Floodwaters set record for second day in Kinston

As the Neuse River finally crested in Lenoir County, Curtis Wiggins saw the water sweep in like a tide Thursday afternoon. Friday?

"Right there in the curve, you couldn't see no grass," Wiggins said. "It was just flowing over the road. It's just like living a nightmare."

Wiggins has lived in Kinston for 43 years, but he said he's never seen the water levels this high. Not even after Hurricane Floyd in 1999.

His home is dry, but many nearby homes had water above the doors. On Thursday, crews came to carry people out.

"It's almost heartbreaking, you know, what everybody has lost," Wiggins said. "Not just here, but in eastern North Carolina."

Kinston is bisected by the Neuse River, but right now, there is no getting across the bridges. Only emergency vehicles and military trucks cross it.

Bobby Brow's mother owns several flooded mobile homes.

"Just trying to ride this thing out. Man, I'm just mentally worn out from this whole thing, just stressed and everything," Brow said.

Because the city is cut in two, a mobile emergency room with five beds is set up on the south side of the river. The hospital is on the north side.

Shelters are also open on either side of the river, which will likely remain at major flood stage until Wednesday.