After being downgraded to a tropical depression, Tropical Storm Claudette regained its status following heavy rains, high winds and flash flooding in the southeast that led to the deaths of 13 people, The Associated Press (AP) reported Monday.
Tropical Storm #Claudette Advisory 15: Claudette Reaches Tropical Storm Strength Once Again. https://t.co/VqHn0u1vgc
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) June 21, 2021
Eight children in a van for a youth home for abused or neglected children died Saturday after the vehicle is believed to have hydroplaned in Alabama, Butler County Coroner Wayne Garlock said, according to The AP. The children in the vehicle were between the ages of 4 to 17. Candice Gulley, the youth home’s director, was the only survivor. (RELATED: Tropical Storm Warning Issued As Flooding Expected For Parts Of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, And Florida)
#BREAKING: At least a dozen vehicles involved in major crash on Interstate 65 in Greenville, Alabama. Developing scene.
???? Chris Horn with a drone photo pic.twitter.com/ef5SqcRyqn
— Colin Scroggins (@cnaw_colin) June 19, 2021
Gulley, the lone survivor in the youth home bus that crashed, was still in the hospital Sunday following the accident, according to The AP. Gulley lost two of her children in the crash. Four other children were ranch residents and two were guests.
Ten people were killed in a multi-vehicle crash in Alabama, including nine children.
My story from @NewDay this morning, as the NTSB investigates why this terrible tragedy happened. pic.twitter.com/hfz5vt7FBG
— Nia K. Phillips (@Nia_Official) June 21, 2021
The crash involved multiple vehicles on Interstate 65, according to The AP. A man and his baby in another vehicle were among the victims.
Multiple other people also died Saturday due to the effects of the storm. In Tuscaloosa, a 24-year-old man and a 3-year-old boy died after a tree fell on their house, according to The AP. A 23-year-old woman from Fort Payne drowned Saturday night after her car went into a creek, according to WHNT-TV.
Claudette approached the coast of the Carolinas Monday, picking up maximum sustained winds of 40 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). The center expects an additional 1 to 2 inches of rain across far eastern North Carolina throughout Monday, with potential flash flooding.
Tropical Storm #Claudette Advisory 15A: Claudette Nearing the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Waters. Tropical Storm Warning Discontinued. https://t.co/VqHn0u1vgc
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) June 21, 2021
The storm is expected to cross into the western Atlantic Ocean later Monday morning, and pass south of Nova Scotia on Tuesday, according to the NHC.
“An isolated tornado is possible early this morning over parts of the Outer Banks,” Brad Reinhart, a specialist with NHC, told The AP. “By afternoon, we expect the system to be well offshore.”