reach. The massive recovery effort in Buncombe County is progressing, as water service slowly returns to parts of the area that have been without it since the storm hit.

• Running water has now returned to downtown Asheville, parts of East Asheville and some neighborhoods north of downtown and Swannanoa, according to Blue Ridge Public Radio.
• This has allowed some restaurants and businesses to begin reopening.

What they're saying: Gov. Roy Cooper has also asked the state's Department of Public Safety to assist and protect FEMA workers after threats were made against its workers over the weekend, The Associated Press reported.

• "There's still a persistent and dangerous flow of misinformation about recovery efforts in western North Carolina that can lead to threats and intimidation, breeds confusion and demoralizes storm survivors and response workers alike," Cooper said, according to the AP.