11/22/2023 0 Comments Nasa world wind hurricane florenceIt will take a week or more for rainwater to drain from the hills and mountains, channeling all that rainfall into rivers and streams - scouring away homes and highways in floodplains along the way. Much of North Carolina and Virginia could be dealing with its worst floods in history. In short, Florence is a recipe for an abject flooding disaster. Over the past 60 days, parts of the region have received nearly double the amount of rain seen in a typical summer. If that forecast holds, North Carolina’s state hurricane rainfall record of 27 inches set during Floyd in 1999 could be shattered.Īll that rain would fall on already wet soil, worsening the potential deluge. The deluge could extend for hundreds of miles inland.įlorence’s slow movement after landfall is expected to bring 20 to 40 inches of rain to inland parts of North Carolina and Virginia, with floodwaters enhanced by the rainfall-squeezing effect of the Appalachian Mountains. Here's HowĪfter making landfall, the most reliable weather models show Florence stalling over the Carolinas and Virginia for up to four days, similar to what happened in Texas with Hurricane Harvey last year. To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. Florence will pack both.Īt the coast, Florence could bring 15 to 20 feet of storm surge, enough to eclipse the East Coast record and overwhelm fragile and densely-populated barrier islands. More than 80 percent of hurricane-related deaths are due to flooding, either by rising coastal waters or heavy rainfall. “Most of the area will be uninhabitable for weeks or months.”īut the biggest risk to lives and infrastructure will come from the water. Winds as strong as Florence’s will produce “catastrophic” damage, according to the National Hurricane Center’s explanation of the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale. In the generation since Hugo hit, millions more people have moved to the southeast coast - greatly increasing the region’s vulnerability. Since 1851, only three other hurricanes have targeted the Carolinas at Category-4 strength or stronger, with Hugo in 1989 the most recent. All three could come in record quantities simultaneously. history.įlorence poses three main threats: wind, heavy rain, and storm surge (the wall of water pushed ashore when a storm makes landfall). That could turn Florence into one of the most powerful hurricanes in U.S. ![]() ![]() On its current path, Florence will traverse the bathwater-warm Gulf Stream - source of rocket fuel for hurricanes - and likely strengthen further, perhaps reaching Category 5. President Donald Trump cancelled a campaign rally in Mississippi and tweeted several messages urging people to prepare.Īs of Tuesday evening, Florence had sustained winds of 140 mph - a strong Category 4. Large-scale evacuations have also been ordered in eastern North Carolina and southeast Virginia, home to a combined 3 million people, where states of emergency are already in effect. On Monday, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster ordered the complete evacuation of the state’s coastline, home to more than a million people, to prepare for what’s shaping up to be a historic storm. When it arrives in North Carolina on Thursday, it could be about the same size as North Carolina. Hurricane Florence is heading straight for the Carolinas, on course to slam into a region that hasn’t seen anything like it in a generation.įlorence is already one of the worst hurricanes ever to threaten the East Coast, and there’s nearly unanimous consensus among the most reliable weather models that the storm will grow larger and more fierce before it hits land.
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