An intense storm system drenched parts of North Carolina in "historic rainfall," inundating highways and stranding drivers as flash-flood watches continued Tuesday in the southeastern part of the state.
The storm, which did not get organized enough to be given a name, dissipated Tuesday but still brought heavy rain to parts of southeastern Virginia, also triggering flash-flood watches.
The low pressure system dropped levels of rain seen once every 1,000 years on some areas of southeastern North Carolina. Carolina Beach, a coastal town around 10 miles south of Wilmington, saw more than 18 inches within 12 hours, according to the National Weather Service. Other nearby towns received more than 12 inches of rain in that period, flooding dozens of roads in the area. Wind gusts of up to 77 mph also battered the state's coastline, according to Weather.com.
Carolina Beach and the town of Oak Island, around 30 miles south of Wilmington, both declared an emergency in response to Monday's flooding, which forced road closures, damaged buildings and stranded.