Raleigh North Carolina News

By Luke Notestine, WRAL photojournalist Pembroke, N.C. — Horace Oxendine is a pastor at his own church, but he was at Harpers Ferry Baptist Church in Pembroke on Wednesday doing contract work. Six inches of water poured into the church during Hurricane Florence, turning the floor soft and causing it to break. “This place has been remodeled about three times in my lifetime,” Oxendine said. “I remodeled it the last time in the sanctuary, and…

Two Durham men are sharing their incredible stories, photos, and videos after volunteering to rescue Hurricane Florence victims.Ernie Renn and Karl Loftus, business partners at LR Custom Fabrication and fishing buddies, decided to take their own boat and drive to the coast once Hurricane Florence hit. They said they were not prepared for what they saw. Renn and Loftus documented their journey and captured heart-stopping video of towns underwater, submerged vehicles, and their own fishing…

William Freshwater barely got out of his Camelot Village apartment with one of his prized possessions. But grabbing his guitar as he was rescued from the rising waters from Bolin Creek in Chapel Hill has helped him pass the time at the American Red Cross shelter at the Friday Center. Freshwater is one of about 50 people remaining at the shelter until he can find another place to live. Most of those brought to Chapel…

Raleigh, N.C. — Initial estimates for crop damage and livestock losses in North Carolina from Hurricane Florence are expected to be over $1.1 billion, state officials said Wednesday. “We knew the losses would be significant because it was harvest time for so many of our major crops and the storm hit our top six agricultural counties especially hard,” Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said in a statement. “These early estimates show just what a devastating and…

The federal government has asked at least one Cheraw resident to evacuate her home after finding toxic chemicals have spread from a Superfund cleanup site into her house in the wake of Hurricane Florence, she said. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had no immediate comment. However, the agency is checking soil in Cheraw since the hurricane dumped nearly two feet of rain on eastern South Carolina during the weekend of Sept. 15. On Tuesday, the…

UNC Wilmington will be delayed another week because of Hurricane Florence, with classes starting Oct. 8, university officials said Wednesday. The university last week announced Oct. 1 as a tentative day for resuming classes. But that’s not possible due to damage to two residence halls, off-campus student housing and employee homes, Chancellor Zito Sartarelli said in a message to the campus Wednesday. Opening on the Oct. 1 target date became too difficult, he wrote. “Because…

Burgaw, N.C. — Hurricane Florence may have put everyday life on hold across southeastern North Carolina, but it couldn’t stop two Pender County mothers from giving birth. Keyana McIntyre gave birth to Avah Storm Murphy last Friday inside Carolinas MED-1, a mobile hospital in front of a Family Dollar in Burgaw. Two days later, Yajaira Guerin did likewise, delivering Atarah Guerin, according to NBC affiliate WECT. The makeshift medical center had been the only functional…

Another death has been reported in connection with Hurricane Florence, Gov. Roy Cooper announced Tuesday. The victim, a 67-year-old man, died from injuries he suffered while cleaning debris from the storm in Craven County. It is the 36th death that the state Medial Examiner’s Office has attributed to Florence. The State of North Carolina had counted 36 deaths attributed to Hurricane Florence as of Sept. 20. Of those, individuals include those who had died in…

Don Waddell jumped into the seat of a fork lift early Wednesday morning at PNC Arena like he was used to being behind the wheel. “Did this doing construction work many years ago,” the Carolina Hurricanes president and general manager said. The Canes on Wednesday loaded up truck loads of donated goods and items to be driven to New Bern, as part of the team’s Hurricane Florence Relief Drive. That included Waddell, who transported several…

Svechnikov signs with Canes Andrei Svechnikov, made the No. 2 pick of the NHL Draft last week by the Carolina Hurricanes, talks about signing his entry-level contract and his play in the prospect development camp on June 30, 2018.

NEW BERN, N.C. (WTVD) — Ninety-two pallets full of supplies are packed up and ready to ship off to the North Carolina coast to help the victims of Hurricane Florence. “Our fans and this community really rallied,” said Don Waddell, Carolina Hurricanes General Manager. Last week, Hurricanes fans brought dry goods, baby products, pet food, and other supplies to the preseason games. All of it will be donated to the New Bern community, who is…

Over the past week, rivers in North Carolina have broken previous flood records, many of which were set by Hurricane Matthew just two years earlier. Hurricane Florence dropped two to three feet of rain, causing major flooding along the Cape Fear, Lumberton, and Neuse rivers. The Cape Fear River alone carried enough water to fill an Olympic size swimming pool every two seconds—destroying property and highlighting the limits of our country’s infrastructure. Upstream of the…

RALEIGH (WTVD) — How rainy was Hurricane Florence? Nearly a record setter. A North Carolina State University scientist said only last year’s Hurricane Harvey rained more over a 14,000 square mile area in the United States during a four-day period. Preliminary analysis by Ken Kunkel, a meteorologist at NC State and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, found more than 17.5 inches fell on average over five weather stations in the 14,000 square miles of the…

By Emmy Victor, WRAL reporter Late summer is a busy time for festivals in the Triangle, but the City of Raleigh recently canceled or postponed all weekend events during Hurricane Florence. Now, organizers of these music and art festivals are scheduling new dates and finding ways to help Florence victims. In the lobby of the PNC tower, a banjo is counting down the days until this weekend’s Wide Open Bluegrass festival in downtown Raleigh. Organizers…