North Carolina
North Carolina town hit with record rainfall:
Several towns in southeastern North Carolina saw historic rainfall Monday as a potential tropical cyclone ripped through the area. Precipitation in Carolina Beach, along the coast near Wilmington, set an especially striking record. According to the National Weather Service, 18 inches of rain fell over Ocean Boulevard over the course of 12 hours — something that only happens “once every 1,000 years,” meteorologists said.
“Historic rain has fallen across Carolina Beach, Southport, and BSL today,” the weather service in Wilmington wrote in a social media post shared Monday afternoon. “Volunteer gauges have recorded over a foot of rain since midnight.”
Citing National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data, the weather service noted that 12 inches of rainfall over a 12-hour period only occurs in this area once every 200 years on average. That uncommon threshold was met in a number of places where gauges collected rainfall measurements from midnight Monday through midday.
The 18 inches recorded on Ocean Boulevard at Carolina Beach was the highest rainfall total tied to the weather system. After that, areas around nearby Snows Cut Bridge, Sunny Point Military Terminal and Boiling Springs Lakes all received upwards of 14 inches in half a day’s time. Parts of Southport and the town of St. James each recorded more than a foot of rain, while Leland, which is closer to Wilmington, saw almost 7 inches. Rainfall totals in Wilmington itself were considerably lower, with a measurement taken at the Wilmington Airport showing just over 3 1/2 inches.
Dangerous flash flooding and powerful, gusty winds struck portions of southeastern North Carolina Monday, when the National Hurricane Center warned that some effects of the storm they called Potential Tropical Cyclone Eight could be “life-threatening.” At 5 p.m. EDT that afternoon, forecasters estimated that the system would bring another 4 to 8 inches of rainfall to parts of the region before the end of the night, with up to 10 inches of rainfall possible in some places.
The weather service in Wilmington shared images of some of the damage caused by Monday’s rain and flooding. In Brunswick County, the weather caused part of a road to collapse, with fragments of it seen floating in a pit of muddied water that pooled beneath.
“There have been major road washouts across Brunswick County to dto today’s heavy rainfall and flash flooding,” the service said.
Forecasters said areas hit Monday weren’t expected to see additional rain Tuesday. The myriad flash flood warnings previously in place across the area expired before midnight.
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Coastal regions of North Carolina were still underwater on Tuesday after another historic flood, marking the fifth time in 25 years that residents have faced this kind of weather.
Torrential rains poured into the southeastern part of the state earlier this week, leaving parts of Brunswick County submerged and prompting widespread road closures, including the heavily traveled U.S. Highway 17.
The storm, which unleashed more than 18 inches of rain in just 12 hours on Monday in Carolina Beach, came after the National Hurricane Center issued advisories about the storm on Sunday. The NHC warned of the storm’s “life-threatening” flash flooding impact in a social media post on Monday as meteorologists continued to track the storm, which had a high chance of forming into Tropical Storm Helene, the eighth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season.
Although it reached tropical storm strength, the storm never attained the necessary structure to be classified as a tropical storm, Dan Brown, the branch chief of the NHC’s hurricane specialist unit, previously told Newsweek.
Still, the storm has continued to leave a devastating impact on the area.
According to Brunswick County emergency officials, emergency crews delivered food and water to those trapped as they waited for the water to rescind. No fatalities have been reported, though local authorities have confirmed significant damage to infrastructure, with many roads washed out or severely compromised.
The National Weather Service (NWS) office in Wilmington, North Carolina, also commented on the severity of the floodwaters on Monday.
“Roads are flooded at least 3 feet deep in parts of Carolina Beach,” NWS Wilmington posted on X, formerly Twitter, sharing a photo that showed floodwaters rising halfway up a van. “No cars or trucks are designed to safely travel in floodwater this deep. Please stay off the roads.”
Newsweek reached out to Brunswick County emergency officials via email for comment
Meteorologists at NWS Wilmington said Monday’s downpour qualifies as a “1,000-year flood,” a rare event.
Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office/ AP
This is not the first time this region has faced floods of this magnitude, with past floods from hurricanes Diana (1984), Floyd (1999) and Florence (2018) dumping historic amounts of rain on the same area.
According to Tim Armstrong, a meteorologist with NWS, the recurring disasters, amplified by climate change, are part of a troubling pattern for coastal communities.
He explained that the “warmer the air, the more moisture it can hold,” leading to intensified storms that can unleash massive downpours, even when they’re not powerful hurricanes.
The Atlantic hurricane season, which runs through November, has already been highly active. Due to near-record sea surface temperatures, NOAA predicts more storms on the horizon.
While the storm has now moved into southeast Virginia, concerns remain for residents of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Floodwaters closed the vulnerable North Carolina Highway 12 on Ocracoke Island, and erosion continues to threaten homes in Rodanthe, where sea levels have steadily risen over the past decade.
Armstrong, who previously spoke to Newsweek, said it’ll take time for the floodwaters in Carolina Beach to drain, but calm weather is forecast for the next few days, which will aid in clean-up.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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