5 Hurricane Floyd
Flooding from Hurricane Floyd in 1999 drove tens of thousands of North Carolinians from their homes. Photo by Dave Gatley/FEMA News Photo.
In September 1999, Hurricane Floyd brought unprecedented floods to eastern North Carolina. More than 19 inches of rain fall, and the Tar River crested 24 feet above flood stage, and much of Duplin and Greene counties were under water. Thirty-five people died. Seven thousand homes were destroyed, 17,000 more were made uninhabitable, and 56,000 were damaged. In this chapter, we’ll examine the causes, impacts, and legacies — both scientific and personal — of this natural disaster.
- 5.1Ten years later: Remembering Hurricane Floyd's wave of destruction
- 5.2Hurricane Floyd's lasting legacy
- 5.3How does a hurricane form?
- 5.4Understanding floods
- 5.5Mapping rainfall and flooding
- 5.6The evacuation
- 5.7Rising waters
- 5.8Damage from Hurricane Floyd
- 5.9Floyd and agriculture
- 5.10Cleaning up after the flood
- 5.11The problems of flood relief
- 5.12Preventing future floods
- 5.13Reclaiming sacred ground: How Princeville is recovering from the flood of 1999
