Bladen County is expected to get soaked Saturday by rain from Hurricane Matthew. The county remained under a tropical storm warning as of 12:30 a.m. Saturday and a flash flood watch through Sunday. Some areas could receive more than 10 inches of rain through the weekend, says the National Weather Service. Two Bladen County towns have imposed curfews Saturday night.
Bladen County Emergency Management will open four shelters at 8 a.m. Saturday for people needing a safe place to wait out the storm. Those shelters are located at Bladen Lakes Primary School, East Bladen High School, East Arcadia School and West Bladen High School. West Bladen is the lone pet-friendly location.
N.C. Department of Transportation will have crews positioned in Bladenboro, Kelly and Rosindale, along with a crew at the maintenance yard on U.S. 701 between Elizabethtown and White Lake, says Ken Clark, supervisor of the Bladen County office. Clark says crews Saturday will prioritize transportation related issues only and will not attempt any cleanup.
Downed trees from strong and gusting winds could lead to power outages and impassable roads, authorities say. As of 1 a.m. Saturday, Neither Duke Energy nor Four County Electric Membership Corp. were reporting any outages in Bladen County. Both utilities had crews on standby.
Rusty Marsh, who is resident engineer for N.C. Division of Highways, is encouraging leaders of Bladen County fire departments to contact farmers and loggers for assistance clearing debris from highways and secondary roads as long as power lines are not involved. Marsh is a member of the Clarkton Fire Department.
Smithfield Foods has enacted its hurricane preparedness procedures, says spokeswoman Kathleen Kirkham from the company’s Virginia-based headquarters. “Employees in the company’s eastern North Carolina plants and on its approximately 250 company-owned farms and 1,500 contract farms are taking steps to protect people, animals and buildings against wind and rain damage,” Kirkham said. Smithfield operates a slaughtering house in Tar Heel.
Bladenboro has imposed a curfew from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday while Elizabethtown’s curfew is from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday within each town’s limits.
West Bladenboro Baptist Church has canceled morning and evening services Sunday because of expected damage and the town’s curfew.
Bladen County Park will be closed over the weekend and reopen Monday, weather permitting. The Bladen County Public Library system will be closed Saturday. All solid waste convenience center will be closed Saturday.
At midnight Saturday, the center of Matthew was located about 260 miles southwest of Wilmington with winds up to 105 mph. The storm was moving north at 12 mph.
The National Weather Service is forecasting that Matthew will move up the South Carolina coast Saturday, then curve east as it approaches the North Carolina-South Carolina state line Saturday night. The impact from the storm will increase across northeast South Carolina and southeast North Carolina through Saturday.
Periods of torrential rain are expected in Bladen and surrounding areas through Saturday night, according to the National Weather Service. Some areas of Bladen County may receive 12 to 13 inches of rain through the weekend, which may result in flash flooding. Winds are expected to be between 30-40 mph with gusts up to 55 mph.
The heavy rain is expected to cause flooding along the Cape Fear River. The National Weather Service forecasts moderate flooding for the Cape Fear River at William O. Huske Lock and Dam located near the Bladen and Cumberland County line. The river is expected to reach flood stage by midday Sunday and moderate flood stage Monday.
In Elizabethtown, at Tory Hole Park, the river is expected to reach flood stage early Sunday while at Lock No. 1 near East Arcadia, the river is expected to reach flood stage by Sunday night. Considerable flooding is expected along the entire length of the river for several days, according to the National Weather Service.
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