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An updated tornado warning was issued by the NWS Newport/Morehead City NC on Thursday at 8:03 p.m. in effect until 8:15 p.m. for Beaufort and Craven counties.

Half-dollar-sized hail (1.25 inches) is predicted with the incoming storm.

"At 8:03 p.m., a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado was located over Cox Crossroads, or 9 miles south of River Road, moving southeast at 20 mph," says the NWS. "Flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without shelter. Mobile homes will be damaged or destroyed. Damage to roofs, windows, and vehicles will occur. Tree damage is likely."

The tornado is projected to possibly affect Bonnerton and Edward around 8:10 p.m.

According to the NWS, "Take cover now! Move to a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building. Avoid windows. If you are outdoors, in a mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from flying debris. If a tornado or other severe weather is spotted, report it to the National Weather Service or your local nearest law enforcement agency who will send your report. This act may save lives of others in the path of dangerous weather. Torrential rainfall is occurring with this storm, and may lead to flash flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded roadways."

This warning is in effect until 8:15 p.m.

According to the NWS, rapid action is key to staying safe during a tornado. Stay updated on tornado watches and warnings by tuning in to local news or a NOAA Weather Radio.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends keeping the following items in a basic disaster supplies kit:

Source: The National Weather Service

This story was originally published May 15, 2025 at 6:37 PM.

BEAUFORT, North Carolina — I was paddling the swift current of Taylor’s Creek when I spotted them: two feral horses, munching grass on Carrot Island.

I’d read about the horses, deposited across the creek from downtown Beaufort in the 1940s, but I didn’t expect to see them on my first day of spring break.

Mesmerized, I landed the stand-up paddleboard I’d hauled from Cleveland onto the island, part of the Rachel Carson Reserve. I clicked away with my iPhone and crept closer, letting my toes squish into the pluff mud. I looked down to see a host of whorl shells and picked one up, only to be swiftly pinched by a hermit crab.

This place felt like magic.

Perched on the edge of the mainland, separated by the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway from the southern part of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, Beaufort has both small-town charm and undisturbed nature, lots to do and no rush to do it in.

The city of fewer than 5,000 residents is one of the oldest in the state, founded in 1709 on what the tourism brochures call the Crystal Coast. It’s pronounced BOW-fort and is located a five-hour drive from its identically-spelled Beaufort (BU-fort), South Carolina. And it delighted my family for a week of pickleball games and golf cart drives, history tours and dolphin sightings, beaches, cruiser bikes and boat rides.

Beaufort — an 11-hour road trip from Cleveland — isn’t unknown to Ohioans; locals told me they get more visitors from Ohio than just about anywhere. But it’s nowhere near as popular as other southern vacation destinations.

I’ve visited Beaufort, South Carolina, as well as nearby Hilton Head, Seabrook and Fripp islands. And I liked Beaufort, N.C., the best.

Related: 48 hours in Beaufort, South Carolina, aka ‘the Little Charleston’ - Southern charm, sweet tea, Civil War history and Pat Conroy

I read about the town years ago in Southern Living magazine and added it to my vacation bucket list. This year, when we wanted a low-key spring break, we rented a three-bedroom Airbnb in Beau Coast, a new enclave of Easter-egg colored homes with a shared dock, clubhouse and other amenities. We decided to bring our golden retriever — and my parents.

My husband wanted to hang out and read his book on the porch. I wanted to try every activity. My daughter loves the water, and my son would rather golf. All of us had a ball.

(Our only complaint was that the neighborhood pool was still closed for the season. So I swam in Taylor’s Creek instead.)

Here’s why you should consider Beaufort for your family vacation.

The islands

Beaufort sits on an inlet, with a host of uninhabited barrier islands to kayak, paddle or take a small ferry to. Where you can splash around, search for shells and watch for dolphins and government-protected wild horses, some of which are descendants of Spanish horses that arrived centuries ago.

Three-mile-long Carrot Island is just across the creek, close enough to swim to. Core Banks, home to the Cape Lookout National Seashore, is a 45-minute boat ride. The 1859-built Cape Lookout Lighthouse stands 163 feet tall over the beach in a distinctive black-and-white diamond pattern. Unfortunately, the interior is closed for restoration.

On a ferry trip to Sand Dollar Island, a sandbar that emerges only at low tide, you can wade knee-high in the middle of the inlet while hunting for sand dollars. I found 10 perfect circles before the tide swallowed the hump of sand.

If you’re adventurous, you can bring a paddleboard or rent a kayak from Beaufort Paddle. Or if you’re less so, and you don’t want to explore the islands, you can still see them from a boat tour, including on a sunset dinner cruise on the Crystal Coast Lady, 100-foot yacht. Our whole family loved it.

The walkable, adorable, historic town

“There’s something about Beaufort that feels like going back in time. It’s a historic town, but it’s also very friendly,” author Kristy Woodson Harvey told Walter magazine.

Harvey moved to Beaufort after falling in love with the town and has set several of her novels there. It’s easy to see why.

Beaufort is laid out along the waterfront, a ribbon of cute shops, fun restaurants and centuries-old white wooden homes with dark shutters. Docks bracket the land, loaded with aqua-colored center consoles and impressive sailboats.

You can rent cruiser bikes and ride all over the flat roads, where golf carts are nearly as plentiful as cars, and where power walkers lift their hands in friendly waves. (We rented from Beach Wheels for $55 for the week.) You can savor an ice cream cone from Beaufort Creamery while strolling the boardwalk, try on bright floral dresses at a boutique, buy a T-shirt or admire the restored homes.

I particularly liked the styles at Isla Boutique and Ocean Outfitterz, and the pink rum drink at the Dock House.

You can also learn about the past at the Maritime Museum or the Beaufort Historic Site, which runs an enclave of historic buildings open to the public, as well as a 1960s red double decker British bus.

The tour bus will stop at the Hammock House, known also as Blackbeard’s house, even if it’s not totally accurate. The pirate Blackbeard’s ship, Queen Anne’s Revenge, sunk in the Beaufort harbor in 1718. Legend has it that he stayed for several days at a white wooden home just outside downtown, and maybe hanged his unwilling wife.

The town also offers public tennis courts, where my mom and I played, and the Beaufort Club golf course, where my son drove a golf cart and beat me on the back nine.

The Outer Banks

Want a more traditional beach day? Drive 12 minutes to Atlantic Beach, or further southeast, all the way to Emerald Isle, at the southern end of the Outer Banks.

There, you can boogie board in the waves, build sand castles, eat at waterfront restaurants, play mini golf and browse souvenir shops.

Atlantic Beach has an impressive town park, with skateboard park, mini-golf course, playground and sprayground.

Nearby is Fort Macon, a brick fort built in 1834, which you can still tour. Now a state park, it offers free parking, hiking trails and the beach.

And when you’re done exploring, you can head right back to Beaufort.

Cleveland.com content director Laura Johnston writes weekly about life in her 40s in the column, Our Best Life. Subscribe to the newsletter to get the column delivered to your inbox Friday mornings. Follow her on Instagram @ourbestlifecle.