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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Amanda Holpuch in New York

Florence: historic flooding predicted as storm lingers over Carolinas – as it happened

Summary

Enormous search and rescue efforts are underway in North and South Carolina, where days of rain and flooding have driven thousands from their homes.

  • At least 14 people have died from Hurricane Florence, which was downgraded to a tropical depression yesterday.
  • Officials are urging caution on flooded roadways, which have made it difficult to travel in the state. One person died Sunday after a car driving on a flooded road lost control in South Carolina.
  • Wilmington, North Carolina is cut off from the rest of the state after damage from Florence closed major roads into the city of 117,525 people. The main roads into the city are closed or impassable.
  • A tornado warning has been issued for the region near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which has been pummeled by Florence. And a tornado warning was issued in North Carolina.

Khushbu Shah writes for the Guardian from Rice’s Creek, North Carolina, a town of 27 people.

Rice’s Creek is in a low-lying, rural, unincorporated area of Brunswick county. It was seeing the waters rise, in real time.

First they let the chickens out, so they could find a safe space in the trees. Then Hamrick shut off the generator, to save the 10 hours of gas he had left. It could be a long time before the power comes back to this community.

“We’re not a big city,” Dreeland said. “We’re 27 people. Nobody gives a shit about us.”

Four roads lead to Alex Tatum’s father’s home, just two miles away. Two flooded in the last few hours of Saturday, waves forming in mini seas left by Florence, Towne Creek and Rice Creek rising after three days of rain. Another was blocked by a fallen tree. One option remained: it involved yet another flood, not as high as the others.

“Wow, this road used to be beautiful,” Tatum said, looking sadly at a two-story home now without a roof. “I was going to rent that home,” he said, pointing to a flooded front yard with a tree on top of it. A spa and fitness center, opened a month ago, was half submerged.

The Associated Press has more from North Carolina’s biggest city, Charlotte. The National Weather Service has declared a flash-flood emergency for part of the region home to the city.

The AP reports:

The emergency was put into effect Sunday afternoon for central and southeastern Mecklenburg County. The weather service says streams and creeks are running very high in south Charlotte, Matthews and nearby areas.

The weather service warns some bodies of water have risen to record stages and impacts may be “unprecedented.”
The city of Charlotte tweeted that residents should stay off the roads.

A flash-flood emergency also was declared for adjacent Union County, where the weather service says several water rescues were underway and emergency management officials reported as many as 70 flooded roads.

Photos

Members of the North Carolina Task Force urban search and rescue team wade through a flooded neighborhood looking for residents who stayed behind as Florence continues to dump heavy rain in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Members of the North Carolina Task Force urban search and rescue team wade through a flooded neighborhood looking for residents who stayed behind as Florence continues to dump heavy rain in Fayetteville, North Carolina Photograph: David Goldman/AP
Members of the North Carolina Task Force urban search and rescue team check cars in a flooded neighborhood looking for residents who stayed behind as Florence continues to dump heavy rain in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Members of the North Carolina Task Force urban search and rescue team check cars in a flooded neighborhood looking for residents who stayed behind as Florence continues to dump heavy rain in Fayetteville, North Carolina Photograph: David Goldman/AP
Cynthia Capers carries her dog Lougie while being evacuated into a high water vehicle by the police as their neighborhood begins to flood from Florence in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Cynthia Capers carries her dog Lougie while being evacuated into a high water vehicle by the police as their neighborhood begins to flood from Florence in Fayetteville, North Carolina Photograph: David Goldman/AP

Pet rescues are a big part of any natural disaster.

In Kinston, North Carolina, April Casey and her acquaintances rescued 18 dogs, according to the News and Observer.

“I love dogs. I love animals, period,” Casey said. “… They can’t save themselves. There was some locked in the house, and the one that was hurt was locked up underneath the steps. Some of them were in kennels, some of them weren’t. There was just a lot of them back there.”

In all, Casey said she and her crew rescued 18 dogs. It was her understanding, she said, that several of the dog’s owners had chosen to leave them in a place where they thought they’d be safe. The house where the dogs were found was believed, until Saturday, to be on the high ground.

