A line of strong storms brought lightning and damaging wind gusts to the Triangle on Tuesday, killing a man inside a Wake County home.
According to the Wake County Sheriff’s Office, the man was killed when a tree fell onto a home around 10 p.m. on Bartons Enclave Lane near Raleigh. Deputies said two other people were inside the home when the tree fell, but they were not hurt.
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The man’s death was among the many impacts of Tuesday’s storms, which began developing in Alamance and Guilford counties around 6 p.m. and prompted several severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings as they moved across the region.
Flooding was also a problem. In Durham, several drivers were rescued from their cars after they got stranded in flood waters on Lumley Road.
"I was driving, and I honestly just thought this car was in an accident, because they were stopped and had their hazards on," said Emily Campbell, one of the drivers who got stuck in the flood waters. "I didn't even see the puddle of water.
"Next thing I knew, my car was stuck."
The Durham Bulls postponed their game at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, while Red Hat Amphitheater announced the Bob Dylan concert at the venue was canceled due to the storms.
Thousands also lost power. Around 11 p.m., more than 11,000 customers were without power in Wake County.
WRAL also received reports of multiple trees that were knocked down, including two trees on Pinecrest Road in Raleigh, one on each end of the road.
WRAL cameras also captured the moment lightning struck near Raleigh-Durham International Airport as the storms rolled through. One traveler said the storms left her stuck on the runway.
"We were cleared to move closer to the gate, and then the lightning started, and it was unsafe for the workers," Krista Joy said.