Debby aftermath: Three killed, 6 tornadoes wreak havoc, two dams break, trees topple across NC

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The National Weather Service confirmed six tornadoes spun up as Tropical Storm Debby cross North Carolina on Aug. 8, 2024.

Six tornadoes in North Carolina from Tropical Storm Debby

• In Rocky Mount, an EF-0 with wind speeds of 85 mph was on the ground for .16 miles with a max width of 50 yards.
• In Franklin County, three tornadoes touched down.
  • In Rocky Ford, an EF-0 with wind speeds of 85 mph was on the ground for 1 mile with a max width of 75 yards;
  • in Epsom, and EF-1 with wind speeds of 100 mph was on the ground for 2 miles with a max width of 100 yards;
  • and in Louisburg, an EF-1 with wind speeds of 100 mph was on the ground for 2.9 miles. It’s maximum width was 125 yards.
• In Lucama, the strongest of the storms claimed a life and damaged homes and a middle school. That Wilson County tornado was an EF-3 with winds of 140 mph. It was on the ground for 6 miles with a max width of 200 yards.
• In Harrells, and EF-2 with wind speeds of 115 mph was on the ground for 4.6 miles with a max width of 40 yards.

Throughout the course of the day, there were dozens of tornado warnings.

Three deaths from Aug. 8 tornado, tropical storm

River flooding poses a very serious and immediate threat Friday and into the weekend.

Three people were killed in North Carolina as Debby barreled through the state.

60-year-old Bryan Barnes was killed on Thursday when a tornado hit Wilson County.

The tornado was first reported at 2:51 a.m. Thursday in Lucama.

Neighbors searched for Barnes until search and rescue crews arrived on scene. His two-story home on Lloyd Road had collapsed when a tornado tore through the area.

Unfortunately, he did not survive. Search and rescue crews pulled Barnes’ body from his first-floor bedroom.

Another man who lived on Lloyd Road was injured in the EF-3 tornado that tore through the neighborhood Thursday morning. Phil Hawley was hospitalized for a cut on his arm. He was released from the hospital on Saturday.

A woman was killed when a tree fell on her home in Rockingham County, raising the death toll from Debby to at least eight.

In Lumberton, a woman died in rushing water on Old Whiteville Raoad, according to Lumberton Rescue and EMS. The woman, whose name was not released, drove into water that was 8 to 12 inches deep and her vehicle was swept away, they said.

Three children were rescued from a fast-moving creek in Raleigh Thursday. They held onto a tree branch until water rescue crews were able to get the kids to safety.

Wind, water damage from Tropical Storm Debby

The Wilson County tornado caused severe damage to several homes, a nearby middle school and a 130-year-old church.

As of Friday morning, the City of Raleigh has responded to at least 30 downed trees in 24 hours. Downed trees and power lines have been causing problems since Debby’s arrival Wednesday.

As of Thursday morning, there had been 170 lane closures or incidents caused by Debby on state maintained roads, many of which were in Fayetteville, according to the NCDOT. Cooper said Friday that the National Guard and State Highway Patrol (SHP) have been deployed across North Carolina.

There were two dam breaks Thursday in Cumberland County and Harnett County.

The road split in half after a dam collapsed in Cumberland County. WRAL News got drone footage of the aftermath, and you can see how extensive the damage is.

At one point, there were half a million power outages across the state, Cooper said.

After heavy rains, North Carolina rivers rise

Rivers southeast of the Triangle are creating flooding conditions Friday, with several rivers having reached major or moderate flood stage.

The Lumber River in Lumberton was at major flood stage (19 to 20 feet) Friday and may not drop into moderate flood stage (16 feet) until Sunday night. According to the National Weather Service, dozens of homes could be impacted, and roads could be closed in the Pines and Cox Ponds areas. Carthage Road may be completely covered with water.

Even moderate flood stage can cause flooding issues and damage well after a tropical system moves away, according to WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner.

Inland river flooding is the primary threat at this point, with five flood gauges already measuring at moderate or high flooding, Cooper said Friday.

1. Lumber River in Lumberton
2. Tar River in Louisburg
3. Neuse River in Clayton
4. Haw River
5. Lowe Peedee River

Cooper said Swift Water Rescue teams have responded to more than 170 situations involving a search, rescue or evacuation. Aviation assets from the National Guard and SHP are being brought up to assist with search and rescue efforts, Cooper said.

