'We are coming to get you:' 150 needing rescue after getting trapped on roofs, in attics in New Bern

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Friday, September 14, 2018

NEW BERN, N.C. -- About 150 people are waiting to be rescued in New Bern after water levels reached 10 feet before Hurricane Florence made landfall Friday morning.

City spokeswoman Colleen Roberts told ABC News that volunteers are using private boats to pitch in and help.

"You may need to move up to the second story, or to your attic, but WE ARE COMING TO GET YOU," the city said in a tweet.

The flooding started Thursday night and continued into Friday.

As the hours passed, the floodwaters continued to rise.

VIDEO: Hurricane Florence as daylight breaks in New Bern

Some of the first video of Hurricane Florence after daybreak on Friday morning shows the storm kicking up surf in New Bern.

By Thursday night, the city had already experienced heavy flooding, with waist-deep and shoulder-deep waters.

Watch: Cars trapped, buildings inundated with substantial flooding in New Bern

AccuWeather's Reed Timmer reports on the dangerous conditions in New Bern, where cars are trapped and buildings are submerged in the substantial flooding.

Many streets are flooded and heavy winds have knocked down fences and trees.

Florence made landfall just before 7:30 Friday morning as a Category 1 storm.

It's estimated that the storm will dump 1 trillion gallons of water -- that's enough to take 581.4 billion showers.