Tropical Storm Michael Knocks Out Power, Closes Schools Friday

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Tropical Storm Michael may have come and gone but the destruction and problems it caused remain. One person was killed, hundreds of thousands were left without power, and many schools will be closed on Friday.

From heavy rains – in some cases up to 7 inches – causing rivers to overflow to flash flooding in Charlotte, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill to a tornado watch that remains in effect until 9 a.m. on Friday, conditions remain dangerous.

The damage done by Michael comes on the heels of Hurricane Florence, which caused $13 billion in damage, according to the Charlotte News & Observer.

Gov. Roy Cooper urged people to remain vigilant and only go out if they absolutely have to.

"Please don’t go out unless you have to," he said Thursday night. "Falling trees and rising waters, along with landslides in our mountains, are making travel difficult and even life-threatening in some areas."

Michael is not expected to fully leave North Carolina until midday on Friday.

"When the skies clear and the winds die down, we can get back to the work of rebuilding and recovery," Cooper said. Until then, "I urge people to hunker down and stay safe until Michael blows through.”

At least one person is dead in the state as a result of the storm.

Gov. Cooper said that a man in Iredell County was killed when a tree fell on his vehicle.

Nearly 200 roads remains closed across the state.

There are still 75 closed from when Florence struck – down from nearly 2,500 – and Michael has forced the closure of 119 more, nine of which are primary roads including U.S. 176 in Polk County.

Nearly 50 of the closed roads are centered in the Boone area.

The state's department of transportation has 1,200 trucks with 2,100 employees out working to get roads repaired and open.

In many cases, that's going to be necessary for crews to be able to get through and work on restoring power. Some 490,468 homes and businesses were without power by 9 a.m. Friday, according to PowerOutage.us. The majority of those – 425,212 – are customers of Duke Energy.

The outages have also forced many schools to close on Friday including those in Chapel Hill and Durham as well Granville, Lee, and Wake counties.

The highest wind gust reported in the state Thursday was 49 mph in Wilmington.

While North Carolina was spared the havoc that Michael wreaked upon Florida and Georgia, "this storm will not go down without a threat," said Cooper earlier Thursday during a press conference. "Michael is still a threat and should be taken seriously, especially with threat of storm surge, high winds, flooding and tornadoes."

Much of North Carolina is under flood warnings and tornado watches, the governor said.

Emergency officials noted that there were rescues underway near Asheville in western North Carolina. Details of those rescues and who they involved were not available during the press conference.

The state highway patrol had responded to 450 collisions and 780 calls for service by 4 p.m. on Friday.

The governor also activated 150 National Guard soldiers to assist in rescues, clearing roads, and offering support communications and logistics.

The preparations in North Carolina came one day after the category 4 Hurricane Michael slammed into the panhandle of Florida. Hurricane Michael left Florida downgraded to a Tropical Storm, and was blamed for havoc that left one man dead in Florida and a child dead in Georgia. Thousands of Floridians and Georgians remain without power on Thursday.

By 5 a.m. ET Friday, the National Hurricane Center reported that the center of Michael, now a post-tropical cyclone, was well into the Atlantic and 185 east of Norfolk, Virginia.

By Wednesday evening, nearly half of North Carolina — 45 counties — were under a tropical storm warning due to the threat of high winds. As precautions were underway throughout the state, at least 26 school systems canceled class Thursday.

A flash flood watch is in effect for the Charlotte-metro region until Thursday evening, with the heaviest rains expected to the west of the storm’s center. While the entire state is expected to receive a drenching, the central region of the state and foothills are expected to get up to 7 inches of rain during the day.

The eastern portion of the state is expected to bear the brunt of winds, with sustained winds of 24-45 mph, and gusts up to 50 mph. Coastal flooding and storm surge is also predicted, with a storm surge up to 4 feet possible of the sound-side of the Outer Banks, from Ocracoke to Duck, N.C.

“Hurricane Michael hit Florida with brutal force and is quickly heading for North Carolina,” Gov. Roy Cooper said Wednesday evening. “Michael will lose some of its punch before it reaches us but will still pack damaging wind and flooding rain and we need to take it seriously.”

Cooper declared a state of emergency for the state Wednesday, and also activated the National Guard, of which 150 troops were placed on duty.

As Michael advanced toward North Carolina overnight, National Weather Service forecasters warned that a strengthening southeasterly flow of moisture could increase the potential for heavy rain on the east side of the mountains.

“The main area of heavy rain associated with Michael will then spread northeast into the region late tonight,” NWS said. “The threat for heavy rain and flash flooding will be highest during the day on Thursday. The storm will pass quickly, ending the threat from west to east late tomorrow afternoon and evening.”

According to Duke Energy, an anticipated 300,000 to 500,000 homes will lose power in North Carolina and South Carolina due to the storm, it said Wednesday. To get ahead of expected outages, the power company dispatched almost 6,000 workers that included power line technicians, damage assessors and tree specialists, it said.

“We know this is an extremely difficult time, especially for many of our customers who have already endured the impacts of Hurricane Florence – a storm some would consider a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ event,” said Howard Fowler, Duke Energy’s incident commander for the Carolinas.

Here is the National Weather Service forecast through Monday, Oct. 15:

Friday (Oct. 12)
Sunny, with a high near 72. North northwest wind 5 to 7 mph.
Friday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 51. North northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.
Saturday (Oct. 13)
Sunny, with a high near 69.
Saturday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 50.
Sunday (Oct. 14)
Mostly sunny, with a high near 71.
Sunday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 59.
Monday (Oct. 15)
A 30 percent chance of showers after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 76.

SEE ALSO:

• Hurricane Michael: NC Waits As ‘Monstrous’ Storm Slams Florida
• Hurricane Michael: Charlotte Schools Close Ahead Of Storm
• Governor Declares State Of Emergency For NC Ahead Of Hurricane
• ‘Hurricane Weary’ North Carolina Bracing For Michael's RainHurricane Michael: NC State Fair Opening Delayed A Day

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Patch Editors Eric Heyl, Paul Scicchitano, John Barker contributed.

Image via National Weather Service Raleigh