LAKE LURE, N.C. — The failure of a dam in a western North Carolina town is “imminent,” emergency officials said just before 11 a.m. Friday.
In a Facebook post, Rutherford County Emergency Management said anyone below the Lake Lure Dam needed to evacuate to higher ground as quickly as possible.
About an hour before that, authorities warned water was overtopping the dam. They asked residents along surrounding roads to move to higher ground.
The failure will impact neighbors in Cleveland County as well. The sheriff’s office asked anyone who lives along Waterway Drive, Abes Mountain Road, and the Broad River to evacuate.
[ READ MORE: Western NC sees heavy flooding as Tropical Storm Helene moves through the area ]
In an update around 1:30 p.m., emergency management said water was cresting the dam and flowing around the side walls. While the structural supports have been compromised, the dam wall was holding.
Evacuation sirens were sounding downstream and emergency officials went house to house to make sure everyone left the area.
Evacuees are being temporarily taken to an Ingles grocery store in Lake Lure. An emergency shelter has also been set up at RS Central High School. Officials asked anyone ordered to evacuate to go to the school, adding that anyone not evacuating should stay home due to hazardous roads “with an insurmountable number of trees and electrical lines that are down.”
Lake Lure is a small lake town located about 30 miles east of Asheville. The town is next to Chimney Rock, which is home to an iconic North Carolina hike of the same name.
The town is known for its lake, which sits at the center of the town. It also houses the Lake Lure Inn, a historic inn where the cast and crew of the 1987 film “Dirty Dancing” stayed during filming.
The town is one of many in western North Carolina suffering from the effects of Tropical Storm Helene. State transportation officials told drivers that all roads in western North Carolina should be considered closed.
“Do not travel unless an emergency or seeking higher ground,” they said in a post on social media.
Early Friday, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said two deaths in the state can be attributed to the storm: One in Catawba County and another in Charlotte.
MEDIC told Channel 9 that one person died and another was hurt when a tree fell onto a home around 5 a.m. Friday in northwest Charlotte.
On Thursday, a 4-year-old died in a crash in Catawba County. Three other people, including two other children, were hurt in the crash.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
(WATCH BELOW: 5 rescued from rising Linville River as heavy rain moves in)
This browser does not support the video element.