Crews, residents work to clean up after storms leave flooding, fires in their wake

By Eric Miller and Leslie Moreno, WRAL multimedia journalists

Wake County, N.C. — Storms packed with excessive rain and electricity barreled through central North Carolina Friday.

Roads were flooded, drivers were trapped and families were displaced as those powerful storms sparked several lightning fires.

Storm damage leads to fires in the Triangle

Friday afternoon flames roared at a home in Fuquay Varina, even in the rain.

Neighbors like Roxey Ladar said they saw a flash and heard a boom.

“I came out and saw the smoke. It was so sad,” said Ladar. “Loudest thunder I ever heard. It shook my bed and the whole house.”

Firefighters were working Friday night to confirm if the lighting was the cause.

In Wake Forest, high winds snapped limbs and trees on Hinton Road, blocking driveways, damaging decks, and burying houses.

Ricky Pearce said it’s the worst storm he’s seen in this area in years.

“I heard a crash and looked out my door and there was a tree that came down,” said Pearce. “It was pretty rough for a while.”

Saturday, many residents were outside cleaning up, picking up the debris left behind.

Just a few doors down, a massive oak set off a disastrous chain reaction.

Another home caught fire when a tree fell on a propane tank and the gas lit.

The owner of the home told WRAL News he’s lived there for 40 years now and he was inside when the 80-year-old red oak fell and sparked the fire.

He said he heard glass shatter and immediately saw the flames.
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He was alone with his two dogs, but they managed to make it out before the fire spread.

No one was injured, but the damage will likely add up to tens of thousands of dollars. 

Flash flooding caused serious issues Friday in Wake County.

Roads flooded and several cars were submerged during the height of Friday’s storms.

Fast Park Drive was completely covered in water from the nearby creek. A woman became stuck in

That woman was stuck in water almost up to the hood of her car.

She says it was a very scary moment.

She told WRAL News she was driving along Fast Park Drive and thought it was safe. She quickly felt her car slipping away.

She said she rushed out but her car was left behind, covered in debris

Not far away, on Alexander Road, Susane Elizabeth was caught in rising flood waters driving home from work.

Elizabeth said she’s lived in this area for a decade and has never seen flooding quite this bad.

“I went through the light and there were huge puddles. It went over my car where I couldn’t see,” said Elizabeth. “Pretty scary. Never been through that before.”

She was able to get through, but other drivers were struggling.

“There was a car behind me, I can tell they were having issues,” said Elizabeth. “I was hydroplaning. I definitely had both hands on the wheel to say the least.”

On Creedmoor Road near Glenwood Ave cars were caught in heavy flood waters at rush hour.