Month: November 2018

Hurricane Florence devastated farmers and farming communities in Eastern North Carolina, but it shouldn’t have much effect on the price or availability of the turkey or ham at the center of your Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. The side dishes may be another matter. The storm, which made landfall on Sept. 14 and dropped record amounts of rain as it slowly moved inland, caused more than $1.1 billion in agricultural damage in North Carolina, according to…

There’s a sweet legend about this town: On a blazing summer day in the 1850s, a lumber mill crew with wagon and ox took a break under a grove of tall evergreens. The air was cool, the pine needles fragrant. “Boys,” said the team boss, “this is paradise.” Thus, more than 170 years ago, Paradise was born. From the start, it was enriched with gold mined from nearby hills and lumber harvested from the forests….

Two men’s basketball games in the Bay Area have been called off because of poor air quality from wildfires in Northern California and the status of the Big Game between Stanford and California is in doubt. Cal canceled its basketball game against Detroit Mercy on Thursday night because the Air Quality Index was well over the threshold of 200 — the very unhealthy range. A significant amount of smoke infiltrated Haas Pavilion leading to the…

The Latest on wildfires in California (all times local): 6:40 p.m. Authorities have reported seven more fatalities from a blaze in Northern California, bringing the total number of fatalities so far to 63 in the deadliest wildfire in state history. The announcement came Thursday as authorities continued to search the devastated town of Paradise for human remains. More than 5,000 fire personnel were battling the blaze that started a week ago and has displaced 52,000…

Ten years ago, as two wildfires advanced on Paradise, residents jumped into their vehicles to flee and got stuck in gridlock. That led authorities to devise a staggered evacuation plan — one that they used when fire came again last week. But Paradise’s carefully laid plans quickly devolved into a panicked exodus on Nov. 8. Some survivors said that by the time they got warnings, the flames were already extremely close, and they barely escaped…

By Cullen Browder, WRAL reporter Goldsboro, N.C. — Staris Morgan is tired of the slow drip of bureaucracy. “I am so, so tired,” she said. Over the course of two years, two households and two hurricanes, she is still waiting for aid, and trapped in a bureaucratic web. In 2016, Matthew flooded the house where she raised her family. “I couldn’t stay here,” she said. She had home and flood insurance, but not enough to…

New Bern, N.C. — Two months have passed since Hurricane Florence smashed the historic city of New Bern with a storm surge unlike anything it’s seen in more than 60 years. Flooding from the Neuse River wiped out homes, swept through resort-style hotels and forced the evacuation of a local television station. In the Woodrow neighborhood, lying low along the wide Neuse River, home for some is a travel trailer, courtesy of FEMA. Over on…

Spring Lake, N.C. — Three days of heavy rain has Spring Lake residents bracing for more flooding. Heavy rain from Hurricane Florence caused the Starlite Motel to crumble into the Little River. Now the water in the river is rising once again and has forced dozens from their homes on Brinkley Drive. Mary Browning’s family lost two houses and three cars to Hurricanes Florence and Michael. She says the rain this week is breaking her…

We have a Flash Flood Watch that takes effect tomorrow afternoon and lasts through Saturday afternoon. We have heavy rain moving into the area tomorrow afternoon and into the evening which could total between…Read More We have a Flash Flood Watch that takes effect tomorrow afternoon and lasts through Saturday afternoon. We have heavy rain moving into the area tomorrow afternoon and into the evening which could total between 1-3″. Since the ground is saturated…

Devastating wildfires across California have sent thousands fleeing for their lives, leaving many in evacuation shelters or makeshift camps scattered across the state. Others never made it out at all, with 58 confirmed deaths and more than 100 still missing, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Here are stories from some of the survivors of the deadly Camp Fire in Northern California and Woolsey Fire in Southern California. ‘Come over, come…

By Kat Campbell and Elizabeth Gardner, WRAL meteorologists Raleigh, N.C. — We’ll have to get through a flood watch, chilly temperatures and plenty of rain Thursday before enjoying a beautiful weekend. Flood watch all day A flood watch is in effect for most of the state and the entire viewing area until 7 p.m. According to meteorologist Kat Campbell, another up to 2 inches of rain is likely Thursday, which could lead to flooding along…