Storm wreaks havoc in US, 12 dead in Carolinas
WASHINGTON, September 15, 2018
US President Donald Trump has declared a disaster in North Carolina where a storm has killed 11 people amid warnings the worst is far from over.
Florence's top sustained winds have weakened to 50mph (80km/h) but it is projected to bring further catastrophic flash flooding.
Some towns have already had over 2ft (60cm) of rain, and forecasters warn that totals could hit 3.5ft (1m), reported BBC.
Nearly a million householders have no electricity in the Carolinas.
Tropical storm Florence has lumbered inland, knocking down trees, flooding rivers, and dumping sheets of rain in the Carolinas where at least six people have died.
It diminished from hurricane force as it came ashore, but forecasters said the 560km-wide storm’s slow progress across North and South Carolina could leave much of the region under water in the coming days.
“This storm is relentless and excruciating,” North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told CNN.
President Trump's disaster declaration for eight North Carolina counties frees up federal funding including grants for property repairs and low-cost loans to cover uninsured losses.
Eleven people have died as a result of Florence, the Associated Press reports, quoting officials.
A mother and her child were killed in Wilmington when a tree fell on their home on Friday. The infant's father was taken to hospital for injuries
A 78-year-old man was electrocuted in Lenoir County while attempting to connect extension cords
A 77-year-old man in the same county died when he was blown down by high winds while checking on his hunting dogs
A woman died from cardiac arrest in the town of Hampstead after emergency responders had their route to her blocked by downed trees.
About 9,700 National Guard troops and civilians have been deployed with high-water vehicles, helicopters and boats.
More than 22,600 people were housed in 150 North Carolina shelters, such as churches, schools and a basketball arena.
The president may travel to the region next week, the White House has said.
Meanwhile on the other side of the world, meanwhile, more than a dozen people have died as Typhoon Mangkhut rips through the Philippines.
The Typhoon, which packed winds as high as 200 miles an hour and slammed the northern Philippines, reported the US News.
More than 5 million people were at risk from the storm, which the Hawaii-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center downgraded from a super typhoon.
Mangkhut, however, was still punching powerful winds as high as 200 miles an hour and gusts equivalent to a Category 4 Atlantic hurricane when it hit the Philippines.
