WDBJ 7 news at Noon for 09/18/03

[News-Heads]

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[VO-NAT]

No more waiting...Hurricane Isabel is coming ashore along the coast of North Carolina bringing gusty winds and heavy rain.
We'll have live reports from the Outer Banks and Virginia Beach in just a moment.
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[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

And in other news, a gunman is killed after holding students hostage at a Tennessee college.
[WX-Head]
[ANCHOR=Leo]
[SS=None]
Hurriane Isabel is now making landfall I'll show you exactly where she is and where she's going. In your forecast.
(------------------)
[ANCHOR=KIM 2-Shot]

News 7 at Noon starts right now...

[Video-Open]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
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[VO-NAT]

Whether residents decided to pack up and move on, or stay and face the danger-- Hurricane Isabel is making landfall at this hour.
15- foot waves are crashing along the coast of the Outer Banks, and thousands of residents have lost power.
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[Isabel]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]

Good Afternoon, I'm Kimberly McBroom.
The outer bands of Hurricane Isabel are wrapping themselves around the coastlines of Virginia and North Carolina.

Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses are already without power, and that number is expected to keep climbing.
Forecasters say the storm is teetering between Category One and Two.
But the National Hurricane Center says it's still plenty strong enough to pose a ``significant danger'' to the coast.
Stacy Case joins us now from Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, where Isabel is proving to be a bit of a DEVIL herself.
[LIVE=NEWSPATH/FULL]
[SUPER=01-Stacy Case/CBS News;]
[SUPER=05-Kill Devil Hills, NC;]

((ROLLCUE:...))
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Kill Devil Hills, NC;]
[SUPER=01-Nick Nezzi/Hotel Owner;]
[SUPER=01-David Sawyer/Kill Devil Hills Resident;]
[SUPER=05-Kill Devil Hills, NC;]
[RUNS=:00]
[OUT Q=back to you.]

(( TRACK: SHE ANNOUNCED HER ARRIVAL WITH POWERFUL WINDS AND HORIZONTAL RAIN.
NAT: TRACK: HURRICANE ISABEL ...IS POUNDNG HER WAY ALONG NORTH CAROLINA'S OUTER BANKS.
PARTS OF ROOFS AND DEBRIS BLowing THROUGH THE AIR.
SUPER: NICK NEZZI/HOTEL OWNER "WE LOST THE TOP LAYER OF OUR ROOF ON THE TOWER BUILDING..AND HOPEFULLY WE WILL WEATHER THIS THING OUT."

(show the road ray and i shot yesterday)
TRACK: THIS ROAD, SEEN YESTERDAY, WAS GUARANTEED TO WASH AWAY--- BY
THURSDAY MORNING, IT ALREADY HAD.
AFTER WATCHING THIS STORM FOR DAYS...OFFICIALS HOPE MANDATORY EVACUATIONS AND OTHER PRECAUTIONS WILL HOLD DOWN INJURIES AND PROPERTY DAMAGE. BUT SOME HARDY RESDIENTS SAY THEY HAVE THEIR REASONS TO STICK AROUND.
SUPER: DAVID SAWYER/KILL DEVIL HILLS RESIDENT (09:49:50) "WE DECIDED TO STAY SO WE DIDN'T HAVE TO FIGHT ALL THE TRAFFIC GETTING BACK."
NAT: TRACK: FORECASTERS HAVE BEEN WORRIED ABOUT FLOODING ALL ALONG, BUT THEY'RE EVEN MORE CONCERNED BECAUSE ISABEL IS MAKING LANDFALL DURING HIGH TIDE.

SOT: National Hurricane Center

TRACK: FLOODING IS ALSO EXPECTED INLAND AS THE STORM DROPS BUCKETS OF RAIN OVER AN AREA ALREADY SATURATED FROM A RELENTLESSLY WET SUMMER. THURSDAY WILL BE MISERABLE FOR THOSE WHO DECIDED TO STAY. FRIDAY WILL BE BUSY AS THEY BEGIN TACKLE THE ISABEL'S MESS. ))

[Hurricane-Preps]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=]
[TAPE#=1:50:22 on 03-28]
[GRAPHIC=Hurricane Isabel]

Fifty- plus mile per hour winds, falling trees and power outages...that's what Virginia Beach is experiencing as Isabel moves closer.
While it may already be bad, the worst is yet to come.
[VA BEACH DOUBLE BOXES=Kimberly & Meghan/Starlink;]

Meghan Muldoon has covered the storm all week and she joins us live from Virginia Beach.
[LIVE=Meghan Full/Starlink]
[SUPER=@Meghan1;]
[SUPER=05-Virginia Beach;]

Meghan adlibs ((ROLLCUE:...ROLLED FROM TRUCK))
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[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Virginia Beach; :00]
[RUNS=:47]
[OUT Q=it's going to get worse.]