Watch Florence travel from Africa to the US in just 14 seconds:

More from Wilmington, North Carolina, which is unreachable because of dangerous road conditions. A look inside Wilmington from the Associated Press:

While the city was cut off from the outside, streets in Wilmington were busy with motorists.

Victor Merlos was overjoyed to find a store open for business since he had about 20 relatives staying at his apartment, which still has power. He spent more than $500 on cereal, eggs, soft drinks and other necessities, plus beer.

“I have everything I need for my whole family,” said Merlos.
Police guarded the door of another store and only 10 people were allowed inside at a time. Dallas Perdue told The Associated Press he waited about two hours to get into the store to buy a few groceries.

Officials said the state was working with the Department of Defense and National Guard to see if they could get first responders through to Wilmington in high-water vehicles. Officials are also working on “other contingencies to support Wilmington on the ocean side.”

Driving in North Carolina right now is hazardous, particulary in the southern part of the state:

The view from above:

Major warning for North Carolina’s most populous city, Charlotte.

The Guardian’s Adam Gabbatt is about three miles south of Lumberton, North Carolina, in a neighborhood where the coast guard are going door to door – mostly by boat – urging people to leave.

Scores of houses are standing in about three feet of water as the Lumber River has broken its banks and swamped the surrounding area.

Some people were frantically trying to leave. A man called David was stranded in his home until his brother arrived to pick him up in a 4x4 truck. Unfortunately, the truck then got stuck.

With the help of a big chain and my rented Jeep we were able to pull him out, and the pair have headed to higher ground.

The latest numbers on Florence from the Associated Press:

  • Storm deaths: At least 14 people have died.
  • Heavy rains: Nearly 31 inches (79 centimeters) of rain was reported in Swansboro, on the North Carolina coast In the dark: About 740,000 outages as of Sunday morning, mostly in North Carolina.
  • Protected: More than 20,000 people in shelters in North Carolina, 6,400 people in South Carolina and 400 people in Virginia
  • Grounded: More than 2,400 flights canceled.
  • Storm losses: Mayor of New Bern, North Carolina, says his city has 30 roads still unpassable, 4,200 homes and more than 300 commercial buildings damaged, 6,000 customers without power and 1,200 residents in shelters.
  • Rescued: more than 500 people needed help in high waters around New Bern and Jacksonville, North Carolina.

The nonprofit World Central Kitchen (WCK), founded by chef Jose Andres, has been on the scene providing meals to those affected by the hurricane.

WCK was also on-the-ground after Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, where they were cooking 120,000 to 150,000 meals per day for two weeks in October.

Photos

US Coast Guard Petty Officer Don Tantanella patrols a neighborhood during Tropical Storm Florence in Lumberton, North Carolina
US Coast Guard Petty Officer Don Tantanella patrols a neighborhood during Tropical Storm Florence in Lumberton, North Carolina Photograph: Randall Hill/Reuters
Chicken farm buildings are inundated with floodwater from Hurricane Florence near Trenton, North Carolina on Sunday
Chicken farm buildings are inundated with floodwater from Hurricane Florence near Trenton, North Carolina on Sunday Photograph: Steve Helber/AP
Roger Hedgepeth is assisted along with his dog Bodie by members of the US Coast Guard in Lumberton, North Carolina
Roger Hedgepeth is assisted along with his dog Bodie by members of the US Coast Guard in Lumberton, North Carolina Photograph: Gerry Broome/AP

The Guardian’s Oliver Laughland reports from Goldsboro, North Carolina - a city bracing for potentially catastrophic flooding.

Sunday service at the Greenleaf Christian church was cancelled today. The church’s pastor is the world famous civil rights leader William Barber, who was forced to evacuate his 86-year-old mother further west to the city of Greensboro.

Barber, who is leading a nationwide civil rights movement, The Poor People’s Campaign, told the Guardian that Florence highlighted the region’s racial and economic inequality.

The city of Goldsboro is home to one of North Carolina’s coal-ash dumps, which was flooded during hurricane Matthew in 2016, leading to pollution of the Neuse River

“We talk about racism when Charlottesville happens, or racism when Rosanne Barr say something foolish, but what about the racism and the classism when you look at where these coal-ash sites are that leak and spill during natural disasters?” Barber said on the phone from Washington DC.

