Tropical Storm Debby slammed Florida with torrential rain and high winds, contributing to at least five deaths as it turned menacingly toward the Eastern Seaboard’s low-lying regions and threatened to flood some of America’s most historic Southern cities.
Quick Read
- Tropical Storm Debby hit Florida with heavy rain and strong winds, causing at least five deaths and heading toward the Eastern Seaboard’s low-lying areas, threatening historic Southern cities with flooding.
- The National Hurricane Center forecasted record-setting rainfall, with potential flash floods and up to 30 inches (76 cm) of rain in some areas. Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, are at risk.
- Up to 18 inches (46 cm) of rain was expected in central and north Florida.
- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis cautioned that the state could still face flooding threats as water flows south from Georgia.
- A curfew was set for Savannah and Chatham County from 10 p.m. Monday to 6 a.m. Tuesday due to worsening conditions.
- Tybee Island, near Savannah, braced for a double-dose of flooding from storm surge and rainfall. Residents were provided with sandbags to prepare.
- Michelle Owens, Tybee Island’s interim city manager, expressed concerns about unprecedented rainfall.
- Angela Thompson, a resident, prepared for the storm with essential supplies and sandbags.
- No deaths or injuries were reported in Taylor County, Florida, where Debby made landfall.
- Hilton Head Island, SC, Mayor Alan Perry warned residents to prepare for up to 30 inches (76 cm) of rain, urging them to check on each other and clear storm drains.
- In Savannah, residents filled sandbags in anticipation of potentially historic flooding. The city had already experienced heavy rainfall in July.
- In the Florida Keys, 70 pounds (32 kg) of cocaine washed up on a beach during the storm.
- Vice President Kamala Harris postponed her trip to Savannah, Georgia, due to the storm.
- Over 1,600 flights were canceled nationwide, with significant disruptions at Florida airports.
- President Joe Biden was briefed on the storm and approved Florida’s emergency declaration, deploying federal resources to the affected areas.
- A 13-year-old boy died in Florida after a tree fell on a mobile home, and other deaths were reported due to the storm’s impact.
- Debby weakened to a tropical storm but continued to pose a flooding threat to Florida, South Carolina, and Georgia, with substantial rainfall expected in North Carolina.
The Associated Press has the story:
Storm Debby blamed for at least 5 deaths in Florida as it bears down on Georgia
Newslooks- HORSESHOE BEACH, Fla. (AP) —
Tropical Storm Debby slammed Florida with torrential rain and high winds, contributing to at least five deaths as it turned menacingly toward the Eastern Seaboard’s low-lying regions and threatened to flood some of America’s most historic Southern cities.
Record-setting rain was expected to cause flash flooding, with up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) possible in some areas, the National Hurricane Center said. The potential for high water threatened Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina. Up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) was forecast in central and north Florida.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that just because the storm is moving into Georgia, it doesn’t mean the state won’t continue to see threats as waterways north of the border fill up and flow south.
“It is a very saturating, wet storm,” he said during an afternoon briefing at the state’s emergency operations center. “When they crest and the water that’s going to come down from Georgia, it’s just something that we’re going to be on alert for not just throughout today, but for the next week.”
Curfew announced for Savannah and surrounding county as Debby approaches
With Debby’s winds and rains expected to worsen overnight, officials for Savannah and surrounding Chatham County announced that an overnight curfew will take effect at 10 p.m. Monday and run to 6 a.m. Tuesday. The National Hurricane Center says the region can expect rains that could exceed 20 inches (51 centimeters).
By Monday afternoon, the storm’s outer bands were lashing Tybee Island, home to Georgia’s largest public beach, blowing sheets of rain sideways and rattling street signs near the beach pier. The island of 3,100 residents east of Savannah was bracing for a potential double-dose of flooding from an expected 2 to 4 feet of storm surge on top of rainfall.
“This is unprecedented rainfall,” said Michelle Owens, Tybee Island’s interim city manager. She added: “We don’t know what that looks like. So we have to be prepared for the worst. But we are definitely hoping for the best.”
Public works crews used earthmoving equipment to heap sand over beach access points to help fortify a storm surge buffer offered by surrounding dunes. Owens said the city also had given out about 2,000 sandbags to island residents.
Angela Thompson had several sandbags ready by the front door of her ground-level apartment near Tybee Creek on the island’s west side. She had just started moving in earlier this week and hoped to ride out the storm while unpacking.
“I have food and water and batteries and the things that I need, and I’m going to stay as long as I can,” Thompson said.
Florida will be on alert for flooding for the next week, Gov. Ron DeSantis says
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that just because Tropical Storm Debby is moving toward Georgia, that doesn’t mean the state won’t continue to see threats as waterways north of the border fill up and flow south.
“It is a very saturating, wet storm,” DeSantis said during a briefing at the state’s emergency operations center. “When they crest and the water that’s going to come down from Georgia, it’s just something that we’re going to be on alert for not just throughout today, but for the next week.”
Record-setting rain was forecast to cause flash flooding in coastal Georgia and South Carolina and into North Carolina, with up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) of rainfall in some areas, according to the National Hurricane Center. Debby made landfall early Monday as a Category 1 hurricane over Florida’s gulf coast. The storm was moving slowly to the north-northeast and was expected to slow down as it turns to the east.
No deaths or injuries in Florida county where Debby made landfall, sheriff says
The sheriff of Florida’s Taylor County, where Debby came ashore as a hurricane Monday, says there are no deaths or injuries in the sparsely populated area located in the state’s northern Big Bend region.
