Eastern storm leaves 7 dead

A persistent storm that spread from the Carolinas to New York over several days ravaged parts of the East Coast, killing seven people and leaving portions of a small town of about 2,000 residents under water.

By Saturday afternoon much of the rain had stopped, but the effects were still visible, especially in the eastern North Carolina town of Windsor. Rivers and creeks have begun to recede but many roads remain closed.

“It was probably one of the largest areas of precipitation we’ve had in quite a while,” said Bob Oravec, a lead forecaster with the National Weather Service in Maryland.

Eastern North Carolina received the most rain, with up to 2 feet of rainfall since Sunday in many areas. Throughout the week the storm, which included remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole, broke several daily rainfall records in cities including Norfolk, Va., Lancaster, Pa., and Cooperstown, N.Y.

Residents in Windsor watched water as high as 6 feet flood homes and almost reach street signs, according to local television station WNCT.

For some, the scene was eerily familiar. In 1999, Hurricane Floyd flooded the area and damaged the Heritage House, a local restaurant, according to the station. It was damaged by this storm as well.

More than 250 people were rescued from flooded homes and cars in eastern North Carolina. Several rivers were expected to crest Saturday night.

Seven storm-related deaths were reported in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and New York. Off U.S. 64 in North Carolina, a car carrying a family of five hydroplaned Thursday, killing all but one person.

Julia Jarema, a public information officer for the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management, said about one-fourth of Windsor was under water Saturday night. Relief, however, was in sight.

“The water is receding,” Jarema said. “It is going down very quickly in some spots.”

The system left the East Coast on Friday night, but another is developing in the mid-Atlantic region and could bring more rain Monday and Tuesday.

nicole.santacruz@latimes.com