At least 4 lives lost in NC to Tropical Storm Debby, one from Wake County crash
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Debby’s impact on the Triangle & NC
Tropical Storm Debby drenches the Triangle and North and South Carolina. By Thursday afternoon, it was downgraded to a tropical depression. Here are stories on the impact of the storm.
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A fatal Wake County vehicle crash linked to hazardous conditions from Tropical Storm Debby puts the storm’s death toll to at least four lives lost in North Carolina, according to the N.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Tropical Storm Debby lumbered through North Carolina on Thursday and Friday, but it takes officials time to confirm that deaths caused by tornadoes and inclement conditions were linked to the storm. And some deaths, like those in floodwaters, happen after the storm due to conditions it caused.
In Wake County, the fatal accident happened about 1:39 p.m. Thursday near where Interstate 40 West and Interstate 440 merge. Glenda Whaley, 59, was a passenger in a Ford Flex that was traveling on I-40 when it hydroplaned in the curve as heavy rain began, according to a Raleigh Police Department release.
The Ford Flex spun out, hitting a Ford-650, which also spun out, according to Raleigh Police. Ultimately, the Ford Flex struck the end of the guardrail for the I-40 westbound median barrier, with part of the guardrail entering the car.
Whaley was killed in the crash, and the driver and another passenger were transported to the hospital, according to Raleigh Police.
In Robeson County, a Columbus County woman drowned Saturday after floodwaters from Tropical Storm Debby swept her vehicle off the road.
Around 3:39 p.m., emergency officials were dispatched to Old Whiteville Road about 9 miles east of Lumberton, N.C. State Highway Patrol Sgt. Stephen Hunt said.
The driver, who was the only person in the car, had driven around barriers before being swept off the road. Her vehicle was submerged.
A Facebook post from Lumberton Rescue and EMS showed rescue workers using high clearance vehicles and kayaks to try to reach the vehicle. The water was 8 inches to a foot deep where the accident happened, the EMS post said.
Emergency management officials frequently say “turn around, don’t drown” ahead of and in the immediate aftermath of tropical storm systems. Hunt, the Highway Patrol sergeant, reiterated that message after Saturday’s death.
“Pay attention to what the signage says. If the road is closed, just don’t go through there,” Hunt said.
A powerful, deadly storm
Debby’s impacts were still felt in eastern North Carolina on Monday.
Floodwaters were still rising in some parts of Southeastern North Carolina. Both the Lumberton River around Lumberton and the Northeast Cape Fear River near Burgaw were in major flood stage, according to the N.C. Flood Inundation Mapping & Alert Network.
Last Thursday, a 78-year-old Rockingham County woman was killed when a tree fell into her house. That was the second death North Carolina authorities attributed to stormy conditions from Tropical Storm Debby.
Emergency officials were dispatched around 7:26 p.m. to the mobile home on Clearwater Lane in Browns Summit. A tree had fallen on it, killing Hilda Windsor Jones, according to a release from the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office.
Earlier Thursday, a man was killed in Wilson County when a tornado caused his home to collapse near Lucama. The storm damaged several other homes and also nearby Springfield Middle School, which Gov. Roy Cooper described as looking like “an explosion” after touring the damage.
The Wilson County tornado was one of 10 spawned by Debby in North Carolina that the National Weather Service has confirmed. It was an EF-3, with wind speeds reaching 140 miles per hour.
Debby strained North Carolina’s infrastructure.
At the peak of Debby-related power outages Thursday evening, Duke Energy was reporting 520,000 customers without power across North Carolina.
About 510,000 of those customers had their power restored by Friday afternoon, Duke officials said in a press release.
This story was produced with financial support from the Hartfield Foundation and Green South Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. If you would like to help support local journalism, please consider signing up for a digital subscription, which you can do here.
This story was originally published August 9, 2024 at 10:25 AM with the headline "At least 4 lives lost in NC to Tropical Storm Debby, one from Wake County crash."
