The North Carolina Ports Authority has warned that its Wilmington and Morehead City ports will remain closed for a further four days on the back of damage caused by Hurricane Florence.

In a twitter update, the authority said the ports planned to resume operations on 24 September. They did, however, open for employees yesterday (20 September).

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Earlier this week NC Ports said Florence had had a “major impact” on the ports.

According to reports, warehouses and other structures at both ports indicated damage along with a number of downed empty containers.

Last week, early estimates suggested the potential economic impact for lost sales in the consumer/retail sector would total US$700m.

The US Coast Guard closed the main shipping channel and residents from South Carolina to Maryland were placed under a State of Emergency with more than 1m residents given evacuation orders.

A spokesperson for the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) told just-style that although they had no data regarding the impact of Florence on the apparel industry, they do not expect “much of an impact” on industry shipments as the advanced notice meant a lot of product was rerouted.