Hurricane Helene , rain arrived in , Charlotte , Thursday night, as the , North Carolina , hills braced for up to , 20″ of rain , and what the , National Weather Service , has labeled” severe flooding.”
A 4-year-old child died in a , Catawba County , head-on disaster during heavy rains Thursday night,  , State Highway Patrol , Trooper , Christopher Casey , said.
A 2-year-old and a 12-year-old in the cars were hospitalized with lethal accidents, Casey said.
” This will be one of the most significant climate events to happen in the eastern portions of the area in the modern time,” the , National Weather Service , for , Spartanburg , and , Greenville , posted on Thursday“. History flood is projected and has been compared to the storms of 1916 in the , Asheville , place.”
That storm brought death and home destruction to western , North Carolina. At least  , 50 individuals died.
Streams and rivers, now whole from earlier rains, surged across lower ground with striking velocity in mid-July of 1916. Dying animals and birds, episode of tobacco and bundles of , fabrics, whiskey stills and full houses sailed down the , Catawba, Yadkin and French Broad rivers,  , The Charlotte Observer , reported.
The 22.22 feet that drenched Altapass, a group in the hills of , Mitchell County, beginning , July 15, 1916, was the heaviest 24-hour snowfall ever recorded in the , U. S.  , at that time.
By , 1 p. m. Thursday, large Helene storms closed , 97 roads , in , Western North Carolina, according to the , N. C. Department of Transportation.
Charlotte on update
At , 10 a. m. Thursday,  , Charlotte Douglas International Airport , was under a , Helene-spawned storm notice, along with , Belmont , and , Mount Holly , in , Gaston County. Radar indicated a storm, NWS scientists said, but there were no proved information.
Charlotte , resident , Jacob Sprankle , posted videos on X, the original Twitter, of a cone cloud in , Steele Creek. His article was retweeted by the NWS.
” This is an exceedingly dangerous storm that threatens to take heavy rains and potentially disastrous flood to central and especially Western North Carolina tonight and tomorrow,” according to Gov.  , Roy Cooper , said at an , 11 a. m.  , news event Thursday”. It can be dangerous. Beware and plan.”
Owners should be off streets, especially in the hills and foothills, although even , Charlotte , could see flood” despite not being in the course of the wind,” Cooper said.
According to Cooper,” We have lost too many North Carolinians who have driven into waters and around barricades.”
Winds up to 50 miles are expected in , Charlotte , later Thursday and first Friday, NWS scientists said. The wind is predicted to dump , 2″ to 3″ of weather on , Charlotte, according to the , National Hurricane Center , in , Miami.
The , Charlotte , place, Upstate South Carolina and the N. C. foothills was view” widespread downed trees, and various power outages (are ) good,” the NWS office in , Greer, South Carolina, said on social media.
The region is still in danger through Friday morning, according to NWS forecasters.
Thursday, President , Joe Biden , approved an emergency declaration for , North Carolina. That allows the , Federal Emergency Management Agency , to help fund emergency protective measures in much of , Western North Carolina, including evacuations and emergency shelters.
10, 000 without power in NC mountains
Nearly , 10, 000 Duke Energy customers , were without power in the , North Carolina , mountains at , 11 a. m. Thursday, according to the company outage map. Most were in the , Asheville , and , Hendersonville , areas, and 1, 000 were in , Franklin.
Statewide, 14, 000 had no power, Cooper said.
Minimal outages were reported in , Mecklenburg , and surrounding counties.
In the Carolinas ‘ mountains”, catastrophic flash-flooding is expected along numerous streams, with possibly historic flooding near the Blue Ridge Escarpment,” the NWS said on X, the former Twitter.
” Landslides/debris flows expected through at least Friday,” the NWS said.
Shelters opened Thursday in , Avery,  , Buncombe , and , McDowell , counties, emergency officials said.
Thursday morning, Helene became , a category 2 hurricane“, with significant additional strengthening expected before landfall in Florida, “according to a , National Hurricane Center , bulletin.
Helene was about 320 miles southwest of , Tampa, Florida, with 100 mph winds.
Charlotte airport flight delays
American Airlines , issued , travel alerts , on Wednesday for airports in the Southeast, including , Charlotte Douglas International Airport. About 87 % of all flights departing from CLT are American.
In , less than two days , — as of noon Thursday— 471 CLT flights were disrupted, according to tracking site , FlightAware .com.
Gov. Cooper declares NC State of Emergency
Cooper , declared a state of emergency , on Wednesday, activating the , National Guard , and deploying swift-water teams in advance of Helene.
” Helene threatens heavy rain, flash flooding, landslides, and damaging winds to the mountains and , Piedmont , areas of our state,” Cooper said in a statement”. North Carolinians should now make plans, ensure emergency kits are up-to-date, and pay attention to the weather alerts in your area.
On Thursday, Cooper said Helene’s” path is wide, and its impacts will be felt far from the center of the storm.”
Charlotte , officials said crews are preparing for heavy rain and strong gusts knocking down trees and limbs. Call 911 right away if a tree or a portion of a tree has fallen and obstructs a road, according to officials.
Power line and tree crews from other states were dispatched by Duke Energy. Although wind and flooding may delay restoring power, its crews will do so” as quickly and safely as possible,” according to a company statement on Thursday morning.
Charlotte Motor Speedway , opened its campgrounds at noon Wednesday for Helene evacuees from across the Southeast. Evacuees should check in at the , Camping World Racing Resort , office at , 6600 Bruton Smith Blvd.  , in , Concord.
Caldwell County , also declared a state of emergency.  , Haywood County , in the mountains urged residents to prepare for possible evacuation due to flooding from Helene.
School closings
Charlotte-Mecklenburg , Schools officials canceled in-person classes for the rest of the week. The district will move to remote learning on Friday, with classes to be completed asynchronously, meaning there wo n’t be any face-to-face instruction, according to a weather alert posted on the CMS website.
After school activities for Thursday and Friday are canceled, according to the district. Athletic events will be rescheduled.
Mecklenburg courts
All , Mecklenburg , court sessions Friday are canceled, except for District Court first appearances, which will start at , 1 p. m., and domestic violence ex parte hearings, which remain on schedule.
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