Storm chaser Aaron Rigsby is in South Carolina for the next landfall of Debby discussing the continued threat of flooding in the area.
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00:00Aaron, tell us where is Bolton here along the coastline, just for perspective,
00:04and are you planning to stay put there or head elsewhere for landfall tonight?
00:11Yeah, good evening Jeff. So Bolton is located about an hour northeast of Myrtle Beach and
00:15about an hour northwest of Wilmington, North Carolina, and the reason for the move is it was
00:19kind of like we touched on earlier, those rain bands have really filled in over the last couple
00:24of hours, and now we're really starting to see that training effect as it just pinwheels around
00:29Debbie. So I've been making my way up here because there's been several reports of some
00:32pretty significant flash flooding, vehicles stalled out, so this is going to shift the
00:36priority from my original plan, at least for the short term, in Myrtle Beach, document the flash
00:41flooding up here before making my way back for landfall in Myrtle Beach to cover that inevitable
00:46wind damage that's going to occur as this ground is already saturated. So we're probably going to
00:50see some trees falling, some power outages, along with that storm surge that's been really eating
00:55away at the beach line there at Myrtle Beach. Absolutely, and we are dealing with still some
00:59gusty squalls as you mentioned. There was a recent tornado threat west of Wilmington,
01:03North Carolina. That warning has come and gone, but we did have a couple of
01:06homes damaged by a tornado earlier today up into southern North Carolina as well.
01:11So overall, as you travel around today, what kinds of conditions have you seen? I know it
01:18hasn't been intense at all moments, but there have been areas within 100 miles of you at all times
01:22where there's at least something significant going on. Yeah, that's absolutely correct. I think
01:28that's what's throwing a lot of residents and visitors off about this system is typically with
01:32tropical storms and hurricanes. We see like those consistent conditions. Everyone hunkers down inside
01:37versus Debbie, where it's almost been deceptive, where people think it's in the clear. They start
01:41to venture out to try and enjoy their vacation. Another round of rain comes in, and those gusty
01:45winds come through, and then they have to be running back from the beach back to their safe
01:49spots. And it's funny you mentioned the tornado threat. We're actually going to be dealing with
01:53that again tomorrow as well into North Carolina into the Outer Banks. So this marathon continues
01:59tonight and into tomorrow. We're far from being out of the woods just yet. Yeah, very, very true.
02:03Well, Aaron, be safe out there, and I know it's going to be a long night here, any landfall, and
02:08this is the second landfall for this storm. You've been with us for a couple of multi-landfall storms
02:13this season here, and every storm is certainly different. So be safe out there. Thanks again,
02:18Storm Chaser Aaron Rigsby in Bolton, North Carolina.