EF1 tornado in Columbus County, North Carolina

The tornado, associated with a line of storms trailing Tropical

Cyclone Florence, descended over a pond near the intersection of

Highway 701 and Spivey Ward Drive. About a dozen small trees

around the pond were broken off and blown into the pond, and a

metal carport was lifted and blown onto a dock. Minor damage

occurred to a few mobile homes on Spivey Ward Drive, including

part of a roof which was blown 30 yards and suspended in a tree.

The tornado moved northeast causing minor damage to the roofs and

fascia of two homes, before reaching its maximum intensity in a

stand of trees immediately northeast of the homes. Approximately 40

pine trees up to 18 inches in diameter were snapped off, and about

a dozen large hardwoods were broken or uprooted. The metal roof of

a wood-framed carport was also ripped off and blown over the barn

it was attached to. The tornado caused additional minor damage to

trees to the northeast, and peeled a portion of metal roofing off

of a welding shop as it lifted. Some peripheral damage occurred to

trees and a wooden shed on the west side of Highway 701.

Hurricane Florence began its long Atlantic trek from the Cape Verde Islands in early September. It made landfall near Wrightsville Beach during the morning of September 14th. The barometric pressure at landfall was 959 millibars, or 28.32 inches.The strongest winds were recorded at 106 mph at Cape Lookout, as well as 105 mph measured at the Wilmington International Airport. In addition to the strong storm surge, there was historic rainfall totals of 20 to 25 inches, with isolated totals of 35 inches in parts of Bladen and Robeson counties. Flash Flooding was severe and widespread, with many communities experiencing flooding for the first time. River flooding was epic, with dozens of main highways impassible. Significant flooding occurred for weeks after the storm had departed. The hurricane spawned 19 tornadoes, one causing significant damage to 8 structures in the Sydney community in Columbus county. The community at Lake Waccamaw experienced more damage than Hurricane Floyd in 1999, the previous benchmark for the area. In Pender County, over 6000 structures had damage, with 2800 structures suffered major damage or were destroyed altogether. Damage estimates from wind and water are in the tens of billions of dollars, making it one of the costliest hurricanes ever.