‘A path of destruction.’ Three dead after tornado rips through coastal NC community
Three people were killed and at least 10 were injured after a tornado hit Brunswick County along the North Carolina coast late Monday, officials say.
The damage in the southern part of the coastal county was described as “devastating,” with nearly 40,000 people without power after the storm.
The National Weather Service said the twister was a a high-end EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita damage scale, with winds of about 160 mph.
The three people who died were in the Ocean Ridge Plantation development, where at least 50 homes were damaged, officials said. The area features golf courses and describes itself as “southeastern North Carolina’s most exclusive and luxurious golf and beach community.”
During a press conference at noon Tuesday, officials said no one was missing in the area. But several people had to be rescued because they were trapped in their homes by debris, according to Brunswick County Emergency Services.
Tim Cate, who worked to design the four golf courses at Ocean Ridge and has an office there, said the storm “absolutely destroyed everything.”
“Like saying a bomb went off, that doesn’t do it justice,” Cate said. “It’s awful. ... That thing came through there, and it’s a path of destruction. Some of the houses, there’s nothing vertical left.”
Damage was also reported in the Grissettown area along U.S. 17. Multiple commercial buildings along the highway were affected, said Ed Conrow, director of Brunswick County Emergency Services.
Conrow said the twister touched down with little warning. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning at 11:33 p.m. — six minutes before the tornado hit, said Mark Bacon, leader of the Storm Ready program with the NWS in Wilmington.
The warning, which would have prompted cellphone alerts in the area, went out “before the (tornado’s) rotation was as pronounced,” Bacon said.
Paco Page, who lives about 8 miles from Ocean Ridge in Shallotte, said he wasn’t aware of any tornado watches or warnings.
“I heard some loud, loud unusual constant thunder but didn’t think anything of it because I had looked at radar before bed and the storm didn’t look like it was going to be that bad,” he said.
It was more than an hour later, after his power came back on, that Page says he learned of the tornado via social media. “I turned on the TV and found out how bad it was,” he said.
‘I can’t process it’
Officials have not released the names of the people who died. But Jill Ellringer, who lives just across the South Carolina border, said her sister and brother-in-law were among the victims.
Ellringer said she had visited with Phyllis and Rich O’Connor in their Brunswick County neighborhood on Monday evening, just as she did every week to play cards.
“It’s just crazy,” she said. “I haven’t even processed it yet. I can’t process it.”
Phyllis and Rich O’Connor had been together for 30 years, after meeting in their early 40s while living in Connecticut, Ellringer said.
The couple didn’t have children, but Phyllis O’Connor helped raise two of Rich O’Connor’s sons from a previous relationship, Ellringer said.
She said her brother-in-law was “a very soft-spoken gentlemen,” while her sister was considered the family’s top organizer.
“She had all the thank you notes done and organized, she organized all the meals,” Ellringer said. “She would do anything for anybody. ... I can’t sing her praises enough.”
Restoring power
Sheriff John W. Ingram V on Tuesday advised people who don’t live in the area to “stay away until we have an opportunity to assess the damage.”
Road conditions were described as “dangerous” in the immediate area, particularly in the Seaside community, officials said. Northbound traffic on U.S. 17 was being rerouted due to downed power lines.
When the storm first hit, about 37,000 people lost power, Josh Winslow, CEO of the Brunswick Electric Membership Corporation, said during the press conference. More than 1,000 customers were without power as of 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to the utility co-op.
N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper said on Twitter “the state has sent help” to the area. “Our prayers are with them all,” he said.
The county set up a temporary shelter for displaced residents, and the Red Cross was working to connect those affected by the storm to family members and resources.
Conrow said several agencies, including the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office and the N.C. Office of Emergency Management, were helping with the clean-up efforts.
“This is definitely going to be a long term event,” Conrow said. “This is going to take a lot of hard work and effort to clean up, and rebuilding and getting the families back to a safe place.”
Cate, the golf course designer, said damage from the tornado runs through the Lion’s Paw course.
“The golf course is absolutely wrecked, but the importance of the golf course doesn’t come into consideration with this,” he said. “This is a horrible tragedy what’s happened. People’s lives and homes and families are affected.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the name of one of the people who died as a result of the tornado. Her name is Phyllis O’Connor.
This story was originally published February 16, 2021 at 6:45 AM with the headline "‘A path of destruction.’ Three dead after tornado rips through coastal NC community."
