North Carolina faces widespread flooding after Chantal dumps heavy rain

By Livia Albeck-Ripka and Eduardo Medina

Officials in central North Carolina were working to rescue stranded people and clear roads 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 as a tropical depression, was headed northeast toward Washington, D.C., on Monday morning, Flood watches were announced for Washington and parts of Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey.

The worst effects of the storm have so far been felt in central North Carolina, where tens of thousands of people were without power and at least two tornadoes were confirmed, authorities said. The storm downed trees and power lines and swamped roads.

As of early 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.

At Camelot Village in Chapel Hill, an apartment complex with a history of flooding, emergency crews rescued several residents from floodwaters.

Brandon Lee, 40, who lives at Camelot Village, said he was startled Sunday night by what sounded like a “raging river running right through our buildings.” When he looked down from his second-floor apartment, he saw water sloshing in the streets, sweeping away vehicles and trash bins. A woman who lives on the floor below called out for help.

Lee said he saw rescue boat crews retrieve several people from inundated apartments, including his downstairs neighbor.

The water level in the Eno River rose to a record 25.63 feet. The Haw River outside Burlington, North Carolina, about 60 miles northwest of Raleigh, swelled to 32.5 feet overnight, a few inches short of a record set during Hurricane Fran in 1996. The National Weather Service warned of “major flooding,” and a section of Interstate 40 east of Burlington was closed Monday morning because of floodwaters.

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. Mayor Leonardo Williams of Durham said the city’s fire department rescued 80 people by boat. On Monday morning, the mayor visited the Old Farm neighborhood in northern Durham, where houses were flooded and residents waded through knee-high water in hot, humid weather following the storm.

Sheriff Mike Roberson of Chatham County said in a statement that rescue crews had been overwhelmed Sunday night, and were continuing to search for missing people Monday morning.

About 60 miles south of Chapel Hill, in Southern Pines, North Carolina, a private dam broke, contributing to the flooding, said Mike Cameron, the assistant town manager and fire chief. He said emergency responders had rescued three people trapped in vehicles.

Though the storm has weakened since it came ashore, forecasters said it could still dump large amounts of rain along its path as it heads up the I-95 corridor, leading to flash flooding.

“While things will improve across North Carolina, they may worsen for areas further to the northeast,” said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “We’re advising people not to go out and travel unless absolutely necessary.”

Dan Leins, a meteorologist with the weather service in Raleigh, said that as Chantal moved inland, the storm slowed down significantly, extending the duration of heavy rainfall in areas it crossed.

“It was a very small storm, which is also why the heavy rainfall and flooding that we saw was really confined to a relatively small area, and not the entire state,” Leins said.

The storm has not significantly affected the Asheville area of western North Carolina, where the remnants of a hurricane last year caused torrential downpours and mudslides that killed more than 100 people.