Hurricane Florence lashes US
Carolinas hit by record rain as slow-moving storm makes landfall
AT LEAST four people, including a mother and her baby, were confirmed dead last night as Hurricane Florence brought a “biblical” deluge to the US east coast.
The woman and infant died when a tree fell on their house in Wilmington, North Carolina, police said. The baby’s father was taken to hospital.
Elsewhere in the storm-ravaged state a man died plugging in a power cord, and a woman died from a heart attack after rescuers were unable to reach her home past downed trees.
Last night the 640km-wide storm had knocked out power to half a million homes and businesses, and left many people stranded in their flooded homes.
The eye of the mammoth storm made landfall at Wrightsville Beach, just outside Wilmington, yesterday morning, with winds of more than 160kmh, then stalled and began crawling inland at just 5kmh.
It was expected to drop eight months’ worth of rain in just a few days on North Carolina.
Roy Cooper, the state’s governor, said it was a “thousand-year rain event” that would “continue its violent grind for days”. “We’re deeply concerned for whole communities which could be wiped away,” he added.
Ralph Evangelous, the Wilmington police chief, added: “I see a Biblical proportion flood event, pretty epic in nature.”
Within hours 76cm of rain fell on Atlantic Beach in North Carolina’s Outer Banks barrier island chain.
Some 1.7 million people had been told to evacuate but many stayed.
Around 20,000 took refuge in shelters at schools, others moved into hotels.
In the town of Jacksonville, North Carolina, 70 people, including families with pets, were rescued after the Triangle Motor Inn motel began crumbling and parts of its roof came off.
Tim Samples (32) fled his home two blocks away, along with his wife and three daughters, to shelter at the Carolinian Inn. “This is the worst storm I’ve ever seen,” he said. “I don’t know if my house is okay. I can’t get back there at the moment. Fingers crossed.”
Streets in Wilmington, which usually has a population of 100,000, were deserted. Its suburban areas became a maze of roads blocked by fallen trees and power lines.
The town of New Bern, 140km up the coast from Wilmington, saw its centre submerged as the River Neuse burst its banks following a 3m storm surge. Residents rescued 350 neighbours using boats but many more were still stranded. In a tweet, New Bern officials told those stranded to “move up to the second floor, or to your attic, but we are coming to get you”. (© Daily Telegraph London)