[LIVE=Meghan Full/Starlink]
[SUPER=05-Virginia Beach;]

Meghan adlibs

[DOUBLE BOXES=Kimberly & Meghan/Starlink;]

[State-Tape]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=12 Noon]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=Hold Hurricane]

Emergency response teams are in place throughout Virginia and ready to provide assistance.
At a press briefing this morning, state officials said more than 300-thousand people are currently without power in eastern Virginia.
85 shelters are already open throughout the state and more than 43-hundred people have taken advantage of them.
Virginia's Department of Emergency Management says all residents should still take this storm seriously.
In response to the storm, the Virginia State Police have pre-positioned additional troopers in the eastern part of the state.
The National Guard has also activated more than 200 personnel and positioned them throughout the state.

[Richmond-Storm]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=12 Noon]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=03-39 11:43]
[GRAPHIC=]

The storm is expected to hit the Richmond area pretty hard once it reaches landfall there later this afternoon.
Justin McLeod has more from Central Virginia.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=So far a pretty quiet]
[SUPER=03-Richmond; :00]
[SUPER=@justin1; :08]
[RUNS=:42]
[OUT Q=for News 7 at noon]
((JUSTIN McLEOD: SO FAR A QUIET DAY HERE IN THE RICHMOND AREA. WE'RE SEEING A LIGHT RAIN AND THE WINDS ARE STARTING TO PICK UP BUT NOTHING MAJOR YET. A LOT OF THE BUSINESSES, GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS, AND SCHOOLS ARE ALL SHUT DOWN IN THE COMPLETE AREA. NOW FORECASTERS ARE PREDICTING THAT HURRICANE ISABLE WILL HIT WEST OF RICHMOND SOMETIME TONIGHT BRINGING WITH 70 TO 80 MILES A HOUR WINDS, FIVE TO TEN INCHES OF RAIN AND POSSIBLY TORNADOES. NOW FORECASTERS ARE ALSO BELIEVING WILL BE A TROPICAL ONE ONCE IT REACHES THIS AREA BUT ALL INDICATIONS IT WILL STILL BE A POWERFUL STORM. WE OF COURSE WILL KEEP AN EYE ON IT AND HAVE REPORTS HERE ON NEWS 7. I'M JUSTIN McLEOD, REPORTING FROM RICHMOND FOR NEWS 7 AT NOON.))

[Weaver]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=rle]
[TAPE#=03-41]
[GRAPHIC=]

The highly anticipated matchup between Virginia Tech and Texas A-and-M is still scheduled for tonight, but Isabel could throw a wrinkle in those plans.
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[VO-NAT - :12]
[SUPER=03-College Station, TX/Last Year;]
Earlier this week, Tech athletic director Jim Weaver said it would take "an imminent danger" to Blacksburg to move the game to a later date, and any decision to postpone the contest would come at the last possible moment.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
((JIM WEAVER/VIRGINIA TECH ATHLETIC DIRECTOR; YOU HAVE ANOTHER INSTITUTION THAT HAS TO COME A LONG WAY, YOU HAVE THE TELEVISION CONTRACT THAT PERMEATES THE ENVIRONMENT AS WELL, SO YOU HAVE TO PUT ALL THE FACTORS TOGETHER AND MAKE THE DECISION THAT BEST SUITS THE ENTIRE SITUATION.))
[SUPER=01-Jim Weaver/Virginia Tech Athletic Director;]
[RUNS=19]
[OUT Q=the entire situation.]
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[VO-NAT - :04+]
Once again, kickoff is still slated for 7:30 at Lane Stadium.
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[Tease1] [HARD MUSIC UNDER]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

Coming up next on the newscast, there are reports more Americans have died in Iraq.
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[VO-NAT ]
Plus a hostage situation in Tennessee ends in violence.
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[music up full] [comm1]

[TN-Hostages]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=Net]
[GRAPHIC=None]

A nine- hour standoff at a college in Tennessee ends in the death of the gunman.
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[VO-NAT]

Yesterday 26- year- old Harold Kilpatrick took a dozen students hostage at gunpoint before a SWAT team stormed the building, eventually shooting and killing him.
[SUPER=03-Dyersburg, TN;]