“What about the racism and classism that’s at work in the south when many elected officials get elected because of voter suppression and gerrymandering? And then get elected and enact policies that deny people healthcare, which is so important in the aftermath of these disasters?”

Barber said he plans to return to Goldsboro soon to oversee outreach efforts his staff are working in. The church, which services some of the poorest residents in the city, will hand out free meals to children who would usually receive food during school, which is likely to be closed on Monday.

“For many of these kids, those school meals are the best or only meal they get a day,” Barber said.

“We are a poor, low wealth church, for the most part. We’re not a congregation of lawyers and doctors, for the most part - although they’d be welcome,” he added.

“I have members who live in rental housing that were afraid their housing was going to get destroyed during this particular hurricane. Thank god it lowered down to a category 1. If it were a category 3 or 4 a number of my members would be out of home.”

A tornado warning has been issued in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which has been pummeled by Florence.

At 12:55pm, the National Weather Service said: “a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado was located over Allsbrook, or 11 miles northeast of Conway, moving north at 35 mph.”

North Carolina’s transportation secretary, Jim Trogdon, told the Associated Press one of his top priorities is to find a way to get into Wilmington after damage from Florence closed major roads into the city of 117,525 people.

The main roads into the city are closed or impassable

Officials are planning for food and water to be flown to the region.

Updated

Officials are urging caution on flooded roadways. One person died Sunday after a car driving on a flooded road lost control in South Carolina.

Some extraordinary videos of rescues by the US Coast Guard:

The devastation wrought by Florence and other recent hurricanes breeds a natural question: is climate change making hurricanes worse?

Two common measures used to judge whether hurricanes are becoming worse are the number of storms per year and the strength of each storm. Based on the total number of named storms, there has been an increase since the start of the 20th century.

More Americans are getting flood insurance, but Florence is yet an other reminder that too many people in vulnerable regions are unprotected, according to the Associated Press:

Florence came ashore in the Carolinas Friday and its storm surges, flash floods and winds scattered destruction widely.

Federal data show there were roughly 5.1m active flood insurance policies in the U.S. as of July 31, up from 4.94m a year earlier.

North Carolina and South Carolina each had modest gains in flood insurance policies, but coverage gaps remain.

Even with the recent gains, the five-year trend is negative. The number of homes covered is down 3% in North Carolina and 6% South Carolina compared with five years ago.

The White House declared a major disaster in North Carolina and said Donald Trump would visit storm-affected areas next week.

When the official toll stood lower on Saturday, Trump tweeted: “Five deaths have been recorded thus far with regard to hurricane Florence! Deepest sympathies and warmth go out to the families and friends of the victims. May God be with them!”

He has not tweeted about the storm today.

Florence is the first test of the Trump administration’s response to a major natural disaster since Hurricane Maria devastated the US territory of Puerto Rico in September 2017.

Nearly 3,000 people died because of Maria, which caused an island-wide power outage, almost completely knocked out communications including satellite phones and left 80% of the island without access to water in the days following the storm. Earlier this week Trump falsely accused his political rivals of exaggerating the death toll from Maria, despite significant evidence thousands were killed.

Summary

  • The death toll from Florence rose to 14 people after two people were found in their homes, dead from carbon monoxide poisoning from their generator. Another person died when their truck lost control on a flooded road.
  • Florence has weakened to a tropical depression, but officials are warning people to be vigilant as life-threatening conditions remain. Risks include flash floods, toppled electrical lines, damaged homes, potential landslides and flooded roadways.
  • The Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) director Brock Long said on Sunday that the agency’s immediate focus is on search-and-rescue efforts and assisting people in shelters.
  • In Lumberton, North Carolina, one of the cities hardest hit by flooding, people scrambled to escape the flood but confronted filled evacuation centers.
  • About 2,000 cubic yards (1,530 cubic meters) of coal ash were displaced at the a plant in North Carolina and contaminated storm water likely flowed into the plant’s cooling pond, a Duke Energy spokesperson said Saturday night.

The death toll is up to 14 people, according to the Associated Press. They said a 14th victim died after a truck lost control on a flooded road in South Carolina.

Khushbu Shah writes for the Guardian from Wilmington, North Carolina. One family there explains that they’ve faced storms before, but “It’s never been this bad.”

