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The Carolinas prepare for Tropical Storm Nicole expected to bring heavy rains, gusty wind and threat of tornadoes to the Charlotte area Thursday night into Friday.
WSOC-TV reports that Nicole was formed east of the Bahamas and made landfall Wednesday afternoon. Thursday morning Nicole made landfall south of Orlando, Florida, and is expected to move up the east coast by the end of the week.
Nicole reached hurricane strength on Wednesday but is expected to impact the Carolina as a Tropical Storm throughout Friday.
Some light showers are expected Thursday evening from Nicole but the storm will weaken as it moves north on Friday.
The main risk will be around areas along and east of Interstate 77, the WSOC-TV weather team reports.
Even as it weakens to a tropical storm, Duke Energy said with large storms like this prepare for down trees and power outages.
“Nicole is a large storm with very heavy rains and gusty winds, a combination that could potentially bring down trees and cause power outages in some areas,” said Jason Hollifield, Duke Energy’s Carolinas storm director. “We have thousands of line and tree workers across the Carolinas ready to respond and have worked to strengthen the grid and add smart technologies that can help reduce the impacts of tropical storms on customers.”
Flash flooding is possible in the mountains through Saturday due to excessive runoff, officials say.
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Tropical Storm Nicole Expected to Bring Heavy Rains, Gusty Wind to Charlotte Area was originally published on theblockcharlotte.com
