75 daily $1.

25 SUNDAY

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016 y o u r n e w s s o u r c e S i n c e 1 8 8 2 kinston, NC

Matthew in photos HORRIBLE LIARS

Free Press photographers document Donald Trump fires back against
the effects of Hurricane Matthew. A8 a growing list of allegations. A9

MATTHEW FLOODING UNPRECEDENTED

Neuse expected to crest today

n Lenoir residents n South side residents n Jones n Threat remains n Flood waters in
hopeful despite cut off by power outages, County for Goldsboro Greene Co. receding
devastation. road closures. cleans up. coal ash site. after Matthew.

Matthew
flooding
claims
two lives
By Adam Wagner
GateHouse Media
People have died in two separate
Lenoir County incidents related to
the Hurricane Matthew flooding,
with thousands of gallons of diesel
fuel spilling in another incident.
The fuel spill and one of the
deaths were both caused when mo-
torists drove around barricades,
said Roger Dail, Lenoir Countys
director of emergency services.
Do not go around these barri-
cades, he said. Theyre there for
a reason, dont go around. These
roads are in bad shape.
A person drowned Thursday
morning after driving around bar-
A National Guard transport passes through deepening water on U.S. 70 East in Kinston on Thursday. Photo by Zach Frailey / The Free Press ricades on Fields Station Road,
Dail said. He did not identify the

River surpasses levels of Hurricane Floyd in 1999

By Adam Wagner
GateHouse Media
The Neuse River surpassed its
record crest late Thursday and
was expected to reach a crest of
29 feet sometime Friday after-
noon, according to the National
Weather Service.
In 1999, the river crested at
27.71 feet in the days following
Hurricane Floyd. As of 4:16 p.m.
Thursday, the river stood at 27.63
feet. Flood stage is defined as 14
feet, while major flood stage is set
at 21 feet.
At 27 feet, the river is projected
to cause disastrous flooding com-
parable to that seen in 1999 in the
days following Hurricane Floyd,
and, according to the NWS, every
major road on Kinstons south
side is expected to flood.
A 29 -foot crest is
unprecedented.
Chris Collins, a meteorologist
at the National Weather Services
Newport/Morehead City office,
said the roughly 9 inches of rain
Hurricane Matthew dropped on
the region added to already satu-
rated ground.
The problem is it was already
extremely wet from systems the
prior week and we, of course, had
Hermine at the beginning of the
month, Collins said. It was al-
ready extremely wet before this
occurred.
In addition, Collins said, rain-
water flowed from upstream near
Raleigh into the Neuse River.
Flood warnings remained in
place late Thursday for the Con-
tentnea Creek near Hookerton
and the Neuse River at Kinston.
Other creeks throughout Lenoir
were also expected to flood.
Do not drive vehicles through
flooded areas, the warning said.
Most flood deaths occur in auto-
mobiles when people try to drive
through flooded areas.
In Lenoir County, two people
had died as a result of Hurricane
Matthews flooding, including one
motorist who tried to drive over
a flooded N.C. 55 near La Grange
Thursday morning.
During an afternoon briefing
on the Queen Street Bridge, N.C.
Gov. Pat McCrory recounted vis-
iting Kinston on Oct. 6 as Mat-
thew approached the state.
No one would have ever imag-
ined this, McCrory said from the
Queen Street bridge, even as the
river continued to rise behind and
to either side of him.
Thursday afternoon, James
Sutton stood on the stoop of his
Springhill Street home as the
river inundated the street. When
McCrory began to speak on the
nearby Queen Street Bridge, the
water was near the foot of the
tripped.
stoop.
By the time his motorcade and
the parade of press had left the
See CREST A2
deceased motorist.
The driver of a home delivery fuel
truck drove around a set of barri-
cades on N.C. 55, Dail said. Between
Strabane and Seven Springs, the
truck ran into a flooded stretch of
road and tipped.
After it tipped, Dail said, the truck
spilled an estimated 4,500 gallons of
diesel fuel into a nearby creek.
On Tuesday, a man riding a horse
was initially injured after the ani-
mal tripped and fell in a flooded
field. The man died from his inju-
ries, Dail said.
The man, who Dail did not iden-
tify, was attempting to round up
loose livestock around 4 p.m. Tues-
day when the horse he was riding
It was unclear whether his death
was caused by drowning or from in-
juries incurred from being crushed
beneath the animal, Dail said.

MCCRORY IN KINSTON
Neighbors pray
Recovery could take a year to be spared
from a flood
By Adam Wagner
GateHouse Media

Kinstons recovery from the flood-

ing caused by Hurricane Matthew will
take months or even a year, Gov. Pat
McCrory said during a Thursday af-
ternoon visit to the beleaguered city.
The recovery from this will not
happen tomorrow, McCrory said. It
will be weeks, months and for some
people even a year. Thats how big this
hurricane has been.
As the Neuse River continued its
rise, McCrory spent a few minutes at
the Tiffany West Park. Kinston Mayor
BJ Murphy showed McCrory how the
water had risen and the governor gave
words of support to politicians and
residents who were gathered nearby.
Then the governor continued
on to the still-under-construction
Queen Street Bridge. With a flooded
streetscape behind him, McCrory said
the worst is yet to come and warned
that floodwater could be contaminated
with petroleum or farm chemicals.
By Dustin George
Staff Writer
Even as the water en-
croached on the ground
where they were standing,
Kinston residents came to-
gether Thursday morning
to pray about expected flood
waters predicted to overtake
the city.
Organized by the Kin-
ston Teens, more than 100
residents gathered atTif-
fany West Park on the wood
dockthat normally overlooks
the Neuse River.
Gov. Pat McCrory speaks with Kinston Public Services workers on the Queen St. bridge As the vigil began, water
Thursday before providing a flood update and statement. Photo by Zach Frailey / The from the Neuse had reached
Free Press the ground around the dock
Stay away from the water, McCro- safe to touch. and was slowly advancing.
ry said, not only to save your life, but As of early Thursday, the governor By tonight, the river is ex-
dont even put your hand or feet in it pected to crest at 28.9 feet,
because the water is most likely not See MCCRORY A2 and bring flood waters to the
city that is estimated to be
worse than what Hurricane
Floyd wrought nearly 20
years ago.
Those gathered at the vigil
prayed for safety of their
homes, their neighbors and
for God to keep damage
caused by the flooding to a
minimum.
We really believe in the
power of prayer, Arletha
Skinner said at the vigil. I
hope for people to be safe,
and really for the water to
go the other way.
Louise Harrison, another
resident attending the vigil,
said she didnt expect to see
any flood waters at her home,
but came instead to pray for
See PRAY A2

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