By JENNIFER KAY and GARY FINEOUT , Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — A tropical weather system that rapidly strengthened into Hurricane Michael on Monday is likely to keep growing stronger ahead of an expected strike on Florida’s Panhandle by midweek, forecasters said. Michael could strengthen into a major hurricane with winds topping 111 mph (178…
By JONATHAN DREW , Associated Press WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Blowing ashore with howling 90 mph (155 kph) winds, Hurricane Florence splintered buildings, trapped hundreds of people and swamped entire communities along the Carolina coast Friday in what could be just the opening act in a watery, two-part, slow-motion disaster. At least four people were…
By JONATHAN DREW , Associated Press WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Hurricane Florence was making landfall in North Carolina early Friday with a life-threatening storm surge that pushed water inland for miles, pelting rains and screaming winds that destroyed buildings in its path. More than 60 people had to be pulled from a collapsing motel at…
By JONATHAN DREW WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — The big slosh has begun, and the consequences could be disastrous. Hurricane Florence’s leading edge battered the Carolina coast Thursday, bending trees and shooting frothy sea water over streets on the Outer Banks, as the hulking storm closed in with 100 mph (155 kph) winds for a drenching…
By JEFFREY COLLINS , Associated Press MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP) — Hurricane Florence put a corridor of more than 10 million people in the crosshairs Wednesday as the monster storm closed in on the Carolinas, uncertainty over its projected path spreading worry across a widening swath of the Southeast. Faced with new forecasts that showed…
By JONATHAN DREW , Associated Press WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Coastal residents fleeing a potentially devastating blow from Hurricane Florence encountered empty gasoline pumps and depleted store shelves as the monster storm neared the Carolina coast with 140 mph (225 kph) winds and drenching rain that could last for days. While some said they planned…
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Florence (all times local): 4:40 p.m. Forecasters at the University of Michigan predict that 2.4 million people will lose power from Hurricane Florence and some outages could be prolonged. That’s about one-fourth the number who suffered outages from Hurricane Sandy, which hit a more populated area around…
By RUSS BYNUM , Associated Press Rapidly intensifying Hurricane Florence could strike a direct and dangerous blow anywhere from the Carolinas to the Mid-Atlantic region later this week, possibly as a fearsome category 4. A hurricane hunter plane found Florence strengthening quickly, reaching top winds of 85 mph (140 kph) Sunday evening after crossing the…
St. Louis, MO (KTRS) The St. Louis Art Fair closed early on Friday evening due to threatening weather. The following message was posted on its website: St. Louis Art Fair officials have learned of a potentially problematic round of weather coming from the south, heading into the St. Louis area. As a result, we have…
By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER , Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — Hurricane Lane soaked Hawaii’s Big Island on Thursday, dumping 12 inches of rain in as many hours as residents stocked up on supplies and tried to protect their homes ahead of the state’s first hurricane since 1992. The National Weather Service warned that some areas…