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Holiday Heat Gave Way to Wet Weather in July

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A photo of coastal erosion near Nags Head from winter 1998

Nov 6, 2026

Protected: Winter Outlook 2026-27: All Eyes on El Niño

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A photo of fall colors at sunset near Grandfather Mountain

Nov 3, 2026

Heat, Hurricane Hazards, and More Dry Days Haunt October

Last month included a soaking from Hurricane Isaias but little other rainfall, plus record-setting late-season heat. That has continued a warm and dry fall as we await potential changes in November. One Big Storm, Then Dry Weather Despite Isaias’s best efforts, last month was drier than normal overall, marking our state’s fifth consecutive dry October.…
A satellite image of Hurricane Isaias on Saturday, October 10, 2026

Oct 13, 2026

Rapid Reaction: Heavy Rain, Tornadoes Accompany Isaias in NC

After a more than four-month wait for the first hurricane of this Atlantic hurricane season, that milestone belonged to a storm with a familiar name for North Carolina, and it had impacts across the state last weekend. Six years after a Hurricane Isaias made landfall in southeastern North Carolina in August 2020, packing a fierce…
A photo of the landscape as seen from Grandfather Mountain in late September

Oct 2, 2026

Summer’s Long September Stay Gave Drought a Second Wind

As summer heat stretched into September, we saw limited rainfall relief, leading to drought expansion in the east. It was also a milestone month in the tropical Atlantic due to the lack of hurricane activity. Heat Holds On With summer-like temperatures in the first three weeks of the month, this was an overwhelmingly warm September…
A photo of ocean waves crashing against sandbags in Onslow County in October 2015

Sep 23, 2026

El Niño Check-Up: Waiting for Local Symptoms to Start

The hype around a “Super El Niño” became contagious this summer, and for good reason: the Pacific Ocean has been warming at a near-record rate, putting this on track to be perhaps the strongest El Niño we’ve ever seen. That has increased the likelihood of a significant and impactful event affecting North Carolina this fall…
A photo of a cloudy sky illuminated by the sunset in Raleigh

Sep 2, 2026

Heat Holds Strong and Drought Hangs On in August

This August featured several weeks of heat, plus a mix of heavy rain and dryness. That capped off a hot summer that saw the first signs of drought recovery. More Sizzling Summer Days Fueled by a long stretch of mid-month heat, this was one of the top five warmest Augusts on record in North Carolina.…
A photo of the Marc Basnight Bridge over Oregon Inlet

Aug 27, 2026

Fifteen Years Later, Irene Remains a Bridge to Roadway Resilience

With an active hurricane season in full swing in 2011, a storm-free stretch along the North Carolina coastline abruptly ended amid the winds and waves of Hurricane Irene. In some ways, the fifteen years since Irene feels like a lifetime given the spate of recent storms we’ve faced elsewhere, including inland flooding from the likes…
A photo of the Pigeon River rushing past a home during Tropical Storm Fred

Aug 17, 2026

For Haywood County, Five Years of Heartache Started With Fred

Folks in western North Carolina could be forgiven if time has become a blur. After all, they’ve endured a lifetime of pain and problems in the past five years. Perhaps nowhere has endured more devastating events in that time than Haywood County, a vibrant corner of the state dotted with mile-high mountains, winding rivers, and…
A photo of a bee flying above a sunflower at Dix Park in Raleigh

Aug 3, 2026

Holiday Heat Gave Way to Wet Weather in July

After hundred-degree temperatures early on, July ended with soaking rainfall that has improved, but not eliminated, drought conditions across the state. A Warm Month With a Sizzling Start Despite a late-month cooldown, our early heat waves cemented this as an overall warm July in North Carolina. The National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) reports a…