Coastal Flood Advisory remains in effect; Minor ocean overwash reported in Rodanthe on Friday morning
A Coastal Flood Advisory remains in effect for the Outer Banks, with minor ocean overwash reported in northern Rodanthe on Friday morning, as Hurricane Earl continues its offshore trek up the East Coast.
Coastal flooding will be possible for low-lying areas through the weekend, mainly during times of high tide, with inundation of 1-2 feet above ground level expected. Flooding is most likely during high tides, and the next high is approximately 7:30 p.m. on Friday evening.
“Overwash was seen at last night’s high tide and [occurred] with this morning’s high tide on the north end of Rodanthe,” stated Dare County Emergency Management Director Drew Pearson in a Friday morning update. “This will persist with subsequent high tides, and people in that area should avoid driving through flood waters, and continue to take action to protect property from the overwash.”
Travel on N.C. Highway 12 has not been impacted as of Friday at 10:00 a.m., and there have been no additional reports of overwash besides the Mirlo Beach area of Rodanthe.
Hurricane Earl is expected to produce strong swells and an extended period of dangerous rip currents through the weekend, and the public is advised to stay out of the ocean while a high threat of rip currents is in effect. The rip current risk will peak this weekend, and will likely continue into early next week.
As of Friday morning, Hurricane Earl was located 190 miles ENE of Bermuda, and was moving northeast with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph. A faster northeastward motion is expected today and tonight. Earl is then forecast to slow down considerably Saturday night and Sunday.
On the forecast track, Earl will continue to move northeastward away from Bermuda today and will move to the southeast of Newfoundland on Saturday and Sunday.
For more information on the local forecast, visit www.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/.
