美國北卡州長警告颶風餘威仍會帶來生命危險

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper says the risk to life is "rising with the angry waters" as what is left of Hurricane Florence dumps tons of rain across the state.

"Wherever you live in North Carolina, be alert for sudden flash floods. Pay attention to the weather warnings and be ready to head for safer ground if you're asked to evacuate," Cooper warned residents during Sunday news conference."

Never drive through flooded roads. Just a few inches (centimeters) of water can wash your car away. And that is already happening out there."

Florence is now a tropical depression, but continues to dump buckets of rain on parts of the southeastern United States as it slowly creeps toward the mid-Atlantic.

At least 16 people have been killed. Entire towns are completely cut off by floodwaters. Major highways are covered and more than 700,000 homes have no power. Many parts of North Carolina are under a tornado watch.

Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator Brock Long told Fox News Sunday "This is going to be a long, frustrating event" for those who have lost their homes or face substantial damage when they eventually are able to return.

It said the storm will continue to "produce heavy and excessive rainfall," endangering towns and cities in its path.

The hurricane agency said it expects Florence will dump up to another 25 centimeters of rain on central and western North Carolina, on top of the 38 to 50 centimeters that has already fallen on the region. It said the additional rain will "produce catastrophic flash flooding, prolonged significant river flooding, and an elevated risk for landslides in western North Carolina and far southwest Virginia."美國北卡羅來納州州長羅伊·庫珀說，“大水兇猛上漲”之際，生命危險也隨之上升。颶風佛羅倫薩的餘威給北卡帶來大量降雨。

庫珀在星期天的新聞發佈會上對居民們發出警告說：“無論你住在北卡羅來納州的什麼地方，都應警惕突發洪水。如果你被要求撤離，請注意天氣預報並準備好前往比較安全的地方”。

他說，“決不要開車經過被水淹沒的道路。只需幾英寸的水就可以把你的車沖走。這種事已經發生了。”

佛羅倫薩已經弱化爲熱帶低氣壓，但在其緩慢接近美國東南部地區時，繼續帶來傾盆大雨。

風暴造成至少16人喪生，整個城鎮被洪水隔絕與外界交通，主要高速公路被淹沒，有70多萬戶住家停電。北卡的很多地區都有龍捲風預警。

聯邦緊急事務管理局局長布洛克·龍告訴福克斯新聞：“對於那些失去家園或最終重返家園時面對重大損失的人來說，這將是時間較長而令人沮喪的”。

但是國家颶風中心表示，預計佛羅倫薩將爲北卡中部和西部地區再添高達25釐米降水，之前那些地區已經有38到50釐米的降雨。該中心說，更多降雨將”帶來災難性的突發洪水，延長河水氾濫的時間，增加北卡西部和維吉尼亞州西南部發生泥石流的風險。“