Flooding fear rises as deluge fills rivers
Downgraded storm dumps 30 inches of rain on Carolinas
WILMINGTON, N.C. — Catastrophic flooding from Florence spread across the Carolinas on Sunday, with roads to Wilmington cut off by the epic deluge and muddy river water swamping entire neighborhoods miles inland. “The risk to life is rising with the angry waters,” Gov. Roy Cooper declared as the storm’s death toll climbed to 17.
The storm continued to crawl westward, dumping more than 30 inches of rain in spots since Friday, and fears of historic flooding grew. Tens of thousands were ordered evacuated from communities along the state’s steadily rising rivers — with the Cape Fear, Little River, Lumber, Waccamaw and Pee Dee rivers all projected to burst their banks.
In Wilmington, with roads leading in and out of the city under water and streams swelling upward, residents waited for hours outside stores and restaurants for basic necessities. Police guarded the door of one store, and only 10 people were allowed inside at a time.
Woody White, chairman of the board of commissioners of NewHanover County, said officials were planning for food and water to be flown into the coastal city of nearly 120,000 people.
“Our roads are flooded,” he said. “There is no access to Wilmington.”
About 70 miles away from the coast, residents near the Lumber River stepped from their homes directly into boats floating in their front yards; river forecasts showed the scene could be repeated in towns as far as 250 miles inland as waters rise for days.
Downgraded to a tropical depression overnight, Florence was still massive. Radar showed parts of the sprawling storm over six states, with North and South Carolina in the bull’seye.
The head of Federal Emergency Management Agency, Brock Long, said officials were focused on finding people and rescuing them.
“We’ll get through this. It’ll be ugly, but we’ll get through it,” Long told NBC’s “Meet The Press.”
President Donald Trump said federal emergency workers, first responders and law enforcement officials are “working really hard” on Florence. He tweeted that as the storm “begins to finally recede, they will kick into an even higher gear. Very Professional!”
The storm’s death toll climbed to at least 17 when a 3-month- old child was killed when a tree fell across a mobile home in North Carolina. Earlier, officials said three people died in separate, weather-related traffic accidents in South Carolina.
About 740,000 homes and businesses remained without power in the Carolinas, and utilities said some could be out for weeks.
Victor Merlos was overjoyed to find a store open for business in Wilmington since he had about 20 relatives staying at his apartment, which still had power. He spent more than $500 on cereal, eggs, soft drinks and other necessities, plus beer. Urban search and rescue workers check cars in a flooded Fayetteville, N.C., neighborhood.
“I have everything I need for my whole family,” said Merlos. Nearby, a Waffle House restaurant limited breakfast customers to one biscuit and one drink, all take-out, with the price of $2 per item.
Florence was still spinning slowly atop the Carolinas as it pulled warm water from the ocean and hurled it onshore. Kenneth Campbell had donned waterproof waders intending to check out his home in Lumberton, but he didn’t bother when he saw the Coast Guard and murky waters in his neighborhood.
“I’m not going to waste my time. I already know,” he said.
As rivers swelled toward record levels, state regulators and environmental groups were monitoring the threat from gigantic hog and poultry farms located in low- lying, flood- prone areas.
The i ndustrial- scale farms typically feature vast pits of animal feces and urine that can pose a significant pollution threat if they are breached or inundated by floodwaters. In past hurricanes, flooding at dozens of farms also left hundreds of thousands of dead hogs, chickens and other decomposing livestock bobbing in floodwaters.
Stream gauges across the region showed water levels rising steadily, with forecasts calling for rivers to crest Sunday and Monday at or near record levels. The Defense Department said about 13,500 military per- sonnel had been assigned to help relief efforts.
Authorities ordered the immediate evacuation of up to 7,500 people living within a mile of a stretch of the Cape Fear River and the Little River, about 100 miles from the North Carolina coast. The evacuation zone included part of the city of Fayetteville, population 200,000.
Officials were warning residents not only to stay off the roads but also to avoid using GPS systems.
“As conditions change, GPS navigation systems are not keeping up with the road closures and are directing people onto roads that are confirmed closed and/or flooded,” the state Transportation Department said on Twitter.