But Sheriff Wayne Padgett advised anyone who had evacuated from low-lying and coastal areas to wait before returning because the tide will be coming in and it’s unknown how deep the water might get. Several roads are closed due to flooding as well as trees and power lines downed by the storm, Padgett said.
Debby made landfall as a category 1 hurricane near Steinhatchee, a tiny community of less than 1,000 residents.
Mayor warns tourists, residents on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island: Don’t let your guard down
No evacuations were planned Monday on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island, one of the state’s most popular beach destinations. But Mayor Alan Perry warned tourists and residents not to let their guard down with forecasts predicting up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) of rain this week from Debby.
“We don’t know how much rain is going to fall. But we have to prepare for the worst,” Perry said. “If that happens, we will see an event we have never seen on Hilton Head before.”
In a video posted on Facebook, Perry asked island residents and visitors to check on each other before the heavy rain starts — and maybe help the city out by checking storm drains. “If you are able to go out and pull some debris from those drains so they can drain, that’s is really key to preventing additional flooding,” he said.
Hilton Head Island has about 38,000 residents. Officials estimate up to 250,000 tourists can be on the island on the busiest summer days.
In saturated Savannah, residents prepare for potentially historic rains
As Debby threatened to dump potentially historic flooding rains across southeast Georgia, more than 20 people in Savannah filled sandbags at a park in the city’s suburban southside. Rain soaked their clothes and mud stuck to their shoes. Officials are especially concerned about Debby because the area already is saturated after Savannah recorded 8.5 inches of rain in July, 3 inches greater than normal, according to the National Weather Service.
Jim Froncak tossed a dozen full bags into the back of his pickup truck while his son and a friend did the shoveling. Even though his home sits about 2 feet off the ground, Froncak said he won’t be surprised if a nearby ditch overflows with floodwaters capable of reaching his doors.
“A really heavy thunderstorm will fill it up,” Froncak said. “So whatever’s coming is really going to fill it up and flow over.”
City crews spent days ahead of Debby’s arrival clearing storm drains throughout Savannah. Some low-lying neighborhoods outside the historic downtown area had flooded streets from thunderstorms less than two weeks ago.
Packages containing cocaine wash up on beach in Florida Keys during storm, Border Patrol says
In the Florida Keys, Debby blew packages containing 70 pounds (32 kilograms) of cocaine onto a beach, the U.S. Border Patrol’s Miami sector reported Monday.
A “good Samaritan” found the drugs and contacted authorities, the agency said. The cocaine has a street value of more than $1 million, the agency said on social media. It’s didn’t say exactly where the cocaine was found.
Vice President Harris postpones trip to Georgia
Vice President Kamala Harris is postponing a scheduled trip to Georgia amid the ongoing effects of Tropical Storm Debby.
Harris’ campaign said her stop planned in Savannah, Georgia, on Thursday, was being put off due to the storm.
Harris is choosing her running mate and will introduce the choice during a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday. The pair will then travel together starting on Wednesday to a series of key battleground states: Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada. But the Georgia leg of the original journey has been canceled for now.
Debby made landfall in Florida on Monday as a Category 1 hurricane and was expected to bring potentially record-setting rainfall to Georgia and South Carolina as it heads east.
Debby forces flight cancellations at Florida airports
More than 1,600 flights were canceled nationwide by midday Monday, many of them to and from Florida airports, according to FlightAware.com. One out of every five flights scheduled to leave Orlando International Airport was canceled Monday, with just as many incoming flights canceled there.
Nearly 30 percent of flights scheduled to depart Tampa International Airport on Monday were canceled. High numbers of canceled flights were also reported at airports in Jacksonville and Fort Myers.
Biden briefed on Debby’s progress
President Joe Biden was briefed on Debby’s progress while at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, the White House said Monday.
The White House said Biden on Saturday approved Florida’s request for an emergency declaration and that federal rescue personnel, meals and water have been deployed to the storm-stricken region. The administration is closely monitoring the storm and response effort with state and local officials, it said.
A 13-year-old boy dies when tree falls on mobile home in Florida, and officials report other deaths in storm
A 13-year-old boy died Monday morning after a tree fell on a mobile home located southwest of Gainesville, Florida, according to the Levy County Sheriff’s Office.
Officials reported other deaths as Debby moved inland.
A truck driver died early Monday on Interstate 75 in the Tampa area after he lost control of his tractor trailer, which flipped over a concrete wall and dangled over water before the cab dropped into the water below.
East of Steinhatchee, a tiny community in northern Florida near where the storm made landfall, a 38-year-old woman and a 12-year-old boy were killed late Sunday when the car she was driving on a wet road struck a median and then overturned off the road. A 14-year-old boy who was a passenger was hospitalized with serious injuries, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Debby weakens to a tropical storm but flooding threat continues
Debby has weakened into a tropical storm with top winds hovering around 50 mph (85 kph) Monday evening. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm was near the Florida-Georgia border and was moving slowly to the northeast. It was expected to decrease in speed as it turns to the east. Debby made landfall as a hurricane in the Big Bend region of Florida, one of the state’s least populated areas.
Forecasters are still warning that heavy rain could spawn catastrophic flooding in Florida, South Carolina and Georgia. Substantial rainfall was expected as well in central and northeast North Carolina through Wednesday morning.
