Officials in central North Carolina rescued dozens of stranded people Sunday night and early Monday after Tropical Depression Chantal dumped up to 10 inches of rain in parts of the state, bringing significant flooding that inundated homes, closed highways, trapped drivers and pushed rivers up to near historic levels.
The storm, which made landfall as a tropical storm early Sunday in South Carolina and then moved inland, had weakened to a post-tropical cyclone by Monday afternoon and was moving northeast over Chesapeake Bay toward eastern Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey, where there were flood watches posted.
The worst effects of the storm have so far been felt in central North Carolina, where tens of thousands of people lost electric power and at least two tornadoes were confirmed, authorities said. The storm downed trees and power lines and swamped hundreds of roads.
As of Monday afternoon, authorities had reported one death caused by the storm. The North Carolina State Highway Patrol said that Sandra Portnoy Hirschman, 83, of Pittsboro, North Carolina, died after she drove her vehicle into floodwater Sunday night in Chatham County.
In Orange County, North Carolina, which includes Chapel Hill, officials said in a statement Sunday night that several water rescues and evacuations were underway in low-lying areas. In Moore County to the south, floods washed out roads and broke at least two dams. Both counties declared states of emergency.
The water level in the Eno River rose to a record 25.63 feet. The Haw River outside Burlington, North Carolina, swelled to 32.5 feet overnight.
Firefighters in Chapel Hill completed more than 50 water rescues Sunday evening and overnight, the city said in a statement, adding that more than 60 people had been displaced from their homes.
At the Eastgate Crossing shopping center in Chapel Hill, stores were battered by floodwaters full of debris that broke windows and machinery as the water rushed into buildings.
Scott Novak, majority owner of The Loop Restaurant in Eastgate Crossing, said the business was closing at 9 p.m. Sunday when he noticed that the parking lot “looked like a lake.”
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