NCDP Clips 9/18/18

RICHARD FAUSSET: In Flood-Hit Public Housing, a Reminder That the Poor Bear Brunt of Storms' Fury
WRAL // Opinion // Septemebr 17, 2018
Summary: Before the river rose and the water trespassed into her little public housing unit, ruining her black sectional sofa and her children’s clothes, leaving her walls moist to the touch — indeed, before she even knew that the river could be her enemy — Keisha Monk thought she had found something better than basic shelter at Trent Court. “Trust me,” she said this week, as one of the last rain bands of the storm called Florence fell all around her, “when I first came here, I thought it was heaven.” It was January when Monk and her four small children moved to this historic pearl of a Southern city and to Trent Court, a downtown cluster of red brick public housing right on the banks of the Trent River. Monk had been in a family shelter in Columbia, South Carolina, that ground down her soul, she said. At Trent Court, she could gaze out her front door onto the wide, rippling river. She could take in its breeze, its smell, its changing colors and moods.

Record rainfall: Some saw almost 3 feet from Florence
WRAL // Kathy Hanrahan // September 17, 2018
Summary: Hurricane Florence caused a record amount of rainfall in North Carolina and has created the highest rainfall total for any tropical system to ever strike the East Coast of the United States, according to CNN. The highest totals so far were measured in Elizabethtown, where 35.93 inches accumulated over four days. Swansboro saw more than 33 inches of rain, its highest total since Hurricane Floyd in 1999, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

President Trump approves NC disaster relief, plans to visit region next week
WSOC // AP // September 15, 2018
Summary: President Donald Trump has approved a disaster declaration for North Carolina as Florence continues to push through the region. This means federal funding will be available to those affected by the storm in the counties of Beaufort, Brunswick, Carteret, Craven, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, and Pender.

Hurricane Florence leaves Wilmington ‘inaccessible by land,’ NC DOT says
N&O // Paul Specht // September 17, 2018
Summary: Flooding and downed trees from Hurricane Florence are blocking dozens of roads in and around Wilmington Monday, leaving the city largely cut off from the rest of the state. The North Carolina Department of Transportation on Monday morning tweeted that the city is “inaccessible by land,” warning: “Don’t travel, let responders work.” Jim Trogdon, the N.C. Transportation Secretary, clarified in a press conference Monday afternoon that one road to Wilmington is open. But he didn’t identify the road, saying emergency crews need it and worry about its accessibility throughout the week. Gov. Roy Cooper added: “We don’t need (Wilmington evacuees) going back right now, particularly when this route may disappear tonight.”

BRUNSWICK COUNTY: Southport remains without water

Star News // Staff // September 17, 2018
Summary: The city of Southport is without water and the main road is inaccessible. “We’ve been in contact with the National Guard and the governor,” mayor Jerry Dove said. “They are trying to get water sent in for (Dosher hospital) and citizens.” The city is also working with utility companies in an attempt to divert water from their reserves to Southport, Dove said. If water does come back on, residents need to boil it before using it, he said. The mayor said N.C. 211, which is the main entrance to the city in Brunswick County, washed out due to flooding.

NEW HANOVER COUNTY: Several schools sustain ‘major flooding’

Star News // Staff // September 17, 2018
Summary: Early damage assessments from New Hanover County Schools found that several schools experienced “major flooding” during and after Hurricane Florence. In a news release Monday schools spokeswoman Valita Quattlebaum said school officials have completed preliminary assessments at 60 percent of schools. Several schools remain inaccessible due to damaged roads and downed trees.

FLORENCE FLOODS PARTS OF COLUMBUS CO. LEFT ALONE BY MATTHEW
WWAY // Staff // September 17, 2018
Summary: Columbus County officials say the major flooding that has inundated the area since Hurricane Florence has affected areas that did not flood after Hurricane Matthew two years ago The county also says there have been issues reaching everyone that needs help. Tabor City, areas along the Lumber River, Fair Bluff, Lake Waccamaw, Boardman, Riegelwood and Delco have all experienced life-threatening flooding the county said in a news release. Evacuations have occurred in all of those areas. The US Coast Guard, the National Guard, Homeland Security and swift water rescue teams have assisted with evacuations and rescues, including 95 people rescued Saturday and 238 more Sunday.

Florence flooding spreads as storm heads northeast
WFMY 2 // Chuck Burton // September 17, 2018
Summary: With Wilmington cut off from the rest of North Carolina by still-rising floodwaters from Florence, officials plan to airlift food and water to the city of nearly 120,000 people as rescuers elsewhere pull inland residents from homes swamped by swollen rivers. The deadly storm was still dumping rain and had top winds around 30 mph (50 kph) early Monday, but forecasters said it was expected to gradually pick up forward speed and complete a big turn toward the Northeast. Flooding worries were increasing in West Virginia and Virginia, where power outages also were on the rise. About 500,000 homes and businesses were in the dark.

Dan River water levels to spike further once Duke Energy releases water from Belews Lake dam
Fox 8 // Web Staff // September 17, 2018
Summary: The Dan River has reached an elevation of 21 feet, but that number will rise now that Duke Energy plans to release water form Belews Lake dam. According to a Code Red notice, the river was at 7 feet on Sunday and rose about 13 feet by Monday Due to the heavy rains, Duke Energy plans to release the water from the lake through the dam in order to protect the dam’s structural integrity. The water will flow into the Dan, raising water levels even further. “With the rains from last night combined with the water released from Belews Lake, the potential for flooding in all areas close to the river will greatly increase,” the notice said.

