High surf, overwash possible from Frisco to Ocracoke; Storms expected by early evening
The National Weather Service has expanded a Wind Advisory to inland areas as a cold front moves towards eastern North Carolina through the day, with strong southerly winds, the possibility of severe thunderstorms, and rough surf and minor oceanside overwash along parts of Hatteras and Ocracoke islands.
Out ahead of the front, southerly winds have increased to between 20 and 30 mph, with gusts of 40 to 50 mph possible starting around midday through early evening.
The windy conditions have already led to the N.C. Ferry Division to suspend service on the Ocracoke-Swan Quarter and Ocracoke-Cedar Island routes, and could lead to suspension of runs on the Ocracoke-Hatteras and Currituck-Knotts Island routes later Wednesday.
A Wind Advisory has been issued for Hatteras and Ocracoke islands from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Currituck, Camden, Pasquotank Perquimans and Chowan counties from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., when the winds are forecast to be their strongest.
A High Surf Advisory and Coastal Flood Advisory have been issued for Hatteras and Ocracoke islands, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. today, for breaking waves of up to 8 feet in the surf zone and oceanside flooding of 1 to 2 feet above ground.
Some minor ocean overwash could be possible with high tide between 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, from Cape Hatteras to Cape Lookout, with the main threats at areas with weakened dune structures.
That includes N.C. 12 on the north end of Ocracoke Island, and possibly from the Sandy Bay beach access to the northern border of Hatteras village.
Along with the coastal impacts, there is the possibility of strong to severe thunderstorms that could produce damaging winds in excess of 60 mph and even a few tornadoes across eastern North Carolina starting in the early afternoon through the evening hours.
The slow-moving nature of the front has brought some much needed rainfall to the region already this week, with more likely on Wednesday.
Although it has not been enough to help break the moderate drought that has set in across much of eastern North Carolina, around 1 to 2 inches is possible through Wednesday night with locally higher amounts where the strongest storms form.
Due to the weather forecast, the Candy Cane Hunt at Dowdy Park in Nags Head has been postponed to Wednesday, December 18.
After the front passes early Thursday, cooler temperatures returns to the region to wrap up the work week before another warmup and some additional rainfall over the final weekend of fall.
A list of local Outer Banks resources for additional information is as follows:
- For information on the local forecast, visit weather.gov/mhx for general weather information, or the National Weather Service office in Newport/Morehead City’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/NWSMoreheadCity/.
- For local water level forecasts from the NWS, visit https://water.noaa.gov/wfo/mhx
- For updates regarding road conditions, visit DriveNC.gov and follow the North Carolina Department of Transportation and NCDOT NC 12 on Facebook. The Dare County Sheriff’s Office also shares local road condition updates on its Facebook page.
- To get notified of ferry delays or cancellations, sign up for text and/or email alerts via the N.C. Ferry System’s FINS system: www.ncdot.gov/fins.
