Debby is leaving Virginia after causing tornadoes, floods, power outages

Debby might be done with us soon.

Why it matters: The tropical storm turned tropical depression was threatening half of Virginia with potential tornadoes and flash floods nearly all of Thursday.

• And it's posed a nightmare scenario across the Southeast this week, with tornadoes and floods pummeling Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas and killing at least seven people .

The latest: Debby's center crept into Virginia overnight and is projected to leave the state and be well into Pennsylvania by 2pm Friday, per the National Hurricane Center .

Yes, but: The National Weather Service warns not to focus solely on the track since impacts can be felt outside of it.

• For example, on Thursday morning — before Debby's center hit Virginia — Old Town Alexandria had already flooded . Residents were picking up free sandbags to prepare for more heavy rain .
• The NWS on Thursday also issued brief tornado warnings , which means a tornado has been spotted or could be coming soon, across the state — including in parts of Hanover near Kings Dominion.
• The Richmond area faced possible flash floods until Thursday night.

Plus, more than 21,000 Virginians were out of power around 9pm Thursday, according to PowerOutage.us . That number jumped to nearly 36,000 Friday morning.

• The Virginia Department of Transportation reported dozens of road closures or delays , especially in western Virginia, due to floods or downed trees.
• Chesterfield closed its schools , including Bellwood Elementary which is on a year-round schedule, on Friday due to the weather.
• And the James River could rise by more than 10 feet by Saturday, per an NWS briefing on Thursday.

What's next: A flood watch remains in effect through Friday night, especially south of I-64. Then it's mostly sunny the rest of the weekend.

Get more local stories in your inbox with Axios Richmond.