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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
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Kate Lyons (now), Sam Levin, Matthew Weaver and Jamiles Lartey (earlier)

Five dead in tropical storm as flooding and surges continue – as it happened

We are closing down this live blog, but will continue our rolling coverage of Tropical Storm Florence as the east coast of the US wakes up to another day of ferocious wind and rain.

You can read our news story here, check out our interactive storm tracker here, and tell us about your experience of Florence here.

Thanks for reading.

Updated

What we know so far

  • Florence was downgraded to a tropical storm on Friday night, but there were still sustained winds of 70mph.
  • The storm is moving slowly west-southwest over the east of South Carolina
  • “Life-threatening storm surges and strong winds” were predicted
  • Officials have warned that up to 50in of rain could lead to catastrophic flooding into next week.
  • Residents of western North Carolina have been warned they could see flooding and landslides from Saturday night through to Monday.
  • There were more than 775,000 power outages reported in North Carolina as of Friday midnight.
  • Authorities have linked at least five deaths to Florence, including a mother and infant killed when a tree collapsed on their house, a woman who died of a heart attack and a man who was electrocuted.
  • White House officials said Donald Trump would be visiting areas affected by Florence sometime next week.
  • Overnight Trump repeated his claim that 3,000 people did not die in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria, saying the death toll had increased “like magic” and that the method for calculating the death toll “was never done with previous hurricanes”.

Concern about toxic waste sites

The Associated Press has this report about the polluted sites that may lie in the path of the storm

As Tropical Storm Florence spins inland, environmental regulators are monitoring more than three dozen toxic waste sites in the storm’s path, as well as scores of low-lying water- and sewage-treatment plants at risk of flooding.

EPA spokesman John Konkus said the agency is listening for any word of oil or hazardous substance spills from first responders, media reports and state and local emergency command posts. He said federal on-scene coordinators and equipment stand ready to deploy if needed.

The Environmental Protection Agency has identified 41 Superfund sites in threatened parts of the Carolinas, Virginia and Maryland and Georgia. Superfund sites are among the nation’s most highly polluted places. They often contain contaminated soil and toxic waste at risk of spreading if covered by floodwaters.

No toxic spills had been reported as of Friday afternoon, but the region’s rivers were not expected to crest for days. Forecasters predicted severe flooding for parts of southeastern North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina starting Sunday.

Among the Superfund sites most at risk from Florence is Horton Iron and Metal, a former shipbreaking operation and fertiliser manufacturing site in a low-lying floodplain along the Cape Fear River outside Wilmington, North Carolina. The 7.4-acre (3-hectare) site is heavily contaminated with pesticides, asbestos, toxic metals and cancer-causing PCBs.

The president will soon be able to send text messages directly to citizens during emergencies.
The president will soon be able to send text messages directly to citizens during emergencies. Photograph: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

In future disasters, US citizens may receive messages on their phones directly from Donald Trump, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) begins its testing of a system that allows the president to send a message to most US mobile phones.

Next Thursday, Fema will conduct its first nationwide test of the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), a system allowing a text message to be sent to mobile phones with warnings about dangerous weather, missing children or other critical situations.

“[This] is a national public warning system that provides the President with the communications capability to address the nation during a national emergency,” FEMA said in a statement.

During the test, people will receive a text with a header that reads “Presidential Alert” and text that says: “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”

More than 100 mobile carriers, including all the major wireless firms, are participating in the roll-out.

Of course, those people who follow President Trump on Twitter already get messages from the president straight to their phones, but unlike with Twitter, people are unable to opt out of receiving these alerts.

The WEA system was approved by Congress in 2015. Legislation surrounding the law warns that the “system shall not be used to transmit a message that does not relate to a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster or threat to public safety.”

It is unclear how much personal input the president will have in the crafting of the alerts and whether they will be written in his characteristic style.

Updated

Residents of western North Carolina have been warned they could see flooding and landslides from Saturday night through to Monday, as rain continues as a result of the storm.

A 72-hour rainfall forecast for the state from 8pm Friday through to 8pm Monday, shows heavy rainfall and strong winds that could have “life-threatening impacts”.

Emergency Management North Carolina say these conditions will slowly improve, though did not say whether the improvement would begin without that 72-hour period, or after its conclusion.

Updated

773,000 without power

There are now more than 773,000 reported cases of power outages across North Carolina, according to the North Carolina department of public safety. The highest concentration of which are New Hanover, Brunswick, Wake, Onslow, Carteret, Pender, Robeson, and Wayne counties

The department of safety also have a great interactive map showing where evacuation orders are in place in different counties and a list of shelters.

Updated

'Life-threatening storm surge' and 'catastrophic flooding' to continue overnight

The National Weather Service have issued an update on the storm. The storm is moving slowly west-southwest over the east of South Carolina and storm surges, wind and rain were expected to continue overnight.

As of 11pm local time (about half an hour ago) the storm was about 15 miles (20km) west-northwest of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and about 45 miles (70km) south-east of Florence, South Carolina.

Power lines are seen hanging from a post during the passing of Florence in the town of New Bern.
Power lines are seen hanging from a post during the passing of Florence in the town of New Bern. Photograph: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters

Florence had maximum sustained winds of 65mph (100 km/h) and was moving west-southwest at a rate of 5 mph (7km/h).

The advisory notice said “life-threatening storm surges and strong winds” were set to continue overnight and “catastrophic freshwater flooding” was expected over portions of North and South Carolina.

Updated

Nasa have published this extraordinary video of the landfall of Hurricane Florence, as seen from the International Space Station.

Landfall of Hurricane Florence/Nasa

Various agencies are tweeting safety warnings and advice, which we’ve collated here. The list is by no means exhaustive so feel free to tweet me if you see more, but they include:

  • In the case of flash flooding: get to higher ground and don’t drive into the water
  • Stay indoors, don’t venture out during the storm
  • Don’t drive or walk through stagnant or moving floodwaters
  • Don’t operate gas-powered generators or charcoal grills near your home
  • Don’t use drones until emergency operations have ceased
  • Stay away from downed power lines
  • Stay away from sparking power lines and if you see them, call 911 and report them
  • Don’t connect your generator directly to your home’s wiring or plug it into a regular household socket or outlet, instead use a power inlet box and transfer switch to connect to your home wiring or use extension cords to connect electrical devices such as a fridge to your generator
  • Have multiple ways to get warnings of dangerous or changing conditions, including the internet, radio and TV
  • If you have a private well, do not turn on electricity to the pump until flood waters recede. If extensive flooding has occurred, don’t drink the water, use bottled water until your well water can be tested.

Donald Trump has doubled down on his claim that 3,000 people did not die in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria.

Trump is on Twitter complaining about claims that the death toll exceeded 3,000 people in Puerto Rico. On Thursday he said that number had been made up by the Democratic party “to make me look as bad as possible”. Here’s what he’s been tweeting tonight:

This issue is clearly exercising the president, who also tweeted about it earlier in the evening, including quoting Fox News presenter Lou Dobbs calling the government of Puerto Rico “one of the most corrupt governments in our country”.

