"About 35 people were unaccounted for in western North Carolina on Wednesday night, local authorities said, after the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred doused the area with heavy rains that led to severe flooding.
The authorities in Haywood County, just west of Asheville, said that crews were searching by land, water and drone for the missing people. Gov. Roy Cooper (D) declared a state of emergency Wednesday to activate the state’s emergency operations plan and help first responders quickly reach affected communities.
Fred, which was downgraded to a tropical depression and later a post-tropical cyclone, caused “significant damage" to roads and bridges in the county, officials said in an update posted on Facebook, adding that about 10 to 15 bridges were damaged or destroyed. The governor said that the storm had caused dozens of road closures, including six main roads, as of Wednesday."
Bryan Pietsch reports for the Washington Post August 19, 2021.
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