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| Hurricane Matthew Weakens as It Lashes Georgia and the Carolinas | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Heavy rains from Hurricane Matthew lashed Georgia and South Carolina early Saturday as the storm began to lose some of its strength. | |
| Charleston and Savannah were both reporting flooding with water breaching the sea wall in Charleston. Video of Savannah showed water rushing through the streets amid reports that the Savannah River was out of its banks. | |
| In Georgia, where the governor had ordered residents in six coastal counties to evacuate, Hurricane Matthew set a storm surge record for Tybee Island, near the state’s border with South Carolina. | |
| The Chatham County Emergency Management Agency said storm surge on the island had reached 12.5 feet, exceeding the previous high of 12.2 feet, which was set when Hurricane David roared ashore in 1979. | |
| The hurricane, which weakened Saturday morning at a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour, had pounded Florida on Friday but stayed far enough offshore to spare the state a direct hit. The National Hurricane Center said the storm’s motion had “increased the possibility that the center of Matthew’s eye will move ashore along the coast of South Carolina later this morning or early afternoon.” | |
| Derrec Becker with the South Carolina Emergency Preparedness Division told The Associated Press on Saturday that officials had seen “water go where it shouldn’t.” The Georgia Department of Transportation said in a statement that fallen trees and power lines had blocked Interstate 95 at the Georgia-South Carolina border. | Derrec Becker with the South Carolina Emergency Preparedness Division told The Associated Press on Saturday that officials had seen “water go where it shouldn’t.” The Georgia Department of Transportation said in a statement that fallen trees and power lines had blocked Interstate 95 at the Georgia-South Carolina border. |
| The storm was blamed for the deaths of more than 800 people in Haiti, according to a Reuters report based on information from civil protection and local officials. | The storm was blamed for the deaths of more than 800 people in Haiti, according to a Reuters report based on information from civil protection and local officials. |
| Dispatches from our reporters on the ground; a live storm tracker map; and answers to reader questions will be updated below. | Dispatches from our reporters on the ground; a live storm tracker map; and answers to reader questions will be updated below. |
| ■ At 8 a.m., the storm’s center was 20 miles south-southeast of Charleston, S.C. The storm was moving at about 12 m.p.h., with maximum sustained winds of 85 m.p.h. | |
| ■ Florida officials blamed the storm for at least five deaths: three in St. Lucie County, one in Volusia County and one in Putnam County. Early on Friday, the St. Lucie County fire service received a call to aid a woman who had suffered a heart attack, but winds approaching hurricane force prevented emergency vehicles from responding. An older couple running a generator inside a garage died from carbon monoxide poisoning, the county said in a social media post. Around noon, another woman was killed in Volusia, Fla., when a tree fell on her after she went outside to feed animals, according to James T. Dinneen, the Volusia County manager. In Putnam County, between Gainesville and Daytona Beach, the sheriff’s office said a woman had been killed when a tree fell onto a camper. Another man was injured. | ■ Florida officials blamed the storm for at least five deaths: three in St. Lucie County, one in Volusia County and one in Putnam County. Early on Friday, the St. Lucie County fire service received a call to aid a woman who had suffered a heart attack, but winds approaching hurricane force prevented emergency vehicles from responding. An older couple running a generator inside a garage died from carbon monoxide poisoning, the county said in a social media post. Around noon, another woman was killed in Volusia, Fla., when a tree fell on her after she went outside to feed animals, according to James T. Dinneen, the Volusia County manager. In Putnam County, between Gainesville and Daytona Beach, the sheriff’s office said a woman had been killed when a tree fell onto a camper. Another man was injured. |
| ■ Florida officials said Saturday morning that more than 1 million customers were without electricity. More than a quarter of a million customers were without power in Georgia, and about 200,000 in South Carolina. | ■ Florida officials said Saturday morning that more than 1 million customers were without electricity. More than a quarter of a million customers were without power in Georgia, and about 200,000 in South Carolina. |
| ■ Significant flooding hit cities south of Jacksonville, including St. Augustine and Ormond Beach, on Friday. | ■ Significant flooding hit cities south of Jacksonville, including St. Augustine and Ormond Beach, on Friday. |
