'Firehose' storm hits part of North Carolina and scientists see climate change

The Carolinas braced for a storm that forecasters warned could bring heavy rain — as much as 6 to 8 inches in some spots. But one narrow band got a “firehose” that dumped as much as 20 inches in a so-called 1,000-year flood that shocked many with its intensity.

The storm that left homes flooded, cars submerged and schools closed Tuesday in parts of North Carolina wasn’t really a surprise to scientists who have long said that such rainfalls are one marker of climate change.

“Data shows one of the strongest relationships between climate change and precipitation is that as the atmosphere warms, the capacity to hold water increases. Therefore we see more intense rainfall in a shorter period of time,” said Andrew Kruczkiewicz, senior researcher at the Columbia Climate School at Columbia University.

Monday’s deluge centered on Carolina Beach south of Wilmington, where more than 18 inches (46 centimeters) of rain fell in 12 hours and almost 21 overall. That much rain qualifies as a 1,000-year flood expected only once in that length of time, meteorologists at the National Weather Service office in Wilmington said.

Some areas were hit particularly hard as the storm took a narrow path over the region, “causing a bit of a firehose effect,” NWS meteorologist Lauren Warner said. The agency’s forecasts allowed for “locally higher” amounts, but those weren’t close to what eventually fell.

“If that had moved just a little to the left or continued l the left, that would have mitigated some of the totals that we saw or perhaps spread them out over a wider area,” said Warner. The worst flooding occurred over parts of just two counties, her colleague Tim Armstrong said.

Ocean Isle Beach, just a little over 30 miles (48 kilometers) from Carolina Beach picked up less than 4 inches (10 centimeters) of rain.

Carolina Beach Mayor Lynn Barbee said the 21 inches that fell on his town was impossible to fully prepare for even in a place accustomed to tropical downpours.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen it rain so hard and for so long,” said Barbee, who has lived on the coast for most of his life. “Not rain bands that get harder and let up or a front moving through. It just sat on top of us.”

The storm system was known as Potential Tropical Cyclone No. 8, but it never organized enough to become the eighth named tropical storm of the season.

The lack of a name added to the difficulty, Barbee said, since people pay more attention to named storms or hurricanes. Tourists were still arriving for beach vacations Monday at the height of the deluge. One family from Pennsylvania lost their van to the floodwaters and are in a shelter instead of their vacation rental, the mayor said.

“We’ve developed a communication dialogue. We communicate cones of uncertainty, expected path, time of arrival, strength on the Saffer-Simpson scale. People know what to expect. But suddenly we’re having storms that don’t fit on these scales,” Barbee said.

Carolina Beach is still cleaning up, and the mayor expects things to be back to normal by the weekend. But town officials are going to keep trying to figure out how to plan for heavy rain like they plan for 18 inches of water to come in from the ocean during a hurricane’s storm surge.

“A foot-and-a-half that falls out of the sky instead of from the ocean -- where does it go?” Barbee said. “We’re finding it in neighborhoods that have never flooded. It’s falling water and not rising water.”

The flash flooding closed dozens of roads in Brunswick County at North Carolina's southeast tip, including U.S. Highway 17, which is the main coastal route. Floodwaters swamped the highway at several points for most of the day, trapping some drivers on high ground that became an island.

Emergency workers brought food and water to people as they waited for the waters to recede, Brunswick County emergency officials said. No deaths were reported but dozens of roads in the county were damaged and many washed out.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed an executive order Tuesday declaring a state of emergency for Brunswick and three other southeastern counties, which the governor said will make additional assistance available for the region.

It wasn't the region's first historic flood by any measure. The same area has seen four other floods of a lifetime in the past 25 years from Hurricane Floyd in 1999, unnamed storms in 2010 and 2015, and the benchmark flood with 30 inches of rain from Hurricane Florence in 2018.

The rain from the system had moved into southeast Virginia on Tuesday. Along North Carolina's Outer Banks, the storm closed vulnerable coastal highway North Carolina 12 on Ocracoke Island and threatened several homes in Rodanthe, where erosion and rising sea levels have destroyed more than a half-dozen beachfront homes this decade.

The Atlantic hurricane season continues through the end of November.

