Under pressure to control housing costs, Republican lawmakers rejected standards meant to protect against disasters, experts say.

The Blue Ridge Parkway remains closed throughout North Carolina after Tropical Storm Helene tore through the mountains last week, and the National Park Service says it doesn’t know when the road will reopen.

Hurricane Helene was a historic storm that will be on the minds of those affected for years to come. During the evening of Sept. 26, the storm made landfall along Florida’s Big Bend area as a category 4 with wind speeds of 140 mph.