Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
"Monster" Hurricane Florence Aims to Drench Carolinas
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 7 years ago on
September 12, 2018

Share

WILMINGTON, N.C. — Communities along the Carolina coast buttoned up against the onslaught of Hurricane Florence as forecasters Wednesday warned that the monstrous storm could hesitate just offshore for days — punishing a longer stretch of coastline harder than previously feared — before pushing inland over the weekend.

“Don’t play games with it. It’s a big one.” President Donald Trump
In a videotaped message from the White House, President Donald Trump said the government is fully prepared for Florence but urged people to “get out of its way.”
“Don’t play games with it. It’s a big one,” he said.
The National Hurricane Center’s projected track had Florence hovering off the southern North Carolina coast from Thursday night until landfall Saturday morning or so, about a day later than previously expected. The track also shifted somewhat south and west, throwing Georgia into peril as Florence moves inland.
The overall trend is “exceptionally bad news,” said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy, since it “smears a landfall out over hundreds of miles of coastline, most notably the storm surge.”
As of 11 a.m., Florence, a potentially catastrophic Category 4 storm, was centered 485 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, moving at 15 mph. It was packing winds of 130 mph and enough moisture to dump feet of rain on the region.

83-Foot Waves Near the Eye of Florence

A hurricane-hunter airplane measured 83-foot waves near the eye of Florence, according to a tweet from the National Hurricane Center.

“This is not going to be a glancing blow. This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.” — Jeff Byard, an administrator with the Federal Emergency Management Agency
“This is not going to be a glancing blow,” warned Jeff Byard, an administrator with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.”
As of Tuesday, about 1.7 million people in North and South Carolina and Virginia were under warnings to evacuate the coast, and hurricane watches and warnings extended across an area with about 5.4 million residents. Cars and trucks full of people and belongings streamed inland.
If some of the computer projections hold, “it’s going to come roaring up to the coast Thursday night and say, ‘I’m not sure I really want to do this, and I’ll just take a tour of the coast and decide where I want to go inland,'” said Jeff Masters, meteorology director of the private Weather Underground forecasting service.
With South Carolina’s beach towns more in the bull’s-eye because of the shifting forecast, Ohio vacationers Chris and Nicole Roland put off their departure from North Myrtle Beach to get the maximum amount of time on the sand. Most other beachgoers were long done.
“It’s been really nice,” Nicole Roland said. “Also, a little creepy. You feel like you should have already left.”
For many of those under evacuation orders, getting out of harm’s way has proved difficult, as airlines canceled flights and motorists had a hard time finding gas.
UPDATED WED (SEPT. 12), 5 A.M. — Map shows probable path of Hurricane Florence.

Most Dangerous of Three Tropical Systems

Michelle Stober loaded up valuables at her home on Wrightsville Beach to drive back to her primary residence in Cary, North Carolina.
“This morning I drove around for an hour looking for gas in Cary. Everyone was sold out,” she said.

“The biggest thing is you’re always worried about yourself and friends and family — and whether they’ll have a place to come back to.” — Michael Wilson, Wilmington, North Carolina resident
Florence is the most dangerous of three tropical systems in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Isaac was expected to pass south of Puerto Rico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, while Hurricane Helene was moving northward away from land. Forecasters also were tracking two other disturbances.
The coastal surge from Florence could leave the eastern tip of North Carolina under more than 9 feet of water in spots, projections showed. The Navy, Air Force and Army were moving ships and aircraft out of harm’s way. Thousands of Marines and their families evacuated from Camp Lejeune, leaving the rest to dig in ahead of what could be a direct hit.
Florence’s projected path includes half a dozen nuclear power plants, pits holding coal-ash and other industrial waste, and numerous hog farms that store animal waste in huge lagoons.
In Wilmington, resident Michael Wilson fortified his home against the wind and rain, and worried.
“The biggest thing is you’re always worried about yourself and friends and family — and whether they’ll have a place to come back to,” he said.

