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Wilmington, North Carolina, appears to be drying out as Tropical Storm Debby moves away
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Wilmington, North Carolina, appears to be drying out as Tropical Storm Debby moves away

Despite dropping more than a foot of rain in parts of the Cape Fear region, Tropical Storm Debby caused little damage in southeastern North Carolina.

As the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby finally departed Wilmington Thursday night after drenching the Cape Fear region for days, the slow-moving tropical storm left flooded roads and swollen waterways in its wake.

But even as it finally picked up speed and headed north toward Virginia, emergency officials warned residents not to let their guard down as Debby’s path took it farther inland and its impacts largely steered away from the North Carolina coast.

With rainfall amounts already exceeding 15 inches in some places — and more likely Friday — southeastern North Carolina appeared to escape with only minor damage from the meandering tropical storm that threatened the Carolinas for days after inundating much of Florida’s west coast.

Jason Fuller, senior emergency operations specialist for the New Hanover County Office of Emergency Management, said his office had not received any reports of significant damage.

In downtown Wilmington, the roof of a building in the 200 block of Princess Street partially collapsed Thursday afternoon, with early indications that Debby’s heavy rains had exacerbated an existing problem. But storm damage in the Port City, as in most places in the Cape Fear region, appeared to be light and limited to nuisance flooding and some downed vegetation.

STORM IMPACTS: Flooding and damage reported in the Wilmington area from Tropical Storm Debby

The storm’s entry into the Cape Fear region was preceded by several tornado warnings, and all three Wilmington-area counties saw the threat of tornadoes at some point. The Pender County Emergency Management Office reported that two possible tornadoes touched down in the county on Wednesday, though there were no reports of injuries or property damage.

Rains that began Monday and increased as Debby approached North Carolina caused flooding on streets and neighborhoods across the region. In Brunswick County, floodwaters closed part of U.S. 17 south of Shallotte, inundated much of N.C. 133 and caused road flooding across much of the county. Pender County officials had to conduct multiple water rescues Wednesday night and Thursday after people drove their vehicles into flooded roads.

Still, damage appeared to be minor beyond isolated road closures, downed vegetation, overflowing retention ponds and saturated grass.

PHOTOS: Flooding on Wilmington-area roads due to Tropical Storm Debby

But with some area rivers not expected to crest until Friday afternoon, officials weren’t quite ready to turn the page on Debby’s visit to the Cape Fear coast.

The National Weather Service’s Wilmington office also warned that the rain bands left behind by Debby still had the potential to trigger flash flooding, especially in low-lying, poorly drained or urban areas. Strong waves and rip currents at area beaches were also expected to remain potential hazards through the weekend.

Reporter Gareth McGrath can be reached at [email protected] or @GarethMcGrathSN on X/Twitter. This story was produced with financial support from the Green South Foundation and the Prentice Foundation. USA TODAY Network maintains full editorial control of the work.

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