Police say they tried to negotiate with Kilpatrick, and had no other choice.
Kilpatrick's cousin disagrees.
She says police shouldn't have killed Kilpatrick because he has mental problems.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=I don't feel that]
((CAROLYN REED/SUSPECT'S COUSIN: I DON'T FEEL THAT THEY SHOULD HAVE STORMED IN THERE, I MEAN, AND KILL HIM! THIS WAS A MENTAL PATIENT, WHY THEY HANDLE IT, WHY DID THEY HANDLE IT LIKE THAT? I CAN'T UNDERSTAND IT))
[SUPER=01-Carolyn Reed/Suspect's Cousin;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=can't understand it.]
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[VO-NAT]

Two of the hostages were wounded, but their injuries were not life- threatening.
Meanwhile, Kilpatrick had been scheduled to appear in court in Memphis on charges of kidnapping and aggravated assault.
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[Iraq]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=Net]
[GRAPHIC=Iraq]

Again, U-S forces in Iraq are coming under fire in an ambush attack.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Khaldiyah, Iraq;]

According to Arab television, eight Americans were killed today in Khaldiyah, but there's no official confirmation of that.
Four U-S tanks are surrounding a smoldering transport truck, as helicopters hover above.
An Associated Press photographer U-S forces are firing back at random, and that HIS car was shot up.
Khaldiyah is a town in the so-called ``Sunni Triangle'' in central Iraq, the heartland of support for ousted leader Saddam Hussein and the focus of an anti-American sentiment.
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[GM-Deal]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

There's a tentative deal between the United Auto Workers and General Motors-- the last of the Big Three automakers to settle.
The announcement comes from the union and from G-M.
A company spokesman says the deal came after the two sides negotiated late into the night.
The contract covers about 115- thousand employees.
The union reached similar agreements with Ford and DaimlerChrysler earlier in the week.
The previous contracts for all three auto companies had expired Sunday night.

[11NRV-Speedway]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=tha]
[TAPE#=03-40 TC 6:26]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Some local businessmen want to get the New River Valley Speedway back on track. The owners of the Shelor Motor Mile have formed a partnership with the Speedway to breathe new life into the 126 acre site. Teresa Hamilton reports.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=No, as far as]
[SUPER=03-Christiansburg; :12 quick!!!]
[SUPER=03-Pulaski Co./August 9; :26]
[SUPER=01-David Hagan/Shelor Motor Mile; :33]
[SUPER=@teresa2; 1:18]
[RUNS=1:30]
[OUT Q=Hamilton, NEWS 7. ]
(( (///sot///)
[sot 15:55:43]
(( DAVID HAGAN/SHELOR MOTOR MILE: NO, AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED THE NAME WILL BE THE SAME, IT'S THE BEEN THE NEW RIVER VALLEY SPEEDWAY FOREVER AND WE HAVE NO INTEREST IN CHANGING THE NAME OF IT. ))
[runs= :12]
[out q=chaning the name of it. ]

David Hagan and his business partner Larry Shelor say the name may remain the same-- but the overall look of the New River Valley Speedway is slated to change.
The owners of the Shelor Motor Mile have formed a partnership and agreement with the track's managing partner and the three have big plans for the future.
(///sot///)
[sot 15:50:58]
[in q=I think ]
(( DAVID HAGAN/SHELOR MOTOR MILE: I THINK ONCE IT'S RENOVATED, THE NEW TRACK AND THE NEWS STANDS AND NEW FACILITY AND NEW STORAGE AND JUST THE BIG FACE LIFT, IT'S GOING TO COST MORE TO RENOVATE THAN WE'VE PAID.))
[RUNS= 10]
[out q= than we've paid.]
Hagan says they also have another big project in mind for the 10-thousand seat facility. He says attendance over the years has fallen but hopes the face lift and the addition of a new drag strip will pave the way for a full house.
(///sot////)
[sot 15:51:26]
[in q=It's something ]
((DAVID HAGAN/SHELOR MOTOR MILE: IT'S SOMETHING THAT MOST RACERS IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD THE NASCAR CIRCUIT YOU CAN AFFORD TO DRAG RACE, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN HAVE A 200- THOUSAND DOLLAR CAR TO DRAG RACE, OR YOU CAN HAVE A 400 DOLLAR CAR TO DRAG RACE... IF YOU WANT TO. ))
[runs= :20]
[out q= 400 dollar car to drag race... if you want to. ]
Hagan says they still have to complete a site plan to submit to the Pulaski County planning commission for approval. ))
[Tease2] [SOFT MUSIC UNDER]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]

Coming up next,
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[VO-NAT ]
Miss Virginia has already made an impression on the Miss America judges. We'll tell you how after the break.
(-----------------)
[MUSIC UP FULL]
[COMM BREAK #2]