This row kicked off earlier in the week, when Trump called the federal response last year in Puerto Rico an “incredible, unsung success” in comments from the White House on Tuesday.

His remarks sparked outrage, including from Senate minority leader Charles Schumer, who called Trump’s comment “offensive, hurtful and blatantly false” and Carmen Yulín Cruz, the mayor of San Juan who told CNN the comments were: “a stain on his presidency. He says he’s done a good job when 3,000 people have died?”

There’s more on that story here:

Updated

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that as Hurricane Florence was bearing down on North and South Carolina, the Trump administration was considering replacing the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The WSJ says FEMA administrator Brock Long is the subject of an internal investigation after allegations he misused resources traveling to his home in North Carolina and that the White House had been discussing potential replacements.

Donald Trump has repeatedly praised FEMA for their response to Florence, including just a few minutes ago when he tweeted: “America is proud of you. Keep it all going – finish strong!”

Some people are sharing photographs highlighting the incongruity between the beauty that exists (and indeed, is caused) by Florence in areas on the edges of the storm’s path and the devastation it is wreaking on towns that are feeling the full force of the storm.

Lauren Visin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service calls the the storm a “monster” but says in her area, where she says Florence is due to hit tomorrow, it has been preceded in her area by striking cloud formations.

Jeff Dauler, a radio presenter in Atlanta Georgia, is in upstate South Carolina and comments that it is “remarkable how terrible storms are surrounded by such beauty”.

Updated

Can we still call it ‘Hurricane Florence’?

A question we have been discussing in the newsroom, which comes up frequently in reporting natural disasters like this one, is: can you still call Hurricane Florence, “Hurricane Florence” when it has been downgraded to a tropical storm?

Let me know what you think on Twitter, but our current thinking for this blog is:

  • We will refer to the aftermath of Hurricane Florence
  • Past articles about Florence when it was still a hurricane will still refer to Florence as “Hurricane Florence”
  • But for any new developments we will refer to it as a tropical storm or “tropical storm Florence”, or just plain “Florence”; it is even acceptable to call Florence an ex-hurricane

Updated

This is Kate Lyons, back with you again. I’m taking over the blog from Sam Levin as we continue our rolling coverage of Florence.

If you have any news tips or questions you’d like us to address on the live blog, get in touch, I can be reached via kate.lyons@theguardian.com and on Twitter @mskatelyons

The National Weather Service Eastern Region have shared rainfall reports for towns across New Carolina (and a few in South Carolina), they warn that rain is continuing to fall heavily across the two states and these totals may be much higher by morning.

Updated

Summary

Updated

A few scenes from a hotel in Wilmington where Guardian reporter Khushbu Shah is spending time with evacuees:

Five deaths linked to Florence

Authorities have confirmed five deaths linked to Florence so far:

  • A mother and her infant were killed when a tree fell on their house in Wilmington.
  • In Kinston, a 78-year-old man was electrocuted, and a 77-year-old man was discovered dead after he went outside to check on his dogs, authorities said.
  • A woman died of an apparent heart attack in Pender county, where EMS and emergency personnel struggled to respond due to dangerous conditions.

Climate scientist Michael Mann has published a comment piece in the Guardian about the “climate change triple threat” posed by Florence:

An early autumn ocean “heat wave” has brought sea surface temperatures in the western Atlantic to bathtub-level warmth. Just as summer heat waves on land are greatly increased in frequency and intensity by even modest overall warming, so too are these ocean heat waves becoming more frequent and more extreme as the oceans continue warm. All else being equal, warmer oceans mean more energy to intensify tropical storms and hurricanes.

But when it comes to coastal threat, it hardly matters how many tropical storms there are over the course of the season. A single landfalling hurricane can wreak havoc and destruction. Think Katrina in 2005, Irene in 2011, Sandy in 2012, either Harvey or Maria in 2017 and now Florence in 2018.

In this sense, the sometimes fractious debate about whether we’ll see more or fewer storms in a warmer world is somewhat misplaced. What matters is that there is a consensus we’ll see stronger and worse flood-producing storms – and, in fact, we’re seeing them already. That brings us to Hurricane Florence: a climatologically-amplified triple threat.

More here:

There is a new flash flood emergency warning for Goldsboro, Smithfield, Selma, Princeton and other municipalities in North Carolina. Avoid walking or driving through flood waters.

Some of the latest images of flooding and devastation from photographers on the ground:

Members of the Boone County Fire Rescue team check for occupants in a home surrounded by flood waters.
Members of the Boone County Fire Rescue team check for occupants in a home surrounded by flood waters. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
High waters flood Market and Water Streets as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington.
High waters flood Market and Water Streets as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
Hundreds of trees collapsed, many of which blocked roads, as Hurricane Florence came ashore in downtown Wilmington.
Hundreds of trees collapsed, many of which blocked roads, as Hurricane Florence came ashore in downtown Wilmington. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
High waters flood a car in downtown Wilmington.
High waters flood a car in downtown Wilmington. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
A mother and her infant were killed when a tree fell on their house in Wilmington.
A mother and her infant were killed when a tree fell on their house in Wilmington. Photograph: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images
A building has lost lots of windows as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington.
A building has lost lots of windows as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington. Photograph: Carlo Allegri/Reuters
A street light is downed on a flooded road in Wilmington.
A street light is downed on a flooded road in Wilmington. Photograph: Carlo Allegri/Reuters

And here is some footage of a rescue of two stranded dogs in Jacksonville:

Some more details on two storm-related deaths in Kinston from Lenoir county emergency services director Roger Dail:

  • A 78-year-old male was electrocuted at a residence on Silver Smith Circle in Kinston this morning when he was attempting to connect two extension cords outside in the rain. His body was discovered by family members.
  • A 77-year-old male’s body was discovered at 8am today by his family at his residence on Middle Street in Kinston. It is believed his death was caused when he was blown down by the wind when he went outside to check on his hunting dogs.

Both deaths have been reported to the state medical examiner’s office.

Updated

Hundreds rescued in New Bern

Some new details from the Associated Press about the swift-water rescue teams assisting residents in New Bern, a community swamped by the storm:

New Bern spokeswoman Colleen Roberts said more than 360 people had been rescued by mid-afternoon Friday, but another 140 were still waiting for help.

She says crews from the city and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) were working with citizen volunteers to get people to dry ground.

Roberts says there is widespread damage and power outages in the city but so far no reports of deaths or injuries.

Updated

680,000 without power

The current statewide power outage total is 686,304, according to North Carolina officials. Details on the regions with the most problems here:

An update from Guardian reporter Khushbu Shah, who is continuing to report from Wilmington:

Officials have confirmed a “medical, storm-related fatality this morning as Hurricane Florence came ashore”. Details from Tammy Proctor, Pender county spokesperson:

At the height of the storm, EMS and emergency personnel attempted to respond. The roadway was blocked by trees and debris. A front loader was brought in to clear the roadway. A tree went into the windshield of the front loader. Due to the winds and dangerous conditions, operations had to cease at that time.

