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Hurricane Florence On Track Toward Carolina Coast
The 8 a.m. forecast on Hurricane Florence reinforces projections that the storm's path will shift slightly to the southeast as it closes in on the Carolinas.
The center of the Category 4 Hurricane, still swirling with top winds of 130 mph was about 530 miles southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, approaching the coast at 17 mph.
National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham says damaging winds and rain could begin hitting the coast late Thursday, pushing a storm surge that could reach 13 feet in places. Rain will continue through Sunday, dumping feet of water over a wide area.
Cooper Issues Mandatory Evacuation Order For Barrier Islands Ahead of 'Monster' Florence
Gov. Roy Cooper sounded the alarm on Hurricane Florence once again Tuesday in a televised appearance with members of his emergency management team.
“This storm is a monster,” he said. “It's big, and it's vicious. It is an extremely dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane. That's why I'm ordering a mandatory state evacuation for our barrier islands.”
In North Carolina, local municipalities are typically in charge of evacuation orders. This appears to be the first time the state has issued such a mandate.
“Even if you've ridden out storms before, this one is different,” Cooper said. “Don't bet your life on riding out a monster.”
On Monday, President Donald Trump granted Cooper's request for a federal disaster declaration, which opens the door for federal resources to aid North Carolina's recovery.
Hurricane Could Flood Many Waste Sites, Creating Toxic Brew
The heavy rain expected from Hurricane Florence could flood hog manure pits, coal ash dumps and other industrial sites in North Carolina, creating a noxious witches' brew of waste.
The tainted water might wash into homes and threaten drinking water supplies.
Computer models predict more than 3 feet of rain in the eastern part of the state, a fertile low-lying plain veined by brackish rivers with a propensity for escaping their banks.
Florence Poses A New Threat For Rural, Struggling Towns
Hurricane Florence is taking aim at parts of the Carolinas where many families struggle to get by, and who may lack the money to flee or recover after the damage is done.
The director of the Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute at the University of South Carolina says Florence's predicted path means trouble for some of the poorest communities in the region. Susan Cutter says she fears there are a lot of people in low-lying, flood-prone areas who aren't leaving because they had nowhere to go and no resources to get there.
Beaufort County, along North Carolina's Pamlico Sound, is pressing school system buses into service Wednesday moving residents living in flood-prone areas to higher ground and the local high school that will shelter up to 500 people.
North Carolina's Wild Horses Expected To Survive Hurricane
As North Carolina braces for Hurricane Florence, some tourists and residents are worried about the famous wild horses that roam the Outer Banks.
But Sue Stuska, a wildlife biologist based at Cape Lookout National Seashore, said the horses instinctively know what to do in a storm. She says they will find higher ground on sand dunes during flooding and head for shrub thickets and the forest during high winds.
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