Tornado, storms leave 2 dead in Charlotte area. Flooding remains a menace.

Flooding remained a threat in the Charlotte region Friday after a line of severe storms led to the deaths of two drivers, spawned a tornado, downed trees and power lines, and left up to 23,000 Duke Energy customers in Mecklenburg County without power on Thursday.

A driver died when a tree fell on his car during an afternoon storm on Pleasant Road north of Fort Mill in York County, S.C., multiple media outlets reported. The driver’s name has not yet been released by the county coroner’s office.

And a driver died in Gaston County when his Ford Ranger hydroplaned in heavy rain, plummeted down a 25-foot embankment and overturned in a creek, Charlotte Observer news partner WBTV reported, citing the State Highway Patrol. Troopers identified the driver as Terry Roger Fisher of Cherryville.

Severe thunderstorms pummeled the region from early morning through late afternoon Thursday, and light to moderate amounts of rain were expected into the evening, according to the National Weather Service office in Greer, S.C. Lingering showers could produce more flash flooding on Friday, meteorologists said.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools announced late Thursday that schools will open Friday on a two-hour delay so crews can “continue to assess road conditions and receive the latest on power outages in school buildings.”

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Tornado watches and warnings were issued for much of the Charlotte region beginning mid-morning. Workers in uptown Charlotte office towers huddled in interior stair wells during a warning for the center city.

A flash flood warning was extended until 1 a.m. Friday for Charlotte, Huntersville and Rock Hill.

Around noon, the NWS tweeted that a tornado was observed in Rowan County.

A tornado touched down in Kannapolis near the Lane Street and Interstate 85 exit, city spokeswoman Annette Privette Keller said. No injuries were reported, she said.

NWS officials are sending survey crews to the area on Friday to confirm tornado activity.

Meanwhile, creeks throughout the region overflowed. They poured on to such heavily traveled roads as East Boulevard at Freedom Park in Charlotte. Downed trees blocked travel on numerous roads, including Queens Road West and Kings Drive.

Firefighters rescued a driver trapped in water on Interstate 77 near Huntersville.

At 6 p.m., Mecklenburg County emergency shelters were opening at the Naomi Drenan Recreation Center, 750 Beal St. in Charlotte and the Crews Recreation Center at 1201 Crews Road in Matthews. People could take their pets.

Here is how other parts of the area were impacted by the storms Thursday:

CLT airport tower evacuated

At 11:15 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration ordered the evacuation of the tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and airport officials urged everyone in the airport to “shelter in place away from windows,” according to an airport tweet.

Flights were grounded for part of the day before resuming around 2:20 pm. after an airfield inspection showed no damage from the storms.

CMS keep students in school

Numerous Charlotte area school systems dismissed classes early, including Mooresville, Iredell-Statesville and Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools officials kept students in class, saying it was safer than sending them out into the storms.

Downed trees and power lines

The most intense weather appeared to hit north of Charlotte, at Lake Norman and east into Rowan and Cabarrus counties. South Charlotte residents also reported severe weather.

A tornado warning was active for Charlotte through 12:45 p.m., according to the NWS.

Such a warning means a tornado has been spotted nearby or “indicated by weather radar,” according to NWS. A tornado watch, by comparison, means weather conditions are right for a tornado to form.

A severe storm capable of producing a tornado was 6 miles south of downtown Concord near Charlotte Motor Speedway, the NWS said at 11:37 a.m. Winds reached 75 mph around Mount Pleasant around 11:50 a.m., according to WBTV Chief Meterologist Eric Thomas.

Matthews police reported several downed trees and power lines, along with traffic light outages and flooding. Trees were also down across York County, crushing cars in Rock Hill and blocking roads in the western part of the county, The (Rock Hill) Herald reported..

Rainfall totals around Charlotte

Over a 24-hour period ending at 3 p.m. Thursday, the most rain in the Charlotte region fell at Lake Norman in eastern Lincoln County, 3.59 inches, and in Davidson, 3.26 inches, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Flood Information & Notification System map.

Storms impacted travel from the mountains to the coast.

Flooding and debris closed roads in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where officials said they also shut two visitor centers and a campground for the day. Hikers were advised to avoid trails with river crossings.

Landslides were possible in the N.C. mountains Thursday night, the NWS reported. And on the other side of the state, high winds canceled Ocracoke, Cedar Island and Swan Quarter ferry service at the coast Thursday afternoon.

Tornadoes in NC

Since 2010, some 336 tornadoes have touched down in North Carolina, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

They injured 670 people and killed 30, including 11 people who died in a Bertie County tornado in 2011.

Twenty-five tornadoes have hit Mecklenburg or its surrounding counties, since 2010. None were fatal, but they injured 16 and caused nearly $14 million in damage, data show.

The last time a tornado touched down in Mecklenburg was in November 2016, when an EF1 twister struck the Steele Creek area, toppling multiple trees and damaging several buildings.

CMS opts to keep students in school amid Thursday’s severe storms, saying it’s safer