RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Tropical Storm Ophelia made landfall at 6:20 a.m. Saturday morning near Emerald Isle with maximum sustained winds of 70 MPH.
Wrightsville Beach clocked in with the highest gust from Ophelia at 80 MPH.
Although Ophelia was a strong tropical storm when it made landfall in North Carolina, its impact was far-reaching up the mid-Atlantic states, with tens of thousands losing power.
In the Triangle area, a woman was taken to a nearby hospital after a falling tree caused her car to crash in Franklin County — just as Ophelia was hitting mid-morning Saturday. The woman had to be extricated from her car after she was pinned inside after the crash along N.C. 98.
Five people, including three under the age of 10, were rescued by the Coast Guard near Cape Lookout Friday night, as heavy rain and rough surf made seas incredibly treacherous.
In Greenville, North Carolina, a police officer saved a canine from high water. The dog was tied to a fence and was just inches from drowning according to the officer.
Police also saved a dog in a nearly identical case in Belhaven after a resident alerted authorities to the troubled dog while storm surge flooding filled the town.
Elsewhere, Ophelia’s impact wasn’t much more than hours of heavy rains and gusty winds.
It’s still not clear if the water main break on Durant Road in Raleigh on Saturday was caused by Ophelia.
The storm did, however, cause one record to fall at RDU —Saturday’s daily rainfall record was broken with 2.38″ falling. That made it the wettest single day at the airport since 3.35″ fell on September 30, 2022, when Hurricane Ian made its second landfall in the Carolinas.
