Speaking at an event in her home state of Tennessee on Friday, the 78-year-old said the money would come “from my own bank account”.

Parton’s local commercial ventures - including the Dollywood amusement park - would also donate the same amount to the Mountain Ways Foundation, which is aiding those affected by flooding in the region.

[…]

Helene is the deadliest mainland storm since Katrina in 2005.

Making landfall as a category four hurricane, Helene damaged structures, caused flash flooding and knocked out power to millions of homes. Over half a million properties remain without electricity as of Saturday.

The US government has said the clean-up effort could take years.