Torrential rains flood downtown Franklin Wednesday afternoon

Thunderstorms swept through Western North Carolina on Wednesday afternoon, causing severe flooding. Throughout Wednesday, Macon County was under a Tornado Watch, a Flood Warning, High Wind Warning and a Thunderstorm Warning.

Main Street down to the Highlands Road was temporarily closed after the road became impassable due to drainage pipes being unable to keep up with the torrential rainfall. As of 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Duke Energy had reported 3,602 power outages for Jackson County and 3,315 outages in Macon County.

Macon County Schools' informed parents that buses were temporarily delayed to allow crews to survey roads and determine if routes were passable. Despite a short delay, all buses were able to run on schedule and were advised to proceed with caution.