A viral image shared on X claims to show Gatlinburg, Tennessee under water as a result of Hurricane Helene.

📍Gatlinburg, Tennessee yesterday pic.twitter.com/dTeKpmF5OX

— The Dibster (@richarddibX) September 29, 2024

Verdict: False

A content detection scan using the website, “Hive Moderation” indicates the image has been generated with artificial intelligence (AI). In addition, a media forensics and AI expert denied the image’s authenticity in an email to Check Your Fact.

Fact Check:

The death toll from Hurricane Helene has reached 227, according to The Associated Press. The Category 4 hurricane, which occurred on September 26, “is the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Katrina in 2005,” the outlet reported.

The X image, viewed over 17,000 times as of writing, claims to show Gatlinburg, Tennessee under water as a result of Hurricane Helene. In the image, both cars and businesses appear to be submerged beneath a large amount of water.

The claim is false. Check Your Fact conducted a content detection scan using the website, “Hive Moderation,” and the results of the scan indicate the image is “99% likely to contain AI-generated or deepfake content.”

Screenshot captured via Hive Moderation

Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find the viral X image referenced in any recent credible news reports about Hurricane Helene. Actually, the opposite is true. On October 4, USA Today reported the claim was false and the image had been AI-generated. (RELATED: Viral X Photo Showing A Young Girl Escaping Flood Water Is AI-Generated)

Furthermore, Dr. Walter Scheirer, a media forensics and AI expert at the University of Notre Dame, denied the image’s authenticity in an email to Check Your Fact.

“This image is very likely the product of a generative AI algorithm. It does not look realistic at all with a cartoon-like style and many rendering mistakes. The text on the signs on the buildings is nonsense and the vehicles do not have a correct geometric appearance,” Scheirer said.

Although Tennessee is one of multiple states impacted by Hurricane Helene, the towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge were “largely spared of major damage,” according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.