CAROLINA BEACH, N.C. (WNCN) — As rain from a tropical low system soaked the North Carolina coast, several people from the Triangle found themselves in the midst of the storm.
Donna Ritterpusch noticed some minor flooding around the home she was renting around 7:30 a.m. on Monday. "We decided we need to tidy up our rental, pack our bags, and get out of town while we can," said Ritterpusch, who captured video driving through splashing water while getting out of Kure Beach to return home to Nash County. "We were very blessed to get out when we did."
While Ritterpusch was able to get out, not everybody could. David Baratta says he planned on leaving Carolina Beach to return home to Cary, but after making about three miles, he decided to turn around and hunker down in his costal home. "It was pouring rain," Baratta said. "You couldn't even see. I waited on the storm, but it kept raining and raining."
The storm flooded Baratta's basement. "I've owned this house since 2006," he said. "We've never had water inside of the house."
Baratta says he's stayed at the coast for several small hurricanes and is shocked by the scale of the devastating flooding in and around Carolina Beach. "I just feel bad for the community," he said. "Just a terrible thing and it happened so quickly. Nothing could have been done to prevent this."