With the Roanoke Valley now off the western center of the eye of Tropical Storm Debby there have been minimal impacts thus far in Halifax County, Emergency Management Coordinator Buddy Wrenn said this afternoon.
“There were multiple trees down in Hollister. There are two or three down in Roanoke Rapids,” he said.
The storm was crossing the stateline near the Wadesboro area around 2 p.m. Wrenn said.
Its track has shifted greatly from earlier predictions and now its center appears to be heading more to the Triad.
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But, the National Weather Service advises that impacts can occur well outside the track’s cone.
A tornado watch is in effect until 8 this evening and could be extended, Wrenn said.
As far as the storm’s shift, Wrenn said, “Based on total rain, that’s good for us. It could cut down on the wind field as far as exposure.”
The National Hurricane Center said in its 11 a.m. advisory that heavy rainfall is expected to persist through today along with areas of considerable flooding.
Heavy rainfall will also result in considerable to catastrophic flooding impacts across portions of the Mid-Atlantic states and northeast Saturday morning.
Tropical storm conditions will continue for several more hours in the warning area and along the coast of northeastern South Carolina and portions of North Carolina.
Coastal flooding due to storm surge is likely to continue along portions of the North Carolina coastline for several more hours, the NHC said.
