Charlotte North Carolina News

For the first time in recent memory, and maybe the first time ever, the N.C. State Fair will delay opening day because of bad weather. The fair was set to open at 3 p.m. Thursday, but as Hurricane Michael came ashore in Florida on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm, state and local officials, working with vendors and ride operators, decided to delay the fair’s opening until Friday. Fair manager Kent Yelverton said at a…

With Hurricane Michael tracking toward the Carolinas, it’s important to start thinking about your hurricane plan and kit. Along with flashlights, batteries, a first-aid kit and other emergency supplies, you should have enough nonperishable food and water for yourself, your family and your pets. Make sure you keep special dietary needs and allergies into consideration. Here’s what groceries you should be shopping for (or making sure you already have at home), according to the U.S….

CHARLOTTE, NC (AP) – Hurricane Michael will weaken once its core hits land and stops drawing strength from the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. But forecasters say it won’t dissipate quickly. In fact, Michael is expected to whip parts of Alabama and Georgia with hurricane-force winds as it travels north. The National Hurricane Center expects Michael to hold tropical storm strength through Thursday as it crosses the Carolinas. Forecasters say Michael should re-emerge…

Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency Wednesday morning in 66 North Carolina counties as Hurricane Michael neared Florida as a Category 4 storm. The governor called it “a dreadful storm.” “North Carolina is staring down another powerful hurricane less than a month (after) Hurricane Florence battered our state,” Cooper said at a news conference. The storm’s track would take it into the Carolinas, dropping as much as 7 inches of rain in some…

Flight cancellations are growing at Charlotte’s airport ahead of the tropical storm-force winds and heavy rain Hurricane Michael is expected to deliver Wednesday and Thursday. The flight-tracking website FlightAware.com shows 36 cancellations Wednesday at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, as of 9:30 a.m. That’s up from 25 on Tuesday and 16 Monday. The site reported eight flight delays Wednesday. PSA airlines, a regional carrier for American Airlines, accounted for 24 of the 36 cancellations. Most were…

This story was updated at 3 p.m. Hurricane Michael is now an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm, with 155 mph sustained winds as the eyewall moved ashore at 1 p.m. Eastern time near Panama City, Florida, on a predicted path into North Carolina. Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency across North Carolina Wednesday morning, referring to Hurricane Michael as “a dreadful storm,” in a press release. The hurricane’s biggest impact in the state…

Hurricane Michael has strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 140 miles per hour. The storm is quickly making its way to the Florida panhandle before it is expected to weaken and track over the Carolinas Thursday, causing the first-ever tropical storm watch and warning for the area. Michael is expected to bring heavy wind and rain to the region early tomorrow morning into tomorrow afternoon. In the latest forecast from the…

Updated: 11:50 a.m. Gov. Roy Cooper has declared a state of emergency for North Carolina as Hurricane Michael approaches. The governor also activated 150 National Guard troops for emergency preparations and implored residents to be prepared for the coming storm.  “The last thing people cleaning up from Florence need right now is more wind and rain, but this storm is coming and we will be ready for it,” Cooper said. Michael is expected to hit the…

Updated: 1:55 p.m.  Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida’s Mexico Beach a little after 1:40 p.m., according to the National Hurricane Center. Michael has strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane, hitting the coast with 155 miles-per-hour winds. Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 45 miles from the storm’s center, according to the Associated Press. Updated: 11:50 a.m. Gov. Roy Cooper has declared a state of emergency for North Carolina as Hurricane Michael approaches. The governor…

Updated: 6:15 p.m. Hurricane Michael has been downgraded to a Category 3 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour as it charges northward through Georgia. The National Hurricane Center says the storm will likely move through the Charlotte region Thursday afternoon, bringing with it heavy rainfall and gusty winds. Graphs show 2 to 4 inches of rain for the Charlotte area, with central and northern parts of the state set to receive…

Hurricane Michael is now an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm, with 145 mph sustained winds as it heads through Florida into the southeastern United States. The storm is moving through the Gulf of Mexico at 13 mph and is expected to make landfall Wednesday afternoon on the Florida Panhandle or Big Bend area with “life-threatening storm surge, dangerous winds and heavy rainfall,” according to the National Hurricane Center. Impact from the storm will be felt…

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – Michael’s leading edge careened onto northwest Florida’s white-sand beaches as a still-growing Category 4 hurricane Wednesday, lashing the coast with tropical storm-force winds and rain and pushing a storm surge that could cause catastrophic damage well inland once it makes landfall. The unexpected brute quickly sprang from a weekend tropical depression and grew to top winds of 145 mph (230 kph), the most powerful hurricane in recorded history for this stretch…

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, SC (FOX 46 WJZY) – Neighbors and emergency management in Chesterfield County are preparing for Hurricane Michael, and still cleaning up from Hurricane Florence. The storm is expected to drop 3-5 inches of rain on the area as of Tuesday night.  Chesterfield County Emergency Management tells Fox46 Charlotte they are not expecting to see as much rain that fell during Hurricane Florence, but they are worried about low-lying areas and already saturated tree roots.  “There…