Hurricane Matthew 9 a.m. Update Oceanfront
Matthew: Flooding, Storm Surge With, As Of Noon, 75 MPH Winds (Category 1 Hurricane)
11:30 a.m. Update: STORM MADE LANDFALL IN McClellanville, S.C. SC at 8 a.m. according to the National Hurricane Service. (Just South of Myrtle Beach) Same landing point as Hugo in 1989. 50,000 people have lost power in our area. Rain will move out late this afternoon but the wind will stick around through the evening. Parts of Marion, S.C, Florence, S.C., and Mullins, S.C. are flooded right now.
Currently, Hurricane Matthew is more about flooding and storm surge than strong winds for the Myrtle Beach area. Gusts measured this morning peak at 53 miles per hour. Winds as of 12:06 p.m. are gusts of 75 miles per hour.
The brunt of the storm is expected to hit at 4 p.m. Strong winds will occur after a day of drenching the soil. With those winds and soggy soil, residents can expect trees downed and extensive flooding.
On a Football Saturday, Matthew is a slow moving, earth drenching four quarter slog. It is one of the slowest moving hurricanes the east coast has experienced. It’s true punch is how slowly it moves up the coast drenching the beaches. Hurricane Matthew is currently moving north at 8 miles per hour in our area.
Over 145,000 residents ignored Governor Haley’s evacuation mandate and have chosen to ride out the storm. Fifty thousand are now without power.
THE CITY OF NORTH MYRTLE BEACH REPORTS:
Tornado Touch Down in NMB
A tornado that started out as an offshore water spout touched down in North Myrtle Beach between 18th Ave N and Ocean Blvd.
Preliminary: One house may have lost its roof, one with some damage to the roof, a couple of others some minor siding loss, and possibly a couple of light poles down. Some info coming in that it then lifted up and touched down again around 11th N but the city has no public safety confirmation of that.
No injuries reported as of yet.
Santee Cooper has stated it plans to restore power to all area residents by early Sunday at the latest. Officials are asking all who are choosing to ride out the storm to please stay indoors. Driving around town during Hurricane Matthew could be dangerous. Nine out of ten people who die during a hurricane are killed by storm surge. Storm surge is the event of rapidly rising flood waters. We ask all to please be safe this Saturday.
Myrtle Beach SC will post an update around 4 p.m. when the eye approaches if our organization still has power. For now the story is Matthew: Flooding, Storm Surge With 53 MPH Winds. Not a major wind producer yet.
