Waffle Houses Close in Florida, in Bad 'Index' Omen Waffle House closed all its restaurants along a stretch of Florida’s central Atlantic coast Thursday as Hurricane Matthew approached, urging customers "Stay safe Waffle Nation!" Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Craig Fugate, who once headed Florida's emergency management department, has said that how quickly Waffle House restaurants reopen after a weather event is an indication of how the community is faring, FEMA said in a 2011 blog post. It's been called the "Waffle House Index." Fugate told NPR’s "Wait Wait ... Don’t Tell Me!" in May that it came out of the 2004 hurricane season. "They are open most of the time. And that was the index. If a Waffle House is closed because there's a disaster, it's bad. We call it red," he said on the program. Waffle Houses along Interstate 95 between Titusville and Fort Pierce were closed, the company announced. Share this -







Hurricane Matthew's U.S. Death Toll Rises to 19 The U.S. toll from Hurricane Matthew rose as more deaths were reported Sunday, raising the number to 19. Authorities reported: * Eight in North Carolina: two in Sampson County, two in Bladen County, two in Johnston County and one in Pitt County, as well as an eighth for which details weren't available Sunday. * Three in Georgia: two in Bulloch County and one in Chatham County. * Five in Florida: one in Putnam County, one in Volusia County and threein St. Lucie County. * Three in South Carolina: two in Florence County and one in Richland County. Share this -







U.S. Death Toll From Hurricane Matthew Hits 11 The death toll related to Hurricane Matthew hit 11 in the southeastern U.S. on Saturday as the Category 1 storm barreled up the coast. North Carolina saw three deaths, Gov. Pat McCrory said. In Georgia, three people were killed. A 28-year-old man died when a tree fell and crushed his vehicle and another man died when two trees fell on his home, according to Bulloch County deputy coroner Richard Plyant. Another man also died when a tree fell on his house in Chatham, according to police. Five deaths were reported in Florida, where Matthew left about 1 million people without power. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said Saturday that no deaths had been reported in her state, but more than 437,303 utility customers lost power and about 6,600 residents remained in shelters after the storm dropped 14 inches of rain on some parts along the coast. Share this -







Residents in N.C. County Warned to Shelter in Place Residents of Cumberland County, North Carolina, were being told to shelter in place Saturday afternoon as Hurricane Matthew pummeled the state with heavy winds and rain. County officials said driving conditions were "treacherous" as roadways filled with water after 8-1/2 inches of rain fell Saturday morning. A statement from Cumberland County officials said eight people had already been rescued from floodwaters. North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said Saturday that the hurricane killed three people in the state. Share this -







Obama Promises Aid to Storm-Battered States President Barack Obama spoke with the governors of four southeast states where Hurricane Matthew was wreaking destruction Saturday, the White House said. Obama committed federal aid to Govs. Nathan Deal of Georgia, Nikki Haley of South Carolina, Pat McCrory of North Carolina and Rick Scott of Florida. He had already declared emergencies in those states. Matthew made landfall in South Carolina as a Category 1 storm at about 11 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center. More than 437,303 customers across the state were without power, while 250,000 customers were also in the dark in coastal Georgia. Many in North Carolina, especially in Cumberland County, were being urged to shelter in place as rain from the storm flooded roads and houses. The Florida coast was not as hard-hit as anticipated, but four people in the state were killed and about 1 million were without power, Scott said. Get an Aerial View of Hurricane Matthew's Destruction Oct. 8, 2016 00:42 Share this -







More than 200,000 Without Power in Georgia Georgia Power was reporting "widespread outages throughout South East Georgia due to Hurricane Matthew" as of 6 a.m. ET Saturday. The utility listed these counties as being affected by the outage. County Customers Affected Chatham Co. 137,000

Camden Co. 11,700

Glynn Co. 42,000

McIntosh Co. 4,100

Liberty Co. 9,700

Bryan Co. 5,600

Effingham Co. 27,800

Wayne Co. 5,000 "Storm surge related to Hurricane Matthew set a record, with measurements at Tybee Island showing 12.5 feet. The previous record was set in 1979 when Hurricane David pushed sea levels to 12.2 feet," Georgia's Chatham Emergency Management Agency said in a statement. Share this -







Hurricane Could Weaken to Category 1 by Saturday Night The eyewall of Hurricane Matthew scraped Georgia and South Carolina's shores early Saturday, bringing 70-to-90 mph wind gusts and major storm surges — but the forecast increasingly suggested the eye may not hit land. “The actual center of circulation may not technically make landfall. Regardless of whether it makes landfall, the weather is going to the be the same," said Weather Channel meteorologist Michael Palmer. It’s currently a Category 2 hurricane and is expected to weaken further, possibly to a Category 1 by Saturday night, when it will probably hit North Carolina, Palmer added. The storm is expected to continue moving north-northeast, parallel to the coast, through Saturday. Share this -







Tornado Warning Issued for Counties in North Carolina The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus and Pender Counties in North Carolina early on Saturday, The Weather Channel reported. The warnings would last until 7:30 a.m. ET. Share this -







Hurricane Matthew Nears Landfall in South Carolina Hurricane Matthew approached landfall in South Carolina early Saturday morning, bringing flash flooding, high winds and storm surges all along the South Carolina and Georgia coasts. Forecasters predicted that Matthew could make landfall between Fripp Island and Isle of Palms in southern South Carolina. It was expected to near the coast in the southern portion of North Carolina by Saturday evening, according to the National Hurricane Center. As of 5 a.m. ET, it was about 62 miles south-southwest of historic Charleston, South Carolina, and moving toward the north-northeast near 12 mph. The NHC reported maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, with gusts between 90 and 100 mph expected in Tybee Island off the northeast coast of Charleston County. The eye of the hurricane brought dangerous conditions along the coast, with flash flooding, wind damage and storm surge posing serious threats to the area. The NHC continued to urge residents to stay indoors. Share this -







Hilton Head and Savannah Blasted with High Winds Share this -







Hurricane Matthew Threatens Historic Savannah, St. Augustine and Charleston Hurricane Matthew threatened some of the South's most historic and picturesque cities with flooding and wind damage as it pushed up the coastline early Saturday. St. Augustine in Florida, Savannah in Georgia and Charleston in South Carolina were among the cities in the cross hairs. The Weather Channel reported: The worst damage from the storm would come as high tide rolls in during the early hours of Saturday

Savannah, Georgia, was seeing the highest water level in recorded history

South Carolina has not had a hurricane warning since 2004

Four South Carolina counties were under tornado watch as of 4 a.m. ET The National Hurricane Center last tracked the storm near Savannah, heading north toward the coast at 12 mph while packing maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. Share this -





