Hurricane Dorian fast facts
- Hurricane Dorian has regained strength, becoming a Category 3 storm again.
- Hurricane conditions were expected along parts of the South Carolina coast Thursday morning and along the North Carolina coast later in the day.
- As of 10 a.m. ET Thursday, the storm’s core was about 65 miles southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, and 155 miles south-southwest of Wilmington, North Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center.
- The hurricane center said dangerous storm surges were possible Thursday on the North Carolina and South Carolina coasts.
- Some 174,000 homes and businesses were without power in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, which had by far the most — 159,000.
- The hurricane decimated parts of the Bahamas for 48 hours, leaving at least 20 people dead. Rescue and relief efforts have been underway.
Hurricane Dorian regained strength late Wednesday, again becoming a Category 3 storm as it moved slowly up the U.S. Southeast coast and approached North and South Carolina. It brought strong wind gusts and heavy rain to Florida Wednesday after leaving at least 20 dead in the Bahamas and parts of that nation of low-lying islands in ruins.
Although Florida dodged the brunt of the storm, North and South Carolina were bracing for its impact. Dorian still has the potential to make landfall Thursday or Friday, the National Hurricane Center said.
“Life-threatening” storm surges and damaging winds are possible over the next two days “along a large portion of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic coasts,” the center said.
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Forecasters issued a hurricane warning Wednesday for northern Georgia up through southern Virginia. Millions were told to evacuate.
As of 10 a.m. ET Thursday, Dorian had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph, the hurricane center said. Its core was approximately 65 miles southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, and 155 miles south-southwest of Wilmington, North Carolina, and it was moving north-northeast at 8 mph.
Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 60 miles from the center and tropical storm-force winds extended outward up to 195 miles.
Follow live coverage of the storm below.
Watches and warnings in effect
A summary of watches and warnings in effect, via the National Hurricane Center.
- Storm surge warning: From the Savannah River to Poquoson, Virginia; the Pamlico and Albemarle sounds; the Neuse and Pamlico rivers; Hampton Roads, Virginia
- Hurricane warning: From the Savannah River to the North Carolina-Virginia border; the Pamlico and Albemarle sounds
- Tropical storm warning: From the North Carolina-Virginia border to Chincoteague, Virginia; Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point southward
- Tropical storm watch: North of Chincoteague, Virginia, to Fenwick Island, Delaware; Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Drum Point; tidal Potomac south of Cobb Island; in Massachusetts from Woods Hole to Sagamore Beach; Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts; Nantucket, Massachusetts
A hurricane warning means hurricane conditions were expected. A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions were possible.
A tropical storm warning means tropical storm conditions were expected within 36 hours. A tropical storm watch means tropical storm conditions were possible within 48 hours.
A storm surge warning means there was a danger of life-threatening rising water moving inland within 36 hours. A storm surge watch means there was a possibility of life-threatening rising water within 48 hours.
Stay put, Charleston County Sheriff’s Office urges
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office had words for the wise for the city’s residents Wednesday morning:
North Carolina and South Carolina brace for Dorian’s wrath
The National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Dorian could bring “damaging winds and life-threatening storm surges along a large portion of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic coasts” Thursday and Friday.
The center said early Thursday that Dorian’s core will keep approaching the South Carolina coast Thursday morning, move near or over it later in the day and then slide near or over the North Carolina coast Thursday night and Friday.
Some fluctuations in intensity are expected Thursday “followed by slow weakening through Saturday,” the center said.
Tropical storm conditions were already being felt along parts of the Georgia and South Carolina coastline early Thursday.
Hurricane conditions are expected along portions of the South Carolina coast later Thursday morning. Tropical storm conditions will set in along the North Carolina coast later Thursday morning with hurricane conditions expected later Thursday.
North and South Carolina could see storm surges as high as seven to eight, with as much as a foot of rain and 15 inches in isolated areas, the hurricane center added.
Sustained tropical storm-force winds occurring along Georgia and South Carolina coast
A NOAA weather station on the north end of Folly Island, South Carolina, reported a sustained wind of 51 mph and a gust of 62 mph was recorded, the National Hurricane Center said. At Shutes Folly in Charleston Harbor, a sustained wind of 41 mph and gust of 55 mph were recorded.
Florida man parks electric car in kitchen
A Florida man was concerned his beloved smart car would get blown away in Dorian this week, so he moved it to a very safe place. The inside of his house.