Details about the woman were not immediately available, and it appeared she died of a heart attack, Proctor said.

Updated

Some updates from Governor Roy Cooper’s latest press conference:

  • The governor said there were three confirmed deaths and more under investigation, but didn’t have additional details to provide.
  • There are 33 primary road locations and 30 secondary road locations that are experiencing flooding and over wash.
  • Utility crews are coming in from other states to restore power, and the governor urged people not to return home until they receive an “all clear”.
  • Water teams have rescued hundreds of people in New Bern.
  • The highway patrol has responded to 80 collisions and 164 calls for service.

Tropical storms are not barrelling along as fast as they used to – and there are consequences. Guardian journalist Kate Ravilious has some useful background about the science and the implications:

Research published in Nature earlier this year showed that the average speed at which tropical storms track has slowed down by 10% since 1949. Over land, speeds have decreased even further; around 30% for western North Pacific storms and 20% for North Atlantic ones. Changes in atmospheric circulation, caused by global warming, are thought to be behind the decrease in pace.

Hurricanes that proceed at a trot instead of a canter are not good news.

Read her full report here:

Florence downgraded to tropical storm

Florence has officially been downgraded to a tropical storm, with winds now falling to 70mph. Surges and flooding will continue as the storm lashes South Carolina.

Summary

Sam Levin here, continuing our live coverage of the hurricane. Here’s the latest:

  • Hurricane Florence has pounded the Carolinas coast with 90mph winds and a life-threatening storm surge.
  • A mother and her infant child were killed by a tree that fell on their house in Wilmington, North Carolina.
  • Another person was electrocuted trying to plug in a generator, according to the governor’s office.
  • The storm has cut power to more than half a million households.
  • Florence made landfall on Friday morning as a category one hurricane, just outside Wilmington.
  • In Jacksonville, more than 60 occupants of a motel had to evacuate as a building crumbled.
  • In the city of New Bern, authorities have said they were scrambling to reach roughly 150 people stranded by flooding.
  • Some North Carolina jurisdictions are issuing curfews for Friday evening.
  • Some models are now predicting over 50 inches of rain for swaths of North Carolina.

Many North Carolina jurisdictions are issuing curfews tonight, and pleading with residents to shelter in place and stay off the roads. So far they include:

Counties: Wayne, Lenoir, Columbia, Robeson

Cities and towns: Wilmington, Fayetteville, Goldsboro, Ayden, Jacksonville

Updated

Authorities have reported another two deaths in North Carolina, bringing the death toll from Florence to four.

One person was electrocuted in Lenoir county trying to plug in a generator, according to Governor Roy Cooper’s office.

Authorities in Pender county told NBC News that a woman with a medical condition called for assistance but first responders were unable to reach her in time due to large trees in the road blocking their route.

It was confirmed earlier in the day that a mother and infant were killed in Wilmington when a tree fell on their house.

Updated

Watch the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s rainfall predictions swell through Friday afternoon.

default

Between July 2016 and July 2017 only one metro area in the US saw a bigger population increase than the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina region currently being lashed by Hurricane Florence. That rapid expansion of both businesses and housing in the costal community has put many more people in Florence’s path than would have been there years ago.

It’s also a direct driver of flooding during a potentially catastrophic rainfall event like Florence is shaping up to be. All that development means more non-porous concrete, and less soft ground for water to absorb.

One of the reasons Houston, Texas, flooded so badly during tropical storm Harvey last year was the city’s rapid expansion – with hundreds of square miles of pavement and tens of thousands of houses added in just a few decades on land prone to flooding.

Adam Gabbatt explains more here.

Updated

Florence claims two lives in Wilmington

Authorities in Wilmington, North Carolina have confirmed what are believed to be the first two fatalities of Hurricane Florence in Wilmington. A mother and infant were killed when a tree fell on their house. The father was transported to a local hospital with injuries.

Nearly 2,100 flights have been canceled because of the hurricane. This is the view from flight trackers:

The National Weather Service in Wilmington, North Carolina tweets that it’s “not immune” to storm damage. The headquarters lost a tree out front thanks to high winds and rain-saturated soil.

NC governor: 'It's going to get worse'

North Carolina governor Roy Cooper said at a news conference in Raleigh that citizens were still in danger.

“The sun rose this morning on an extremely dangerous situation and it’s going to get worse,” Cooper said. “To those in the storm’s path, if you can hear me, please stay sheltered in place.”

Cooper said Florence would “continue its violent grind across the state for days”.

Updated

Florence is practically flying by at 6mph, after slowing down to 3mph earlier this morning.

Maximum sustained winds of 75mph leave it just above the minimum threshold to still be considered a hurricane, which is 74mph.

Florence is expected to weaken into a tropical storm at some point Friday afternoon.

Updated

Fox News correspondent Rick Leventhal reports that much of Wrightville Beach is currently under water, which is not surprising. The low-lying beach town, at an elevation of just 7 feet above sea level, was where Florence official made landfall Friday morning.

Myrtle Beach, with its pristine shoreline, fairground attraction and immaculate golf courses, is known as a major holiday destination in the US south. But for the city’s poorest residents – 23% of people here live below the poverty line – the prospect of a direct hit from Hurricane Florence served only as a reminder of the city’s economic and racial inequality.

For many, evacuating from the path of Hurricane Florence is simply too expense.

“If anything happens to my home I just have to stay right where I am,” said 52-year-old Angela Smith, an African American resident of the Sandygate Village housing project in Myrtle Beach.

“I can’t afford to own a car, so I literally can’t leave,” said Smith, who is also disabled and unemployed.

Instead, she said, she would rely on the tight bonds she had forged with other members of the community. “We all get along here. We all support each other in times like this.”

Read more from Myrtle Beach here.

Updated

Rescue workers from Township No. 7 Fire Department and volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team use a boat to rescue a woman and her dog from their flooded home
Rescue workers from Township No 7 Fire Department and volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team use a boat to rescue a woman and her dog from their flooded home. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Residents attempt to clear debris from a storm drain as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington, North Carolina
Residents attempt to clear debris from a storm drain as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington, North Carolina. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA
A bear statue stands amid flood waters from the Neuse River in New Bern, North Carolina
A bear statue stands amid flood waters from the Neuse River in New Bern, North Carolina. Photograph: Logan Cyrus/AFP/Getty Images

Updated

Some models now predicting over 50 inches of rain for swaths of North Carolina

Last year Hurricane Harvey became the most significant tropical rainfall event in recorded US history, topping out at 60.58in. Latest HD modeling now showing Florence could come close.

Updated

Information from the National Weather Service about what the key dangers are in times of heavy rainfall. Up to 50in could hit south-east North Carolina between now and Sunday.

