THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 23, 1994 TAG: 9412230695
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE AND LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITERS
LENGTH: Long : 134 lines
A huge northeaster blew into North Carolina and Virginia overnight, threatening to pummel the coast with near-hurricane-force winds and damaging surf.
It is likely to be dubbed the Christmas Eve Storm - it's not expected to ease its grip on the region before then - and if forecasters are right, it won't soon be forgotten.
``The storm is going to explosively develop off the Virginia Capes and the Outer Banks,'' said Mike Seidel, a meteorologist at The Weather Channel in Atlanta. ``This could easily be the most powerful storm of this winter season, and here we are not even 24 hours into winter.''
The biggest threat will be along the shore, where strong surf stirred up by Hurricane Gordon last month swallowed several homes in North Carolina and ripped up $1.9 million worth of protective bulkheads in Sandbridge.
``Persons with interests near the coast should prepare for the onset of this very dangerous storm,'' said a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, Al Nierow, on Thursday. ``Boaters should stay in port.''
On the Outer Banks, authorities advised residents to stock up on canned goods, keep flashlights handy and locate alternate sources of heat in case the power goes out.
``This is a serious deal,'' Dare County spokesman Charlie Hartig said. ``We cannot underestimate the severity of this storm. People really need to be ready for this one.
``There's going to be serious beach erosion. We'll have flooding from the ocean and sound, but we're not advising evacuation.''
The storm was biting at the Outer Banks by dusk Thursday. At 7 p.m., heavy rain was falling over most of coastal North Carolina. Winds in Elizabeth City were at 25 mph and gusting to 32 mph; in Buxton, they were at 30 mph and gusting to 44 mph.
In Hampton Roads, fog had developed Thursday evening. At 8 p.m., winds were gusting to 31 mph at Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach.
Sustained winds of 50 to 70 mph with higher gusts were likely along the coast overnight and through today, Nierow said Thursday. Sustained winds of 35 to 50 mph with higher gusts are possible over the southern parts of the Chesapeake Bay.
Today, winds could help raise tides 4.5 to 5.5 feet above normal along the Virginia coast and the Bay south of Windmill Point. Seas could build to as high as 20 to 25 feet offshore through today.
Tonight, tides will be 2 to 3 feet above normal along the coast and the Bay.
The result could be significant coastal flooding in Hampton Roads and along Virginia Beach, the weather service said.
``The slow movement of the storm, together with the strong winds, will cause significant coastal flooding, beach erosion and heavy surf,'' Nierow said. ``Conditions will be slow to improve, since the storm will be moving very slowly.''
The greatest threat of coastal flooding will be at the time of high tide, around midday today.
``This could cause significant coastal flooding in the Hampton Roads area,'' the National Weather Service office in Norfolk said.
The storm gathered force east of Georgia late Thursday afternoon. It was forecast to rapidly intensify overnight and move along the coast today. This evening, it should be off the Delmarva coast, where it's expected to stall overnight.
Meanwhile, the clockwise circulation around a high pressure system over New England will couple with the counterclockwise circulation of the storm to rapidly strengthen winds out of the northeast along the coast from Chincoteague to Virginia Beach.
If any homes in Sandbridge are lost to the storm, it will be the first time since the 1970s that the ocean has destroyed a structure in the Beach neighborhood, said Thomas E. Fraim, a resident and chairman of the city's erosion commission. Several homes have been condemned and torn down more recently, however, after storms caused irreparable damage to their septic systems.
Fraim said that as many as six homes are at severe risk because of damage Hurrican Gordon caused to bulkheads last month. As many as nine more are in danger.
The pilings of some of the most vulnerable homes were exposed when surf ate away the sand around them. If more pilings are exposed, strong winds could topple the houses, Fraim said.
He doesn't expect the tides alone to bring down any homes, however.
``More erosion is a given,'' Fraim said. ``We'll get beat up pretty bad.''
And, as with the 1962 Ash Wednesday storm that caused severe damage all along the Virginia Beach coast, this storm is expected to stall.
``A problem that comes with the northeaster is the length of stay,'' Fraim said. ``If it stays one, two or three days, all the water builds up.''
Even folks inland may find getting around a little difficult today.
Because of high winds, traffic may be restricted on some local bridges. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, for instance, routinely restricts trucks and recreational vehicles during periods of unusually high wind.
On the Outer Banks, ferries to and from Ocracoke stop running when winds reach 45 mph.
And ocean overwash could close North Carolina Route 12, the main road through the Outer Banks.
``If we don't lose part of that road, I'd be really surprised,'' said Tommy Tilley, a spokesman for North Carolina's Transportation Department. ``We'll make every effort to keep N.C. 12 open. But I'll probably have to barricade parts of it - in Kitty Hawk, at least.''
To expedite clean-up efforts, transportation officials placed heavy equipment at strategic points along the Outer Banks.
``Last time, during Hurricane Gordon, we couldn't get our equipment to Ocracoke because all the ferries were out,'' said R.V. Owens III, a member of the state transportation board. ``This time, we brought equipment in early so we won't have to work around other road or ferry outages. We've also got the other highway divisions prepared to send additional equipment. And all of our workers are on standby.''
In Virginia Beach, too, officials were gearing up. Police were stationed in Sandbridge, city trucks had been moved into place and crews were alerted to be ready to clean up. ILLUSTRATION: Map
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WATCHES AND WARNINGS
A coastal flood warning through today for the Virginia coast and
the Chesapeake Bay south of Windmill Point, and for the North
Carolina coast from the Virginia line to Cape Lookout and the
Albemarle and Pamlico sounds.
A coastal flood watch from south of Cape Lookout to Little River
Inlet.
A storm warning along the entire Virginia and North Carolina
coast.
A gale warning on the Chesapeake Bay and on the Albemarle and
Pamlico sounds.
A heavy-surf advisory through today along the Virginia coast, for
the Chesapeake Bay south of the James River and from south of Cape
Lookout to Little River Inlet.
A high-wind warning for all of Hampton Roads.
by CNB