After Leveling Panhandle, Tropical Storm Michael Whips Carolinas

MEXICO BEACH, FL — In the aftermath of the deadly Hurricane Michael, Floridians sifted through massive debris fields Thursday, with one resident saying it looked “like an atomic bomb” had detonated in his city. Many communities in the Panhandle looked more like a war zone after the storm’s powerful 155 mph winds ripped schools, condominiums, homes and churches apart. It was the strongest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland in nearly 50 years.

Roofs and walls were torn from buildings. Mangled trees and power lines littered roads and sidewalks. Sturdy, metal cell towers were folded in half like a piece of paper. A large U-Haul truck was seen almost entirely submerged in flood waters. At Tyndall Air Force Base, upside-down jets lay strewn across the lawns and nearly every building sustained major roof damage.

David Barnes, a DJ in Panama City, told the News Herald it looked like a bomb had been dropped.

“It looks like an atomic bomb had hit our city,” said Barnes told the newspaper. “Damage has been widespread.”

After laying waste to Florida — and leaving hundreds of thousands of residents in the dark — the system carved a path of destruction across central and southern Georgia, where hundreds of thousands more also lost power. At least two people were killed — one in each state — including an 11-year-old girl who died when debris fell onto her family’s trailer.

Up to 6 inches of rain fell on metro Atlanta and the city itself saw record rainfall. On Thursday morning, Michael, which had weakened to a tropical storm, lashed the Carolinas with winds of up to 50 mph and flooded some neighborhoods. Tens of thousands lost power across the two states, as well as in Alabama.

Around 11 a.m. Thursday, Michael was centered inland about 35 miles south of Charlotte, North Carolina. But its effects were felt in Virginia, Maryland and even as far north as Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York City. In northern Virginia, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch Thursday afternoon with several inches of rain forecasted. The same was true in Maryland.

But the Panhandle, particularly in places like Panama City and Destin, bore the brunt of Michael’s wrath. Howling winds split apart homes, peeled roofs from buildings, blew out walls, toppled trees and downed power lines. Displaced refrigerators, chairs, washing machines, kayaks and dressers have also been seen, The New York Times reported.

Florida, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina all declared states of emergency. Numerous people were evacuated in Florida.

Though it made landfall as a Category 4 storm, Michael wasn’t expected to be as devastating as last month’s Hurricane Florence, a Category 1 storm. On Monday, the storm had winds of 70 mph. On Tuesday, it had strengthened to 110 mph and forecasters expected it would top out at 129 mph, The Times reported. Some people opted to stay because the storm didn’t appear to be as dangerous as other major hurricanes.

“When they started a couple of days ago and said it was going to be a Category 1, it was, like, ‘Cat 1, no big deal,'” Laurie Hamm told The Times at a Panama City hotel. “When they said Cat 2, it was like, ‘Oh, maybe we’d better pay attention.’ And when they said Cat 3, it was like, ‘Oh, Lord.'”

But Michael intensified quickly, revving up to Category 4 speeds over the course of a day. The storm also moved fast toward the U.S., sometimes approaching 20 mph. Its predicted rainfall totals were excessive, but they were dwarfed by the 35 inches of rain Florence dumped as it parked for days over the Carolinas. The death toll in Florence climbed to 40 recently and experts estimated it caused between $17 billion and $22 billion.

But Michael packed its own punch. Officials warned of deadly storm surge up to 14 feet high in some parts of the Panhandle. At a federal official briefing President Trump said Michael could be the most destructive hurricane to strike the region since the early 1850s. Florida Gov. Rick Scott said the state even issued its first ever “extreme wind warning.”

USA Today reported one example of Michael’s power. The paper said that restaurant chain, Waffle House, which prides itself on never closing, actually closed 30 of its outlets on Wednesday – 22 in Florida and eight in Georgia.

Warnings

A storm surge watch was in effect for the Ocracoke Inlet in North Carolina all the way to Duck, North Carolina, as of 11 a.m. Thursday. A tropical storm warning was in effect for the Savannah River to Duck, as well as for the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds.

Power Outages

Nearly 800,000 people have lost power across the southeast, according to PowerOutage.Us. In Florida, about 332,000 people were in the dark. That number was about 265,000 in Georgia, and 74,000 in South Carolina. Meanwhile, North Carolina and Alabama had about 58,000 and 50,000 people without electricity, respectively.

Duke Energy mobilized more than 7,000 workers in preparation of the storm, but it could take days or as long as a week to restore electricity in some areas, utility officials in Tallahassee told CBS News.

Anyone looking to use a portable generator should keep them outside. People have died from carbon monoxide poisoning by keeping them indoors.

Supplies

Before the storm’s arrival, trucks packed parking lots of a popular grocery stores in Fountain, Florida, The New York Times reported. Long lines were seen at ice machines and gas pumps, and bread was reportedly scarce.

Retailers raced to restock inventory The Tallahassee Democrat reported, and managers described a “hectic”atmosphere. Water, flashlights, batteries, generator oil and tarps flew off the shelves and some stores sold out of generators within hours of opening.

Riding Out The Storm

Mike Sanville, 64, a retired construction worker, told The Times he feared the roof would fly off his home, but said he planned to ride out the storm at his Fountain home. He said he knew Michael would pack a powerful punch.

Sanville — whose roommate called him a survivor — said he might have to move to an outhouse that he built in the backyard, which survived a tree fall a few years ago.

“I built it super strong,” he told The Times.

Lead photo: PANAMA CITY, FL – OCTOBER 10: A man takes some tobacco products from a damaged store after hurricane Michael passed through the area on October 10, 2018 in Panama City, Florida. The hurricane hit the Florida Panhandle as a category 4 storm. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

All other photos: National Hurricane Center

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