Raleigh North Carolina News

SPRING LAKE, N.C. (WTVD) — North Bragg Boulevard in Spring Lake hosted a donation drive for Florence victims called “Spring Lake Strong.” Saturday, the town tweeted pictures of donated supplies by people throughout the day. The town’s Twitter account went on to say Spring Lake is still accepting donations of non-perishable food, baby items, and water. Operation #springlakestrong is still going strong at the Sleep Inn at 1100 N. Bragg Blvd. in Spring Lake. They…

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) — The State of North Carolina and FEMA have opened a Disaster Recovery Center in Fayetteville to help victims of Hurricane Florence. The new center is located at 1225 Ramsey Street. The center will offer in-person support to individuals and businesses in the counties included in the North Carolina major disaster declaration for Hurricane Florence and the subsequent floods. RELATED: County-by-county list of closures: Over 500 roads still closed in NC Other…

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper reported another life claimed by Hurricane Florence on Friday, bringing the state total to 32 deaths and the total in the Carolinas and Virginia to 43. A 46-year-old man died when a tree he was cutting in Brunswick County fell on him, Cooper announced Friday evening. Florence is blamed for nine deaths in South Carolina and two in Virginia. North Carolina’s deaths include three children — a 7-month-old in New…

Horry County is seeing “unprecedented flooding” in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, the county’s emergency management leader said Saturday. Local rivers are rising to record levels, and emergency crews are working to manage traffic and plan for a “worst-case scenario,” Randy Webster, director of Horry County Emergency Management, said in a video posted on Facebook on Saturday afternoon. “We do have a game plan,” Webster said. “We do have a worst-case scenario, and that’s what…

By Kathryn Brown, WRAL anchor/reporter Wilmington, N.C. — Last week, Hurricane Florence battered Wilmington with days of high winds and heavy rains. Now, as residents and business owners try to get back on their feet, the flooded Cape Fear River could give the city another punch. The river is expected to crest Saturday evening at 7 feet, about 1½ feet above flood stage. Moderate flooding occurs at 6.7 feet, and New Hanover County officials have…

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WTVD) — On Saturday, the North Carolina Department of Transportation announced three safe alternate routes for public access to Wilmington after multiple road closures from Florence flooding. From the south: Take U.S. 17 From the north: Travel on Interstate 40 East to N.C. 24 East (exit 373) then onto U.S. South From Fayetteville: Take N.C. 87 to U.S. 701 South to N.C. 211 East to U.S. 74 East Additionally, people may use I-40…

Chad Hicks, the town administrator for Caswell Beach, said the small beach town on Oak Island is doing pretty well — at least compared to some of its neighboring towns — in the wake of Hurricane Florence. “If it wasn’t for all the limbs and siding down, it would look almost normal,” he said, estimating around 50 people weathered the storm out there. The golf course on the town’s side of the island, around 30…

UNC-Wilmington basketball teams will begin fall practice at UNC-Chapel Hill as eastern North Carolina continues to feel the effects of Hurricane Florence, the school announced Saturday. The Seahawks will use the Tar Heels’ facilities until their own campus can reopen to students. “It’s been a difficult two weeks for all of our coaches and student-athletes,” Jimmy Bass, UNCW’s athletic director, said in a press release. “We’re very grateful to the North Carolina staff for their…

The Latest on the aftermath of Hurricane Florence (all times local): 12:32 p.m. North Carolina environmental officials say they are monitoring two sites where Florence’s floodwaters have inundated coal ash sites. Michael Regan is secretary of the state Department of Environmental Quality. He said during a news briefing Saturday that the state is using drones to get photos and videos from the site of a dam breach at the L.V. Sutton Power Station in Wilmington…

A week after Hurricane Florence arrived on shore, large swaths of North Carolina remain underwater. Florence is responsible for the deaths of 32 people in North Carolina. The storm also caused flooding that’s submerged roads, homes and businesses, killed thousands of livestock animals and is possibly carrying waste into the state’s rivers. The storm “has deeply wounded our state, wounds that will not heal soon. So many people are still hurting,” Gov. Roy Cooper said…

By Alfred Charles, WRAL.com managing editor Raleigh, N.C. — Gov. Roy Cooper said Saturday that North Carolina is still trying to recover from Florence, one week after the monster storm drenched parts of the coastline and southeastern parts of the state. “The storm itself is gone but its treacherous floodwaters remain,” Cooper said during the Saturday morning briefing. “If you live in southeastern North Carolina, don’t let your guard down.” As of Saturday, Cooper said:…

‘Everything I looked at just made me cry,’ says Wilmington resident after Florence Sep 22, 2018 Betty Coleman, 71, has lived in Wilmington her entire life. Two trees fell on her trailer right before Hurricane Florence made landfall in Wilmington, and now she has to leave. By

In the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, thousands of people in the Carolinas are still waiting to return to their homes. Those who have are assessing the damage. Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates insured wind and storm surge losses for Florence between $1.7 billion and $4.6 billion. The exact financial impact will become apparent over time as insurance claims roll in. For policy holders, it’s important to know what exactly is covered. Insurance industry experts…

When the floodwaters from Florence receded, half the Starlite Motel was gone. A ragged lip of concrete edged parking spaces with no corresponding rooms, just a void of standing water and debris. The surge swept away personal belongings of the owner’s family — even his father’s wheelchair. And it wiped out the investment that three brothers from India had spent years working toward. “We put all our life savings in there,” co-owner Kishor Depani said…