Charlotte North Carolina News

Updated: 3:40 p.m. A mother and her infant died in Wilmington after a tree fell on their home, according to the Wilmington Police Department, and one other person died while plugging in a generator in Lenoir County, according to the governor’s office. These are the first reported fatalities caused by Florence. Separately, a woman died after suffering a heart attack in Hampstead, N.C., according to a report from WUNC. First responders were unable to reach…

Updated: 4:55 p.m. Florence has been downgraded to a tropical depression with a maximum sustained wind speeds of 70 miles per hour. In its latest advisory, the National Hurricane Center has also discontinued the storm surge watch south of Myrtle Beach, S.C., and north of Salvo, N.C., including Albemarle Sound. Updated: 4 p.m. Four people have died and hundreds of thousands are without power in North Carolina as Hurricane Florence has brought dangerous flooding and…

Updated: 5:30 p.m. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called the deaths of three people in Florence devastating and continued to warn the state’s residents to be vigilant with heavy rainfall expected in the days ahead. “This loss of life is devastating,” Cooper said in a press briefing Friday evening. “It’s devastating to the families and the friends of these victims. The fact is this storm is deadly and we know that we’re days away from…

Updated: 8:40 p.m. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s office is reporting nearly 770,000 people in the state are without power as Tropical Storm Florence continues its slow track toward the western part of the state.  Duke Energy reports 521,573 customers are without power in the Carolinas, including 482,333 in North Carolina and 39,240 in South Carolina. Florence is expected to bring Charlotte and the western Carolinas 5 to 10 inches of rainfall with isolated parts…

Updated: 9:30 p.m. The North Carolina Department of Public Safety is reporting more than 790,000 power outages across the state as Tropical Storm Florence continues its slow track toward the western part of the state.  The department says the highest concentration of outages are in New Hanover, Brunswick, Wake, Onslow and Carteret counties.  Duke Energy reports 533,400 customers are without power in the Carolinas, including 487,483 in North Carolina and 45,562 in South Carolina. Florence…

[  ] Hide Caption [  ] Show Caption Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street during Hurricane Florence September 13, 2018 in New Bern. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)  [  ] Hide Caption [  ] Show Caption Men pack their belongings after evacuating their house after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded their street during Hurricane Florence…

CHARLOTTE, NC (FOX 46 WJZY/AP) – WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Florence (all times local): 5:00 a.m. The National Hurricane Center says Florence is about to make landfall in North Carolina bringing with it life-threatening storm surges and hurricane force winds.  As of 5 a.m., Florence was 25 miles (55 kilometers) east of Wilmington, North Carolina. Its forward movement was 6 mph (9 kph). Hurricane-force winds extended 90 miles (150 kilometers) from…

Ten years ago, the Doral Apartments and the Cavalier Apartments in east Charlotte were flooded by Tropical Storm Fay – and some residents had to be dramatically rescued by boat. Residents of the Doral Apartments describe their Hurricane Florence preparations Now, Doral residents — most of them newcomers — are preparing for floodwater from Hurricane Florence. Some first-floor residents of the complex off Monroe Road moved valuables to countertops. Some people had placed sand bags…

CHARLOTTE, NC (FOX 46 WJZY) – As people evacuate from the NC coast, animals are too.  Families and rescue groups are bringing their animals with them as they flee to safer locations ahead of Hurricane Florence. Carolina Waterfowl Rescue, a non-profit animal group that takes in wildlife, is receiving car and truck loads of animals looking for a temporary place to stay.  As of Thursday night, the facility had received 70 animals. “Sometimes it’s easier to get…

CHARLOTTE, NC (FOX 46 WJZY) – Duke Energy says it has the largest force they’ve ever had in place right now to respond to the storm.20,000 workers are on standby now, many from other states, ready to help get the lights back on. “Help has arrived, help is here,” said lineman Abel Hernandez from Florida Power and Light. He drove up from Miami to help Duke Energy crews ahead of Hurricane Florence.  He says being…

YORK COUNTY, SC (FOX 46 WJZY) – A week of preparation has led to this. “We got fuel in our cars and we’re ready to go. Cash on hand, and the lasts thing we’ll do is fill the bathtub with water in case we lose power,” said Jennifer Douglass who lives near the Catawba River’s bank. Officials relayed their final messages to York County residents. They say don’t go into flood waters, and don’t be…

WILMINGTON, NC (FOX 46 WJZY) – Downtown Wilmington is clearing out as Hurricane Florence has begun to batter the coast with high winds, heavy rain, storm surge and flooding.  Most businesses are now closed, but a few locals are sticking around, ready to weather the storm.  “Then you’re sitting here and it’s like it’s a lot of hurry up and wait so we figure we’d hurry up and wait here at the local Irish Pub,”…

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — The big slosh has begun, and the consequences could be disastrous. Hurricane Florence’s leading edge battered the Carolina coast Thursday, bending trees and shooting frothy sea water over streets on the Outer Banks, as the hulking storm closed in with 100 mph (155 kph) winds for a drenching siege that could last all weekend. Tens of thousands were without power. Winds and rain were arriving later in South Carolina, and a…

This story was updated at 9:07 p.m. Eastern. Hurricane-force winds are approaching North Carolina as Category 2 Florence reaches the coast. The National Hurricane Center said sustained hurricane-force winds were hitting Cape Lookout as of 9 p.m. Thursday, and that hurricane conditions are spreading. The center of Florence — now 300 miles wide — will move over southern North Carolina later today, and is expected to make “a slow motion over eastern South Carolina” Friday…

This story was updated at 8 p.m. Eastern. Hurricane Florence is starting to make its presence known in the Carolinas, but for now, Waffle House’s hash browns are mostly still sizzling and its eggs are still cracking. The restaurant chain, famous for staying open even through major disasters, seems to have kept the majority of its restaurants in operation as the storm approaches. However, at least a few reported closings throughout the Carolinas suggest Waffle…