(Photo Supplied By Mike Smith)
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Hurricane Isaias has been downgraded down to a tropical storm after making landfall near Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, according to an official with the National Hurricane Center.
The hurricane hit the North Carolina coast just after 11pm on Monday with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph. The storm now is a tropical storm as it moves up the east coast.
The storm set off flooding and sparked five home fires in Ocean Isle Beach. Firefighters from the town’s fire department were battling the blaze with assistance from nearby Horry County firefighters in South Carolina.
About 80 miles north of Ocean Isle Beach, about 30 people were displaced due to a fire at a condominium complex in Surf City. It is not clear if the fires were connected to the storm. No injuries have been reported.