The death toll from Hurricane Florence climbed to at least 37, including two women who drowned when a sheriff’s van taking them to a mental health facility was swept away by floodwaters, and North Carolina’s governor pleaded with thousands of evacuees not to return home just yet.
President Donald Trump, meanwhile, arrived in storm-ravaged North Carolina on Wednesday and helped volunteers at a church in the hard-hit coastal town of New Bern.
“How’s the house?” Trump was heard asking one person as distributed plastic foam containers of food, including hot dogs, chips and fruit. “You take care of yourself.”
Wilmington, population 120,000, was still mostly an island surrounded by floodwaters, and people waited for hours Tuesday for handouts of food, water and tarps. Thousands of others around the state waited in shelters for the all-clear.
“I know it was hard to leave home, and it is even harder to wait and wonder whether you even have a home to go back to,” Gov. Roy Cooper said.
After submerging North Carolina with nearly 3 feet of rain, the storm dumped more than 6.5 inches of rain in the Northeast, where it caused flash flooding.
Cooper warned that the flooding is far from over and will get worse in places.
“I know for many people this feels like a nightmare that just won’t end,” he said.
Addressing roughly 10,000 people who remain in shelters and “countless more” staying elsewhere, Cooper urged them to stay put for now, particularly those from the hardest-hit coastal counties that include Wilmington, near where Florence blew ashore on Friday.
Roads remain treacherous, he said, and some are still being closed for the first time as rivers swelled by torrential rains inland drain toward the Atlantic.
At least 27 of the deaths happened in North Carolina.
In South Carolina, two women died on Tuesday evening when floodwaters from the Little Pee Dee River engulfed the van taking them to a mental health facility, authorities said.
The risk of environmental damage mounted, as human and animal waste was washed into the swirling floodwaters.
More than 5 million gallons of partially treated sewage spilled into the Cape Fear River after power went out at a treatment plant, officials said, and the earthen dam of a pond holding hog waste was breached, spilling its contents. The flooding killed an estimated 3.4 million chickens and 5,500 hogs on farms.
In Wilmington on Tuesday, workers began handing out supplies using a system resembling a giant fast-food drive-thru: Drivers pulled up to a line of pallets, placed an order and left without having to get out. A woman blew a whistle each time drivers had to pull forward.
Todd Tremain needed tarps to cover up spots where Florence’s winds ripped shingles off his roof. Others got a case of bottled water or military MREs, or field rations. An olive-drab military forklift moved around huge pallets loaded with supplies.
Brandon Echavarrieta struggled to stay composed as he described life post-Florence: no power for days, rotted meat in the freezer, no water or food and just one bath in a week.
“It’s been pretty bad,” said Echavarrieta, 34, his voice breaking.
About 3,500 vehicles came through for supplies on the first day they were available, county officials said in a Facebook post.
Supplies have been brought into the city by big military trucks and helicopters,
At Fayetteville, about 100 miles inland, near the Army’s sprawling Fort Bragg, flooding from Cape Fear River got so bad that authorities closed a vehicle bridge after the water began touching girders supporting the span’s top deck.
Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin said it was unclear if the bridge was threatened.
“We’ve never had it at those levels before, so we don’t really know what the impact will be just yet,” he said.
Photo via Associated Press / Chris Seward
Related Stories
‹

Hurricane Florence’s Death Toll Rises to 41At least 41 deaths have now been attributed to Hurricane Florence. North Carolina Department of Public Safety spokesman Keith Acree says four additional deaths were reported Thursday to the state and occurred in Duplin County. He did not release further details about the deaths. The death toll in North Carolina now stands at 31. The […]

Death Toll Rises to 11 as Florence Pours on the RainThe Marines, the Coast Guard, civilian crews and volunteers used helicopters, boats and heavy-duty vehicles Saturday to rescue hundreds of people trapped by Florence’s shoreline onslaught, even as North Carolina braced for what could be the next stage of the disaster: widespread, catastrophic flooding inland. The death toll from the hurricane-turned-tropical storm climbed to 11. […]

North Carolina Official Overseeing Hurricane Rebuilding Efforts Is No Longer in RoleThe top North Carolina official for rebuilding efforts after natural disasters is no longer working in the position, the AP reports.

Yellen Warns Inaction on Climate Could Cause Economic CrisisWritten by HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned Tuesday of economic calamity if climate change is not addressed with immediate government intervention. Joined by local business owners and prominent Democrats in North Carolina, Yellen said the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters could create devastating short-term supply reductions of everyday goods that could […]

Bill Seeking to Shore up Flood-Prone NC Areas Gets HearingA top North Carolina House Republican says legislation that would spend $220 million in part to shore up highways, rivers and coastal areas prone to flooding will make the state more resilient when the next big storm arrives. The House Environment Committee scheduled debate Tuesday on the proposed “Disaster Relief and Mitigation Act,” pushed in […]
![]()
Audit: NC Department of Transportation Overspent by $740MThe North Carolina Department of Transportation spent $740 million beyond what it planned to last year, state auditors said Tuesday as they urged stronger oversight of how DOT and its regional offices handle finances. The performance review by State Auditor Beth Wood’s office found DOT had spent $6.68 billion on road construction and repairs and other transportation […]
![]()
Cooper Seeks Even More Funds for Post-Florence RecoveryFederal housing authorities awarded more than $336 million to North Carolina to address damaged housing, businesses and infrastructure brought on by Hurricane Florence, but the governor said Tuesday that wasn’t enough. Gov. Roy Cooper said the funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development falls short of the state’s needs and he called […]

More Money Heading to NC Fishermen Harmed by FlorenceMore money is heading to North Carolina commercial fishermen whose landings were harmed by Hurricane Florence. The state Division of Marine Fisheries is sending out 1,000 checks totaling $7.2 million to compensate fishermen whose harvests fell in October and November due to the storm’s aftermath. Another 680 checks valued at $3.2 million already were distributed […]

Hurricane Names Florence, Michael Retired by MeteorologistsThe names of two hurricanes that caused widespread devastation from Florida to Virginia last year have been retired. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says Florence and Michael will be replaced with Francine and Milton. The new names will first appear during the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Names are retired when hurricanes are so destructive […]

Deadline Approaches for Florence Aid in North CarolinaThe deadline has been extended to December 19.**** Home and business owners suffering damages from Hurricane Florence are running out of time to request federal government aid. The deadline is Thursday night to apply for grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration. More than 99,000 […]
›
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines