Hurricane Ophelia has passed North Carolina leaving floods, cutting power to about 100,000 people and renewing storm fears in a country still struggling with Hurricane Katrina effects.
The seventh hurricane of the Atlantic storm season strengthened and moved along the coast of the south-eastern state.

Mike Beasley, the North Carolina governor, declared a state of emergency and pleaded with people to heed evacuation orders.

The US National Hurricane Center in Miami reported Ophelia's central eye at about 30 km off the coast, lashing with winds of about 135 km/h. After having torn down power lines, cutting electricity to an estimated 100,000 people in North Carolina, center of Hurricane Ophelia is expected to hit the southeastern coast of North Carolina Thursday near Cape Lookout.

Although Ophelia may only be a Category 1 hurricane on the intensity based Saffir-Simpson scale, the potential for damage is great and is something that should not be taken lightly.