Lexington, Thomasville schools to dismiss early Thursday, close Friday

Sept. 13--Two of the county's three school systems will dismiss students early Thursday and have canceled classes on Friday ahead of the expected local impacts of Hurricane Florence.

Officials with the Lexington and Thomasville city school districts announced the decisions Wednesday afternoon.

Davidson County Schools officials posted on the district's website late Wednesday afternoon that "current information regarding Hurricane Florence does not suggest a need to alter our instructional day on Thursday." System officials will monitor conditions and announce any decisions as they are made.

All three systems have canceled after-school activities Thursday and Friday, with Thomasville announcing activities scheduled for Saturday are canceled, as well.

Even as Hurricane Florence's path shifted dramatically by Wednesday morning, Davidson County residents were still bracing for a significant impact. Davidson County and Thomasville officials declared states of emergency.

Hurricane Florence, which meteorologists say shifted south overnight Tuesday, was listed as a Category 3 as of 5 p.m. Wednesday, classifying it as a major hurricane which has the potential to cause significant damage or loss of life, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The storm is now predicted to make a direct hit on the Wilmington and North Myrtle Beach areas, just along the North and South Carolina state line. Florence will likely then travel across South Carolina, though the storm, which is still over 300 miles off the North Carolina coast, could shift again.

With the new predicted path, Davidson County could see differing rainfall amounts. However, as of Wednesday afternoon, the National Hurricane Center was still predicting between six and 10 inches of rain in total over the next week. Significant rainfall increases the risk of flooding, particularly in low-lying areas.

Florence is reported to be more than 400 miles wide, meaning even though the eye may miss our area, the effects will still be significant.

Residents in Thomasville, Denton and parts of northern Davidson County should be especially vigilant for flooding as these areas are known to see high water during past storms.

Officials said Wednesday morning the storm's sustained wind speeds hovered around 120 mph. Tropical-storm-force winds, which are predicted to blow up to about 50 mph in Davidson County, are expected to reach the area by Friday morning. These winds extend outwards of 195 miles from the center of the storm.

The hurricane, which is now expected to make early Saturday, will begin to weaken and slow as it travels across land. The eye of the storm is now predicted to miss Davidson County, but will near central South Carolina by Sunday.

High winds and tornadoes remain a concern. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, the strongest winds of a hurricane are focused on the right side of the storm. With Hurricane Florence's projected path, that leaves Davidson County in the at-risk area. Tornadoes are also most common in this area of the storm, according to Dr. Marshall Shepherd, director of the University of Georgia's Atmospheric Sciences Program.

Stocking up

Residents reported on The Dispatch's Facebook page that several stores in the area had run out of essential items like milk, bread and non-perishable foods early this week.

The Walmart on Lowes Boulevard in Lexington was out of milk and non-perishables like ramen noodles and microwaveable macaroni and cheese cups by Tuesday afternoon, while the Walmart on U.S. Highway 64 was shown out of bread by Monday.

The Food Lion on Winston Road received a shipment of water Tuesday and Conrad & Hinkle reported having milk and water still available Tuesday as well. The Food Lion in Tyro was also said to have run out of water on Tuesday, though the store was reportedly expecting a shipment on Wednesday.

Aldi was reported to have plenty of milk and bread remaining, but no water as of Wednesday afternoon.

The CVS on Center Street was reported to have received a water delivery Wednesday afternoon.

Le Blue Water Corporation posted on its Facebook page Tuesday informing area residents that water could be bought directly from their headquarters in Advance if local stores are out of stock. West Davidson residents who are closest to their corporation's headquarters may wish to take advantage of this. Call (336) 998-2894 or go to 3134 Cornatzer Road in Advance to pick up.

Essential supplies in many stores were still running low by late Wednesday afternoon.

Gas supplies were also expected to run low, according to AAA of the Carolinas. Stations in the county had not yet reported fuel shortages by Wednesday morning and gas stations were not seen with long lines at that time. As the storm nears and more residents head to the pump, this may change.

