WINDSOR, N.C. (AP) — At least four people were killed as Tropical Storm Isaias spawned tornadoes and dumped rain Tuesday along the U.S. East Coast after making landfall as a hurricane in North Carolina, where it caused floods and fires that displaced dozens of people.
By BRYAN ANDERSON and SARAH BLAKE MORGAN WINDSOR, N. C. (AP) — At least four people were killed as Tropical Storm Isaias spawned tornadoes and dumped rain Tuesday along the U. S. East Coast after making landfall as a hurricane in North Carolina, where it caused floods and fires that displaced dozens of people. Two people died when Isaias spun off a tornado that struck a North Carolina mobile home park. Authorities said two others were killed by falling trees toppled by the storm in Maryland and New York City. More than 18 hours after coming ashore, Isaias still had sustained top winds of 65 mph (105 kph) at 5 p.m. EDT Tuesday. The storm’s center was about 20 miles (35 kilometers) west of Albany, New York. As Isaias sped northward at 40 mph (56 kph), the National Hurricane Center warned of flash flood threats in the New York’s Hudson River Valley and potential for minor to moderate river flooding elsewhere in the mid-Atlantic region. Two people died after a tornado demolished several mobile homes in Windsor, North Carolina. Emergency responders finished searching the wreckage Tuesday afternoon. They found no other casualties, and several people initially feared missing had all been accounted for, said Ron Wesson, chairman of the Bertie County Board of Commissioners. He said about 12 people were hospitalized. Sharee and Jeffrey Stilwell took shelter in their living room about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday as the tornado tore through Windsor. Sharee Stillwell said their home shook “like a freight train.” “I felt like the house was going to cave in,” said Jeffrey Stillwell,65, though once the storm passed, the couple found only a few damaged shingles and fallen tree branches in the yard. The mobile home park less than 2 miles (3 kilometers) away wasn’t so fortunate. Aerial video by WRAL-TV showed fields of debris where rescue workers in brightly colored shirts picked through splintered boards and other wreckage.