| ■ To cover the storm and its aftermath, The New York Times has journalists deployed along the path of Hurricane Matthew. Follow our correspondents on Twitter. | ■ To cover the storm and its aftermath, The New York Times has journalists deployed along the path of Hurricane Matthew. Follow our correspondents on Twitter. |
| Hurricane Matthew sent torrents of rain through the city that turned some roads into rivers and, around the Low Country, ripped trees from the inundated ground, creating more than 250,000 power outages around the state. | |
| State officials expressed concern about places like Beaufort and Hilton Head Island, to the south, where the tide was higher when the storm hit. | |
| In Charleston, the wind picked up as the eye wall rolled through and water filled many downtown streets. Water was also coming over the sea wall along East Battery Street, along the southeastern edge of this peninsular city. | |
| But many here felt a measure of relief because the tide was receding — even though the storm surge kept the water much higher than usual. | |
| “We’ve dealt with this before, we’ve dealt with this back in October of last year,” Charles Francis, a public information officer for the department, said, comparing the floods to that of October 2015, when the city saw 15 to 20 inches of rain over about four days. | “We’ve dealt with this before, we’ve dealt with this back in October of last year,” Charles Francis, a public information officer for the department, said, comparing the floods to that of October 2015, when the city saw 15 to 20 inches of rain over about four days. |
| J.T. Thomas, 51, was spending the storm on his yacht in the Charleston City Marina, watching it on the radar. | |
| “It’s a little rolly,” Mr. Thomas said early Saturday, “but nobody broke loose and the tide’s gone out now.” | |
| Still, Mr. Thomas said, it was the strongest storm he had experienced in Charleston in decades. — JESS BIDGOOD in Charleston. | |
| Miami may have been spared the wrath of Hurricane Matthew, but for residents of the city’s Little Haiti neighborhood the anxiety over the storm was acute. Haiti, birth nation to most of the people in the Miami enclave, was devastated by the storm, which killed hundreds on the island and left fears of an even greater toll. | Miami may have been spared the wrath of Hurricane Matthew, but for residents of the city’s Little Haiti neighborhood the anxiety over the storm was acute. Haiti, birth nation to most of the people in the Miami enclave, was devastated by the storm, which killed hundreds on the island and left fears of an even greater toll. |
| “I have two cousins I have not heard from — I’m very worried,” Daniel Fils Aimé, who has lived in Little Haiti for a quarter of a century and was last in his native Les Cayes two years ago, said. “Somebody is supposed to let me know. Someone is investigating.” | “I have two cousins I have not heard from — I’m very worried,” Daniel Fils Aimé, who has lived in Little Haiti for a quarter of a century and was last in his native Les Cayes two years ago, said. “Somebody is supposed to let me know. Someone is investigating.” |
| Mr. Aimé, 72, managed to get in touch with several friends in the devastated southwestern region of Haiti. “I’ve heard from some friends — not others,” he said as he bought pastries and bread at the Piman Bouk Bakery. “They’re all scattered now. People lost their houses. They had chickens and cows in the yard — everything went straight into the ocean.” | Mr. Aimé, 72, managed to get in touch with several friends in the devastated southwestern region of Haiti. “I’ve heard from some friends — not others,” he said as he bought pastries and bread at the Piman Bouk Bakery. “They’re all scattered now. People lost their houses. They had chickens and cows in the yard — everything went straight into the ocean.” |
| As the chairman of the Haitian-American Chamber of Commerce, which he founded in 2005, Mr. Aimé said he was trying raise money to buy enough food to fill a shipping container, with the intention of sending it to Les Cayes. | As the chairman of the Haitian-American Chamber of Commerce, which he founded in 2005, Mr. Aimé said he was trying raise money to buy enough food to fill a shipping container, with the intention of sending it to Les Cayes. |
| Sitting with a friend in a small park at the intersection of 62nd Street and North Miami Avenue, Maximin Raphael, 59, closed his eyes and pursed his lips as he thought about his 43-year-old sister, Gyslaine Joseph, in Les Cayes, and what she went through during the hurricane. | Sitting with a friend in a small park at the intersection of 62nd Street and North Miami Avenue, Maximin Raphael, 59, closed his eyes and pursed his lips as he thought about his 43-year-old sister, Gyslaine Joseph, in Les Cayes, and what she went through during the hurricane. |
| Mr. Raphael, who has lived in the United States for 34 years, had finally managed to reach her by telephone on Friday morning, after days of trying. | Mr. Raphael, who has lived in the United States for 34 years, had finally managed to reach her by telephone on Friday morning, after days of trying. |