Updated

From the Associated Press, Florence by the numbers:

  • About 400 miles (645 kilometers) wide, with hurricane-force winds stretching across a 140-mile (255-kilometer) span
  • Heavy rains: up to 18 trillion gallons falling on seven states over seven days, as much water as there is the entire Chesapeake Bay
  • Storm surge: up to 13 feet (nearly 4 meters), and seawaters could push inland 2 miles (more than 3 kilometers), depending on how long Florence lingers
  • Stalled: Florence was nearly at a standstill Friday afternoon, moving at just 3 mph (6ph)
  • Fatal hazards: historically, 49% of U.S. hurricane deaths come from storm surge, 27% from rain, 8% from wind, 6% from surf, 6% were offshore and 3% from tornadoes
  • Intensity: Florence came ashore with top winds of 90 mph (145 kph), below the 111 mph (178 kph) threshold for a “major” hurricane but still extremely dangerous
  • In the dark: more than 645,000 outages, mostly in North Carolina, as of Friday morning, with Duke Energy anticipating 1m to 3m homes and businesses losing power
  • Protected: 12,000 people in shelters in North Carolina, 4,000 in South Carolina and 400 in Virginia
  • Populated coastline: 11m Americans live in areas under storm watches and warnings
  • Grounded: nearly 2,100 flights canceled
  • Potential losses: estimated $10bn to $60bn in economic damages

Search and rescue dogs were deployed to North Carolina on Wednesday to help find storm survivors.

Those deployed include three teams of one dog, one human from the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation.

Also deployed was Morty, who was in Puerto Rico last year for Hurricane Maria. Morty has been popular with reporters.

Dramatic scenes from North Carolina, where the south-eastern part of the state is under flash flood warnings.

Updated

ProPublica is reporting that if Florence causes massive damage, North Carolina’s coastal insurance policy may not have the cash to foot the bill. Those costs could wind up being passed along to property tax payers statewide.

“According to the most recent totals available, from 2017, the state-created insurance plan had access to about $3 billion in reserves, reinsurance, and contributions from insurance companies to repair and rebuild damaged homes and properties,” according to ProPublica.

The policy is insuring $74 billion in potential liability.

For scale of hurricane damage costs, consider that the total payout from claims related to Hurricane Harvey are expected to approach $20 billion.

All aboard.

The National Weather Service is warning people in the Carolina inland about an increased threat of landslides and debris flows across the mountains and foothills this weekend.

Florence will bring heavy rain to the western Carolinas Saturday through Monday. The heavy rain is expected to result in significant flooding along creeks and streams.

Landslides, including fast-moving debris flows consisting of water, mud, falling rocks, trees, and other large debris, are most likely within small valleys that drain steep slopes.

Landslides are powerful and potentially deadly, capable of washing out roads, bridges, and homes. People living in areas prone to landslides should be aware of the danger and be prepared to act.

The National Weather service advises people to “move away from steep slopes and small streams in steep valleys and to seek refuge on higher ground away from streams, preferably in a sturdy shelter.”

Stay alert. Many landslide fatalities occur when people are sleeping. Be aware that short intense bursts of rainfall are most likely to cause landslides.

Updated

In a new conference, North Carolina governor Roy Cooper says Hurricane Florence is so widespread, “you will find it hard to find a NC resident who has not been impacted. It has just come ashore and will be here for a long time. This is going to be a bad storm.”

At the same conference, Maj Gen Gregory Lusk said over 500 activated North Carolina guard soldiers and airmen “are already responding to calls over the state. We are standing up a joint task force that has a dual status commander that will be coordinating response efforts.”

Officials also said they had responded to 108 calls for service and 30 collisions on North Carolina highways and advised: “Do not drive through barricades or drive through floodwaters and look out for debris in the road.”

Cooper asked residents not to fly drones after the winds die down, which some presumably would have thought to do to survey damage with cameras from above. “The FAA may issue an order to tell people not to fly drones. So do not fly drones, as it can cause significant problems with rescue efforts. This is an important message now, before the storm passes,” he said.

Updated

In Conway North Carolina, about eight miles north of Myrtle Beach, Rocky Session spent the morning checking on his home, making some last minute adjustments to the wood he has fixed over the windows.

“I feel a little bit better,” Session said as he drilled the last piece of wood diagonally across his doorway.

“But this will probably be all flooded later today,” he added, looking at the grassy land around his 50ft by 12ft trailer.

“I’m pretty sure my trailers not gonna blow away – it’s strapped down – but I’m worried about flooding. Last time it did.”

Rocky Session outside his home in Conway, South Carolina.
Rocky Session outside his home in Conway, South Carolina. Photograph: Adam Gabbatt for the Guardian

Session and his wife, Holly Dew, evacuated their single story home on Thursday and are staying in a nearby hotel. They would have moved further, but Dew’s mother, Deborah, is in intensive care in the Conway Medical Center hospital. Deborah has been in hospital, in a critical condition, for a month and is too sick to move.

“She died once, she came back to life through CPR,” Dew said.

“Now she’s on dialysis, but she really can’t do nothing. She needs to do physical therapy, she’s been in the bed so long she can’t walk.

“I’m worried because she’s on oxygen. I know they have a generator but…” Dew said, tailing off.

Dew normally visits her mother twice a day but is unlikely to be able to visit for the next few days. She and Session toyed with sleeping on the hospital floor, but the hospital was crowded and uncomfortable. They opted for the hotel instead, along with scores of others from the area.

Session was also back home to check on his two dogs. He was concerned about leaving them in the trailer, but said he could not afford to pay the extra money needed to keep them at the hotel. The dogs greeted Session gleefully upon his arrival, and took a stroll while he refilled water and food.

On Friday morning rain was beginning to lash the hotel, flooding the carpark, and wind could be heard screeching outside. For Dew and Session, it will be an anxious few days.

Updated

Tell us: have you been affected by Hurricane Florence?

If you have been affected by evacuation orders or by the weather directly you can share your experiences at the link below – one of our journalists may contact you to discuss further.

You can also contact the Guardian via WhatsApp by adding the contact +44(0)7867825056.

Though we’d like to hear from you, your safety and security is most important. When responding please make sure you put your safety and the safety of others first. Extreme weather events can be very unpredictable and carry very real risks.

Got a minute? Watch Hurricane Florence from its formation on the coast of West Africa, through it’s 4,000 mile journey across the Atlantic, all the way to its collision with the mid-Atlantic coast.

The latest update from the National Hurricane Center reports that Florence has slowed off its already sluggish 5mph pace to 3mph. That’s the average speed a person walks.

Maximum sustained winds are down to below 80 mph which is significant because 74mph is the minimum sustained threshold for a category 1 hurricane.

NHC reports that rainfall totals exceeding 14in thus far have been reported at several locations across south-eastern North Carolina.

Updated

Worth 1,000 words

Photographs now emerging from the Florence-battered Carolinas paint a scene of devastation, rescue and whole lot of hard work.

Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street during Hurricane Florence September 13, 2018 in New Bern, North Carolina. Some parts of New Bern could be flooded with a possible 9-foot storm surge as the Category 2 hurricane approaches the United States.
Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street during Hurricane Florence 13 September 2018 in New Bern, North Carolina.

Some parts of New Bern could be flooded with a possible 9ft storm surge as the category 2 hurricane approaches the United States. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team help rescue three children from their flooded home September 14, 2018 in James City, United States. Flooding from the heavy rain is forcing hundreds of people to call for emergency rescues in the area around New Bern, North Carolina, which sits at the confluence of the Nueces and Trent rivers.
Volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team help rescue three children from their flooded home 14 September in James City, United States. Flooding from the heavy rain is forcing hundreds of people to call for emergency rescues in the area around New Bern, North Carolina, which sits at the confluence of the Nueces and Trent rivers. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
People in West Columbia, South Carolina fill sandbags in preparation for Hurricane Florence.
People in West Columbia, South Carolina fill sandbags in preparation for Hurricane Florence. Photograph: Sean Rayford/AP

See more here.

Updated

Fun name, serious consequences.

Florence appears to be shifting in track slightly to the south, a movement that forecasters call a “wobble”. That sounds innocent enough, but it appears likely to bring the storm back over sea causing it to strengthen and reorganize before making a SECOND landfall over South Carolina.

Throughout Florence’s approach and landfall, weather experts have desperately been trying to hammer home the point that storm category isn’t an effective measurement of the total risk of a tropical system.

“The reality is that these impacts are independent of that category,” said National Weather Service Director Ken Graham on Fox News Friday. “A slow large storm is our nemesis because what it does is it keeps pushing the water ... inland.”

Forecasters have continued to stress: “It cannot be emphasized enough that the most serious hazard associated with slow-moving Florence is extremely heavy rainfall, which will cause disastrous flooding that will be spreading inland.”

Like recent slow moving, rain dumping storms Harvey and Sandy, Florence has inspired robust conversations about the actual usefulness of the wind-based Saffir-Simpson category system which Forbes contributor Marshall Shepherd notes “often misses significant impacts of a hurricane”.

Shepherd continued:

Even before landfall, many of us were concerned about a tendency that we notice with the public during these storms. Many of the models projected a Category 4 hurricane to make landfall earlier in the week.

As it got closer to land, it was classified as Category 2. Intensity forecasts still lag track forecasts but that is a different article. This change caused some people to make statements like “it’s just a Category 2 storm” or “it’s not going to be that bad.” It even caused some fringe elements to start hyperventilating and whining about over-hype.

Take for example, this tweet from Pennsylvania congressman Rick Saccone:

Updated

I'm going to Disney World

This is one way to ride out a storm, from the AP:

With Hurricane Florence barreling toward their home near Wilmington, North Carolina, Allison Hales Jordan and her husband boarded up their house, packed up their car and headed to Walt Disney World in Florida with their two teenage children.

“When we decided where to go, everybody was going west, but we decided we should go as far south as possible, which is weird since Florida gets hurricanes,” said Jordan who works as a preschool director in Burgaw, North Carolina.

File photo, visitors stroll along Main Street at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
File photo, visitors stroll along Main Street at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Photograph: John Raoux/AP

Long accustomed to its residents evacuating north or to other parts of the state when hurricanes threaten, Florida was in the unusual position this week of accommodating diverted cruise ships and hotel-room seekers hoping to escape the wrath of Hurricane Florence, which made landfall Friday morning in North Carolina.

State emergency officials said Thursday they had no way of tracking how many residents from the Carolinas had escaped to Florida this week. But Florida hotels were offering special discounts for hurricane evacuees and Florida ports were opening their terminals to cruise ships making unexpected ports of call.

“I feel guilty but we’re trying to make the best of the situation,” Jordan said. “We’re trying to find some Disney magic, even when we don’t know what we are going to find when we go back and we don’t know when we will go back home. We’re here even though are hearts are in North Carolina.”

With power outages now affecting more than 475,000 customers in North Carolina and 32,000 in South Carolina, thats over a half million in the dark, and Florence still has plenty more wind and rain to dish out.

Duke Energy, the primary provider in the region has said no technicians will be sent out to restore power until the storm passes.

Even though it leaves you exposed to the elements, experts say that people caught in flood emergencies are safer on the roof than in attics or crawlspaces, where they can more easily become trapped.

With Florence moving at a snail’s pace of 5mph, we’re still waiting to feel the force of the storm here in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Nonetheless, the rain and wind is lashing at my hotel window with reports of minor damage to property a little further up the road.

The centre is only around 65 miles away, but we’re going to be waiting until after midday before it crosses the state line down into South Carolina.

By around that time we’re expecting wind gusts of around 65mph. The centre of the storm is not due to reach us here until the early hours of Saturday morning, at the point forecasters still project Florence will be a category one hurricane.

Updated

Florence from 250 miles above

Check out these stunning images from German astronaut Alexander Gerst looking down on Florence’s eye from the International Space Station.

“Staring down a hurricane” from the International Space Station.
“Staring down a hurricane” from the International Space Station. Photograph: Alexander Gerst/© ESA/NASA
“Staring down a hurricane” from the International Space Station.
“Staring down a hurricane” from the International Space Station. Photograph: Alexander Gerst/© ESA/NASA

Donald Trump’s Twitter is, for the moment, all business as it relates to Hurricane Florence.

Earlier this week Trump responded to discussions about Florence and the administration’s response to storms last year to falsely claim that studies on the death toll from Hurricane Maria were inflated by Democrats to make him look bad.

62 people, including an infant and many children were safely relocated from a hotel in Jacksonville, North Carolina after officials found potentially fatal structural damage to the building.

According to the city:

About 12:45 AM, Jacksonville 9-1-1 received a call about damage to the Triangle Motor Inn at 246 Wilmington Hwy. A basketball sized hole was found in a corner room by an Officer. Firefighters later found life-threatening damage to the structure. Cinder blocks that were part of the structure were crumbling in some places and residents were still in many of the rooms.

Hurricane force winds were a challenge, and Police and Fire had to force their way into some rooms.

Portions of the roof were collapsed, allowing rain to flood some of the rooms.

Using a host of vehicles, Jacksonville Fire and Emergency Services transported many residents of the facility. Some drove their own vehicles with police escorts.

The occupants have been placed in a temporary space in the Center for Public Safety while work is underway to find shelter for the residents.

Updated

The latest update from the National Weather Service says maximum sustained winds remain near 90 mph with higher gusts. It predicts a gradual weakening later today and tonight. Other notable observations:

Track: “The center of Florence will move further inland across extreme southeastern North Carolina and extreme eastern South Carolina today and Saturday. Florence will then move generally northward across the western Carolinas and the central Appalachian Mountains early next week.”

Storm Surge: The water has the potential to reach 7-11 ft from Cape Fear to Cape Lookout with locally higher amounts.

Rainfall: For Southeastern coastal North Carolina into far northeastern South Carolina, an additional 20 to 25 inches, with isolated storm totals of 30 to 40 inches.