Jacksonville native Patrick Eldridge told CBS News he put his smart car inside his house on Tuesday morning, adding that his “wife was impressed that I was right about it being able to fit into the kitchen.”
His wife, Jessica, posted hilarious images of the small car inside the Florida home to Facebook on Tuesday morning. “My husband was afraid his car might blow away,” she wrote. “And my car is in the garage.”
The photos quickly went viral, garnering over 65,000 shares and 22,000 reactions. “We are still in shock that this madness wave has occurred on the internet since the posting first emerged,” Eldridge said.
The couple moved the vehicle out of their home after the storm weakened and moved away from Florida. While his car didn’t need protecting after all, the man said he did learn valuable information from the experience. “We now know that we have one additional parking spot available though!” he joked.
— Danielle Garrand
Dorian regains strength and becomes a Category 3
Dorian has regained strength and is once again a Category 3 storm as of 11 p.m. Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm has maximum sustained winds of 115 mph.
Its core was located 105 miles south of Charleston, South Carolina, and 225 miles south-southwest of Wilmington, North Carolina.
Dorian was moving north at 7 mph. Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 60 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 195 miles.
All of the watches and warnings for the east coast of Florida south of the mouth of St. Mary’s River have been discontinued.
U.S. Northern Command to provide help to Bahamas
The U.S. Northern Command, which oversees homeland defense for the Department of Defense, said Wednesday that it will be providing assistance to the Bahamas.
In addition, four U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Ospreys transported an Air Force assessment team to the Bahamas.
The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), the lead federal agency for foreign disaster response, has requested Defense Department to facilitate the movement of aid throughout the Bahamas.
More than 1,500 in South Carolina shelters
American Red Cross officials say that more than 1,500 people have sought refuge from Hurricane Dorian in a total of 28 shelters in the central and eastern portions of South Carolina.
In Charleston, South Carolina, meanwhile, steady rain began falling Wednesday evening as Dorian approached the state and winds began picking up. Thunder could be heard frequently and only a few cars seemed to be plying the roads connecting the western edge of downtown Charleston with areas of the city just across a river.
— The Associated Press
Survivors describe the horrors of facing Dorian
Survivors in the Bahamas described the horrors of facing Dorian. Robert and Phyllis Cornea have lived in Abaco Islands for more than 50 years. They’ve been homeless since Sunday.
“All the main buildings, gone. It’s gone. Everything is gone,” Robert Cornea told “CBS Evening News.”
“Take a picture of me because it’s all I have left, what you see me in,” Phyllis Cornea said. “I’ve been in this four days.”
Adrian Farrington told CBS News he lost his son. “I still can see my son getting dragged across the roof reaching up,” he said.
Farrington said he thought he lifted his 5-year-old son to safety on the roof of his house, only to see him washed away by the surging flood waters.
“If he be rescued, praise the lord. But for the search, what I saw, when I lose him, anything could happen. You had sharks swimming in the water. Anything can happen,” he said.
Nancy Albert waited all day for a flight out, but it didn’t happen. She described how her home was destroyed. “We opened the door to the bathroom, there was nothing left. It was gone. The house was gone,” she said.
— Norah O’Donnell, David Begnaud and Nikki Battiste
Coast Guard rescues dozens in the Bahamas
“CBS Evening News” flew with the U.S. Coast Guard’s Seventh District over the islands hit hardest by the hurricane. Aboard the HC-144 cargo plane, the devastation is clear.
The Coast Guard has rescued a total of 114 people and six pets from a devastated string of islands. They’ll keep flying into the hardest hit parts of the Bahamas for as long as they are needed.
“Our primary mission is search and rescue. We can suffer some casualty to the plane to save a life but our primary mission is to save a life,” Lieutenant Julianna White said.
The Coast Guard Air Station Miami is no stranger to these missions. In 2005, they rescued nearly 800 people following Hurricane Katrina. Lieutenant Jillian Harner said even one rescue makes all the hard work worth it.
“It’s definitely an honor. You have one case of rescues, it’s the best feeling. It makes the training you’ve done worth it,” Harner said.
— Norah O’Donnell
Death toll climbs to 20 in Bahamas
The death toll in the Bahamas jumped to 20 on Wednesday evening, a spokesperson for the Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau told CBS News. The hospital is currently treating 35 patients, the spokesperson said.
— Nikki Battiste reports
