Gov. Cooper emphasizes flood danger in western North Carolina as Hurricane Helene projects to bring over 12 inches of rain

(WGHP) — Governor Roy Cooper held a press conference alongside other emergency personnel ahead of Hurricane Helene’s arrival on Thursday morning.

Cooper spent much of the press conference emphasizing the danger the storm presents in the foothills and western North Carolina.

Helene will bring flood risks to central North Carolina and bring potentially catastrophic floods to the western portion of the state.

Cooper says that Helene is threatening to bring “over a foot of rain to parts of western North Carolina.” Risks include landslides, flash flooding, damaging debris flows, slope failure and river flooding.

The flooding could potentially expand into areas not in the storm’s path.

Tropical-storm-force winds are a possibility in western North Carolina throughout Thursday and into Friday. There are currently already more than 14,000 people without power in the state.

The strong winds threaten to cause more power outages as it could knock trees down on top of power lines.

Speaking to the flood threat, Cooper requested that anyone who does not need to travel to stay off the road during the storm as flooded roads present a great danger to drivers, particularly in the foothills and mountains.

Cooper urges families to make evacuation plans if they live in an area that threatens to be flooded and to listen to any evacuation orders that may come in their area.

Helene update

According to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. advisory, the storm passed through Florida at 24 mph.

It has maximum sustained winds of 140 mph, making it a category 4 hurricane, according to the NHC.

Helene is a very large hurricane with its hurricane-force winds expanding 60 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds expanding outward up to 345 miles.

The winds will be able to penetrate inland across the Southeast and into the higher terrains of the southern Appalachians and in western North Carolina.

The rainfall projections in the area of western North Carolina “will likely result in catastrophic potentially life-threatening flash and urban flooding.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX8 WGHP.