Ocean Oceanwash Reported Ahead of Sunday Morning’s High Tide; Power Restored After Brief Overnight Outage

Ocean overwash accompanied Saturday night’s high tide, and waters continued to affect N.C. Highway 12 as of 7:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, several hours before the next high tide cycle at around 10:30 a.m.

As of Sunday morning, overwash was reported on stretches of N.C. Highway 12 in Avon near Ocean View Drive and the Food Lion shopping plaza, in northern Buxton, and north of Rodanthe near Mirlo Beach.

Power has been restored to all of Hatteras Island and Ocracoke islands after a brief power outage that lasted from roughly midnight until 2:15 a.m., as Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (CHEC) crews worked in the night to replace a failed insulator on the transmission system. If your power did not come back on, please call CHEC at 866-511-9862.

Wind gusts of 60 mph were recorded on Saturday at Oregon Inlet, and wind gusts of 59 mph were recorded in Avon and Rodanthe. Starting around sunrise, winds will start to diminish, however, some gusts of 40-45 mph will still be possible through midday Sunday.

Per the National Weather Service Newport / Morehead City office, as of 3 a.m. on Sunday, the slow-moving low pressure system was located a couple of hundred miles southeast of the N.C. coast. Strong winds out of the north and northeast will continue through today, with additional water level rises along the oceanside expected. Confidence is decreasing that soundside flooding will impact southern Hatteras and Ocracoke islands.

In some areas on the oceanfront north of Cape Hatteras, battering waves with significant wave run-up will cause damage to property. Numerous roads will be impassable and under several feet of water, and vehicles could be submerged. Portions of N.C. 12 will likely continue to become inundated and impassible. At this time, the most significant overwash is forecast to occur with the high tide late this morning.

N.C. Highway 12 continues to be closed from Rodanthe to Oregon Inlet. NCDOT reported on Saturday afternoon that crews will be out early on Sunday to assess N.C. Highway 12 and to determine when the closure can be lifted.

For information about current road conditions from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), visit drivenc.gov or dial 511. When dialing 511 on weekdays from 8:15 a.m. to 7:45 p.m., weekends from 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., callers speak directly with an operator who can answer traffic and travel-related questions. Overnight and during emergencies, travelers should go to DriveNC.gov for the latest travel information. For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.

For more information on the local forecast, visit www.weather.gov/mhx for weather information, or the National Weather Service office in Newport / Morehead City’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/NWSMoreheadCity/.

The Island Free Press will continue to post updates as soon as they become available.