North Carolina emergency management leaders say people should stay indoors and off the roads, if at all possible. Hurricane Ian made landfall in South Carolina this afternoon and is expected to reach North Carolina tonight.
Utility crews from other parts of the country were brought in and are on standby to restore power as needed. In a Friday afternoon briefing, Emergency Management Director William Ray said flash flooding is possible in many parts of the state, which brings higher risks when driving.
"Folks really need to stay off the roads. Just with how quickly the water can move and shift and come and go. That still is very much a threat and a hazard out there," said Ray.
State emergency management officials along with the National Guard and local first responders are "staged across the state," said Governor Roy Cooper.
Stay indoors & off the roads if you can. If you have to go out, don't drive through water. It only takes a few inches to sweep a car away. Over the past 24 hours, we鈥檝e seen Hurricane Ian plow through the Southeast, leaving destruction & death behind. We mourn for the lives lost.
— Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor)
Rainfall totals had already reached nearly two inches in Goldsboro by Friday afternoon. Heavy rains are expected throughout much of North Carolina this evening and night.
馃導锔廟ainfall totals as of 2:00 PM
— NWS Raleigh (@NWSRaleigh)
1.99 inches near Goldsboro, NC
1.87 inches near Tarboro, NC
1.55 inches near Goldsboro, NC
1.50 inches near Lillington, NC
1.46 inches near Fort Bragg, NC
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More than 鈥� the state's largest utility 鈥� were already without power as of 3:45 p.m., as Hurricane Ian gets closer to North Carolina. To keep track of power outages in your area, you can from Duke Energy.
Cooper said that at least 71 school districts are either on modified school schedules or closed during the storm.
