In Charleston, Some Flooding in Downtown
Hurricane Matthew sent torrents of rain through the city that turned some roads into rivers and, around the Low Country, ripped trees from the inundated ground, creating more than 250,000 power outages around the state.
State officials expressed concern about places like Beaufort and Hilton Head Island, to the south, where the tide was higher when the storm hit.
In Charleston, the wind picked up as the eye wall rolled through and water filled many downtown streets. Water was also coming over the sea wall along East Battery Street, along the southeastern edge of this peninsular city.
But many here felt a measure of relief because the tide was receding — even though the storm surge kept the water much higher than usual.
"We've dealt with this before — we've dealt with this back in October of last year," said Charles Francis, a public information officer for the department, comparing the flooding to that caused by 15 to 20 inches of rain over about four days in 2015.
J.T. Thomas, 51, was spending the storm on his yacht in the Charleston City Marina, watching it on the radar.
"It's a little roll-y," Mr. Thomas said early Saturday, "but nobody broke loose and the tide's gone out now."
Still, Mr. Thomas said, it was the strongest storm he had experienced in Charleston in decades. — JESS BIDGOOD, in Charleston.
In North Carolina, Storm's Shift Raises Concerns
Although North Carolina officials were hoping just days ago that the state would dodge the storm's wrath, the hurricane's shifting path left coastal and inland areas alike vulnerable.
"I'm extremely concerned since this hurricane has been downgraded that people will let up their guard, and it's these types of hurricanes that settle over our state that have caused the most damage and loss of life and destruction," Gov. Pat McCrory said.
"We wanted this hurricane to go out, where it would have been more powerful over the ocean," Mr. McCrory said. "But as soon as this hurricane turned inward, which is what we didn't want — yes, it did downgrade into wind. But it upgraded into the volume of water, and water can kill, along with continued high winds."
Mr. McCrory, who had earlier declared an emergency for all 100 of his state's counties, said that the authorities feared that substantial rainfall would lead to flooding in already-saturated areas. The National Hurricane Center said some parts of North Carolina could record up to seven feet of storm surge.
Indeed, Mr. McCrory warned that the state could experience its worst flooding since Hurricane Floyd in 1999. — ALAN BLINDER, in Orlando
Florida Governor: 'Blessed That Matthew Stayed Off Our Coast'
Gov. Rick Scott of Florida said Saturday that the state had suffered "unbelievable amounts of beach erosion," as well as damaged roads, flooding and felled trees.
But Mr. Scott, who flew along the coastline to survey storm damage, said the storm's consequences could have been far worse.
"The first thing we can say is we are all blessed that Matthew stayed off our coast," he said. "I worried the whole time that even though the tra ck was off our coast, that it would turn in and have a direct hit at some point."
State and local officials said they were trying to expedite recovery.
"We're going to ride each other hard," said Mayor Lenny Curry of Jacksonville. "We're going to ride our utilities, we're going to ride all of our workers to get this community back together as quickly and as safely as possible.
Still, Mayor Charlie Latham of Jacksonville Beach asked for patience.
"We're working diligently, and to be honest with you, we're doing our very best just to get people home and provide safe access," Mr. Latham said. — ALAN BLINDER, in Orlando
Florida Governor Declines to Extend Voter Registration
Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, declined to extend the deadline after a call from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign to accommodate people disrupted by the hurricane. Read more »[1]
Could Hurricane Loop Back?
Forecasters say there are hints that the storm could take a path back towar d the coastline, at a reduced strength. Read more from John Schwartz »[2]
Our Reporter Is Taking Hurricane Questions
John Schwartz, a New York Times reporter who covers climate change and the environment, is answering reader questions about the storm. He rode out his first hurricane[3], Carla, in his hometown, Galveston, Tex., at age 4. He has covered the[4] aftermath [5]of Hurricane Katrina[6], as well as other[7] storms[8] for The Times.
Ask your hurricane questions here[9].
Why do weather agencies and the news media keep getting the forecasts so wrong and overstate the severity of hurricanes? Is this some kind of insurance liability issue, where they are afraid of getting sued if they don't paint a 'doomsday' picture? — Jim
The conservative approach isn't about liability, Jim, it's about saving lives. The storm track that Matthew has followed has been well within the range of possibilities that the National Hurricane Center has been talking about all along. This is still a dangerous storm, and just because some stretches of the Florida coast have not been hit as catastrophically as was possible, that does not mean the rest of Florida or Georgia or South Carolina are in the clear.
Marshall Shepherd, the director of Atmospheric Sciences Program, University of Georgia, has been fiercely defending the warnings on Twitter, and I'll let him do the talking here:
Chris W. Landsea, science and operations officer for the National Hurricane Center, said that while the storm has weakened somewhat, it is now spread over a larger area, and "a larger hurricane can cause more storm surge," and a larger wind field; the wind damage, in other words, can be felt over a larger area. So a slightly weaker but larger storm is "kind of a wash, as far as impacts," he said.
Continue reading the main story[10]References
- ^ Read more » (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ Read more from John Schwartz » (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ rode out his first hurricane (thelede.blogs.nytimes.com)
- ^ the (query.nytimes.com)
- ^ aftermath (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ Katrina (query.nytimes.com)
- ^ other (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ storms (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ here (www.nytimes.com)
- ^ Continue reading the main story (www.nytimes.com)
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