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

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

Flooding from heavy rains closed U.S Highway 17 near Winnabow, south of Wilmington, N.C., on Tuesday, Sept.17, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

This photo provided by Brunswick County Sheriff's Office shows a person walking through flooded water in Brunswick County, N.C., after a storm dropped historic amounts of rain, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (Brunswick County Sheriff's Office via AP)

This photo provided by Brunswick County Sheriff's Office shows a police officer checking on a vehicle that fell into a sinkhole on a highway in Brunswick County, N.C., after a storm dropped historic amounts of rain, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (Brunswick County Sheriff's Office via AP)

This photo provided by Brunswick County Sheriff's Office shows a flooded highway after a storm dropped historic amounts of rain, Monday, Sept. 16 2024. (Brunswick County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Flooding from heavy rains closed U.S Highway 17 near Winnabow, south of Wilmington, N.C., on Tuesday, Sept.17, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

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

Flooding closes part of Stone Chimney Road in Supply, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

Floodwaters inundated the Trademark Outdoors business on U.S. Highway 17 in Supply, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

A pickup truck sits in a washed out section of road on Old Ocean Highway in Supply, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

In this image provided by the Wilmington, N.C., Fire Department, a firefighter carries a dog through floodwaters, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Kure Beach, N.C., (Wilmington Fire Department via AP)

TOKYO (AP) — New Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba opened his first policy speech in office Friday by expressing deep regrets over the governing party's slush funds scandal that dogged his predecessor.

Ishiba replaced Fumio Kishida on Tuesday with the paramount mission of quickly pacifying public anger over financial misconduct in the Liberal Democratic Party and regaining support ahead of an Oct. 27 parliamentary election.

“I will achieve politics that is not for politicians but for the people,” Ishiba said, pledging to provide sincere explanations and ensure that lawmakers abide by the rules.

He set five policy pillars to uphold, including security, economy and disaster resilience.

Ishiba said he will bolster Japan's military capability to defend itself from threats from China, Russia and North Korea under the framework of the Japan-U.S. security alliance.

He did not mention two goals he advocated before taking office — making the Japan-U.S. security alliance more equitable and establishing a NATO-like collective defense system in Asia — apparently to avoid controversy ahead of the election that the LDP must win.

Omitting those goals also saves him from possibly irking Washington, but may disappoint those who saw him as willing to speak up even when he risked disagreement with his own party.

Ishiba noted violations of Japanese airspace last month by Chinese and Russian warplanes and North Korea’s advancing missile technology and testing as examples of the worsening security environment that Japan faces and stressed the need for a further buildup of Japan’s military.

He said he will promote a “strategic, mutually beneficial relationship” with China and increase communication on all levels to build “stable and constructive” ties. He also said he will further strengthen and expand Japan’s ties with South Korea and the trilateral cooperation Japan has with it and the United States.

He called the Japan-U.S. security alliance a cornerstone of Japanese diplomacy and security as well as the foundation of peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and international society.

The first public support ratings for Ishiba as prime minister were around 50% or even lower, the lowest levels for a new leader, according to Japanese media.

Opposition leaders have criticized him for rushing to hold an election after only adding a new face and fresh image to the party without any concrete results. He plans to dissolve parliament next Wednesday for an election on Oct. 27, allowing only a few days of debate on his policies.

On the economy, Ishiba said in his speech that he wants workers to have sustainable salary increases that exceed inflation, and will promote investment to create “a virtuous cycle of growth and distribution.” He promised economic support for low-income households and measures for regional revitalization and disaster resilience.

Despite earlier supporting a phasing out of nuclear power following the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster, he pledged to maximize the use of nuclear energy and push for geothermal and other renewable sources to meet the soaring electricity needs of data centers in the age of AI.

Follow AP's Asia-Pacific coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/asia-pacific

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his first policy speech during a Diet session at the Lower House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delvers his first policy speech during a Diet session at the Lower House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, right, speaks with other lawmakers prior to a Diet session at the Upper House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his first policy speech during a Diet session at the Lower House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his first policy speech during a Diet session at the Lower House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his first policy speech during a Diet session at the Lower House of the Parliament Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)