North Carolina flooded as hurricane Chantal turns deadly, brings heavy rainfall, puts millions under alert

Heavy rainfall and flooding from the remnants of Tropical Storm Chantal forced dozens of people to flee their homes in central North Carolina, officials said, reported Fox 59. Many people in central North Carolina are dealing with the remnants of Tropical Depression Chantal, which brought heavy rainfall on Sunday night causing significant flooding across the region.

More than 5 million people were under flood alerts in North Carolina and Virginia with nearly 2 million under Flash Flood Warnings after Chantal made landfall early Sunday, according to reports. The National Hurricane Center warned of flash flood concerns across parts of northern North Carolina late Sunday and Virginia into Monday. Life-threatening surf and rip currents are expected to continue at beaches from northeastern Florida to the mid-Atlantic states, the center said.

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North Carolina flooding

In many areas where floodwaters entered or threatened to enter apartments, the Chapel Hill Fire Department and neighboring agencies completed more than 50 water rescues, officials said. More than 60 people were displaced Sunday and Monday.

Many roads are closed, and several counties are under Flash Flood Warnings, Flood Advisories, and Flood Watches until later Monday morning. Thousands were left without power after the storms. According to the Duke Energy outage map, thousands of customers across central North Carolina are without power after several storms that sparked warnings moved through.

There were also water rescues at shopping centers, where water flooded businesses and parking lots, officials said. There were no reports of injuries as of Monday morning. Officials warned residents to take care as they ventured out Monday morning since crews were still assessing damage.

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Many without power in North Carolina

According to Fox News, in Orange County the authorities had to issue a voluntary evacuation for areas downstream overnight over the possibility of the failure of the Lake Michael Dam. In Chatham County, Sheriff Mike Roberson warned residents in a social media post that water may have subsided in some areas, but it was still dangerous to travel. Officials were searching for some missing people Monday morning, he said.

All lanes of Interstate 85/Interstate 40 were closed both directions Monday near Durham and were expected to reopen in 24 to 48 hours, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

The Eno River crested early Monday at Durham at 25.63 feet (7.81 meters), surpassing the previous record of 23.6 feet (7.19 meters), according the National Water Prediction Service’s website.

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The Haw River crested early Monday at 32.5 feet (9.91 meters), the second highest river stage ever recorded at the Town of Haw River. That level was only eclipsed by Hurricane Fran in 1996 when the stage reached 32.83 feet (10.01 meters), according to a post from the National Weather Service’s Raleigh office.

More than 34,000 customers were without power on Monday morning, according to poweroutage.us. Tropical Storm Chantal was downgraded to a depression Sunday after making landfall near Litchfield Beach, South Carolina, early Sunday, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

Forecasters warned of dangerous surf and rip currents at beaches from northeastern Florida to the mid-Atlantic states for the next couple of days.