| “Her house is gone,” Mr. Raphael said. “The roof flew away. Everybody that lives there has a big problem.” | “Her house is gone,” Mr. Raphael said. “The roof flew away. Everybody that lives there has a big problem.” |
| At the Piman Bouk Bakery, murals, both inside and out, portray a verdant and abundant Haiti in the manner of much of the country’s art. But the crushing realities of life there, made even more so by frequent batterings it takes from natural calamities like storms and earthquakes, were all too plain to the customers — almost invariably Haitian immigrants — who lined up Friday afternoon to buy goods. | At the Piman Bouk Bakery, murals, both inside and out, portray a verdant and abundant Haiti in the manner of much of the country’s art. But the crushing realities of life there, made even more so by frequent batterings it takes from natural calamities like storms and earthquakes, were all too plain to the customers — almost invariably Haitian immigrants — who lined up Friday afternoon to buy goods. |
| “We are all Haitian, so we have to be concerned, regardless of whether they are family or not,” said Marie-Claude Richardson, a registered nurse who was born in Cap Haitien, in the country’s north, and who moved to Miami in 1986 after completing high school in her native country. — NICK MADIGAN, in Miami | “We are all Haitian, so we have to be concerned, regardless of whether they are family or not,” said Marie-Claude Richardson, a registered nurse who was born in Cap Haitien, in the country’s north, and who moved to Miami in 1986 after completing high school in her native country. — NICK MADIGAN, in Miami |
| Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, declined to extend the deadline after a call from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign to accommodate people disrupted by the hurricane. Read more » | Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, declined to extend the deadline after a call from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign to accommodate people disrupted by the hurricane. Read more » |
| Forecasters say there are hints that the storm could take a path back toward the coastline, at a reduced strength. Read more from John Schwartz » | Forecasters say there are hints that the storm could take a path back toward the coastline, at a reduced strength. Read more from John Schwartz » |
| John Schwartz, a New York Times reporter who covers climate change and the environment, is answering reader questions about the storm. He rode out his first hurricane, Carla, in his hometown, Galveston, Tex., at age 4. He has covered the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, as well as other storms for The Times. | John Schwartz, a New York Times reporter who covers climate change and the environment, is answering reader questions about the storm. He rode out his first hurricane, Carla, in his hometown, Galveston, Tex., at age 4. He has covered the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, as well as other storms for The Times. |
| Ask your hurricane questions here. | Ask your hurricane questions here. |
| Why do weather agencies and the news media keep getting the forecasts so wrong and overstate the severity of hurricanes? Is this some kind of insurance liability issue, where they are afraid of getting sued if they don’t paint a ‘doomsday’ picture? — Jim | Why do weather agencies and the news media keep getting the forecasts so wrong and overstate the severity of hurricanes? Is this some kind of insurance liability issue, where they are afraid of getting sued if they don’t paint a ‘doomsday’ picture? — Jim |
| The conservative approach isn’t about liability, Jim, it’s about saving lives. The storm track that Matthew has followed has been well within the range of possibilities that the National Hurricane Center has been talking about all along. This is still a dangerous storm, and just because some stretches of the Florida coast have not been hit as catastrophically as was possible, that does not mean the rest of Florida or Georgia or South Carolina are in the clear. | The conservative approach isn’t about liability, Jim, it’s about saving lives. The storm track that Matthew has followed has been well within the range of possibilities that the National Hurricane Center has been talking about all along. This is still a dangerous storm, and just because some stretches of the Florida coast have not been hit as catastrophically as was possible, that does not mean the rest of Florida or Georgia or South Carolina are in the clear. |
| Marshall Shepherd, the director of Atmospheric Sciences Program, University of Georgia, has been fiercely defending the warnings on Twitter, and I’ll let him do the talking here: | Marshall Shepherd, the director of Atmospheric Sciences Program, University of Georgia, has been fiercely defending the warnings on Twitter, and I’ll let him do the talking here: |
