Tropical Storm Debbie makes second landfall in South Carolina

HUGER, SC (AP) – Tropical Storm Debbie A second landslide has made its way up the East Coast in South Carolina, where residents as far north as Vermont could receive several inches of rain this weekend.

The National Hurricane Center says Debbie made landfall early Thursday near Bull’s Bay, South Carolina. The storm is expected to move inland and spread Heavy rain and possible flooding All the way through the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast for the weekend.

Debbie Landed first A Category 1 hurricane hit Florida’s Gulf Coast early Monday morning. It is now A tropical storm Winds with maximum gusts of 50 mph (80 kph).

Significant flooding is expected through Friday in parts of eastern South Carolina and southeastern North Carolina, and 3 to 9 inches (8 to 23 centimeters) of rain is forecast, as well as parts of Virginia, the hurricane center said.

Days of rain have forced flood-hardened residents of South Carolina communities to begin the almost ritualistic task of assessing the damage left by Debbie, which continues to swirl across the Atlantic Ocean and affect thunderstorms from the East Coast to the Great Lakes. . The National Weather Service office in Charleston said monitoring teams had confirmed four Debbie-related tornadoes.

Around 3 a.m. Thursday, an apparent tornado formed as Debbie’s outer bands swept across North Carolina, damaging at least four homes, a church and a school in Wilson County, east of Raleigh, county officials said. No immediate injuries. Debbie could bring more tornadoes to parts of North Carolina and Virginia on Thursday, forecasters said.

Flooding caused by heavy rains has closed a major highway on the east coast. Interstate 95 near Fayetteville, North Carolina, was closed before sunrise Thursday, and officials did not say when the section of the freeway that connects Florida to Maine would reopen.

In Hugar, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northeast of Charleston, Jean Taylor spent the afternoon waiting for a few inches of water to recede from her home as high tide passed through French Quarter Creek.

Taylor saw the potential for flooding last week and began moving items in her home out or up. It’s a lesson learned the hard way — Taylor estimates this is the fourth time her home has flooded in the past nine years.

“To save everything, we’ve learned from the past, it’s better to be prepared for the worst. Unfortunately, I think we got it,” Taylor said.

A few doors down, Charles Granger was cleaning up after about 8 inches (20 centimeters) of water flooded his home.

“Eight inches can disrupt your whole life,” Grainger said. “You are not used to it. You grin and bear it. It’s just part of living on the creek.

In Georgia, at least four dams broke northwest of Savannah in Bulloch County, but no deaths were reported, officials said at a briefing.

Emergency Management Director Corey Kemp said more than 75 people were rescued from flooding in the county, and about 100 roads were closed.

For residents on that day Tappan Zee Drive in Suburban Pooler, west of Savannah, Georgia, is a dip that comes with a painful dose of déjà vu for Debbie Debbie. In October 2016, Hurricane Matthew filled a nearby canal, flooding many. The same houses.

Located about 30 miles (50 kilometers) inland from the Atlantic Ocean, with no nearby creeks or rivers, the neighborhood is not known to be a high-risk area for tropical flooding. But despite efforts by the local government to fix the drainage problems, residents say their street has been plagued by drainage problems for over a decade.

Debbie dumped rain on the Great Lakes and communities as far away as New York and New Jersey. The tropical storm’s moisture strengthened another system Tuesday evening, producing strong thunderstorms, according to Weather Service meteorologist Scott Kleibauer.

“We had several rounds of showers and thunderstorms moving eastward from Michigan,” Kleibauer said.

6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain fell in parts of New Jersey within four hours.

Emergency officials in New York City have warned of possible flash flooding. Flying drones with loudspeakers Some neighborhoods are telling people in basement apartments to be ready to evacuate at a moment’s notice. Several water rescues were reported in and around the city.