Raleigh North Carolina News

The ninth named tropical storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season has formed across the central Caribbean Sea, and is forecast to turn into a hurricane before hitting Florida. If it does, it will be the first major hurricane to impact the state since 2018. Tropical Storm Ian was located about 270 miles south-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, as of 11 a.m. Saturday and moving west at about 15 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center….

NASA is skipping next week’s launch attempt of its new moon rocket because of a tropical storm that’s expected to become a major hurricane. It’s the third delay in the past month for the lunar-orbiting test flight featuring mannequins but no astronauts, a follow-up to NASA’s Apollo moon-landing program of a half-century ago. Hydrogen fuel leaks and other technical issues caused the previous scrubs. Currently churning in the Caribbean, Tropical Storm Ian is expected to…

6 minutes ago RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — With Hurricane Fiona gone, the focus turns south to Tropical Storm Ian, which is threatening to make landfall in the United States as a strong hurricane. Tropical Storm Ian is was located about 300 miiles southeast of Kingston, Jamaica. The storm had maximum sustained winds at 45 miles per hour and was moving west at 15 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center. Ian still has…

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — A new federal audit shows just how woefully delayed the response has been for recent hurricane victims in North Carolina. Troubleshooter Diane Wilson was at a hearing earlier this month where lawmakers grilled officials with ReBuild NC, which is the state-run program that uses federal dollars to rebuild low-income storm-impacted communities throughout North Carolina. The audit looked at how North Carolina spent the millions of dollars in disaster relief granted to…

RALEIGH, N.C. — A new federal audit questions how the state agreed to contracts worth millions of dollars intended to help with hurricane relief. Much of the criticism from state lawmakers recent years has been North Carolina is too slow in getting federal funds out the door to help rebuild hurricane damaged homes. This new audit instead calls out the state for a lack of documentation for money it did spend. The audit from the…

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Fiona remains a powerful Category 3 hurricane over the western Atlantic and is expected to pick up speed and retain major hurricane-force wind intensity as it continues to the northeast Friday. The system will bring large swells to the North Carolina coast and Outer Banks, some areas may see waves as high as 10-12 feet. The rip current risk will also remain high until Saturday. The swell increase should start subsiding…

BERMUDA — Fiona, downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane, pounded Bermuda with heavy rains and winds early Friday as it swept by the island on a route forecast to have it approaching northeastern Canada late in the day as a still-powerful storm. Authorities in Bermuda opened shelters and closed schools and offices ahead of Fiona. Premier David Burt sent a tweet urging residents to “take care of yourself and your family. Let’s all remember to…

Ever wondered what the inside of a hurricane looks like at sea level? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, has released footage from the inside of Hurricane Fiona, the first Category 4 storm of the 2022 season that’s heading north in the Atlantic Ocean. RELATED: Puerto Rico struggles to reach areas cut off by Fiona, hurricane threatens Bermuda The footage comes from the Saildrone Explorer SD 1078, a surface vehicle that gathers data…

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Fiona remains a major Category 4 hurricane pulling slowly northward on Thursday. The hurricane has brought a high rip current risk to the North Carolina coast through Saturday. Seas will also become rougher with wave heights expected to reach 3-7 feet on Thursday and 8-12 feet on Friday. Minor coastal flooding is also a possibility with winds gusting from 25-40 mph. Fiona will strengthen before passing west of Bermuda with rain…

CAGUAS, Puerto Rico — Hurricane Fiona left dozens of families stranded across Puerto Rico after smashing roads and bridges, with authorities still struggling to reach people four days after the storm smacked the U.S. territory, causing historic flooding. For now, government officials are working with religious groups, nonprofits and others braving landslides, thick mud and broken asphalt by foot to provide food, water and medicine for people in need, but they are under pressure to…

JOHNSTON COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) — Organizations across the state are mobilizing to send resources to Puerto Rico. Volunteers with the Red Cross in the Sandhills arrived Tuesday and they’re working with volunteers there who desperately want to help. “It’s life-changing to many families,” said Jose Espinosa. “For now, we are working with one family who has a 1-year-old. The whole river went out crushed the whole house and they lost everything inside the house. No…

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Fiona is now a major Category 4 hurricane as it pulls north away from Turks and Caicos and Bahamas, according to the National Hurricane Center. It will bring with it a moderate rip current risk for the much of the North Carolina coast on Wednesday. Conditions should improve in those area on Wednesday with a break where the storm will strengthen before passing west of Bermuda with rain and strong winds…

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Hurricane Fiona strengthened into a Category 4 storm early Wednesday as it lashed the Turks and Caicos Islands and is forecast to squeeze past Bermuda later this week. The storm was blamed for causing at least four direct deaths in its march through the Caribbean, where it unleashed torrential rain in Puerto Rico, leaving a majority without power or water as hundreds of thousands of people scraped mud out of…

SMITHFIELD, N.C. (WTVD) — When Hurricane Fiona first made landfall in Puerto Rico on Saturday, Cristhian Espinosa had concerns. The storm system pounded the island with rain and flooding knocking out power and washing away homes. “Puerto Rico never recovered from Maria,” said Espinosa. “Fiona was just rain and it was instantly raining for 20 to 30 hours. People lost cars. People almost drowning because of the landslides. Homes were lost because of landslides. Lot…

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Hurricane Fiona has killed at least five people across the Caribbean, cut power and water service for most of Puerto Rico’s 3.1 million residents and left more than 1 million without running water in the Dominican Republic.  The images of the storm’s devastating impact brought back memories of hurricanes Florence and Matthew for residents of Cumberland County still rebuilding and recovering. William Bullock has lived in his home, in a flood risk…