Millions in the southeastern U.S. on Tuesday were bracing for historic and potentially “catastrophic” flooding as Tropical Storm Debby continued its dayslong crawl through the region, triggering a slew of severe weather advisories across multiple states.
"Debby is likely to produce potentially historic heavy rainfall across north Florida and southeast Georgia and South Carolina through Friday morning. Southeast Georgia and the Carolinas are forecast to receive 10-20 inches of rainfall with isolated maximum values of 30 inches," the National Weather Service said.
Heavy rain will start to creep northward by the middle of the week from North Carolina to the Mid-Atlantic, the weather service warned. "Action should be taken to prep for impacts from high water."
On Monday, Debby made landfall along the Big Bend coast of Florida as a Category 1 storm and moved across the northeast region of the peninsula, turning streets into rivers, causing widespread power outages and contributing to at least four deaths. Hundreds were evacuated from coastal communities as the storm surge pushed several feet of water inland, overtaking cars and triggering water rescues.
More:Debby tracker: Tropical Storm could bring 'catastrophic' rainfall to Southeast
At least 3 suspected tornadoes reported in South Carolina
There were at least three reported tornadoes in South Carolina Monday night as the storm crawled northward, bringing a barrage of severe weather across the Southeast.
In Edisto Beach, 50 miles southwest of Charleston, a tornado touched down and caused “some property damage,” knocking down power poles and knocking over trees, according to a post on X by the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office. No injuries were reported.
In Charleston County, dispatchers reported a tornado that caused damage to at least one house, according to National Weather Service reports.
In Berkeley County, emergency services reported a tornado near the town of Moncks Corner, about 30 miles north of Charleston. An Applebee's was reportedly damaged and power poles were toppled, some onto cars, the weather service said.
Where is Tropical Storm Debby?
Tropical Storm Debby was located 50 miles southwest of Savannah, Georgia, and 130 southwest of Charleston, South Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 5 a.m. update.
The storm is moving northeast at 7 mph, with maximum sustained wind speeds of 45 mph, the hurricane center said. Tropical-storm-force winds over 39 mph extend outward up to 205 miles from the center of the storm.
Sometime Tuesday afternoon, Debby is projected to move offshore where it will drift until making a second landfall over South Carolina on Thursday. Debby is forecast to strengthen as it pushes north across the Atlantic.
Tropical Storm Debby tied to at least 4 deaths in Florida
At least four storm-related deaths have been reported in Florida between Sunday night and Monday evening.
Near Tampa, a man driving a semi-truck was killed after he lost control on an interstate that had been soaked in the rain, according to National Weather Service reports.
In Fanning Springs, about 35 miles east from where Debby made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane, a 13-year-old boy was killed by a fallen tree that landed on a mobile home.
On Sunday night, as Debby’s outer bands were lashing much of the Florida Peninsula, a woman and a 12-year-old boy died in a single-vehicle crash in Dixie County, near where the storm eventually came ashore. A 14-year-old boy, who was in the vehicle when it crashed, was rushed to a hospital with serious injuries.
What makes Debby such a treacherous storm?
Debby is a large and slow-moving storm, making the system particularly dangerous as record amounts of rain inundate many areas, especially along the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina in the coming days.
The storm’s center was forecast to move near Savannah on Tuesday night and drag along the South Carolina coast on Thursday night. "Multiple days of very, very heavy rainfall" are possible, National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said.
The National Weather Service estimates rainfall totals could reach up to 30 inches or more in isolated locations along the coast through Friday. The weather service office in Charleston, South Carolina, warned of "potentially historic rainfall."
Debby shows there's more to a storm than wind scale
As Debby strengthened in the Gulf and drew closer to Florida, hurricane experts and scientists say it was a classic example of how the wind scale categories used to describe hurricanes can fall short of telling the whole story.
"This is another example of a storm where the primary impacts are going to be from water, rather than wind," said James Franklin, a retired branch chief of the hurricane specialist unit at the National Hurricane Center.
Jennifer Collins, a professor in the Geosciences School at the University of South Florida, has studied how to better communicate all of a storm’s threats.
Looking at the forecasts for up to 30 inches of rain in isolated locations between Savannah and Charleston, Collins told USA TODAY she’s very concerned about the likelihood of “catastrophic flooding" and hopes people will look at all of the hurricane center's forecast products.Read more here.
