Tropical Storm Debby hits Florida with floods, threat of record rain in Georgia and the Carolinas

Jeff Martin & Christopher O'Meara, Associated Press

HORSESHOE BEACH, Florida (AP) — Tropical Storm Debby slammed Florida connected Monday pinch torrential rainfall and precocious winds, contributing to astatine slightest 4 deaths successful nan authorities and nan rescue of hundreds from flooded homes earlier turning menacingly toward nan Eastern Seaboard’s low-lying regions and threatening to flood immoderate of America’s astir historical Southern cities.

Record-setting rainfall was causing flash flooding, pinch up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) imaginable successful immoderate areas, nan National Hurricane Center said.

About 500 group were rescued from flooded homes successful Sarasota, Florida, a formation metropolis celebrated pinch tourists, nan Sarasota Police Department said successful a societal media post. It was 1 of nan cities hardest deed by flooding connected Monday.

“Essentially we’ve had doubly nan magnitude of nan rainfall that was predicted for america to have,” Sarasota County Fire Chief David Rathbun said successful a societal media update.

Just northbound of Sarasota, officials successful Manatee County said successful a news merchandise that 186 group were rescued from flood waters.

“We are facing an unprecedented upwind arena pinch Hurricane Debby,” said Jodie Fiske, nationalist information head for Manatee County public. “The information of our residents is our apical priority, and we are doing everything successful our powerfulness to respond efficaciously to this crisis.”

A flash flood emergency was issued into Monday evening for nan Lake City area successful nan northbound cardinal portion of nan state, wherever up to a ft (30.5 centimeters) of rainfall had fallen and much was expected.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that nan authorities could proceed to spot threats arsenic waterways northbound of nan separator capable up and travel south.

“It is simply a very saturating, bedewed storm,” he said during an day briefing astatine nan state’s emergency operations center. “When they crest and nan h2o that’s going to travel down from Georgia, it’s conscionable thing that we’re going to beryllium connected alert for not conscionable passim today, but for nan adjacent week.”

Debby made landfall on nan Gulf Coast of Florida early Monday arsenic a Category 1 hurricane. It since has weakened to a tropical large wind and is moving slowly, covering roads pinch h2o and contributing to astatine slightest 5 deaths.

A motortruck driver died connected Interstate 75 successful nan Tampa area aft he mislaid power of his tractor trailer, which flipped complete a actual wall and dangled complete nan separator earlier nan cab dropped into nan h2o below. Sheriff’s agency divers located nan driver, a 64-year-old man from Mississippi, successful nan cab 40 feet (12 meters) beneath nan surface, according to nan Florida Highway Patrol.

A 13-year-old boy died Monday greeting aft a character fell connected a mobile location southwest of Gainesville, according to nan Levy County Sheriff’s Office.

And successful Dixie County, conscionable eastbound of wherever nan large wind made landfall, a 38-year-old female and a 12-year-old boy died successful a car clang connected bedewed roads Sunday night. The Florida Highway Patrol said a 14-year-old boy who was a rider was hospitalized pinch superior injuries.

In confederate Georgia, a 19-year-old man died Monday day erstwhile a ample character fell onto a structure astatine a location successful Moultrie, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Nearly 200,000 customers remained without powerfulness successful Florida and Georgia connected Monday afternoon, down from a highest of much than 350,000, according to PowerOutage.us and Georgia Electric Membership Corp.

Airports were besides affected. More than 1,600 flights had been canceled nationwide, galore of them to and from Florida airports, according to FlightAware.com.

The imaginable for precocious h2o besides threatened Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina.

Local leaders successful Savannah said flooding could hap successful areas that don’t usually get precocious h2o if Debby stalls retired complete nan city. With winds and rainfall expected to worsen overnight, authorities issued a curfew from 10 p.m. Monday until 6 a.m. Tuesday.

“This type of rainfall hovering complete us, coming pinch nan strength that they show america it is coming, it’s going to drawback a full batch of group by surprise,” said Chatham County Chairman Chester Ellis.

In South Carolina, Charleston County Interim Emergency Director Ben Webster called Debby a “historic and perchance unprecedented event” 3 times successful a 90-second briefing Monday morning.

The metropolis of Charleston has an emergency scheme successful spot that includes sandbags for residents, opening parking garages truthful residents tin parkland their cars supra floodwaters and an online mapping strategy that shows which roads are closed owed to flooding. Officials announced a curfew for nan metropolis starting astatine 11 p.m. arsenic immoderate of nan heaviest rainfall is expected to autumn overnight.

North Carolina is besides nether a authorities of emergency aft Gov. Roy Cooper declared it successful an executive bid signed Monday. Several areas on nan state’s coastline are prone to flooding, specified arsenic Wilmington and nan Outer Banks, according to nan North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program.

North Carolina and South Carolina person dealt pinch 3 catastrophic floods from tropical systems successful nan past 9 years, each causing much than $1 cardinal successful damage.

In 2015, rainfall fed by moisture arsenic Hurricane Joaquin passed good offshore caused monolithic flooding. In 2016, flooding from Hurricane Matthew caused 24 deaths successful nan 2 states and rivers group grounds crests. Those records were surgery successful 2018 pinch Hurricane Florence, which group rainfall records successful some Carolinas, flooded galore of nan aforesaid places and was responsible for 42 deaths successful North Carolina and 9 successful South Carolina.

President Joe Biden was briefed connected Debby’s advancement while astatine his location successful Wilmington, Delaware, nan White House said. Biden approved a petition from South Carolina’s politician for an emergency declaration, pursuing his earlier support of a akin petition from Florida. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he has asked Biden to rumor a preemptive national emergency declaration to velocity nan travel of national assistance to nan state.

Vice President Kamala Harris has postponed a run extremity scheduled for Thursday successful Savannah, Georgia.

Debby made landfall adjacent Steinhatchee, a mini organization successful bluish Florida of little than 1,000 residents. It’s not acold from wherever Hurricane Idalia made landfall little than a twelvemonth agone arsenic a Category 3 storm.

Sue Chewning lives successful adjacent Cross City and has weathered some storms. In her astir 73 years of surviving successful nan area, she said she doesn’t callback immoderate nonstop hits from a hurricane — until this one-two punch from Idalia and Debby.

“Some group whitethorn say, ‘I can’t return this anymore’. But I deliberation for nan astir portion … it’s a close-knit organization and astir of nan section people, they’re going to stay, excavation down, thief each other,” Chewning said.
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Martin reported from Atlanta. AP journalists Freida Frisaro successful Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Kate Payne successful Tallahassee, Florida; Michael Schneider successful Orlando, Florida; Russ Bynum successful Savannah, Georgia; Jeffrey Collins successful Columbia, South Carolina; and Darlene Superville and Will Weissert successful Washington, contributed to this report.