Hurricane Florence triggered the flooding of the Pungo River in Belhaven, North Carolina, which caused water levels to get to the first floor of a house.
“Maximum sustained winds are near 80 mph (130 km/h) with higher gusts. Gradual weakening is forecast later today and tonight. Significant weakening is expected over the weekend and into early next week while Florence moves farther inland,” according to the agency.
But the NHC warned against storm surge. It said Cape Fear has between 7 feet and 11 feet of storm surge, and it’s locally higher around the Neuse, Pamlico, Pungo, and Bay rivers.
Cape Lookout has 6 feet to 9 feet of storm surge, South Santee River has 4 feet to 6 feet, Ocracoke Inlet 4 feet to 6 feet, Salvo in North Carolina has 2 feet to 4 feet, and Edisto Beach has 2 feet to 4 feet.
“The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast in areas of onshore winds, where the surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves. Surge-related flooding can vary greatly over short distances. For information specific to your area, please see products issued by your local National Weather Service forecast office,” the agency said.
The storm is still slated to produce 20 to 25 inches of rain along the coasts of North and South Carolina, the agency said.