Flooding and railroad work closes Wilmington streets

Wilmington, NC (WWAY) — The Cape Fear area experienced lots of heavy wind and rain Thursday morning with a weather system that quickly moved through the region.

According to Wilmington Fire Department Spokeswoman Natosha Vincent, more than a dozen calls came into the New Hanover County 911 Dispatch Center between 5-9 AM due to weather-related incidents.

Some calls were for downed power lines, motor vehicle accidents, and stranded or stalled motorists Vincent said. On a typical day, the 911 center receives about 1-4 calls during this time frame.

“We ask for everyone to stay alert,” Vincent said. ” Turn around, don’t drown.”

Many traffic signal lights were out across Wilmington due to power outages including the intersections of 5th & Dawson Streets, and 3rd & Greenfield Streets. There were also problems with signal lights at 5th and Marstellar Streets.

Between 4-9 AM, ILM Airport received 1.58 inches of rain making it the wettest day of 2019.

According to WWAY Meteorologist Justin McKee, the rain is expected to continue through noon and give way to sunny skies in the afternoon.

In addition to flooded streets, a number of streets were also closed due to maintenance work on CSX railroad tracks throughout Wilmington. As of 9 AM Thursday, the following streets are now open or closed:

• 30th Street – OPEN
• Princess Place – OPEN
• Henry Street – OPEN
• Clay Street – OPEN
• Westig Street – CLOSED
• Covil Avenue – OPEN
• Mercer Drive – OPEN
• Forest Hills Drive – OPEN
• Colonial Drive – CLOSED
• Wrightsville Avenue – OPEN
• 17th Street – OPEN
• Marsteller Street – CLOSED
• 13th Street – OPEN but will be closing again
• 12th Street – CLOSED
• 10th Street – CLOSED
• 9th Street – CLOSED
• 8th Street – CLOSED
• 7th Street – CLOSED
• 6th Street – CLOSED
• 5th Street – CLOSED
• Martin Street – CLOSED
• 4th Street – CLOSED