HURRICANE FLOYD UPDATE

September 15, 1999
		Hurricane Floyd continues to move up the U.S. East Coast after making landfall early Thursday in Cape Fear, North Carolina. -- Posted 12:00 pm ET

Sept. 15, 1999: Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center reports on Floyd's path. Sept. 14, 1999: Hurricane Floyd begins its trek north along the U.S. east coast. Online NewsHour Special Report: Killer Tornadoes in the Midwest Dec. 28, 1998: A look at the year's devastating weather. Nov. 30, 1998: Honduras begins rebuilding after Hurricane Mitch Nov. 2, 1998: Hurricane Mitch ravages Central America Sept.28, 1998: Hurricane Georges downgraded to a tropical storm Sept. 25, 1998: Hurricane Georges threatens lives from Florida to Louisiana Sept. 24, 1998: Tracking hurricane Georges Aug. 12, 1998: Flooding on the Yangtze takes over 2000 lives in China Aug. 7, 1998: Texas tops 100 degrees for twenty-ninth day. Browse the NewsHour's complete coverage of weather.     Storm Prediction Center National Weather Service FEMA	After weeks of predictions and evacuations, Hurricane Floyd stormed ashore around 3 am Thursday, pounding Cape Fear, N.C. with 110 mph winds and more than a foot of rain. According to the Associated Press, more than 480,000 utility customers in North Carolina and Virginia have already lost power, and thousands have left coastal areas in those states for relief shelters.
	Floyd's whereabouts
	In all, Floyd has caused the largest peacetime evacuation in U.S. history, with 2.6 million people ordered away from the shores in the hurricane's path. As of 12 pm Thursday, the eye of the storm had reached Virginia Beach, Va. and was moving north-northeast at a 25 mph. Forecasters predict the storm will continue to move north-northeast over southeastern Virginia, then head out to sea and over coastal areas of Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. The storm should reach Long Island, N.Y. by early Friday, then head toward Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Though the storm has weakened since landfall with sustained winds of 80 mph at the eye of the storm. So far, Hurricane Floyd has been blamed for seven deaths - four in North Carolina and one each in Virginia, South Carolina and the Bahamas. Air and land travel throughout the Carolinas and Virginia has been slowed by the storm's winds and heavy rain. The federal government declared states of emergency in four states. Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia will be able to access federal assistance as they deal with the storm and the cleanup. Governors in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey also declared states of emergency in anticipation of Floyd. According to the AP, flooding and power failures attributed to Floyd shut down the water supply system in Portsmouth, Va. The system has 110,000 subscribers. By 11 am the rain had stopped in Cape Fear, but the area's worries continue. Waters continue to rise as overloaded rivers flood their banks. North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt said he expected the state to experience serious flood damage in the coming days. By this morning, coastal areas of the Carolinas and Virginia had received up to 16 inches of rain due to the storm. Officials inland also warned of flooding. According to wire reports, Floyd has spawned six tornadoes that have damaged houses and churches, but so far caused no injuries. Farther south where Floyd had at one point been projected to hit, 80 mph gusts pummeled Charleston, S.C., leaving more than 200,000 in the area without power. In preparation for the storm, local governments along the storm's projected path closed schools and urged non-essential personnel to stay home Thursday and wait for Floyd's fury to pass.