Tropical Storm Debby timeline

Friday, Aug. 9, 2024

8 a.m.: More roads are closed.

A downed tree has closed Norwood Road/Old Holiday Road in Wake County.

A tree is blocking 2423 Old Greensboro Road in Orange County.

The 900 block of N.C. Highway 54 is closed near Garret Road in Durham due to a downed tree.

U.S. Highway 301 is closed near Mill Branch Road in Nash County due to a weather-related event.

7:45 a.m.: Nearly 1,200 customers remain without power in Orange County, according to the Duke Energy outage map.

7 a.m.: Tornado watch expires for North Carolina.

6:22 a.m.: The National Weather Service issued a river flood warning for the Tar River at Louisburg Road in Franklin County.

6 a.m.: Debby has weakened to a post tropical cyclone, according to the National Hurricane Center’s latest advisory. Debby is 165 miles north of Raleigh moving north-northeast at 35 mph with maximum sustained winds of 30 mph.

5:17 a.m.: More than 8,000 customers are without power in Orange County. Duke Energy said the outage was caused by fallen trees or limbs damaging equipment.

5:15 a.m.: A Moore County fire department spokesman said the following roads are closed in Moore County due to flooding:

• N.C. 690 at McPherson Road (the four-way stop) toward Vass
• N.C. 690 at Lakebay
  • The N.C. 690 detour from the Spring Lake side will be right onto McPherson/Hilmongrove to N.C. Highway 24/27 West to U.S. Highway 1 in Cameron.
  • The N.C. 690 East detour toward Spring Lake from Vass will be U.S. 1 North to N.C. 24/27 East to Hilmongrove/Mcpherson Road.
• Cabins Creek Road
• Mcpherson between N.C. 690 and Cabins Creek Road
• McGill at N.C. 690, both directions and between Cabins Creek Road

A voluntary evacuation was underway Thursday afternoon in several communities along N.C. Highway 690 due to increasing water levels near the Wood Lake Dam.

The Moore County Sheriff’s Office said the Wood Lake Dam is experiencing erosion of the spillway area, which could cause the temporary dam to fail. Wood Lake Dam is one of the largest high-hazard dams in the state.

5 a.m.: WRAL News has received reports of power lines down at 305 Pleasant Drive in Durham.

The following roads in Moore County are closed:

• N.C. Highway 690 near McGill Road is closed due to flooding.
• N.C. Highway 22 near Pinehurst Avenue is closed due to a tree/power line incident.

4:55 a.m.: A flood warning has been extended for Lee County until 11 p.m. Friday.

3:25 a.m.: U.S. Highway 70 is closed at St. Mary’s Road in Orange County.

12:40 a.m.: Stoney Hill Church Road in Nash County is closed between Baldy Hill Road and Hoyt Road.

Midnight: Durham Public Schools announces it will close due to the ongoing flood warning.

Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024

11:37 p.m.: The National Weather Service extended flood warnings for multiple counties late Thursday night:

• Franklin County until 10:40 a.m. Friday
• Edgecombe, Halifax and Nash counties until 5:36 p.m. Friday

10:58 p.m.: The National Weather Service canceled a tornado watch for the Triangle, as well as Granville and Person counties. Several other counties will remain under tornado watches until 7 a.m. Friday.

10:46 p.m: Tropical Depression Debby continues weakening as it moves further north. It is moving north-northeast at 26 mph and is currently 92 miles 92 miles west-northwest of Raleigh. It has maximum sustained winds of 30 mph.

8:15 p.m.: The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Northampton County until 8:45 p.m. The storm capable of producing a tornado is moving north at 25 mph.

7:55 p.m.: Orange County Schools announces it will be closed on Friday due to Debby.

7:53 p.m.: The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Mecklenberg County, Virginia until 8:30 p.m. According to the NWS, a storm capably of producing a tornado was spotted near Warren County, moving north at 30 mph.

7:45 p.m.: The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Warren County until 8:15 p.m. According to the NWS, a storm capably of producing a tornado was spotted over Warrenton, moving north at 30 mph.

7:22 p.m.: The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Franklin and Warren counties until 7:45 p.m. According to the NWS, a storm capably of producing a tornado was spotted near Warrenton, moving north at 40 mph.

7:15 p.m.: The Wake County Public School System announced schools will operate on a two-hour delay on Friday.