Flash flooding from early morning rain developed on parts of Interstate 40 and Interstate 85 in Orange County on Thursday, leading to lane closures and significant traffic delays.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation reported that I-40 westbound near Hillsborough was closed starting at 6:39 a.m., with the Orange Rural Fire Department later saying it was from flooding on the interstate. NCDOT said westbound lanes were closed between Exit 261 and Exit 259. Additionally, a crash at the I-40/I-85 juncture shortly after 5 a.m. caused the westbound lanes of I-40 to close and significant delays in the eastbound lanes, which are also impacted by ongoing construction.
The combination of incidents led to significant traffic and NCDOT recommending drivers take alternate routes. Detouring traffic is encouraged to take Exit 261 (Old North Carolina 86) or Exit 279B (I-885 North) to then access I-85 South and I-40 West.
“We are responding to multiple calls for flooded roads, cars in the water and trees down,” Orange County Rural Fire Department shared on Facebook. “If you have to go out, give yourself extra time.”
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for Orange County, Durham County and northern Chatham County at 6:54 a.m., after at least an inch of rain had fallen in much of central North Carolina. The warning is set to last through 11 a.m. on Thursday, and comes after the weather service has issued a flood watch on Wednesday afternoon lasting through Thursday afternoon.
Flash Flood Warning including Durham NC, Chapel Hill NC and Burlington NC until 11:00 AM EDT pic.twitter.com/C4Nb1ovrp7
— NWS Raleigh (@NWSRaleigh) July 23, 2026
If driving or traveling on a road that has floodwaters, local officials and experts encourage people to not try and navigate through it, encouraging people to “turn around, don’t drown.”
Featured photo via the Orange Rural Fire Department.
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