By Scott Cole

The winds are dying down and the rain, while still sputtering off and on, is slowly waning away. So, obviously, the worst part of the storm is behind us right? Wrong.

All of the rain water that has been sitting in your yard, driveway, and/or street has to go somewhere. Eventually, that somewhere is going to end up being the rivers and streams that are all around our communities. That means that many of us are possibly facing floods in the coming days..

On Saturday morning, I drove out to assess our local communities. The following is what I observed, although over the next few days circumstances are likely to change.

Ayden

The grocery stores and gas stations are back in operation in Ayden. It is also a warming sight to see 20 cars lined up at Bojangles as typically is the case on Saturday mornings.

However, Ayden is soon to become an island. Hines Rd. Extension heading towards the east is flooded out at the creek about a mile outside of town. That same creek has yet to flood Rt 102 East, but it's just a short few feet from reaching the bridge. By tonight or tomorrow, that bridge will be flooded over. Likewise, Lee St/Old Rt 11 is flooded out at the town border with Winterville. Ayden Golf Club Rd is flooded out eastbound from the Y-Intersection.

Damage to the town, just like in Winterville, is light and minimal. However, the only way in and out of Ayden is going to be Third St to Rt 11 or Jolly Rd to Rt 11 by the water tower. From there, you will be able to go to Greenville and Winterville, although Worthington Rd in Winterville is flooded just past Christ Covenant Church.

Greene County

Maury, Ormondsvile, and Snow Hill looked relatively devoid of any major damage. However, Snow Hill was out of power. The river in the middle of town was also rising and looked like it could threaten the people living around it fairly soon.

Speaking of rivers, Rt 102 West to 903 was clear and 903 was clear all the way to Snow Hill. But, the bridge on the Pitt-Greene County Line in Scuffleton by Little Creek Baptist Church looks like it will soon near flood stage. It is unfortunate, but that poor church looks as if it will be under water again, like it was during Hurricane Matthew.

Likewise, Hugo Rd was clear all the way to Rt 258. The bridge on the Lenoir-Greene County line also looks like it will soon be in danger of flooding out.

In Hugo, it looks as if power was out in the Sharon Church area. Felix Hardison Rd had trees and water blocking the road in various spots and Hugo Church road has a huge tree blocking the entire road not far from the intersection with Hugo Rd.

On Cameron Hardison Rd, traffic comes to one lane as Hugo and Kinston crews are helping cut trees away from a house that a tree crashed into to.

Grifton

As of right now, Rt 11 is clear from Greenville down to Kinston. This is not going to last. The waters of the Contentnea Creek are quickly rising as waters fill it up. The creek is starting to swell and it is only a matter of time before it spills over.

Driving through Grifton, I didn’t see any major flooding on main streets, but there were some side streets that had some high water. The areas around the Grifton Museum along the banks of the Contentnea also seem in danger of flooding.

While things may look calmer for now, that will change quickly. If you live in Kinston, Grifton, or any other area that is prone to flooding and you have a chance to get to a shelter or a hotel somewhere else, do it while you have a chance. In another 24 to 36 hours, things will change dramatically.