Storm Debby’s Devastation Claims Four Lives on Florida Coast
At least four people were killed by Tropical Storm Debby on Monday, which soaked Florida and threatened the Southeast US states with severe rains and devastating flooding.
Debby made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category One hurricane earlier on Monday. The sheriff’s office in Levy County said that a thirteen-year-old kid perished after a tree was pushed onto a mobile home.
According to authorities, a 12-year-old child and a 38-year-old woman perished in a car accident in Dixie County, while a truck driver lost his life after his 18-wheeler crashed into a canal in Hillsborough County.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) reports that the storm passed into Georgia during the night and is predicted to move offshore before making landfall on the coast of South Carolina on Thursday.
“The risk of excessive rainfall is at a level four out of four,” NHC director Michael Brennan informed reporters.
This will lead to an extended period of intense rainfall that could potentially cause catastrophic flooding in coastal areas of South Carolina, Georgia, and possibly even North Carolina, he continued.
According to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, almost 250,000 people in his state do not have electricity.
He urged everyone to exercise extreme caution when venturing outside, noting that Debby’s winds had not caused as much damage as earlier hurricanes that strike Florida.
Emergency declarations for Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina have been approved by President Joe Biden, enabling the federal government to assist in coordinating relief efforts in the event of a disaster.
In order to assist with storm response, DeSantis also activated the National Guard for his state, mobilizing over 3,000 military men.
– Orders for evacuation
As the storm moved into Georgia on Monday night, the NHC reported that its maximum sustained winds were 45 mph (75 kph).
In certain areas of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, there are storm surge warnings in force, indicating a potentially fatal flood caused by rising water levels.
As it headed north, Debby was predicted to drop up to 30 inches of “potentially historic rainfall.”
However, after making landfall earlier and reaching sustained speeds of 80 mph (130 kph) as a Category One hurricane—the lowest on a five-point scale—it was reported to be decreasing.
A portion of Citrus County, Florida, was placed under mandatory evacuation orders, while many other counties were placed under voluntary evacuation orders, according to local media.
Prior to Debby’s arrival, the governors of Georgia and South Carolina proclaimed states of emergency.
According to local media sources quoting her campaign team, Democratic contender for US president, Kamala Harris, postponed events this week in North Carolina and Georgia because of the hurricane.
The US Border Patrol revealed in the meantime that Debby had washed up 25 bundles of cocaine, estimated to be worth $1 million, on the Florida Keys coast, where they were apprehended.
When the intense Hurricane Beryl ripped through the Caribbean in July before making landfall in the southern US states of Texas and Louisiana, at least eighteen individuals lost their lives.
Scientists believe that because there is more energy in a warmer ocean for storms like Beryl to feed on, climate change is probably responsible for the storms’ fast intensification.
AFP
