Gaston County declares State of Emergency, one person killed from storms

GASTONIA, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — After Wednesday afternoon’s severe storms left tens of thousands without power, Gaston County has declared a State of Emergency.

Gaston County Board of Commissioners Chairman Chad Brown signed the document as first responders are working to clear roads of downed power lines, broken trees and provide aid to residents in need.

Over 112k without power in Charlotte, surrounding counties

Brown’s order reads, in part: “I hearby order all county law enforcement officers, county employees and all other Emergency Management personnel subject to my control to cooperate in the enforcement and implementation of provision of the County Emergency Ordinance…”

As of 5:30 p.m., more than 37 percent of Gaston County power customers were without power.  Duke Energy reported more than 28,000 customers were out there.

Gaston County activated its Emergency Operations Center in response to the storm that brought high winds and hail to the area. Officials say the New Hope Fire Department responded to an extrication with a tree down on a car. One person was rescued and transported to a nearby hospital, while a second person was reportedly killed in the incident.

Residents are advised to avoid travel Wednesday evening to allow emergency crews to clean up debris and roadways. Additional wind and rain through the overnight hours are expected.

Death from tree

A York County woman was killed after a tree fell onto her car Wednesday afternoon.

According to N.C. Highway Patrol, the storm caused a large tree to fall near N.C. 279 (New Hope Road) near Belmont. It landed on a 2015 Mazda CX-5, which was traveling south.

Troopers said the driver succumbed to her injuries at the scene. The passenger, a New York resident, was transported to CaroMont Regional Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

New Hope Road was closed for several hours following the incident.

No school for students

There will be no school for Gaston County and Cleveland County students Thursday, due to the impacts from Wednesday’s storms.

Gaston County officials said there are power and internet outages at many of their schools, and that road closures make made travel difficult. It will be an optional teacher workday for both districts.

Since school will not be in session on Thursday, end-of-year testing scheduled for Thursday will be postponed. Parents will receive a revised testing schedule from their child’s school.

Cleveland County School officials noted the the second round of storms forecast for Thursday morning as well.

Remaining road closures

Several storm-related closures remain overnight Wednesday. The following information comes from the N.C. Department of Transportation:

• Lowell: N.C. 7 near Rhyne Street is closed until 6 a.m.

• Ranlo:  N.C. 279, Near East Ozark Avenue is closed until 6 a.m.

• Belmont: North Central Avenue south of Woodrow Avenue is closed until 6 a.m.

• North Belmont: Hickory Grove Road near Old Hickory Grove Road is closed until 7 a.m.

• Cherryville: N.C. 279 near Besstown Road is closed until 6 a.m.

• Bessemer City: N.C. 274 near Kiser Road is closed until 7 a.m.

Baby born amid chaos

Gaston County EMS Deputy Chief Lance Foulk said during the press conference that a baby was born Wednesday evening right after the storm came through. Authorities reportedly couldn’t get to the mother initially but someone eventually got to her and helped deliver the baby.

Other Issues

Public transportation is being affected Thursday morning as bus routes in Gaston County are expected to be delayed until 10 a.m. Courthouses and county offices will also remain closed.

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