DEMA Sends 42 Firefighters To Assist As Florence Stalls Over Carolinas
Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook | Twitter
NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Del. (CBS/AP) — As Florence, now a tropical storm, swirls at a near-standstill over the Carolinas the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) is sending 42 firefighters to North Carolina to assist.
How To Help Those Impacted By Hurricane Florence
DEMA made the announcement Saturday adding that the team will deploy through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) and hopes to arrive in Raleigh, North Carolina later in the day.
The team will provide assistance to those in need for the next week.
Florence has been dumping non-stop rain over areas already flooded by seawater and swelling rivers and creeks across both states.
Some towns have already been soaked by more than 2 feet of drenching rains, and forecasters warned that totals could reach 3½ feet, unleashing floods well inland through early next week. At least four people have died, a toll authorities fear will rise as the storm crawls westward across South Carolina.
Hurricane Resource Guide
At 8 a.m. Saturday, Florence stalled about 35 miles (55 kilometers) west of Myrtle Beach, moving forward at just 2 mph, with top sustained winds of 50 mph.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called Florence an "uninvited brute" that could wipe out entire communities as it grinds its way across land.
"The fact is this storm is deadly and we know we are days away from an ending," Cooper said.
For people living inland in the Carolinas, maximum peril could come days later as all that water drains, overflowing rivers and causing flash floods.
Authorities warned, too, of risks of mudslides and environmental disasters from floodwaters washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms.
North Carolina Family Of 14 Evacuate To Atlantic City, Riding Out Hurricane Florence At Ocean Resort
About 9,700 National Guard troops and civilians were deployed with high-water vehicles, helicopters, and boats.
DEMA will also be sending down a three person team to assess damage Monday morning to help the North Carolina Office of Emergency Management begin recovery efforts.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
