Carolinas brace for hurricane Florence
Possible Category 4 hurricane could hit U.S. on Thursday
RALEIGH, N.C. — Florence rapidly strengthened into a potentially catastrophic Category 4 hurricane on Monday as it closed in on North and South Carolina, carrying winds and water that could wreak havoc over a wide stretch of the eastern United States later this week.
The South Carolina governor ordered the state's entire coastline to be evacuated starting at noon Tuesday.
The first effects of what forecasters are already calling a large and extremely dangerous hurricane were already being seen on barrier islands Monday as dangerous rip currents and seawater flowed over the state highway.
For many, the challenge could be finding a safe refuge: If Florence slows to a crawl just off the coast, it could carry torrential rains up into the Appalachian Mountains, causing flash floods, mudslides and other dangerous weather across a wide area.
National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham warned that Florence was forecast to slow down significantly and linger over the Carolinas once it reaches shore, dropping heavy rainfall as far as West Virginia. People living well inland should prepare to lose power and anticipate flooding and other hazards, he warned.
“It’s not just the coast,” Graham said. “When you stall a system like this and it moves real slow, some of that rainfall can extend well away from the centre.”
A warm ocean is the fuel that powers hurricanes, and Florence will be moving over waters where temperatures are peaking near 30 C, hurricane specialist Eric Blake wrote. And with little wind shear to pull the storm apart, Florence’s hurricane wind field was expected to expand over the coming days, increasing its storm surge and inland wind threats along with life-threatening freshwater flooding.
By noon on Monday, Florence had top sustained winds of 195 km/h. It was centred about 1,985 kilometres east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving west at 20 km/h.
Its centre will move between Bermuda and the Bahamas Tuesday and Wednesday, and approach the coast of South Carolina or North Carolina on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said.
Hurricane Isaac, meanwhile, was expected to lose strength as it reaches the Caribbean, and Helene, much farther out to sea, may veer northward into the open Atlantic as the 2018 hurricane season reaches its peak.
Preparations for Florence were intensifying up and down the densely populated coast. Since reliable record-keeping began more than 150 years ago, North Carolina has only been hit by one Category 4 hurricane: Hazel, with 210 km/h winds in 1954.
The parking lot has been full for three days at the Ace Hardware store in coastal Calabash, North Carolina, where manager Tom Roberts said he sold 150 gas cans in two hours Monday, along with generators, plywood, rope, manual can openers, sand bags and a plethora of other items.
“I’ve been doing this since 1983,” Roberts said as he completed an order for another 18-wheeler full of supplies. “This is the craziest one.”
Many newcomers have moved to the coast in the nearly 19 years since the last strong hurricane — Floyd — threatened the area. Roberts said he’s telling them to get out of town.
“I’m telling them to go inland, but I’m worried about the rain and tornadoes too,” Roberts said.
Several meteorologists said Florence could do what hurricane Harvey did over Texas, dumping days of rain, although not quite as bad.
“I think this is very Harvey-esque,” said University of Miami hurricane expert Brian McNoldy. “Normally, a landfalling tropical cyclone just keeps on going inland, gradually dissipating and raining itself out. But on rare occasions, the steering patterns can line up such that a storm slips into a dead zone between troughs and ridges.”
On North Carolina’s Outer Banks, Dawn Farrow Taylor, 50, was gathering photos and important documents and filling prescriptions Monday before heading inland. She grew up on the shore, and says this will be only the second time she’s evacuated.
“I don’t think many of us have ever been through a Category 4. And out here we’re so fragile. We’re just a strip of land — we’re a barrier island ... Already we’re getting some overwash, the ocean is coming over 12,” she said, referring to the islands’ main road.
The governors of North and South Carolina and Virginia declared states of emergency far ahead of the storm. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster asked President Donald Trump to declare a federal emergency.