For the remainder of South Carolina and North Carolina into southwest Virginia...5 to 10 inches, isolated 15 inches.

Tornados: A few tornadoes are possible in eastern North Carolina today.

One thing to remember with large tropical events like Florence is that they are typically multi-stage flooding events. The initial storm surge and rainfall flooding is often followed by swelling rivers and streams in the days ahead as inland inundation eventually finds its way to the lowest ground.

In North Carolina, Cape Fear River now is predicted to experience record flooding Monday or Tuesday, long after Florence has passed over.

Wilmington has recorded a wind gust of 105 mph, its highest in 60 years and second highest ever observed.

Khushbu Shah is in Wilmington where Florence’s powerful eye wall is making landfall.

She says windows are rattling and rain is pounding in 2-3 minute increments at the hotel windows.

Nearby, Waffle House employees are putting on rain boots, lighting up the hotel lobby with flashlights and are heading out to serve limited menu breakfasts as Florence makes landfall. They’re saying the one downtown is opening soon.

2:09a.m. the power went out in the hotel. Around 4:30a.m. A loud pop and the street lights went off. The sign next from Picasso Pawns flew off in the middle of the night.

Plants are flying out of pots outside. Only cars on the road are news crews and police.”

Wilmington mayor Bill Saffo moments ago speaking to CNN by phone:

The entire city’s out of power ... I’ve lived here all my life. I have never seen a hurricane that is literally going to be with us for two days.”

Florence makes landfall

The storm officially made landfall near Wrightsville Beach, NC at 7:15AM this morning with gusts near 90mph recorded.

There are now nearly 380,000 without power in North Carolina now according to the state Department of Public Safety, a number which could skyrocket in to the millions by days end.

The South East Regional Climate Centre says Wilmington, North Carolina, where Florence will shortly make landfall, has experienced winds of 92mph, the highest recorded there since 1960.

It’s way too early to assess the dollar damage of Florence, but with the current levels of rainfall and storm surge, it won’t be surprising if Florence ends up among the most expensive US hurricanes ever.

The costliest hurricanes on record

Updated

The number of homes without power appears to be rising every minute, according to a constantly updated ticker from North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

It is now more than 370,000.

A firefighter tapes off a street due to a downed power line as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington
A firefighter tapes off a street due to a downed power line as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington Photograph: Carlo Allegri/Reuters

We’re currently in a record stretch for “above normal” hurricane seasons. Due to the intense strength and lengthy duration of Florence, 2018 is already worse than initial expectations.

record level above normal hurricane season

There’s more here.

Updated

Buddy Martinette, Wilmington fire chief has, urged people trapped in their homes in nearby New Bern to stay as high as possible.

Speaking to CNN he said his advice to those people was to “go high, stay there and we will get to you as quick as we can”.

He added:

Most of the firefighters right now are hunkered down trying to wait this out till they can get back out of the streets.

But if there is a life to be saved we go do it. When people stay back in a storm they have to have a very low expectation that somebody is going to be able to come and help them. It is very difficult ...

It will be a few days before the storm is over but recovery will be weeks and months.

The National Weather Service reminds us that landfall occurs when the centre of the eye crosses land.

More than 320,000 homes are without power in North Carolina, according to the latest stats from North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

Several flash flood warnings are in place in North Carolina.

Are hurricanes getting worse? Long-term climate trends paint a worrying picture as Daniel Levitt and Niko Kommenda explain.

The number of storms is increasing

Updated

The eyewall of Florence is now onshore, and landfall is expected very soon, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center.

Gusts of up to 79mph have been reported and water levels are up to 9ft higher than normal in some parts.

Peggy Perry, one of the estimated 150 people trapped in their homes New Bern, North Carolina, has speaking to CNN.

In a matter of seconds my house was flooded up to the waist. And we’re stuck in the attic. There’s four of us.

We’ve been up here for like three or four hours. There’s a little window here that we might have to break up (to get out).

She said she had heard no word from the emergency services about when help will come.

Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street in New Bern, North Carolina.
Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street in New Bern, North Carolina Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The National Weather Service in Charleston says Florence is about to make landfall in North Carolina near Wilmington.

Footage purportedly from New Bern, North Carolina, where authorities are attempting to rescue 150 people.

Strong winds are hitting the North Carolina port city of Wilmington.

Florence has already inundated coastal streets with ocean water and left tens of thousands without power. The onslaught could last for days with large areas flooded by a combination of rising seas and heavy rains.

The coastal city of New Bern is meanwhile attempting to evacuate 150 people trapped by floodwaters and advising them to move higher in their houses.

Updated

A tornado warning has been issued for parts of inland North Carolina

'Catastrophic' flood warnings

The US National Hurricane Center has posted its most recent update. Florence has sustained winds of 75mph and gusts of up to 90mph with coastal storm surges reported.

The NHC has warned of “catastrophic” freshwater flooding expected over portions of the Carolinas as Florence inches closer to the US east coast.

North Carolina governor Roy Cooper has warned of an impending disaster. “The worst of the storm is not yet here but these are early warnings of the days to come,” he said. “Surviving this storm will be a test of endurance, teamwork, common sense and patience.”

Forecasters say the combination of a life-threatening storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland.

Updated

  • At about 2am east coast time, Hurricane Florence is bearing down on the east coat of the US.
  • The hurricane has been downgraded to a category 1 storm – earlier this week it was a category 4.
  • More significant weakening was expected over the weekend and into early next week while Florence moves inland
  • However the slow progress means the hurricane is hovering over the edge of the country, which is experiencing torrential rainfall and life-threatening storm surges
  • The threat of flooding is set to increase over the next few days
  • Florence is about 60 miles (95 km) east-southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph)
  • The National Weather Service said that between 20 and 40 inches of rainfall was predicted to fall in some areas, and warned that they “cannot overstate the threat of catastrophic flooding this storm will bring”
  • The number of people affected by power outages in North Carolina has increased to more than 102,000, according to Emergency Management North Carolina
  • More than 130 shelters currently operating in North Carolina

The National Weather Service (NWS) has been warning people that Florence will not just affect coastal communities, as warnings come that very few parts of North Carolina will escape torrential rainfall, and that surges will occur along rivers and other bodies of water.

An example of the impact on inland communities is seen in this tweet from the NWS in Greenville, which is in the north-west corner of South Carolina, about as far from the coast as you can get in the state.

They are starting to see outer bands of cloud spinning across their area as a result of Florence, with raining beginning tomorrow as a result of the hurricane.

Updated

What sort of water levels might we see?

A buoy off the North Carolina coast has recorded waves nearly 30 feet (9 meters) high as Florence churned toward shore.

Forecasters said conditions will deteriorate as the storm pushes ashore early Friday near the North Carolina-South Carolina line and makes its way slowly inland.

Its surge could cover all but a sliver of the Carolina coast under as much as 11 feet (3.4m) of ocean water, and days of downpours could unload more than 3 feet (0.9m) of rain, causing severe flooding.

