There were no evacuation orders for the whole region. The authorities who watch for these things were prepped for a storm but no one knew it would be on this scale. Give people a break. My son and many friends are stuck there and, believe me, they are not dumb and had no intention of “tempting fate.” I’ve been in the path of many hurricanes including Helene and have never had to evacuate. It’s true that not everybody is an expert in predicting what a hurricane will do and where it will hit hardest. But that doesn’t mean they deserve to suffer and die.