Month: October 2021

By REBECCA SANTANA, Associated Press LAFITTE, La. — Hurricane Ida swept through Louisiana with furious winds that ripped roofs off buildings and storm surge so powerful it moved homes. What it wrought on the living it also wrought on the dead, moving vaults and caskets and adding another layer of trauma for families and communities recovering from the powerful storm. “Once you bury a relative, you expect that to be the permanent resting place,” said…

By The Associated Press BEIJING — A bus fell into a river in northern China on Monday, leaving at least two people dead and 12 others missing after flooding from heavy rains destroyed homes and covered farmland. Video posted online showed people on top of an almost submerged bus in a rushing river flowing over a nearby bridge outside the city of Shijiazhuang, about 265 kilometers (165 miles) southwest of Beijing. Authorities in Hebei province…

By The Associated Press MEXICO CITY — Tropical Storm Pamela formed off Mexico’s Pacific coast Sunday and was forecast to strengthen into a hurricane before hitting shore somewhere near the port of Mazatlan at midweek. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Pamela’s center was about 505 miles (810 kilometers) south of Mazatlan late Sunday and was moving west-northwest at about 12 miles per hour (19 kph). The storm had maximum winds of about 50 miles…

By Michelle Mackonochie, WRAL anchor/reporter Princeton, N.C. — While much of central North Carolina saw rain on Saturday, one area in particular is notorious for flooding. Princeton residents said flooding is all too common for the town, and after Saturday’s rain it left a mess, again. “We get water so bad sometimes we can’t even leave the yard,” said Terry Fraser. “When we get rain, we rain a lot … it’s a swimming pool every…

By Heather Leah, WRAL multiplatform producer Raleigh, N.C. — Raleigh police were reportedly assisting with a water rescue near an apartment complex after an early-morning downpour on Saturday. The WRAL Stormtracker captured video from Brook Hill Townhomes on Dana Drive in Raleigh, close to where the rescue was taking place. Rescue crews could be seen preparing inflatable boats to use in the flooded roadway and parking lot. Video and photos sent by Taha and Ali…

By Bryan Mims, WRAL reporter Princeville, N.C. — Princeville, once called Freedom Hill, became imprisoned by the wrath of a river. This town, the first in America founded by freed enslaved people, became a place to escape. Because in October 2016, the deluge came to Princeville, forcing Jimmy Hilliard out of his house for two months. “I had to replace everything and that was my second time doing that,” Hilliard said. The first time was…

By Bryan Mims, WRAL reporter Five years ago on Friday, Hurricane Matthew unleashed its fury on North Carolina. The storm killed 25 people in the state and caused more than a billion dollars in damage in one of the costliest disasters the state has endured. Swollen rivers inundated homes and businesses across eastern North Carolina. In communities like Goldsboro and Grays Creek, the rebuilding may be done, but memories are still fresh. Sounds such as…

By JAY REEVES, Associated Press PELHAM, Ala. — Terrified drivers climbed out of swamped cars and muddy floodwater flowed through neighborhoods after a stalled weather front drenched Alabama for hours, leaving entire communities under water Thursday and killing at least four people, with still more storms possible. Dozens of people had to be rescued Wednesday night in central Alabama, where the National Weather Service said as much as 13 inches (33 centimeters) of rain fell,…