Home preparation

Emergency management officials recommend residents be prepared for up to 72 hours in their homes without power and to pack essentials such as food, water and medications in an emergency kit. Pet owners should purchase extra food and supplies, update collar tags with important information and all outdoor animals should be brought inside. Outdoor furniture and other belongings should be secured or brought inside.

With the declaration of a state of emergency by the governor, North Carolina's price gouging law is in effect. This law prohibits businesses from taking advantage of the storm to raise prices on essential goods, according to a press release from the office of Attorney General Josh Stein. The law will remain in effect until the state of emergency is lifted.

Impact on utilities

Service providers, including Lexington Utilities, Duke Energy, Energy United and Davidson Water, are preparing for the storm.

Lexington City Manager Alan Carson said city and contract crews will be ready to respond to power outages, but that they won't be able to until the expected tropical-force winds break or weaken.

The city's water and sewer plants each have backup generators, which have been tested and are functioning properly, Carson said. The natural gas pipelines are not a large concern during this storm, Carson said.

Duke said it's bringing in out-of-state crews, checking equipment and securing assistance from other energy companies to assist in restoring power should outages occur. Energy United is making similar preparations.

Davidson Water also issued a statement Wednesday, stating that the company has multiple generators to operate the water treatment plant and critical pump stations in the event of a power outage. The company also asked residents to conserve water before, during and after the storm to limit the strain on the system.

Lexington Utilities customers can report outages on the city's website or by calling (336) 248-2337. The company will strive to provide power outage updates on social media approximately every two hours throughout the storm.

Duke Energy customers can report outages by visiting duke-energy.com, texting "OUT" to 57801 or calling the automated outage reporting system at (800) 769-3766. To view power restoration updates, follow Duke Energy on Twitter (@Duke Energy) or Facebook (Duke Energy).

To report outages in the EnergyUnited service area, call 1 (800) 386-4833.

Shelter information

Davidson County Emergency Management Coordinator Maj. Alton Hanes said that a Coastal Region Evacuation Shelter is a possibility for Davidson County. He explained the state would match Davidson County with a coastal county in need, and those residents would come to Davidson County for shelter. The shelter would be funded by the state. Hanes said officials have identified a shelter in Thomasville if the state requires a Coastal Region Evacuation Shelter.

Hanes said county officials have also identified another shelter for Davidson County residents, if needed.

In addition to possible county shelters, The Light of the World Church, located at 1306 Thomason St., has set up a shelter open to any locals who need a place to stay during the storm. For additional information, call Atalia Cardenas at (336) 596-9205.

More information will be available as emergency departments continue to meet throughout the week. Residents can receive real-times updates and information by signing up for the county's CodeRED alert system at https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/BFFFE65DACB9.

Closings

Lexington City Schools and Thomasville City Schools officials announced plans to dismiss classes early Thursday and cancel classes Friday. For more information, go to the systems' websites at www.lexcs.org and www.tcs.k12.nc.us .

For updates from Davidson County Schools, visit the district's website at www.davidson.k12.nc.us .

Davidson County Community College had not announced any changes to its schedule by 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Many universities, including N.C. State, UNC Chapel Hill, Duke, UNC Greensboro, High Point University, N.C. Central University and Elon University have also cancelled classes for the end of the week.

The Davidson County Courthouse will be closed on Friday. No other government buildings had announced closings as of Wednesday afternoon.

The Lexington Police Department's Community Watch meetings on Thursday in the North Central and Northside/Hillside neighborhoods have been canceled. The city's Surviving an Active Shooter event on Saturday was also cancelled.

More information about the storm's path and strength will be released as it nears the coast. For the latest updates on Hurricane Florence visit hurricanes.gov.

The Dispatch website will be dropping its paywall through Monday so residents can read all storm updates without restriction. For up-to-date hurricane coverage, check our website or follow our coverage on Twitter using #FlorenceDCNC.

Elizabeth Pattman can be reached at (336) 249-3981, ext. 213, or at [email protected]. Follow Elizabeth on Twitter: @LexDispatchEP

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