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Tropical Storm Debby live updates: More flooding expected as storm nears 2nd landfall

The rain is focused on the Carolinas through Thursday and then will move north.

Last Updated: August 6, 2024, 1:54 PM EDT

Tropical Storm Debby is slamming the Carolinas with heavy rain after making landfall in Florida as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday.

At least six people have been killed in Florida and Georgia from the slow-moving storm.

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Here's how the news is developing.
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Latest forecast

Tropical Storm Debby -- currently sitting off shore of Charleston, South Carolina -- is forecast to make a second landfall Wednesday night between Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Debby forecast track.
ABC News

Slow-moving Debby has already dumped more than 17 inches of rain in Summerville, South Carolina, and at least 6 inches in Cary, North Carolina.

Another 6 to 10 inches of rain is forecast for South Carolina and North Carolina on Wednesday and Thursday.

Debby's flood threat through Friday.
ABC News

By Thursday afternoon, Debby will begin to move north.

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1:53 PM EDT

More than 90,000 customers without power in Florida

More than 90,000 customers remain without power in Florida, more than 24 hours after Debby tore through the state.

"Restoration is taking longer in areas with flooding and heavy vegetation, as crews must wait for the water to recede and clear through debris before they can restore power," Florida Power & Light said Tuesday morning. "Rest assured, we’ll continue working until everyone who can safely receive power is restored. Avoid these flooded areas and stay away from downed power lines."

Aug 06, 2024, 10:39 AM EDT

Charleston’s curfew extended as city faces flash flood warning

A curfew in Charleston, South Carolina, has been extended to 7 a.m. Wednesday as the flood-prone city braces for potentially life-threatening flooding.

"Residents are advised to stay off the roads unless there is an urgent emergency," the Charleston Fire Department said.

Charleston is under a flash flood warning. Up to 1 foot of rain has already fallen in the city, with more to come.

Aug 05, 2024, 11:44 PM EDT

Debby to bring historic 10-20 inches of rainfall: Forecast

Despite weakening since moving over land, Debby is still maintaining its tropical storm status, producing maximum sustained wind speeds of 45 mph.

A boat partially sunk as Hurricane Debby affects the gulf coast in Suwannee, Fla., Aug. 5, 2024.
Ricardo Arduengo/Reuters

As of 11 p.m. ET, over 150,000 customers in Florida and Georgia are still without power, according to PowerOutage.us.

With Debby's center about 35 miles west of Brunswick, Georgia, much of the heavy rain and showers have since moved out of Florida (except for the extreme northeastern corner of the state closer to the Georgia border). However, with the storm slowing down even more, Debby will stay stuck over the Southeast for the better part of this week, meandering over Georgia and the Carolinas.

Even though the storm is expected to weaken a bit more overnight, Debby is still expected to bring historic rainfall and life-threatening flooding to portions of southeastern Georgia and the coastal areas of the Carolinas over the next few days. Rainfall totals from this event are expected to reach between 10 and 20 inches.

Parts of Grange Fall Loop flooded making in Wimauma after Hurricane Debby continues to move north of central Florida, Aug. 5, 2024.
Octavio Jones/Reuters

Already, portions of southeastern Georgia and South Carolina have seen between 3 to 6 inches of rainfall, but with rainfall rates of 1.5 to 3 inches per hour possible, flood alerts remain in effect.

A Flash Flood Warning was issued for Charleston, South Carolina, where rainfall rates between 1.5 and 2.5 inches are expected. Ongoing or new flooding is expected, with an additional 2 to 4 inches of rain possible over the next few hours.

As onshore flow continues, storm surge remains an issue in Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina. Storm surge alerts remain in effect up the Georgia and Carolina coastlines.

Rainfall aside, Debby could also generate some spin-up tornadoes as it swirls over the Georgia-South Carolina border tonight. As a result, a Tornado Watch also remains in effect for parts of southeastern Georgia and South Carolina until 1 a.m. ET.

Over the next 48 hours, Debby is expected to meander back over the Atlantic but will continue to hug the coastline before heading back inland over the Carolinas again. Slight strengthening can't entirely be ruled out as it moves back over water, but ultimately, Debby is expected to weaken once it moves back inland. Strength aside, it will still bring significant rainfall to portions of the Southeast, which will likely lead to catastrophic flooding in some areas.

Debby is expected to eventually drift toward the north/northeast by the end of the week into the weekend. As it heads north, it will likely weaken to a tropical depression or remnant low. Regardless, heavy rainfall is still expected up the I-95 corridor heading into this weekend.

-ABC News meteorologist Shawnie Caslin Martucci

Aug 05, 2024, 9:26 PM EDT

Power returns to some Florida customers as Debby moves northeast

As of Monday evening, 146,034 customers are without power in Florida, according to the latest update from a U.S. power outage map.

This marks an improvement from Monday morning, which saw nearly 300,000 customers without power at 9:50 a.m. ET, the height of outages across the state.

The threat of dangerous flooding continues at least through the middle of the week.
ABC News

During a press conference in Tallahassee Monday morning, Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state's emergency department had 17,000 linemen working to restore power in the wake of the storm.

"We have a lot of restoration personnel ready to go," DeSantis said.

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