When Grace Tippett went to bed last night, her white Toyota RAV 4 was fine parked underneath the carport Saturday night in Forest Hills, Wilmington, North Carolina. Then her mom called.

“Good morning, she said. Come over here and find your rain boots because we have some flooding and we need to make sure everything is OK, her mom told her.

Overnight, the 17-year-old’s car was destroyed while she stayed at her grandparents’ house next door. The water that had sat behind Bill Hobbs’ garage, Tippett’s grandfather, had moved into his home, 150 feet, in a span of hours, into the basement. Early Sunday morning, the generator running on natural gas sits just a few inches

Flooding from Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina
Flooding from Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina Photograph: Khushbu Shah for the Guardian

Tippett’s own home was flooded as well, and things the teen had put into the basement for safekeeping during the hurricane were floating in brown water.

Tippett’s great aunt Mary Rose Brantham came down Thursday from her home in Ogden to brave the wind and rain with family. She’s just heard on a local news channel WECT, Cape Fear Public utility may turn off the water soon so she runs down for a quick shower.

“I haven’t washed my hair since Wednesday,” she said, as she walked out of the kitchen to get a quick shower before the water turned off.

Tippett’s mother, Kenzi Tippett, thought the water had receded already. “At one point, the water was past the driveway but it has lowered again.

The family gathered in Hobbs kitchen, discussing strategies for finding batteries for the generator and pouring water into coolers if the taps run out shortly.

“It’s never been this bad,” Kenzi said, looking out over the patio into the swamp of water that was now the backyard.

For those looking to help recovery efforts in North Carolina and South Carolina, officials are urging donations to the state’s disaster relief fund or other reputable aid groups.

They strongly advise against traveling to the Carolinas to help and instead finding a trip through credible relief organization.

On Saturday evening, Duke Energy said heavy rains caused a slope to collapse at a coal ash landfill at a closed power station outside Wilmington. Duke spokeswoman Paige Sheehan said about 2,000 cubic yards (1,530 cubic meters) of ash were displaced at the Sutton Plant and that contaminated storm water likely flowed into the plant’s cooling pond.

More on the coal ash spill from the Associated Press:

Sheehan said the company had reported the incident to state and federal regulators “out of an abundance of caution.”

The coal-fired Sutton plant was retired in 2013 and the company has been excavating millions of tons of ash from old waste pits and removing it to safer lined landfills constructed on the property. The gray ash left behind when coal is burned contains toxic heavy metals, including arsenic, lead and mercury.

Duke has been under intense scrutiny for the handling of its coal ash since a drainage pipe collapsed under a waste pit at an old plant in Eden in 2014, triggering a massive spill that coated 70 miles (110 kilometers) of the Dan River in gray sludge.

In a subsequent settlement with federal regulators, Duke agreed to plead guilty to nine Clean Water Act violations and pay $102 million in fines and restitution for illegally discharging pollution from coal-ash dumps at five North Carolina power plants. The company is in the process of closing all of its coal ash dumps by 2029.

Dune erosion occurs when storm surge elevates waves higher on the beach, allowing them to attack and erode the coastal dune, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS explains:

As sand is removed from the dune, the front face becomes very steep, or scarped. The overall volume and elevation of the dune is reduced due to the erosion process. Dune erosion makes properties behind the dune more vulnerable to future storms and the potential for overwash. The eroded sediment is carried offshore and stored in large sandbars. The sand dune can recover over a period of years, gaining in elevation and volume through deposits of wind-blown sand. Because dunes rebuild over a long period, many coastal counties choose to build temporary dunes following a large storm.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) director Brock Long spoke to NBC’s Meet the Press this morning about Florence.

Long said Fema is working to meet the demands of North Carolina officials “as they’re coming up to us.”

Long also said: “recovery is always a very frustrating process for people when they’ve lost their livelihoods, but we’re going to be OK.”

He said the agency’s immediate focus is on search-and-rescue efforts and assisting people in shelters.

Meanwhile, Typhoon Mangkhut has hit the southern coast of China, after leaving at least 59 dead in the Philippines amid landslides and flooding.

