Extreme flooding leaves 2 dead, 20 unaccounted for in N. Carolina

CANTON, N.C. — At least two people were killed after Tropical Storm Fred swept through western North Carolina on Wednesday night, dousing the area with heavy rain that caused severe flooding.

Authorities warned that the death toll could rise, as 20 people are still unaccounted for. Nearly 100 others had to be rescued from flooded homes and cars, the North Carolina Department of Public Safety said in a news release.

The department described the flooding of the Pigeon River, which runs along the base of the Appalachian Mountains, as “historic.” Several towns, including Cruso and Bethel, were affected. “Cruso saw some of the worst destruction in Haywood County that I’ve seen in my life,” county Emergency Services Director Travis Donaldson said.

Even as the water receded, Haywood County residents were grappling with the destruction. Officials estimated that about 500 families had been displaced by the damage, and some lost their homes. Rockslides closed roads, one college’s hallways flooded and at least 10 bridges were damaged or destroyed, officials said in a Facebook post.

Haywood County Sheriff Greg Christopher told reporters Thursday he wasn’t sure how many vehicles were still stranded, but emergency crews were working to check every remaining car for passengers.

Haywood County, along with at least seven other western North Carolina counties, declared a state of emergency on Tuesday evening as the storm approached, warning that there was a potential for landslides, flooding, structural damage and unsafe road conditions. The county had requested residents in low-lying areas near the Pigeon evacuate.

The area’s steep geography hastened the flooding.

“It happened in a matter of about 45 minutes,” a local resident told the WYFF TV station.

Bill Martin, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C., office, said that parts of the North Carolina mountains received 8 to 12 inches of rain from Tropical Storm Fred.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Grace’s strong winds made landfall on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula early Thursday morning, and the storm is expected to shift over the southwest Gulf of Mexico.