CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Hurricane Dorian pounded both Carolinas Thursday with winds and rain, proving experts wrong after days of forecasts predicting the storm would slowly weaken as it reached the Outer Banks off North Carolina.
About 200,000 people were without power from Hilton Head to Charleston, S.C., Thursday morning. Dozens of roads were flooded, and watches and warnings for tornadoes, flash floods and storm surge were growing north of Myrtle Beach into North Carolina.
A video tweeted by Live5News reporter Paola Tristan Arruda at 1:15 a.m. showed Charleston's famous North Market Street had become a river through the historic downtown, as emergency lights flickered on buildings.
Tornadoes began to form on the northern edge of the storm just after dawn, including two reported in Horry County near Myrtle Beach, S.C., according to the Myrtle Beach Sun News.
Multiple tornadoes were also reported in North Carolina.
One ripped through Emerald Isle about 9 a.m., destroying multiple mobile homes, according to the National Weather Service. Another tornado touched down in Brunswick County, "leaving a trail of damage approximately 10 miles long near Calabash and Sunset Beach," according to a release from N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper's office.
A funnel cloud was also recorded on video about 7 a.m. in Pender County near Fire Station 18, the National Weather Service tweeted.
As the damage and flooding mounted, evening curfews were announced in multiple communities near the North Carolina coast, and a daytime curfew began noon Thursday in Southport, N.C., "until further notice," according to the Brunswick County Sheriff's Office.
"Conditions are deteriorating and with confirmed tornadoes in the area, it is simply not safe to be out," said Brunswick County officials on Facebook.
Coastal communities in South Carolina are expected to get 6 to 12 inches of rain Thursday, with isolated areas of 15 inches, according to the National Hurricane Center.
In North Carolina, predictions of rainfall in excess of 10 inches continued to grow Thursday, with nearly all coastal counties expected to get 10 to 15 inches of rain, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Dorian's winds were 110 mph at near noon Thursday, a Category 2, and it was moving north at 8 mph so close to the coast that forecasters say landfall could happen at any time.
The center of the storm was 80 miles southeast of Charleston at 5 a.m. Thursday, with thunderstorms and strong winds coming ashore and moving to the west. A NOAA buoy about 45 miles southeast of Charleston reported a sustained wind of 71 mph with a gust to 83 mph around 9 a.m., said the National Hurricane Center.
Wind gusts of 68 mph were reported at Charleston International, and 69 mph gusts were recorded on Dewees Island, reported the Charleston Post & Courier.
Charleston had more than 50 road closures early Thursday, many due to flooding and others due to high winds bringing down trees and power lines, according to the city's website.
South Carolina coastal towns just south of Myrtle Beach were seeing sustained winds at tropical storm strength _ 50 mph _ before dawn Thursday and gusts of nearly 60 mph.
The National Weather Service in Myrtle Beach reported gusts as high as 58 mph overnight and up to 2 inches of rain. An additional 8 inches of rain were expected for the city through the night, prompting flash flood watches until Friday morning.
In North Carolina, mandatory evacuations were in place for barrier islands. Coastal counties near the bays, coastal rivers and sounds also called for residents to evacuate near the coast.
Dorian is expected to bring deadly storm surge, flooding and tornadoes to the coast through the day Thursday as it heads toward the Outer Banks.
Forecasters have not predicted a potential area of landfall on the Carolinas, but suggest it could cross onto land at any point.
"The center of Dorian will continue to move close to the coast of South Carolina through the day, and then move near or over the coast of North Carolina tonight and Friday," the National Hurricane Center said at 5 a.m. Friday.
Coastal flooding was expected to reach 4 to 8 feet above normal levels from the Savannah River in South Caroline north to Cape Lookout on the Outer Banks, the National Hurricane Center said.
"The surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves. Surge-related flooding depends on the how close the center of Dorian comes to the coast, and can vary greatly over short distances."
North Carolina's state medical examiner reported the state's first Dorian-related death occurred Monday, when an 85-year-old Columbus County man "fell off a ladder while preparing his house for the storm."
At least three of the 20-plus deaths attributed to the storm have involved men falling off ladders as they prepared for the storm or tried to remove trees, according to The Weather Channel. Most of the deaths occurred in the Bahamas.
