Durham’s Central Park floods and trees fall in Triangle

Helene brought severe flooding and a series of tornado warnings to North Carolina on Friday. A tornado touched down in Rocky Mount, injuring at least five people, and Interstate 40 was blocked at the Tennessee state line due to a mudslide.

The Triangle and surrounding counties saw more than a dozen tornado warnings before 1 p.m., with Wake, Durham, Johnston, Chatham, Orange and others all under tornado warnings at some point. A tornado watch will expire for the entire area until 6 p.m.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper confirmed two deaths in the state caused by Helen. A child has died in Catawba County following a crash on a flooded road. Another person died in Charlotte after a tree fell on a house.

A confirmed tornado touched down in Rocky Mount along Benvenue Road and Tiffany Boulevard near North Wesleyan Boulevard. Several people were injured and several buildings were destroyed, including a church and a Days Inn.

PHOTOS: Damage caused by Helene in North Carolina

There were more than 700,000 customers without power across North Carolina, most in the western part of the state. Duke Energy sent more than 10,000 crews to help restore power to the Carolinas.

Although not comparable to the mountains, the Triangle and surrounding counties experienced severe flooding, including Central Park in Durham, which was partially underwater. WRAL viewers sent photos of toys floating in yards and in trees at homes.

Trees fell across the Triangle in various neighborhoods and on NC Highway 751 between Fayetteville and Stagecoach roads. A tree fell on a home on Meadow Circle in Fuquay-Varina. Firefighters discovered the tree around 2:15 a.m. and a caller reported someone trapped inside.

The storm also caused numerous backups and crashes in the Triangle, including on I-40 near Garner and on the I-440 Beltline.

More than 100 swift water rescues have been made in the western part of the state, and crews were expecting more in a midday update from William Ray of the Division of Emergency Management.

Many local school districts canceled classes Friday, including Wake, Chatham, Cumberland, Durham, Orange and many others.

Storms from Helen’s first bands moved through the area Thursday, triggering tornado warnings Thursday afternoon. Tom McDonald, who lives in Raleigh, was at his North Hills home when a tree snapped and fell on his truck in his driveway.

“The whole roof is collapsed, so I had to guess it was probably totally destroyed,” he said.

Some passengers delayed or stranded at RDU

More than 70 flights were delayed at Raleigh-Durham International Airport on Friday.

Some residents looking to leave Raleigh to go to Florida were delayed Thursday evening, or in some cases stranded, at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

Flights to and from Tampa were canceled and several flights to Charlotte were delayed. Some people have been forced to adapt to the changes. According to FlightAware, there were 87 flight delays and 15 flight cancellations at the airport.

“I really want to cry,” Tameka Totten said. “It’s very upsetting.”

Totten said her flight was delayed after delay and she ultimately canceled her trip to Dubai.

“It happened so quickly,” she said. We thought we were going to work around the weather since most of the weather we were thinking about was coming tomorrow. »

Diquon Brandon said he was trying to get back to Atlanta, but his flight was continually delayed. Meteorologists said Atlanta would be directly in the path of the hurricane.

“This is the longest experience I’ve had with a layover,” he said, adding that he had been at the airport for more than 24 hours and would likely spend the night at the airport.

“I just want to go home. I just wish this wouldn’t happen to me.”