Skip to Content Facebook Feature Image

Wind, rain but no name as tropical disturbance approaches Carolinas coast

News

Wind, rain but no name as tropical disturbance approaches Carolinas coast
News

News

Wind, rain but no name as tropical disturbance approaches Carolinas coast

2024-09-17 06:26 Last Updated At:06:30

MIAMI (AP) — Heavy winds and rains from a storm in the Atlantic that wasn't quite organized enough to get a name hit a stretch of the southeastern U.S. coast Monday.

The center of the storm system was near the South Carolina coast Monday afternoon, moving inland, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Strong winds were spreading onshore and dozens of roads were flooded. Known as Potential Tropical Cyclone No. 8, the system never organized enough to become the eighth named tropical storm of the season, Helene.

But no matter its classification, the storm prompted school closings, including Coastal Carolina University, and flooded areas south of Wilmington, North Carolina, with more than a foot (30 centimeters) of rain while nearby Wrightsville Beach had a wind gust of 65 mph (105 kph).

In Brunswick County, North Carolina, flooding reached waist high in areas around the courthouse, the Sheriff's Office said. About 15 miles (24 kilometers) away in Carolina Beach, blocks of the city were covered with a few inches of water and dozens of vehicles had floodwaters up to their doors as officials urged people to stay home. Radar estimated up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) of rain fell in the area.

According to North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper's office, building and road damage was reported in Brunswick and in New Hanover County, where Wilmington is located. In a news release, the governor urged people in storm areas Monday night and Tuesday to stay off the roads.

A tropical storm warning was in effect for parts of the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina for about 24 hours before it was canceled Monday afternoon.

The low-pressure system was near the South Carolina coast about 100 miles (156 kilometers) northeast of Charleston on Monday afternoon. It had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55 kph) and was moving to the north-northwest at 7 mph (11 kph), forecasters said.

Late Sunday night, forecasters said the system had a chance of becoming a tropical or subtropical storm, but it then became less organized, with the strongest winds in outer rain bands instead of near the center, said Carl Morgan, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's office in Wilmington.

“There are still strong winds out there. They just not concentrating near a center,” Morgan said.

In an updated hurricane outlook last month the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was still predicting a highly active Atlantic hurricane season thanks to near-record sea surface temperatures and the possibility of La Nina. Emergency management officials have urged people to stay prepared.

The storm was expected to dump 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) of rain in northeast South Carolina into southeast North Carolina and up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) in isolated spots, with smaller amounts expected across the remainder of North Carolina through Tuesday, according to forecasters.

Over much of Virginia, 1 to 3 inches (2.5 to 8 centimeters) of rainfall, with locally higher amounts, were expected from Monday night through Wednesday. The hurricane center predicted the rainfall could lead to isolated and scattered flash and urban flooding, as well as minor river flooding.

The system will likely dissipate over the Carolinas by late Wednesday, forecasters said.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Gordon weakened to a depression as it swirls through open ocean waters. Gordon could either dissolve in upcoming days or strengthen back into a tropical storm, forecasters said.

Roads flood in heavy rains Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Southport, N.C. (Renee Spencer/The Star-News via AP)

Roads flood in heavy rains Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Southport, N.C. (Renee Spencer/The Star-News via AP)

Flooding on Water Street near Princess in downtown Wilmington, N.C., Monday morning, Sept. 16, 2024. (John Staton/The Star-News via AP)

Flooding on Water Street near Princess in downtown Wilmington, N.C., Monday morning, Sept. 16, 2024. (John Staton/The Star-News via AP)

Flooding along Lord Street on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Southport, N.C. (Renee Spencer/The Star-News via AP)

Flooding along Lord Street on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Southport, N.C. (Renee Spencer/The Star-News via AP)

This image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows tropical storm conditions along a stretch of the U.S. Southeast seacoast, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (NOAA via AP)

This image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows tropical storm conditions along a stretch of the U.S. Southeast seacoast, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (NOAA via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in the final days before the presidential election, playing herself as the mirror-image double of Maya Rudolph’s version of her in the show's cold open.

The first lines the candidate spoke as she sat across from Rudolph, their outfits identical, were drowned out by cheers from the audience.

“It is nice to see you Kamala,” Harris told Rudolph with a broad grin she kept throughout the sketch. “And I’m just here to remind you, you got this.”

In sync, the two said supporters need to “Keep Kamala and carry-on-ala,” declared that they share each other’s “belief in the promise of America” and delivered the signature “Live from New York it’s Saturday night!”

