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Comparing hurricanes Zeta and Michael in the Carolinas

File: Hurricane Michael

CHARLOTTE — Hurricane Zeta made landfall Wednesday in southeastern Louisiana as a strong Category 2 hurricane, and the Carolinas are in its path.

[MICHAEL AFTERMATH: Schools closed, thousands without power across Carolinas]

Several counties in our area are under a tropical storm warning with damaging winds. This is the first time those warnings have been issued since 2018 when Hurricane Michael arrived in the Carolinas.

[Zeta live updates: Storm slams into southeastern Louisiana at near Category 3 strength]

The storms are fairly similar, said Steve Udelson, chief meteorologist for Channel 9.

Michael made landfall in the Florida Panhandle on Oct. 10, 2018 as a Category 4 hurricane with 150 mph winds. Zeta had winds of 110 mph when it made landfall.

The hurricanes accelerated as they made landfall and pushed quickly across the Southeast.

The storms' similarities can be found in their greatest threats, which are strong winds and the chance of spin-up tornadoes in our area. A couple of tornadoes touched down in Iredell County when Michael passed through.

[POWERFUL IMAGES: Catastrophic damage caused by Michael across Southeast]


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