UPDATED, 5:15 p.m.
The Dare County Sheriff’s Office reports other than occasional standing water which is still passable from Salvo north to Oregon Inlet, N.C. 12 on Hatteras Island is clear for traffic. Colington Road is also clear. As always, if approaching standing water use caution.
Top wind gusts from this morning’s thunderstorms were 86 mph at the WxFlow station in Waves on Hatteras Island, 67 mph at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, 66 mph at the Dare County Regional Airport, 61 mph in Croatan Sound, 58 mph at Billy Mitchell Field in Frisco, and 48 mph in the Pamlico Sound off Ocracoke.
A Wind Advisory remains in effect for all of the Outer Banks until 10 p.m., and a High Surf Advisory until 7 p.m. and Coastal Flood Advisory for Hatteras and Ocracoke islands continues until Sunday at 1 a.m.
UPDATED, 12:10 p.m.: Severe thunderstorms have crossed the area this morning, causing some downed limbs and trees that have led to scattered power outages.
And the combination of heavy rain and wind-blown sound water minor flooding is being reported on some roads.
From the Dare County Sheriff’s Office:
N.C. 12 from Ramp 25 to just south of Pea Island has soundside flooding from 4 inches to 1 and a half feet of water . Some areas are passable. Highest water is in the Camp Hatteras area and unpassable there. North bound lane in Salvo at Farrow is closed. Colington Harbour has had several trees fall causing the roadways to be blocked. At this time Colington Rd is passable, however, water is accumulating on the roadways. Martins Point, Wanchese, Manns Harbor and Roanoke Island are all passable. Please use extreme caution when driving.
During the height of the storms, it was a rough ride along N.C. 12 on Pea Island, due to the combination of heavy rain and the wind-blown water from the Pamlico Sound. Video courtesy OBX Towing/Facebook:
All of Hatteras village was reported in the dark by Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative just after the heaviest storms hit.
We are currently experiencing a power outage affecting all of Hatteras Village. Crews are on the way and we will provide an update as we have more information. Thank you for your patience.
— Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (@CHEMC09) March 12, 2022
Power has been restored to all of Hatteras Village. If your power did not come back on please call 866-511-9862.
— Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (@CHEMC09) March 12, 2022
The largest outages on the north beach were reported in Kitty Hawk village (473 customers) and north of the Manteo town limits on Roanoke Island (547 customers).
With the threat of severe weather now offshore, the earlier Tornado Watch across eastern North Carolina has been dropped.
A High Wind Warning, Coastal Flood Advisory and High Surf Advisory continues for the Outer Banks, along with a Wind Advisory for inland areas.
High winds have forced suspension of ferry routes to and from Ocracoke. Includes Hatteras-Ocracoke, Ocracoke-Cedar Island & Ocracoke-Swan Quarter. Ferry staff will assess weather and reopen routes when it’s safe to do so. For updates, call 252-996-6000. Stay safe & stay tuned.
— NCDOT Ferry Division (@NCDOT_Ferry) March 12, 2022
Live view of downtown Manteo:
Live view off Corolla:
Most recent National Weather Service radar images:
The cold front passing through has brought a shift in wind directions to the northwest that has rapidly dropped temperatures by over 20 degrees in less than an hour at some locations.
National Weather Service forecast for Nags Head, as of midday Saturday:
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A strong cold front moving across the region on Saturday will have the potential to bring severe weather, high winds, minor coastal flooding through the afternoon. And don’t be surprised if there are few snowflakes in the air after the front passes.
The Newport/Morehead City office of the National Weather Service has issued a Wind Advisory for mainland areas, and a High Wind Warning for the Outer Banks from Duck to Ocracoke.
Sustained southwest winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 50 mph are forecast north of Oregon Inlet into the afteroon on Saturday. On Hatteras and Ocracoke islands, winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts around 60 mph are possible.
The winds will shift to the northwest in the late afternoon as the front moves through and remain in the 20 to 30 mph range, with gusts to 40 mph, through Saturday night.
A level 3/enhanced severe weather threat is forecast for northeast North Carolina and the Outer Banks, with more numerous thunderstorms capable of producing damaging wind gusts that could produce an isolated tornado between noon and 3 p.m.
Minor flooding is possible of 2 feet above ground level, especially in the normal trouble spots soundside of the Outer Banks, is possible Saturday morning through Saturday evening. Some locations north of Oregon Inlet could get 3 feet of water above ground level.
Some ocean overwash is possible at high tide along the beaches from Oregon Inlet to Ocracoke, with minor erosion as well.
A Storm Warning is in effect for the Atlantic Ocean south of Oregon Inlet and the Pamlico Sound, while a Gale Warning is in effect for the rest of the coastal waters.
After the front passes, temperatures will plummet and precipitation may change over to snow before tapering off but no accumulation is expected due to the warm ground.
There is the possibility of some black ice forming on bridges and roadways, especially inland where temperatures will drop to near 20 degrees.
Then Sunday morning will start out brutally cold, with temps in the mid 20s and winds of 20 to 30 mph that will have wind chills in the mid teens.
National Weather Service forecast for Nags Head, as of Friday evening:
