Roy Cooper was “in New York speaking at a New York Times ‘Climate Forward’ event” when Hurricane “Helene slammed into North Carolina.”
Fact-check: Where was Cooper when Hurricane Helene hit NC?
If your time is short
- Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina on Sept. 27, 2024.
- Then-Gov. Roy Cooper was in Raleigh at the time.
- He attended an event in New York two days prior — before Helene made landfall.
Critics of former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper falsely claim that he was miles away from the Tar Heel State when Hurricane Helene made landfall two years ago.
Cooper is the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Thom Tillis, R-NC, who’s not seeking reelection. Cooper faces Republican Michael Whatley, Libertarian Shannon Bray and Green Party candidate Michael Dublin for the seat.
Cooper served as governor from 2017 through the end of 2024 and led the state’s initial response to Hurricane Helene, which caused an estimated $60 billion in damage in North Carolina in September 2024. Now, with Cooper now running for U.S. Senate, critics are resurrecting a claim that PolitiFact debunked in 2024.
“This Saturday marks two years since Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina and nearby Southern states. Where was Roy Cooper when Helene slammed into North Carolina? In New York speaking at a New York Times ‘Climate Forward’ event,” President Donald Trump’s campaign account said in a Sept. 21 X post. Trump’s X account repeated the claim in a Sept. 26 post.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee, a GOP political action committee, posted a similar claim on Sept. 23: “Where was Roy Cooper two years ago when Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina? At a climate conference in New York City touting Green New Deal policies.”
In a Sept. 28 Republican National Committee email to supporters, the RNC said that “during the storm itself, Cooper was at a climate change gala in New York City.”
Those claims are wrong.
On Sept. 25 — a day before Helene had even made landfall in Florida — Cooper attended a New York Times conference about climate change and was back by 3 p.m. that day, the governor’s office told media outlets at the time and Cooper’s campaign confirmed to PolitiFact.
On Sept. 27, Cooper was in Raleigh when the most damaging wind and rain hit western North Carolina. We found no evidence that he left the state.
Timeline of events
PolitiFact North Carolina first investigated the claim about Cooper’s September 2024 trip to New York following a social media post by Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican gubernatorial nominee that year. Here’s a review of Cooper’s actions leading up to Helene hitting North Carolina, based on a report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service.
- Sept. 24, 2024: Helene became a Tropical Storm in the Gulf of Mexico. Cooper formally asked top members of the state’s executive branch for approval of emergency powers. He also placed the State Emergency Operations Center on Enhanced Watch, meaning the state should prepare to assist local governments that might need help following the storm.
- Sept. 25, 2024: Helene became a Category 1 hurricane off the coast of Florida. Rain fell in Asheville — but it wasn’t from Helene’s outer bands, WRAL meteorologist Kat Campbell told PolitiFact. Asheville’s rain that day was the result of a stalled front pulling in moisture from Helene in the Gulf. Cooper declared a state of emergency, allowing state emergency responders to begin deploying equipment, personnel, and resources across the state. He also flew to New York City and was one of many speakers — including zoologist Jane Goodall, NBC weathercaster Al Roker and Guyana President Mohamed Irfaan Ali — who spoke at the public event hosted by The New York Times.
- Sept. 26, 2o24: Cooper held an 11 a.m. briefing at the Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh. He urged North Carolinians to prepare for life-threatening flooding as well as high winds, tornadoes and heavy rain throughout the state. He also announced that 175 soldiers and airmen from the NC National Guard had been activated. Tropical-storm-force winds reached Tampa Bay around 3 p.m. and intense rainfall in Florida and the Appalachian Valley caused river levels to rise. Helene strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane as it careened toward Florida. By 6 p.m., the eye of the hurricane was located 150 southwest of Tampa.
- Sept. 27, 2024: Helene officially made landfall at 3:10 a.m. near Perry, Florida and moved northward through the morning into North Carolina. Cooper held an 11 a.m. briefing in Raleigh, where state Emergency Management Director William Ray announced that the National Guard had deployed more than 350 guardsmen and that the state Emergency Operations Center deployed 30 swift-water rescue teams. Cooper also asked the Biden administration to expedite a federal major disaster declaration — which the Federal Emergency Management Agency declared on Sept. 28 and was announced on Sept. 29.
Whatley recently recited the correct date of Cooper’s 2024 trip to New York — albeit while criticizing Cooper for going. At a Sept. 25 campaign event in Pittsboro, Whatley said: “We’re here on the 25th, that Roy Cooper on this day two years ago was up in New York at a climate change gala ball. He was not preparing this state.”
PolitiFact reached out to the White House, the Republican National Committee, and Never Surrender Inc., a political action committee linked to the Team Trump X account. None of them immediately responded to requests for comment.
Our ruling
Trump’s X account said: “Where was Roy Cooper when Helene slammed into North Carolina? In New York speaking at a New York Times ‘Climate Forward’ event.”
Cooper attended the New York Times conference about climate change on Sept. 25, 2024, and returned to North Carolina the same day — before Helene made landfall in Florida. The most damaging wind and rain didn’t hit western North Carolina until Sept. 27, 2024. We rate Trump’s claim False.
RELATED: Trump said North Carolina Gov. Cooper, Democrats blocked aid. That’s not what their actions show
Our Sources
X post by Team Trump on Sept. 21, 2026.
WRAL, “Fact-checking 5 misleading claims about Helene relief efforts,” Oct. 4, 2024.
New York Times, “Join the Times’s Climate Event With Jane Goodall, Al Roker and Others,” published Sept. 16, 2024 and updated Sept. 25, 2024.
X post by WSOC reporter Joe Bruno on Oct. 2, 2024.
Email correspondence with Jordan Monaghan, spokesperson for the Roy Cooper for U.S. Senate campaign.
Report on Hurricane Helene by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and National Weather Service.
Press release, “Governor Cooper Declares State of Emergency Ahead of Hurricane Helene,” Sept. 25, 2024.
Press release, “Governor Cooper Warns of Danger as Catastrophic Hurricane Helene Impacts North Carolina,” Sept. 26, 2024.
Letter from North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to President Joe Biden, Sept. 27, 2024.
CBS17, “NC activates 175 soldiers, 16 water rescue teams ahead of ‘catastrophic flooding’ from Hurricane Helene,” Sept. 26, 2024.
PBS News video, “Severe Weather News Conference with NC Governor Cooper,” Sept. 27, 2024.
WRAL, “Whatley, Cooper enter final 40 days of 2026 election as some polls show a tightening race,” Sept. 25, 2026.