Striking images from the Weather Channel show the impact of the storm surge on a town in North Carolina.

Despite the fact the storm has been downgraded to category 1, catastrophic rainfall is still expected.

What we know so far

  • Hurricane Florence has weakened to a Category 1 storm
  • Little change in strength expected before it moves inland on Friday, according to the US national hurricane center
  • Florence is about 60 miles (95 km) east-southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph)
  • More significant weakening was expected over the weekend and into early next week while Florence moves inland
  • Despite the slowing of the storm, life-threatening storm surges and hurricane-force winds are occurring along the North Carolina coast, with the threat of freshwater flooding seen increasing over the next several days
  • The National Weather Service said that between 20 and 40 inches of rainfall was predicted to fall in some areas, and warned that they “cannot overstate the threat of catastrophic flooding this storm will bring”
  • The number of people affected by power outages in North Carolina has increased to more than 102,000, according to Emergency Management North Carolina.
  • More than 130 shelters currently operating in North Carolina

Updated

Our reporters Oliver Laughland and Adam Gabbatt are in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where they have been speaking to people who have evacuated their homes.

The east coast braces for Florence – in pictures

A police vehicle patrols the beach after an evening curfew went into effect as Hurricane Florence approaches Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
A police vehicle patrols the beach after an evening curfew went into effect as Hurricane Florence approaches Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Photograph: David Goldman/AP
Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street in New Bern, North Carolina.
Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street in New Bern, North Carolina. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
A member of the U.S. Army walks through floodwaters near the Union Point Park Complex as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in New Bern, North Carolina.
A member of the U.S. Army walks through floodwaters near the Union Point Park Complex as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in New Bern, North Carolina. Photograph: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
Rain begins to fall as the outer bands of Hurricane Florence make landfall in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Rain begins to fall as the outer bands of Hurricane Florence make landfall in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Photograph: Alex Edelman/AFP/Getty Images
Docks broken by water from Neuse River are seen floating as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in New Bern, North Carolina.
Docks broken by water from Neuse River are seen floating as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in New Bern, North Carolina. Photograph: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters

Florence downgraded to category 1 storm

Hurricane Florence has been downgraded to a category 1 storm off the North Carolina coast, with maximum sustained winds dropping to 90 mph (150km/h), according to the National Hurricane Center.

Well, this is catchy.

A North Carolina TV news station has evacuated its building due to rising waters from Hurricane Florence.

New Bern’s WCTI-TV NewsChannel 12 posted on Facebook on Thursday night that employees had to abandon the studio for the “first time in history.”

A spokesperson for the ABC affiliate said that roads around the building were flooding.

New Bern is a city along the Neuse River and is near the Atlantic coast, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) northeast of Wilmington.

The station said on Facebook that it was broadcasting its sister station WPDE-TV’s coverage of the storm.

The National Weather Service branch in Newport/Morehead City, which is on the coast of North Carolina and bracing for the full impact of the hurricane, has shared a video of furious rain outside their office early tonight.

The North Carolina Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice has evacuated several thousand adult and juvenile offenders and staff from facilities threatened by the effects of Hurricane Florence.

More than 3,000 offenders have been relocated from facilities in the path of Hurricane Florence. Four county jails have also been evacuated with more than 300 offenders housed temporarily in state facilities.

A news release from the division Wednesday said all adult offenders affected by the move will be allowed to make a free phone call to a family member over the weekend.

The division said leaders made the decision earlier in the week to evacuate three juvenile detention centers and relocate inmates to inland facilities within the system. Officials said 26 youth were moved and their families notified.

The news release said all offenders will be moved back to the affected facilities once the storm subsides and it’s deemed safe for operations to continue.

The number of people affected by power outages in North Carolina has increased to more than 102,000, according to Emergency Management North Carolina.

The areas most affected are Beaufort, Carteret, Craven, Onslow and Pamlico.

More information about power outages, as well as road conditions and evacuation routes can be found here.

The governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, has urged people to share a list of shelters that are open across the state. There are more than 130 shelters currently operating in North Carolina, most of which have been set up in schools. That list can be seen here.

The Weather Channel has put green screen to pretty extraordinary use, as they attempt to show what it could look like for people who encounter floodwater reaching nine feet, as is predicted in some areas.

The good stuff begins 40 seconds into the video, skip ahead to that.

A tornado warning has been issued for parts of North Carolina until 7am EDT Friday.

“We cannot overstate the threat of catastrophic flooding this storm will bring!” warns NWS

This is Kate Lyons, taking over from Sam Levin.

The National Weather Service are reporting that, as was the case with Hurricane Harvey last year, so much rain is predicted to fall as a result of Florence that they have to use an updated colour scheme in their rainfall graphic.

Last year, so much rain fell during Hurricane Harvey, which caused catastrophic flooding across Houston, that the NWS had to update their colour charts in their graphics to map it effectively, adding a bright purple to show 20-30 inches of rainfall, and a lilac colour to indicate greater than 30 inches.

Previously, the top band of rainfall shown in their graphics was 15-20 inches, represented by a dark purple.

The NWS have said that they have been forced to use this updated colour scheme again as “Florence is forecast to bring a large area of rainfall of 20-40 inches” to both North and South Carolina. They add that the threat of catastrophic flooding from Florence cannot be overstated.

(The top image in the tweet below is forecast rainfall as a result of Florence, the bottom two images are rainfall from Harvey last year.)

Updated

Summary

Florence is expected to cause historic river flooding and could cause problems for days in parts of North Carolina, according to estimates from local news station WECT.

The Northeast Cape Fear river at Burgaw has a forecast crest of 24ft, which could surpass the previous record of 22.5ft.

The Cape Fear river at Elizabethtown has a forecast crest of 29.6ft, and flooding is also expected at the Waccamaw river in Pireway, though the amount there is still unknown.

The forecast crest is 19.2ft for the Lumber river in Lumberton. Guardian reporter Oliver Laughland has some background on what’s at stake in Lumberton, where rains could cause a dump containing mercury, arsenic and lead to overflow into the water supply:

Here are a few images from photographers on the ground:

A work truck drives on Highway 24 as the wind from Hurricane Florence blows palm trees in Swansboro, North Carolina
A work truck drives on Highway 24 as the wind from Hurricane Florence blows palm trees in Swansboro, North Carolina Photograph: Tom Copeland/AP
Residents wade through deep floodwater to retrieve belongings from the Trent Court public housing apartments after the Neuse River went over its banks during Hurricane Florence
Residents wade through deep floodwater to retrieve belongings from the Trent Court public housing apartments after the Neuse River went over its banks during Hurricane Florence Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Residents try to prepare for more floodwaters at the Trent Court public housing apartments after the Neuse River went over its banks
Residents try to prepare for more floodwaters at the Trent Court public housing apartments after the Neuse River went over its banks Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
A firefighter tapes off a street due to a downed power line as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington, North Carolina
A firefighter tapes off a street due to a downed power line as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Wilmington, North Carolina Photograph: Carlo Allegri/Reuters
A man rides his bike around the waterfront docks before Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Washington, North Carolina
A man rides his bike around the waterfront docks before Hurricane Florence comes ashore in Washington, North Carolina Photograph: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters

Power outages for 80,000

More than 80,000 customers are without power in North Carolina, according to the major electric utilities in the state. Duke Energy estimated that 1m to 3m of its 4m customers in the Carolinas could lose power due to Florence, the AP reports.

