Charlotte, North Carolina Local News
Flash flood emergency: Mandatory evacuations ordered for Mountain Island Lake
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Residents on Riverside Drive, Lake Drive and Riverhaven Drive are under mandatory evacuation orders due to heavy rain and flooding from Helene.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The area of necessary evacuations along the Catawba River in Mecklenburg County is expanding because of rising flood waters.
An initial evacuation near Mountain Island Lake is now being expanded along the river’s path starting at the dam near the McGuire Nuclear Station and continuing south to the beginning of Lake Wylie. This includes the initial evacuation area near Mountain Island Lake and expands to include river communities near the Whitewater Center and Berryhill Nature Preserve.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Emergency Management Agency has released a new map highlighting where residents should be prepared to evacuate. They say the reason for the additional evacuations is because Duke Energy, who maintains the water flow coming out of Lake Norman, needs to send additional water downstream.
Starting on Wednesday, mandatory evacuation orders have been in place for residents on Mountain Island Lake northwest of Charlotte due to a flash flood emergency caused by potentially historic flooding from Helene.
Ahead of the storm, the Charlotte Fire Department announced mandatory evacuations for the areas of Riverside Drive, Lake Drive, Riverhaven Drive and parts of Beaglue Club Road and Hart Road near Mountain Island Lake. Floodwaters are rising as heavy rain moves into the Charlotte region.
For comparison, this map shows the initial evacuation order.
A shelter is open at 4820 Tuckaseegee Road in Charlotte. Meteorologist Chris Mulcahy said an isolated flash flood emergency like this is very rare.
“It’s getting worse and worse and they’re expecting a record crest of 110 feet,” Mulcahy said.
For perspective, Mountain Island Lake is normally 96 feet in elevation with a maximum of 100 feet. The Catawba River has already reached 103.15 feet at the Mountain Island Dam, which is the sixth-highest level.
WCNC Charlotte’s Richard DeVayne saw a water rescue along Riverside Drive, just off Mount Holly-Huntersville Road, early Friday. That area is prone to flooding during heavy rain. This happened after several residents moved their vehicles to higher ground before the storm arrived.
A National Guard truck coming down the road got stuck in a culvert around 4:30 a.m. Charlotte Fire’s water rescue team had to free the people who were trapped inside the truck.
Bobby Graham, a division chief with the Charlotte Fire Department, said the agency had concerns for residents in western Mecklenburg County ahead of the storm. Graham said the concern was even greater for people near Mountain Island Lake and the Catawba River.
“Residents particularly around Mountain Island Lake,” he said, “and along Lake Norman, (Lake) Wylie and the Catawba River should prepare now, because we are going to have to issue volunteer evacuation orders.”
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