| Chris W. Landsea, science and operations officer for the National Hurricane Center, said that while the storm has weakened somewhat, it is now spread over a larger area, and “a larger hurricane can cause more storm surge,” and a larger wind field; the wind damage, in other words, can be felt over a larger area. So a slightly weaker but larger storm is “kind of a wash, as far as impacts,” he said. | Chris W. Landsea, science and operations officer for the National Hurricane Center, said that while the storm has weakened somewhat, it is now spread over a larger area, and “a larger hurricane can cause more storm surge,” and a larger wind field; the wind damage, in other words, can be felt over a larger area. So a slightly weaker but larger storm is “kind of a wash, as far as impacts,” he said. |
| I grew up in Houston and also rode out Carla as a child as well as Henrietta in Cabo as an adult. I certainly believe in climate change, but is the hurricane season really worse now? What about the 1900 Galveston hurricane? — Jackie Berry | I grew up in Houston and also rode out Carla as a child as well as Henrietta in Cabo as an adult. I certainly believe in climate change, but is the hurricane season really worse now? What about the 1900 Galveston hurricane? — Jackie Berry |
| There have always been hurricanes, and many have been profoundly destructive. The Great Storm of 1900 killed at least 6,000 people on Galveston Island, and remains the deadliest natural disaster in United States history. | There have always been hurricanes, and many have been profoundly destructive. The Great Storm of 1900 killed at least 6,000 people on Galveston Island, and remains the deadliest natural disaster in United States history. |
| But climate change isn’t about these isolated incidents. It’s the long-term trend, and the long-term trend is not good. | But climate change isn’t about these isolated incidents. It’s the long-term trend, and the long-term trend is not good. |
| People remember the 1900 storm — and the haunting song about it, Wasn’t that a Mighty Storm? and Erik Larson’s book “Isaac’s Storm” — because it stands out in the damage that it did. What climate change is doing is dumping more heat into the oceans and more moisture into the air — conditions that are likely, over time, to make the strong storms that do develop become more powerful, and possibly more frequent, as well. | People remember the 1900 storm — and the haunting song about it, Wasn’t that a Mighty Storm? and Erik Larson’s book “Isaac’s Storm” — because it stands out in the damage that it did. What climate change is doing is dumping more heat into the oceans and more moisture into the air — conditions that are likely, over time, to make the strong storms that do develop become more powerful, and possibly more frequent, as well. |
| Katharine Hayhoe, a climate scientist at Texas Tech University, noted that while global average temperatures are rising, “20 times more heat is going into the ocean” than into the atmosphere, and so that’s a lot of power in the sea for hurricanes to draw on. And, in fact, while the 1900 storm was terribly destructive, much of that tragedy could be blamed on the lack of warning in those pre-satellite times. | Katharine Hayhoe, a climate scientist at Texas Tech University, noted that while global average temperatures are rising, “20 times more heat is going into the ocean” than into the atmosphere, and so that’s a lot of power in the sea for hurricanes to draw on. And, in fact, while the 1900 storm was terribly destructive, much of that tragedy could be blamed on the lack of warning in those pre-satellite times. |
| It’s hard to attribute any single weather event to climate change, but it’s clear that climate change sets up conditions that can lead to more 1900 storms, more Katrinas, more Sandys. When I wrote about the science of attribution last year, Andrew E. Dessler, a climate researcher at Texas A & M, told me determining whether an extreme weather event like a flood is caused by climate change is like trying to figure out which of Barry Bonds’s home runs were caused by his steroid use. | It’s hard to attribute any single weather event to climate change, but it’s clear that climate change sets up conditions that can lead to more 1900 storms, more Katrinas, more Sandys. When I wrote about the science of attribution last year, Andrew E. Dessler, a climate researcher at Texas A & M, told me determining whether an extreme weather event like a flood is caused by climate change is like trying to figure out which of Barry Bonds’s home runs were caused by his steroid use. |
| “You know statistically some of them were, but you don’t know which ones,” he said. “Almost certainly, it would have rained a lot even without climate change — but it’s possible climate change juiced it, added a little bit.” | “You know statistically some of them were, but you don’t know which ones,” he said. “Almost certainly, it would have rained a lot even without climate change — but it’s possible climate change juiced it, added a little bit.” |