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Pence Will Receive the Profile in Courage Award From the JFK Library for His Actions on Jan. 6

DON'T MISS

Politics Turns Ugly for a Conservative Running for Fresno State Student Body President

DON'T MISS

Pentagon’s Watchdog to Review Hegseth’s Use of Signal App to Convey Plans for Houthi Strike

DON'T MISS

President Trump’s Tariffs Could Be the Political Tipping Point

DON'T MISS

Order That Kept Water in the Kern River Reversed by 5th District Court of Appeal

DON'T MISS

As Dem Candidates for Governor Increase, They Wait for Harris to Decide

DON'T MISS

No More Calling ‘Shotgun?’ CA Could Ban Teens From Riding in Front Seat

DON'T MISS

Protests Planned All Over the World Aimed at Donald Trump and Elon Musk

DON'T MISS

Average US Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage Dips to 6.64% for the Second Drop in 2 Weeks

UP NEXT

Flores Homers, Matos and Wade Also Go Deep to Help Giants Cap Sweep of Astros

UP NEXT

Trump Proposes Tax Deduction for Auto Loan Interest on US-Made Cars

UP NEXT

Western US Sees Sharp Increase in Extreme Weather Impact

UP NEXT

7-Year-Old Girl Was Killed by a Falling Boulder at a Lake Tahoe Ski Resort

UP NEXT

Elon Musk Reclaims Top Spot on Forbes’ Billionaires List

UP NEXT

Lakers Hold Off Rockets With 6 3-Pointers Apiece From Dorian Finney-Smith, Gabe Vincent

UP NEXT

Athletics Bat Boy Stewart Thalblum Takes Down Drone in Left Field

UP NEXT

NFL Postpones Tush Push Decision but Passes Other Rule Changes, AP Source Says

UP NEXT

March Madness: It’s South Carolina vs. Texas and UCLA vs. UConn in Women’s Final Four

UP NEXT

Major Layoffs Begin at Health Agencies That Track Disease and Regulate Food

Pentagon’s Watchdog to Review Hegseth’s Use of Signal App to Convey Plans for Houthi Strike

2 hours ago

President Trump’s Tariffs Could Be the Political Tipping Point

3 hours ago

Order That Kept Water in the Kern River Reversed by 5th District Court of Appeal

3 hours ago

As Dem Candidates for Governor Increase, They Wait for Harris to Decide

3 hours ago

No More Calling ‘Shotgun?’ CA Could Ban Teens From Riding in Front Seat

3 hours ago

Protests Planned All Over the World Aimed at Donald Trump and Elon Musk

3 hours ago

Average US Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage Dips to 6.64% for the Second Drop in 2 Weeks

4 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Christopher Robert Sharkey

4 hours ago

Fresno Man Arrested in Armed Robbery After Search Warrant Executed

4 hours ago

Diehard Baseball Fans in Sacramento Welcome Athletics and Hope They Stay Awhile

5 hours ago

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

California’s effort to have no new gas-powered vehicles sold in the state by 2035 is beginning, and it requires 35% of all 2026 models...

1 hour ago

1 hour ago

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

Vice President Mike Pence hands the electoral certificate from the state of Arizona to Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., as he presides over a joint session of Congress as it convenes to count the Electoral College votes cast in November's election, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. (AP File)
2 hours ago

Pence Will Receive the Profile in Courage Award From the JFK Library for His Actions on Jan. 6

2 hours ago

Politics Turns Ugly for a Conservative Running for Fresno State Student Body President

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attends a joint news conference with Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani at the Ministry of Defense in Tokyo Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Kiyoshi Ota/Pool Photo via AP)
2 hours ago

Pentagon’s Watchdog to Review Hegseth’s Use of Signal App to Convey Plans for Houthi Strike

President Donald Trump holds a signed executive order during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden of the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP/Evan Vucci)
3 hours ago

President Trump’s Tariffs Could Be the Political Tipping Point

3 hours ago

Order That Kept Water in the Kern River Reversed by 5th District Court of Appeal

3 hours ago

As Dem Candidates for Governor Increase, They Wait for Harris to Decide

3 hours ago

No More Calling ‘Shotgun?’ CA Could Ban Teens From Riding in Front Seat

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend