Raleigh North Carolina News

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hurricane Ernesto made landfall on the tiny British Atlantic territory of Bermuda early Saturday as residents continued to hunker down. The hurricane is now exhibiting a large rain-free center region that is just about to move past Bermuda, according to the National Hurricane Center. The eye has expanded and Ernesto has slowed down, though the second half of the storm is set to move over Bermuda Saturday afternoon. The wide category…

Hurricane Ernesto is causing significant damage along the North Carolina coast. On Friday evening, an unoccupied house collapsed and washed away on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Due to the incident and dangerous conditions, the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge is asking visitors to avoid all beaches and surf in the Rodanthe area. Several other homes in Rodanthe have been damaged, and debris poses a significant risk for miles along the coastline. As a result,…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Ernesto charged toward Bermuda on Friday as officials in the tiny British territory in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean prepared to open shelters and close government offices. The Category 2 storm was located 215 miles (345 kilometers) south-southwest of Bermuda. It had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) and was moving north-northeast at 14 mph (22 kph) Ernesto was expected to strengthen further on Friday…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Ernesto barreled toward Bermuda on Thursday after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico without power or water as sweltering heat enveloped the U.S. territory, raising concerns about people’s health. A hurricane warning was in effect for Bermuda, with Ernesto expected to pass near or over the island on Saturday. The Category 1 storm was located about 605 miles (975 kilometers) south-southwest of Bermuda on Thursday…

It’s been almost a week since Tropic Storm Debby dumped a ton of rain on North Carolina, but some communities still have standing water in roadside ditches. It includes ditches along John McMillian Road in the Gray’s Creek neighborhood of Cumberland County. Patty Nunnery, who has lived in the neighborhood for 20 years, said the standing water in a ditch near her home is a pain. “It’s been standing here stagnant for so many days…

Tropical Storm Debby’s lingering impact in the Triangle means a delay to the completion of an 18-mile stretch of the Southern Wake Expressway, part of the Complete 540 project to create an outer loop around Wake County. “Tropical Storm Debby exacerbated erosion control challenges on the project,” said Logen Hodges, director of marketing and communications for the North Carolina Turnpike Authority. The segment of highway, south and east from N.C. 55 Bypass in Apex to…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Ernesto dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico on Wednesday and left hundreds of thousands of people without power in the U.S. territory as it threatened to strengthen into a major hurricane en route to Bermuda. The storm was located about 125 miles (200 kilometers) northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico and was moving over open waters. It had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph) and…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico activated the National Guard and canceled the start of classes in public schools as forecasters warned that the U.S. territory would be hit by Tropical Storm Ernesto, which formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Monday. Tropical storm warnings were in effect for Puerto Rico, Vieques, Culebra, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, St. Kitts, Nevis, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, St. Martin, St. Barts and St. Maarten….

Flash flooding has caused problems for some people in Cumberland County. Rain from Monday morning’s thunderstorms had no place to go because the ground was saturated after Tropical Storm Debby. Marlene Strickland, who has lived on Black Bridge Road for more than 20 years, told WRAL News that recent flooding brought water closer to her home than Hurricane Matthew in 2016 and Hurricane Florence in 2018. “We came out here, me and my husband, and…

Flooding is a concern for people across eastern North Carolina; some parks have turned into rivers and left several major roads impassable. On Monday, crews in Rocky Mount were monitoring the Tar River as it nears the major flood stage of 25 feet. As of Monday morning, crews measured the Tar River’s water level at 24.42 feet at North Carolina Highway 97. WRAL News is working to get a list of road closures. People in…

Residents in Hoke County will have to continue boiling their water. On Sunday, Hoke County officials announced that the county would be under a boil water advisory for at least two more days as it continues repairing a water main break in the Arabia and Antioch area. Residents in those areas have been under a boil advisory since Friday, when the Hoke County Regional Water System customers began experiencing low water pressure and outages due…

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The weather system previously known as Hurricane Debby was not quite done with parts of the U.S. Sunday as flood warnings remained in effect in North Carolina and thousands were without power in New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. After hitting Florida as a hurricane Aug. 5, the storm spent nearly a week unleashing tornadoes and flooding, damaging homes and taking lives along the East Coast before moving into Canada on Saturday. While…

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…

Moore County residents are beginning to return home as floodwaters from Tropical Storm Debby downsize. Swift water rescue teams were busy over the past few days, evacuating several people from flooded areas. Two days after Tropical Storm Debby struck the Carolinas, its effects are still evident. The North Carolina Department of Transportation reports that more than 160 roads remain blocked due to the storm. Among them is Creek Bend Drive, where the water is still…

An EF-2 tornado with wind speeds of 115 mph traveled 4.6 miles Wednesday through Sampson County, the National Weather Service confirmed. The tornado with a 40-yard path width was one of several tornadoes this week in North Carolina. The tornado caused significant damage to several homes, according to the NWS. Forecasters said it ripped off parts of a tin roof at one home and scattered personal belongings onto the front yard. It also snapped 1-foot…