Charleston getting battered by Debby with potentially historic rain on the way
The city of Charleston had warned its residents over the weekend of "imminent, life-threatening floodwaters and unpredictable flash flooding" ahead of Tropical Storm Debby’s arrival, and began to provide people with sandbags to try and protect their property from rising waters that are expected.
Charleston prepares for deluge of rainfall from Tropical Storm Debby
FOX Weather Correspondent Katie Byrne reports from Charleston, South Carolina where city officials and residents are preparing for a deluge of rain from Tropical Storm Debby. The city has already given out more sandbags than for Hurricane Idalia last year.
CHARLESTON, S.C. - The time to prepare for the impacts of Tropical Storm Debby in Charleston, South Carolina, has quickly dwindled as torrential rain and strong winds begin to push into the region after the deadly storm made landfall along Florida's Big Bend region early on Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane.
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Watch: Charleston getting battered by Debby with more potentially historic rain on the way
A video shared by FOX Weather Correspondent Katie Byrne shows torrential rain and strong wind battering the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina, on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024. The deadly storm made landfall along Florida's Big Bend region earlier on Monday morning and is expected to blast South Carolina and parts of the mid-Atlantic with potentially historic rain.
The city of Charleston had warned its residents over the weekend of "imminent, life-threatening floodwaters and unpredictable flash flooding" ahead of Tropical Storm Debby’s arrival, and began to provide people with sandbags to try and protect their property from rising waters that were expected.
The city said it began to implement a series of urgent preventative measures and preparedness protocols under the mayor’s flood mitigation plan.
"Well, unfortunately, this isn’t our first rodeo," Charleston Mayor William Cogswell said. "So, we tried to get the jump on this and be proactive about preparations, really starting on Saturday, and we’re starting to see the effects of that."
That plan included the Charleston police and fire departments deploying all available staff on Monday, and placing barricades on streets prone to flooding before the rain arrived.
In addition, city officials said high-water vehicles and crews would be deployed, and water levels at Colonial Lake and Lake Dotterer were lowered.
Parking garages in the city have also been opened for residents to place their vehicles in anticipation of potentially historic flooding from Tropical Storm Debby.
Charleston County also has opened a general population shelter for residents to seek safety from the tropical storm.
"We’re just trying to get people to understand that, while this is just a tropical storm, it’s going to bring unprecedented amounts of rainfall," Cogswell said. "Coupling that with the tide, wind, potential storm surge. It’s something that we need to take very, very seriously."
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'Not enough pumps in the world': South Carolina under state of emergency as Tropical Storm Debby nears
Charleston Mayor William Cogswell explains how the South Carolina city is preparing for up to of 2 feet of rain as Tropical Storm Debby is forecast to enter a holding pattern over the Southeast. Storm surge, tides and rainfall could make this a life-threatening flooding event.
'Catastrophic flooding’ possible in Charleston
Residents pack sandbags in Charleston, South Carolina on Monday, August 5, 2024 in preparation for Tropical Storm Debby's winds and rain.
(FOX Weather)
Areas along the coast from Georgia through South Carolina and into North Carolina could see potentially historic rainfall totals from Tropical Storm Debby, with some computer forecast models showing the potential for 2 feet of rain from the system as it slowly limps to the north.
Debby has already dumped more than 16 inches of rain, sent feet of storm surge flooding into Southwest Florida and knocked out power to more than 300,000 customers. Forecasters even issued a rare Flash Flood Emergency in portions of Florida after more than 10 inches of rain fell, with forecasters expecting more than a half-foot of additional rain.
Debby forecast rainfall
(FOX Weather)
However, Debby is far from done.
NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center has issued a Level 4 flood risk, the highest on its flood risk scale, for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in parts of northeastern Florida, southeastern Georgia, coastal South Carolina and North Carolina.
This risk will shift north by Wednesday, bringing the highest rain totals to southeastern South Carolina.