[Miss-Virginia]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Miss Virginia Nancy Redd is already making waves at the Miss America competition.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Last night, Redd won the preliminary swimsuit competition ... and the 2-thousand dollar scholarship that goes with it.
The preliminary competitions help Miss America judges determine their top 15 finalists.
[SUPER=03-Henry Co./August 28;]

Redd is a Laurel Park High School graduate from Henry County.
She'll have plenty of hometown support as she competes in Atlantic City on Saturday night.
More than 500 people from the area have bought tickets to the pageant.
(------------)

[Stocks]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly 2-Shot]
[NEWSCAST=noon]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE# none]
[GRAPHIC=None]

On Wall Street at Noon, the DOW was UP 90 points. The NASDAQ has gained 17.
[super=460-x/90/x/17;]

[tease3] [SPORTS MUSIC UNDER]
[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
Coming up next in the newscast, Virginia Tech shows us what 110 mile per hour winds are really like. [MUSIC UP FULL]
[COMM BREAK #3]

[Wind-Tunnel]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Noon]
[WRITER=tbr]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Now that Hurricane Isabel has approached the coast, its winds have diminished from a high point of a 160 down to about a hundred miles per hour now.
That may have given some coastal residents a false sense of security.
To illustrate what those winds are really like, correspondent David Martin visited the wind tunnel at Virginia Tech.

(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg; :00]
[SUPER=01-David Martin/CBS News;]
[RUNS=1:40]
[OUT Q=in the Wind Tunnel]
((MARTIN: SO THIS IS WHAT'S GOING TO KEEP ME FROM BECOMING A PIECE OF FLYING DEBRIS?
�SOT3/4 STEVE: WELL, WE HOPE SO.

�NARR3/4 GOING INTO THE WIND TUNNEL AT VIRGNIA TECH, IS A SAFE WAY TO EXPERIENCE HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WHICH CAN LITERALLY BLOW YOU AWAY.

�SOT3/4 STEVE: I DON'T THINK SO. YOU'RE GOING TO BE FINE.

�SOT3/4 MARTIN: OKAY WE'RE ALL READY. LETS START IT UP

�GRAPHICS IN -- 30 mph3/4 THIS IS A PRETTY LOW SPEED. THIS IS ONLY 30 MILES AN HOUR. YOU DON'T EVEN START TO BE A HIRRICANE UNTIL YOU GET TO 74 MILES AN HOUR.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 40 mph3/4 40 MILES AN HOUR . . . I THINK THE ONLY REASON YOU CAN HEAR ME IS THAT I'M SCREAMING INTO THIS MICROPHONE.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 50 mph3/4 NOW THAT'S 50 MILES AN HOUR.
OKAY LETS TAKE IT UP.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 60 mph3/4 OKAY NOW THAT'S 60 MILES AN HOUR, STILL NOT HURRICANE SPEED . . . THIS IS GETTING DIFFICULT. I CAN JUST BARELY WALK FORWARD
OKAY LETS TAKE IT UP.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 70 mph PLUS -- SUPERS AT BOTTOM OF SCREEN3/4 70 MILES PER HOUR. I GET NO TRACTION WITH MY FEET. SO THAT'S IT. YOU'RE OUT IN A 70 MILE-AN- HOUR WIND AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO EXCEPT HANG ONTO SOMETHING.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 80 mph -- PLUS SUPERS3/4 NOW THAT'S 80 MILES AN HOUR. NOW WE'RE A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE. I'M TOTALLY DEPENDENT ON THIS HARNESS. IF THAT WEREN'T HOLDING ME HERE I'D BE BACK THERE SOMEWHERE.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 90 mph -- PLUS SUPERS3/4 THAT'S 90 MILES AN HOUR. THAT'S STILL JUST A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE. THIS IS STARTING TO GET PRETTY DARN UNPLEASANT.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 100 mph -- PLUS SUPERS3/4 OKAY THAT'S 100. I CAN'T WALK FORWARD. I CAN'T EVEN PUT MY FOOT UP.
OKAY LETS TRY 10 MORE.
�GRAPHICS IN -- 110 mph -- PLUS SUPERS3/4 THAT'S 110 MILES AN HOUR AND THAT IS A CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE . . . BELIEVE ME YOU DON'T WANT TO BE OUT IN THAT . . . IT JUST FEELS LIKE THE WIND IS RIPPING THE SKIN RIGHT OFF YOUR FACE. �GRAPHICS OUT3/4
OF COURSE THE GOOD THING ABOUT A WIND TUNNEL IS THAT YOU CAN TELL THEM WHEN TO TURN IT OFF AND YOU CAN'T DO THAT IN A HURRICANE. THIS IS DAVID MARTIN AT VIRGINIA TECH IN A WIND TUNNEL.
))
[Quickcast]

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