There are now more than 12,000 people in 126 shelters in North Carolina, according to governor Roy Cooper. He said the demand is expected to increase and the state is in the process of opening more shelters.

Cooper has also requested a presidential disaster declaration to expedite the process of receiving federal aid for recovery and cleanup:

From the governor’s office:

The added disaster declaration would go beyond the federal action already in effect, which is already providing Federal Emergency Management Agency funds and assistance as we prepare for the hurricane. The additional declaration would provide federal help with debris removal as well as FEMA search and rescue teams, disaster medical teams, hazardous material clean up assistance, meals, generators, fuel and more.

Virginia governor: shelter in place

The governor of Virginia has now advised residents to stay off the road and stay in place as Florence approaches landfall. From the AP:

He says parts of Virginia will likely see tropical storm-force winds, flooding and several inches (centimeters) of rain.

Although the forecast for Virginia is less severe than earlier in the week, Northam says “now is not the time to let down our guard.”

He notes that forecasts for the weekend show a continued threat to southwest Virginia as the storm is expected to make a gradual northerly turn.

There are now 400 people in shelters across the state, officials said.

Sam Levin here, continuing our live coverage. Here’s a new alert from the National Weather Service, which has noted that the storm surge is also expected to occur in inlets and rivers, in some cases in excess of 9ft.

And an image of the storm surge in New Bern, a riverfront city in North Carolina:

Our freelancer Khushbu Shah is in Wilmington North Carolina where she found a number of folks ready to ride the storm out despite the mandatory evacuation order.

Even with an increasingly windy rainfall, neighbors Diane Brown and Bruce Pryor we’re sharing a drink and smoke on Pryor’s from porch a street away from the police HQ. Two pubs and the Waffle House are still open in historic downtown Wilmington. Cape Fear’s co-owner Lector Bennett says he’ll stay open to the dozen people outside drinking until he has to go home and feed his dog. Down the block, an Irish pub, Slainte, will have revelers out front all night.

Residents in Wilmington North Carolina riding out the storm at a pub.
Residents in Wilmington North Carolina riding out the storm at a pub. Photograph: Khushbu Shah for the Guardian

A steady stream of police have been circling these main roads, and a few people are still taking leisurely strolls.

Rain started coming down in Wilmington – hard for a while, now slow and steady – around 3pm.

Wilmington Police Public Affairs Officer says nearly 300 family members of police officers, along with their dogs, cats, and birds, are sheltering inside the police headquarters.

The river behind the Waffle House and bars is moving quicker now, flowing faster.

Updated

"Stay … on the lowest level of your home"

It might seem like counter-intuitive device during a storm when floodwaters are expected, but Fema calls this “critical advice” for those in the storm’s path noting that the combination of soggy, water-saturated ground and hurricane force winds can easily topple even massive trees. Staying in interior rooms on the ground floor reduce the risk that a tree falling on a home will cause injury or death.

Updated

This video from Weather Nation is a frightening demonstration of how powerful even a few inches of storm surge can be, as it knocks a wall in North Carolina off its frame.

FEMA reminds that, whether its storm surge or inland flash flooding, it takes just 6in of floodwater to knock a person down, and two feet worth to carry away a vehicle.

Updated

NHC says not to expect any weakening before landfall

It its most recent update the National Hurricane Center is advising that “little change in strength is expected before the eye of Florence reaches the coast”.

This means that in all likelihood, the costal Carolinas will receive the full brunt of category 2-force, 100mph winds.

The NHC suggests that storms with that wind power will typically lead to the following:

Well-constructed frame homes could sustain major roof and siding damage. Many shallowly rooted trees will be snapped or uprooted and block numerous roads. Near-total power loss is expected with outages that could last from several days to weeks.

According to NHC, Hurricane-force winds currently extend outward up to 80 miles from the center of Florence, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 195 miles.

Updated

By the numbers

Currently Florence is pushing out maximum sustained winds of 100mph and moving WNW at a sluggish 5mph – which could inflate rainfall totals and increase the number of areas that experience catastrophic flooding.

The storm is 100 miles ESE of Wilmington, North Carolina, and 155 miles east of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Updated

I’m here in Myrtle Beach with my colleague Adam Gabbatt.

A boarded up pub in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
A boarded up pub in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Photograph: Oliver Laughland for the Guardian

The winds here are not yet as strong as they are a few hundred miles north, outside of Wilmington, North Carolina. The latest forecast suggests that the strongest winds will arrive here early tomorrow morning, with rain and serious flooding forecast throughout the area.

I just got back from the coast where all the city’s fairground rides have been closed off. Although there were still a few revelers taking a stroll along the beach. Almost every petrol station here has shut down – bar one garage a few miles from our hotel where the line for gas and supplies snaked around the building.

Updated

At this point forecasters are expecting at least 9ft of costal storm surge with some estimates as high as 13ft.

In case you’re having trouble visualizing what 9ft of storm surge looks like, The Weather Channel’s Erika Navarro has this virtual look of what some in Florence’s path could be up against.

Storm surge is the swelling mass of water from the ocean that is pushed toward the shore by the force of the winds swirling around the the storm.

Updated

The steady battering power of Florence’s winds are well illustrated in video footage from atop a decommissioned lighthouse off the North Carolina coast. An NBC periscope feed from the Frying Pan Tower showed the winds steadily picking up over the course of four hours, eventually shearing an American flag.

American Flag at Frying Pan Island tattering in hurricane force winds
American Flag at Frying Pan Island tattering in hurricane force winds Photograph: NBC News Periscope

Florence approaches Carolinas as a category 2 storm

Hurricane Florence is continuing to push towards a landfall around the North Carolina/South Carolina border, and is beginning to lash the central Atlantic seaboard with damaging winds and storm surge. As of Thursday afternoon the storm was generating sustained winds of 105mph, as storm surge water has begun to rush into homes and streets along beachside communities.

Nearly 2 million coastal residents are now under mandatory evacuation orders, although it remains unclear how many have actually done so. Officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) have warned that failure to do so could be potentially deadly. Another 8 million people live in areas covered by hurricane and tropical storm warnings.

Preceded first by the storm surge and the winds, heavy rains were picking up as of late Thursday afternoon, the beginning of an onslaught that for some areas may not relent for days. Forecasters are predicting as much as 40in of rain in some localized areas.

interactive

We’ll be tracking developments on this blog overnight and into tomorrow morning when the hurricane’s eyewall, the most damaging part, is expected to make landfall.

Updated

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