Actually he was reporting on what some dumb cluck at WeatherUnderground said. I’ve been checking wind stations and buoy readings at different areas and web sites. Some stations reported 100 mph gusts and sustained wind in the cat 1 range. Here in Midlothian Va we are getting steady 30 to 40 mph winds with higher gusts. There have been power outages in NC and southeastern Va. The rains come in intense bands and are getting more frequent as we get towards 2pm
The storm spread out as it made towards land fall, distributing its energy and rainfall over a wider area. So relatively smaller areas are getting the Hurricaine force winds than anticipated but much larger ares are getting winds in the 30 to 50 MPH range with heavy rainfall!
Buoy stations are off shore.
Thirty to forty mile an hour winds are nothing. We commonly get winds much higher than that, out here in WA. Sustained winds of 20 mile an hour are typical in the summer. Winter storms often have gusts up to 60 miles per hour.
The news people showed a man on the shore of North Carolina, wearing a ball cap to keep the drizzle out of his eyes. The cap was not blowing off his head.