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This story was updated at 9:30 pm
As Hurricane Michael was heading north from the Florida Panhandle, Charlotte's emergency officials continued to warn of possible flash floods, strong winds, and tree felling. slaughtered Thursday after the storm.
Schools in Charlotte-Mecklenburg will be closed Thursday due to the storm, the school system was announced at 18:00. Wednesday. The Union County schools and some schools in York County, S.C., will also be closed on Thursday.
Michael made landfall as a category 4 hurricane with his eye wall moving towards the coast at 1 pm Eastern time near Panama City, Florida, on a planned path in North Carolina. He then weakened in a category 1.
Michael is expected to arrive in Charlotte on Thursday around 8 am and leave the area at 8 pm, according to the latest news from the city of Charlotte.
"The Charlotte area could get 3 to 5 centimeters of rain and gusts of wind every 35 km," said the city.
The rain began in the area Wednesday, but the strongest winds and showers will be Thursday when the storm passes, the experts said.
A lightning watch is in effect for the Charlotte area (including York County, S.C.) from Thursday morning to Thursday evening. The National Weather Service predicts that 3 to 4 inches of rain may fall in the area on Thursday.
"The greatest threat that Michael will pose for (the Charlotte area) currently appears to be a flash flood," said the National Weather Service.
Charlotte's teams have cleaned sumps and storm sewers to prevent flooding caused by Michael, the city said.
State of emergency declared
Tropical storm warnings were issued for counties as far west as Anson and Stanly. In neighboring South Carolina, the tropical storm warning is spreading in York and Lancaster counties just south of Charlotte.
Tornadoes are also a possibility, but mostly in eastern North Carolina as the center of the storm crosses Colombia and heads to Fayetteville on Thursday, the National Weather Service reported.
Governor Roy Cooper declared the state of emergency Wednesday morning in North Carolina, calling Hurricane Michael "terrible storm" in a press release.
According to the National Weather Service, the biggest impact of the hurricane on the state will be felt south and east of Interstate 85, especially in the southern coastal counties, according to the National Weather Service.
Tropical storm warnings and watches have also been issued in several counties in northeastern South Carolina and southeastern North Carolina, the same region struck last month by winds from the north. hurricane Florence and its flash floods.
"Too much saturated soil and weak trees will still help to deal with a high wind hazard and some power outages will occur. Flash floods will also be possible, but the rapid movement of the storm should limit precipitation, "said a national weather service official.
"Storm wave threatening the life-threatening"
The wall of the eye of Hurricane Michael touched the beach of Mexico Beach at 13 hours. Wednesday, between Panama City and Apalachicola, Florida. This resulted in "a life-threatening storm surge and catastrophic onshore winds," the National Hurricane Center announced. The storm intensified when she landed, officials said.
The impact of the storm will be felt across the southeast to Virginia, with precipitation forecasts of 4 to 10 inches of rain in parts of eastern North Carolina.
Category 1 storm winds range from 74 to 95 mph, and remain "very damaging," depending on the center of the hurricane.
Hurricane, meanwhile, is not expected to affect fuel supply in the Carolinas, although "gasoline prices may increase in the short term due to panic buying, "said AAA Carolinas in a press release.
AAA blamed fuel shortages during Hurricane Florence for "strong demand before the storm as evacuations took place along the coast, increasing the number of vehicles in tanks, and then during outages. current and floods … "
Observer journalist Ann Doss Helms contributed
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