Monday numbers: Potential Florence impacts in western NC
NC Policy Watch // Lisa Sorg // September 17, 2018
Summary: Having devastated the southeast coast of North Carolina, Hurricane Florence is now a tropical depression, making a beeline toward the mountains. Rain and wind could uproot trees and unleash land- and mudslides on steep terrain, including places where they occurred earlier this year. As part of the Hurricane Recovery Act of 2005 the legislature directed the Department of Environmental Quality to provide landslide hazard maps for mountain counties, with money coming from a Disaster Relief Fund. But in 2011, lawmakers cut off funding to the NC Geological Survey, which was in charge of mapping the hazard zones, and the project stopped. Scientists completed their work in just four counties before the money ran out: Henderson, Buncombe, Watauga and Macon.

Pollution fears: Swollen rivers swamp ash dumps, hog farms
WRAL // Michael Biesecker // September 17, 2018
Summary: Flooded rivers from Florence's driving rains have begun to swamp coal ash dumps and low-lying hog farms, raising pollution concerns as the swollen waterways approach their crests Monday. Duke Energy said the weekend collapse of a coal ash landfill at the mothballed L.V. Sutton Power Station near Wilmington, North Carolina, is an "on-going situation," with an unknown amount of potentially contaminated storm water flowing into a nearby lake. At a different power plant near Goldsboro, three old coal ash dumps capped with soil were inundated by the Neuse River.

Florence Washes Away Portion of Coal-Ash Landfill in North Carolina
WSJ // Valerie Bauerlein, Russell Gold // September 16, 2018
Summary: Heavy rains from Florence washed out a portion of a landfill used to dispose of coal ash, a byproduct of burning coal to generate electricity. Part of the earthen top of the 20-foot tall landfill was gone, exposing the deep gray ash beneath, and an undetermined amount of the coal ash washed into nearby Lake Sutton, which feeds into the Cape Fear River. Duke Energy Corp. , owner of the coal-ash landfill at the L. V. Sutton Power Plant near Wilmington, N.C., said crews were on the scene assessing the situation. Paige Sheehan, a company spokeswoman, said she believed a ditch around the landfill’s perimeter contained some of the washed-away coal ash, but some escaped into the lake. “We think it is very unlikely it made it to the river,” said Ms. Sheehan. “We feel very confident that public health and the environment remain very well protected.” The company’s initial estimate was that 2,000 cubic yards of coal ash was washed out of the landfill, she said. Two thousand cubic yards is about two-thirds of an Olympic-size swimming pool.

Coal Ash and Sewage Spill Over as Florence Floods the Carolinas
Bloomberg // Mark Niquette, Christopher Flavelle // September 15, 2018
Summary: A Duke Energy Corp. landfill near Wilmington, North Carolina, failed under the assault of Tropical Depression Florence, spilling about 2,000 cubic yards of coal ash that can carry toxic mercury, arsenic and lead. Authorities said they would investigate whether the pollutant had reached the Cape Fear River, but said it wasn’t yet safe to inspect the site. A flooded parking lot in Wilmington, North Carolina.Photographer: Alex Wroblewski/Bloomberg As the weakening storm plodded agonizingly across the Carolinas on Sunday, officials warned of even more catastrophic flooding. The deluge has already killed at least 13 people, washed partially treated sewage into waterways and left entire communities under water. Florence was downgraded to a tropical depression early Sunday as winds diminished to 35 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm was moving west at 8 mph near Columbia, South Carolina, and expected to turn to the northwest Sunday.

Swollen NC rivers swamp dumps, raising water pollution fears
CNBC // Michael Biesecker // September 16, 2018
Summary: As rain from Florence continued to lash the Carolinas, the region's swollen rivers were beginning to swamp coal ash dumps and low-lying hog farms Sunday, raising concerns about water pollution. Duke Energy said the collapse of a coal ash landfill at the L.V. Sutton Power Station near Wilmington, North Carolina, is an "on-going situation," with an unknown amount of potentially contaminated storm water flowing into a nearby lake. At a different power plant near Goldsboro, three old coal ash dumps capped with a layer of soil were inundated by the Neuse River. An Associated Press photographer who flew over eastern North Carolina on Sunday saw several flooded hog farms along the Trent River. It wasn't immediately clear if any animals remained inside the long metal buildings ringed by dark water.

Modern-day Noah: Man in bus rescues numerous animals from flood
Spectrum News // Staff // September 17, 2018
Summary: A man from Tennessee has become a social media sensation after driving around the Carolinas, rescuing animals during Hurricane Florence. Tony Alsup from Greenback, Tennessee, drove a school bus with the words "Emergency Animal Rescue Shelter" posted on the side.

Over 100 volunteers unite to prevent flooding in North Carolina community
CNN // Amir Vera, Cassie Spodak // September 15, 2018
Summary: The city of Lumberton, North Carolina, doesn't want a repeat of Hurricane Matthew. Two years ago, the city about 70 miles northwest of Wilmington was submerged in water for days after the Category 1 storm slammed into North Carolina. Part of the reason, citizens and officials said, was because of a spot where a train track runs under Interstate 95. The underpass left a gap in the surrounding levee, which allowed water from Lumber River to flood into the southwest part of the city. The entire area was navigable only by boat, said state Sen. Danny Britt.

Blue Ridge Parkway closed as officials survey damage done by Hurricane Florence
Charlotte Observer // Mark Price // September 14, 2018
Summary:Much of the Blue Ridge Parkway remained closed Monday, as crews removed trees and rocks bought down by Hurricane Florence. “Closures are expected to continue until conditions improve and crews can safely address any damage,” said a statement posted on Facebook. “Please respect the closures as our staff begin to complete assessments. This closure applies to all uses, including hiking and cycling.” Among the National Park’s biggest fears: Landslides. The parkway evacuated all its camp sites on Wednesday and Thursday, then closed the remainder of the 469-mile-long parkway on Friday evening in anticipation of “high volumes of rain, strong winds at higher elevations, and potential landslides across the foothills.”