Harris made the surprise trip to New York before Tuesday's election, taking a brief break from the battleground states where she has been campaigning. With the appearance on NBC's sketch comedy show, the Democratic nominee was hoping to generate buzz and appeal to a nationwide audience.

Harris had left Charlotte, North Carolina and was scheduled to head to Detroit, but once in the air, aides said she would be landing elsewhere. The appearance was only confirmed by Harris' team moments before the live airing began.

The vice president arrived at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, where "SNL" tapes, shortly after 8 p.m., enough time for a quick rehearsal before the show aired live at 11:30 p.m. It was the final "SNL" episode before Election Day.

She left immediately after the opening segment and told reporters, “It was fun!” as she boarded her plane for Michigan.

Host John Mulaney and musical guest Chappell Roan shifted the show away from politics. Neither addressed the election.

Some expected Roan, the 26-year-old singer who has become a major star in recent months, to make a political statement in her first appearance on the show. She has previously been harshly critical of the Democratic Party and declined to endorse Harris in her campaign against Republican Donald Trump, although Roan has said several times she plans to vote for her.

Roan sang her hit “Pink Pony Club," on an all-pink set bathed in pink light and made no remarks.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., also made a surprise appearance, in a game-show sketch where the gag was that no one remembered him despite his being Hillary Clinton's running mate in 2016.

“It’s been less than eight years. What’s my name?,” he said, as the contestants stood silent and flummoxed.

Rudolph first played Harris on the show in 2019 and has reprised her role this season, doing a spot-on impression of the vice president, including calling herself “Momala” — a reference to the affectionate nickname that Harris' stepchildren gave her.

Fellow former cast member Andy Samberg appeared again as Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff. Standup comic Jim Gaffigan played Harris' running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Dana Carvey, best known on the show for playing President George H.W. Bush in the late 1980s, stood in for President Joe Biden.

Rudolph’s performance has won critical and comedic acclaim, including from Harris herself.

“Maya Rudolph — I mean, she’s so good,” Harris said last month on ABC’s “The View.” “She had the whole thing, the suit, the jewelry, everything!”

Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, expressed surprise that Harris would appear on “SNL” given what Miller characterized as her unflattering portrayal on the show. Asked if Trump had been invited to appear, Miller said: “I don’t know. Probably not.”

Politicians nonetheless have a long history on "SNL," including Trump, who hosted the show in 2015. But appearing so close to Election Day is unusual.

Clinton was running in the 2008 Democratic presidential primary when she appeared next to Amy Poehler, who played her on the show and was known for launching into a trademark, exaggerated cackle. The real Clinton wondered during her appearance, “Do I really laugh like that?”

Harris repeated that line in response to Rudolph’s portrayal of her laugh in Saturday’s episode.

Clinton returned in 2016, when she was running against Trump, who won that election.

The first sitting president to appear on "SNL" was Republican Gerald Ford, who did so less than a year after the show debuted. Ford appeared in April 1976 on an episode hosted by his press secretary, Ron Nessen, and declared, “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night.”

Then-Illinois Sen. Barack Obama appeared alongside Poehler impersonating Clinton in 2007. Republican Bob Dole was on the show in November 1996 -- a mere 11 days after losing that year’s election to Bill Clinton. Dole consoled Norm Macdonald, who played the Kansas senator.

Then there was Tina Fey’s 2008 impression of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin — and in particular her joke that “I can see Russia from my house.” It was so good that Fey won an Emmy and Palin herself appeared on the show that October, in the weeks before the election.

Long, Miller and Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in New York and Andrew Dalton in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, left, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, left, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, left, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, left, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, appears on NBC's "Saturday Night Live," with Maya Rudolph, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 in New York. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear briefly stepping away from the battleground states she's been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at LaGuardia Airport, Saturday night, Nov. 2, 2024, in East Elmhurst, N.Y. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear on an episode of “Saturday Night Live,” briefly stepping away from the battleground states she’s been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at LaGuardia Airport, Saturday night, Nov. 2, 2024, in East Elmhurst, N.Y. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear on an episode of “Saturday Night Live,” briefly stepping away from the battleground states she’s been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at LaGuardia Airport, Saturday night, Nov. 2, 2024, in East Elmhurst, N.Y. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear on an episode of “Saturday Night Live,” briefly stepping away from the battleground states she’s been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at LaGuardia Airport, Saturday night, Nov. 2, 2024, in East Elmhurst, N.Y. Harris has made an unannounced trip to New York to appear on an episode of “Saturday Night Live,” briefly stepping away from the battleground states she’s been campaigning in with just three days to go before the election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Recommended Articles