The difference between a hurricane and typhoon is that a hurricane is a large rotating storm that forms over tropical or subtropical waters, though they’re only given such a name if formed in the Atlantic or eastern Pacific oceans. Similar storms formed in the western Pacific are called typhoons. Storms in the the Indian Ocean and South Pacific are known as cyclones.

The category five super-typhoon hit the northern end of the Philippine island of Luzon early on Saturday morning, with the high winds ripping roofs off houses and pulling down trees and electricity pylons, and the rains causing fatal landslides and flooding. More than 5 million people were in its path.

The National Weather Service issued warnings this morning for people in South Carolina and North Carolina.

Though the storm has weakened, serious threats to public safety remain with the risk of flash floods, toppled electrical lines, damaged homes, potential landslides and roadways awash with flooding.

At least two of the deaths from Florence have been tied to the use of a generator inside a home.

In Horry county, South Carolina, chief deputy coroner Tamara Willard said Mark Carter King, 63, and Debra Collins Rion, 61, were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Their bodies were found Saturday afternoon, according to a statement by Willard, who said they likely died the day before.

Humans aren’t the only creatures facing the wrath of Florence:

After sheltering from the powerful storm, people emerged yesterday to find their communities devastated:

Many people in Wilmington emerged from their homes for the first time on Saturday morning to scenes of lifted trees and fallen powerlines. Some residents were worried less about flooding and more about an extensive period without power. Sidney Este, whose 71-year-old mother was still inside his house, said: “I’m mostly concerned about the house getting hotter and hotter.”

Emergency vehicles drives through water over a foot deep on route 17 in Hampstead just outside of Wilmington, North Carolina.
Emergency vehicles drives through water over a foot deep on route 17 in Hampstead just outside of Wilmington, North Carolina. Photograph: UPI/Barcroft Images

Meteorologists warned it might be days and weeks after Florence’s direct hit before the town sees rising water levels.

On Saturday afternoon in Lumberton, North Carolina, the Lumber river was dangerously close to flooding. Officials said the river was at 14.45ft – a foot and a half over flood stage – and was projected to rise another 10ft on Sunday. South-west of Lumberton, it had already broken its banks. I-95, the main north-south highway, stood to flood on Sunday

A fascinating time lapse showing the past 48 hours of Florence:

The Guardian’s Adam Gabbatt is in Lumberton, North Carolina, which was among the worst hit by early flooding. Gabbatt writes:

Lumberton, about 80 miles north-west of Wilmington, was among the worst hit by early flooding. On Saturday night much of the south of Lumberton was under water, as emergency crews battled to contain the fast-rising Lumber River.

Turner Park, a trailer park in south-west Lumberton, was under two feet of water on Saturday evening, with the water rising quickly. At 5pm the Guardian watched as water from the park crept closer to the Martin Luther King Jr Drive thoroughfare by 15ft in the space of just 10 minutes.

Residents had been told to evacuate the park, where scores of 40ft x 12ft trailers stand on low-lying land. Across the road Newport Church, a handsome white building with an impressive steeple, was under about a foot of water at 6pm.

Martin Luther King Drive was almost covered by the flood, with water lapping at it on either side, and further north many single story homes were also flooded. Cars struggled to make their way through roads covered with a foot of water, with much more rain predicted over the coming days.

Lumberton, where 25% of the population are below the poverty line, was hit hard by Hurricane Matthew just two years ago, and residents faced losing property and possessions all over again. As people scrambled to escape the flood, many evacuation shelters in nearby Fayetteville were full by 6pm.

The Lumber is considered flooded at 13ft, and the National Weather Service predicted on Saturday that it will crest at 24.9ft on Sunday afternoon, deluging neighborhoods in its path.

Updated

Florence is hovering above the Carolinas, and though the storm has weakened to a tropical depression, the National Hurricane Center warns that “catastrophic” flooding could hit the region.

At least 11 people have died in the storm and officials are warning people in affected areas to be extremely cautious as the threat of dangerous flash floods is still high.

Forecasters have warned in the next few days, North Carolina could see the most destructive flooding in state history as rivers swell towards record levels.

At 5am, the storm was centered about 20 miles south-west of Columbia, South Carolina.

We’ll be providing live updates from reporters in North Carolina and South Carolina throughout the day.

The latest update is here:

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