Tornado Watch remains in effect for much of central North Carolina as storms move through

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Two counties remained under a Tornado Warning as strong storms whipped through central North Carolina on Thursday afternoon and evening.

Tornado Warnings are in effect until 8:15 p.m. for Halifax County and 8:30 p.m. for Warren County.

Warnings for Durham and Orange counties expired on Thursday evening as the fierce storms moved quickly out of the area.

Numerous counties including Wake, Cumberland, Franklin, Granville, Halifax, Harnett, Hoke, Johnston, Nash, Vance and Warren remain under Tornado Watch until 9 p.m.

Cumberland and Harnett counties were under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning until 8:15 p.m. as the system moved east.

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As of 7:30 p.m., fewer than 200 power outages had been reported in the Triangle. Just west of the Triangle — in the eastern Greensboro-Burlington area, 2,646 power outages were reported.

Much of central North Carolina’s risk for severe weather was downgraded Thursday morning, but severe weather still moved through the region with several reports of downed trees and other weather-related issues.

The severe threat should move out after 9 p.m., Chief Meteorologist Chris Hohmann said Thursday afternoon.

“Just because you see it’s downgraded you go, ‘Oh well that’s good.’ It is good; it means less of a chance, but it still means there is a pretty good chance of seeing severe weather really throughout the region today…just know that the risk for damaging winds really hasn’t decreased that much,” ABC11 Meteorologist Don “Big Weather” Schwenneker said.

Hohmann said all threats, including tornado, wind, and hail (to a lesser degree) remain, even though we are not in the “moderate risk” anymore.

Meanwhile, Gov. Roy Cooper signed a State of Emergency on Thursday afternoon in advance of expected severe weather across the state.

“This state of emergency will allow movement of trucks and equipment to respond to emergencies, rapidly restore power outages and clear debris after the storm passes,” Cooper said.

LIVE RADAR: storms headed to North Carolina

Timeline

Hohmann said the storms should be out of the ABC11 viewing area by 10 p.m. at the latest.

The main line of the storms moved through the region between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.

WATCH: Wind, tornadoes, hail? Breakdown of what to expect in today’s storms

“Even though there is less of a chance for a tornado, if we do see a tornado, there is potential that it could be a rather strong one,” Big Weather said.

This same system is the one that has spawned an estimated 25 tornadoes from Oklahoma to Alabama. Fortunately, at this time there are no reported deaths from the storm.

Once this weather event is over, rain could linger around into Friday. It will be breezy and colder with temperatures in the 40s. A chance for a rain/snow mix exists near the Virginia border late morning but no accumulation is expected.

Saturday and Sunday will see temperatures in the 50s, with more sun Saturday and more warmth Sunday.