Tropical Storm Debby hits Florida with floods, threat of record rain in Georgia and the Carolinas

HORSESHOE BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Tropical Storm Debby slammed Florida with catastrophic flooding and was blamed for at least four deaths, with Georgia and South Carolina next in line as the system rips across the southeastern United States.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm was moving slowly to the north-northeast and was expected to decrease in speed as it turns to the east. Debby made landfall as a hurricane in the Big Bend region of Florida, one of the state’s least-populated areas.

Forecasters are still warning that heavy rain could spawn catastrophic flooding in Florida, South Carolina and Georgia.

Record-setting rain was forecast to cause flash flooding in coastal Georgia and South Carolina, and into North Carolina, with up to 30 inches of rainfall in some areas, the National Hurricane Center said. Debby had made landfall early Monday as a Category 1 hurricane over the gulf coast of Florida.

The storm was moving slowly across the northern part of the state, covering roads with water and contributing to at least four deaths.

A truck driver died on Interstate 75 in the Tampa area after he lost control of his tractor trailer, which flipped over a concrete wall and dangled over the edge before the cab dropped into the water below. Sheriff’s office divers located the driver, a 64-year-old man from Mississippi, in the cab 40 feet below the surface, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

A 13-year-old boy died Monday morning after a tree fell on a mobile home located southwest of Gainesville, according to the Levy County Sheriff’s Office.

And in Dixie County, just east of where the storm made landfall, a 38-year-old woman and 12-year-old boy died in a car crash on wet roads Sunday night. The Florida Highway Patrol said a 14-year-old boy who was a passenger was hospitalized with serious injuries.

More than 350,000 customers were without power in Florida and Georgia, according to PowerOutage.us and Georgia Electric Membership Corp.

On Sunday afternoon, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency for the state because of the forecast heavy rainfall, according to the Office of the Governor's website.

"The executive order activates the South Carolina Emergency Operations Plan and enables all state agencies to coordinate resources in preparation for Tropical Storm Debby," according to a news release on the website.

"Team South Carolina is closely monitoring Tropical Storm Debby and has begun preparing for its potential impact on our state," said McMaster in the release. "With a potentially significant rainfall event forecast for the next few days, it is critical that residents in potentially affected areas start making preparations and plans today — in case it is necessary to take quick action."

McMaster was scheduled to speak about the storm on Monday evening during a news conference.

Gulf Search and Rescue, an all-volunteer organization based in Comanche, Texas, announced in a news release on Saturday afternoon that crews are being deployed from several states to the South Carolina and Georgia coastlines to help with potential flooding and impacts from Debby. Crews from out of state were to arrive on Sunday. The group's two boat teams and air boat can help with swiftwater rescues in coordination with the Emergency Operations Center, according to the release, as the group isn't limited to responding to calls in winds above 55 mph as others are.

The flooding impacts, which could last through Friday, are expected to be especially severe in low-lying areas near the coast, including Savannah, Georgia; Hilton Head, South Carolina; and Charleston, South Carolina.

On Monday, local leaders in Savannah said flooding could happen in areas that don't usually get high water if Debby stalls out over the city.

“This type of rain hovering over us, coming with the intensity that they tell us it is coming, it’s going to catch a whole lot of people by surprise,” said Chatham County Chairman Chester Ellis.

In South Carolina, Charleston County Interim Emergency Director Ben Webster called Debby a “historic and potentially unprecedented event” three times in a 90-second briefing Monday morning.

The city of Charleston has an emergency plan in place that includes sandbags for residents, opening parking garages so residents can park their cars above floodwaters and an online mapping system that shows which roads are closed because of flooding.

North Carolina and South Carolina have dealt with three catastrophic floods from tropical systems in the past nine years, all causing more than $1 billion in damage.

In 2015, rainfall fed by moisture as Hurricane Joaquin passed well offshore caused massive flooding.

In 2016, flooding from Hurricane Matthew caused 24 deaths in the two states and rivers set record crests. Those records were broken in 2018 with Hurricane Florence, which set rainfall records in both Carolinas, flooded many of the same places and was responsible for 42 deaths in North Carolina and nine in South Carolina.

No evacuations were planned Monday on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island, one of the state's most popular beach destinations. But Mayor Alan Perry warned tourists and residents not to let their guard down with forecasts predicting up to 30 inches  of rain this week from Debby.

“We don’t know how much rain is going to fall. But we have to prepare for the worst,” Perry said. “If that happens, we will see an event we have never seen on Hilton Head before.”

In a video posted on Facebook, Perry asked island residents and visitors to check on each other before the heavy rain starts — and maybe help the city out by checking storm drains. “If you are able to go out and pull some debris from those drains so they can drain, that’s really key to preventing additional flooding,” he said.

Hilton Head Island has about 38,000 residents. Officials estimate up to 250,000 tourists can be on the island on the busiest summer days.

In Savannah, Jim Froncak piled sandbags into his pickup truck on Monday, as rain was already falling. He said a recent thunderstorm caused so much flooding that he and a friend were able to kayak down a street.

“That was just a thunderstorm,” he said. “So, who knows what could happen with this?”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said some 17,000 linemen are working to restore electricity in his state. He warned residents in affected areas to sit tight until conditions are safe.

“When the water rises, when you have streets that can be flooded, that’s hazardous,” DeSantis said. “Don’t try to drive through this. We don’t want to see traffic fatalities adding up.”

Airports were also affected. More than 1,600 flights had been canceled nationwide, many of them to and from Florida airports, according to FlightAware.com. One out of every five flights scheduled to leave Orlando International Airport was canceled Monday. Nearly 30% of flights scheduled to depart Tampa International Airport were canceled.

Sarasota, Florida, a beach city popular with tourists, was one of the hardest hit by flooding.

“Essentially we’ve had twice the amount of the rain that was predicted for us to have,” said Sarasota County Fire Chief David Rathbun in a social media update.