Hurricane Laura forces hundreds of thousands to evacuate Gulf Coast

More than 385,000 residents were told to flee the Texas cities of Beaumont, Galveston and Port Arthur, and another 200,000 were ordered to leave low-lying Calcasieu Parish in southwestern Louisiana, where forecasters said as much as 13 feet (3.96 meters) of storm surge topped by waves could submerge whole communities.

Hurricane Laura forms; projected to strengthen before Gulf Coast landfall

Laura became a hurricane on Tuesday morning as it entered the warm and deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, gathering strength on a path to hit the U.S. coastline early Thursday as a major hurricane that could unleash a surge of seawater higher than a basketball hoop and swamp entire towns.

Convicted murderer displaced by Hurricane Florence charged with raping woman

SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. – A convicted murderer displaced due to Hurricane Florence is accused of attacking a woman as she slept and raping her, according to Southern Pines police.Freeman Scott Ireland, 37, of Winnabow, faces a second-degree forcible rape charge.At about 11 p.m. Monday night, a woman told police a man she knew sexually assaulted her in her apartment in Southern Pines.When police arrived, Ireland was still in the apartment.Ireland was on "supervised  release" by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction after serving more than 20 years for second degree murder and armed robbery in Brunswick County.He was displaced from Brunswick County due to hurricane storm damage and was looking to relocate to Moore County.“There is no place in our community for predators, sexual or otherwise," said Southern Pines Police Chief Bob Temme. "I have worked closely with our law enforcement partners at the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, Division of Adult Correction, to ensure that an additional arrest warrant was issued for Freeman Scott Ireland to further provide the highest level of safety possible, not only for the victim in this case, but for the entire community as well.”Ireland was incarcerated under a $500,000 secured bond.

Salvation Army chaplains to deploy to North Carolina from Milwaukee Monday

MILWAUKEE -- Two Salvation Army chaplains will deploy to North Carolina from Milwaukee on Monday, Sept. 23 to help out after Hurricane Florence.According to a news release, the chaplains' primary responsibility will be to provide emotional and spiritual care to those affected by the storm.The chaplains will leave from Mitchell Airport early Monday morning.The Salvation Army has been on the ground in the Carolinas since Sept. 10.