By the numbers: Florence's devastating blow to the Carolinas

Hurricane Florence made landfall in North Carolina early in the morning of Friday, Sept. 14. The storm trekked west as it slowed down from 5 mph to 2 mph. Therefore, its torrential rain persistently pelted several communities.

Record-breaking rainfall was recorded throughout the Carolinas, with the highest rainfall, 35.93 inches of rain, recorded near Elizabethtown, North Carolina.

This amount breaks the previous North Carolina tropical rainfall record of 24.09 inches set during Hurricane Floyd in 1999.

Areas of the Carolinas were inundated with 1 to 2 feet of rain, with some spots receiving nearly 3 feet of rain. Southeastern North Carolina was hit with the heaviest rainfall, according to AccuWeather Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski said.

Florence has dumped nearly 2 feet of rain on Wilmington, North Carolina, bringing the 2018 rainfall total in the city to over 86 inches. This washes away the old yearly rainfall record in the city of 83.65 inches, set in 1877.

"Florence did what it was forecast to do, it produced flooding rainfall. That will be its legacy," Kottlowski said.

Many local officials have said that the storm produced the worst flooding ever in certain locations, especially over southeastern North Carolina.

Florence has led to at least 32 deaths and hundreds of water rescues.

 

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