THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 9, 1995 TAG: 9507060223
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 49 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CATHERINE KOZAK
CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 124 lines
THERE ARE those who study for weeks before an exam and shop months before Christmas. And then there are others who cram at the last moment before a test and rush to the malls on Christmas Eve.
Equally opposing approaches are taken by people preparing for a hurricane.
An informal survey conducted recently in recognition of North Carolina's Hurricane Preparedness Week July 2-9 found that despite the Outer Banks' naked vulnerability to hurricanes and this year's predictions of a wicked season, year-round residents indicate emergency planning is, ultimately, at the mercy of human nature.
The hurricane season begins in June and ends in November, and is most active in August and September.
Accounts of textbook hurricane preparation - emergency stores of food, water and supplies, lists of valuables, a predetermined family evacuation plan - were rare.
``Don't ask me - I'm terrible,'' said Nags Head resident Jean Abbott, 78, who admitted she has no emergency supplies on hand. But then again, she's got no plans to stick around the barrier islands if a hurricane turns this way. ``I will get off, believe me.''
Joyce Sledge has lived here 25 years and was born and raised in Miami, Fla., another hurricane hotspot.
``I pick up things that are scattered around the yard,'' the Kill Devil Hills resident said, ``but other than that, I kinda depend on peanut butter.''
It's not that permanent residents dismiss the destructive power of a hurricane, it's that they have gotten so used to sitting out squalls and nor'easters that they learned to take even the prospect of a hurricane in stride, one woman explained.
``The true locals . . . yeah, you have flashlights and you have food around and stuff, but you don't flee the beach,'' said Valerie Crew, 22, a lifelong resident of the Outer Banks. ``A nor'easter can do as much damage. Locals are so used to storms around here.''
Several residents said if a hurricane did indeed look like it intended to slam into the Banks, they would then run to the store. And maybe, if it sounded severe, they would leave. Maybe.
``We take (hurricane warnings) seriously,'' said Geri Hutchins, a Southern Shores resident, ``but we don't panic and run off the island.'' Hutchins, who with her husband co-owns The Country Deli in Nags Head, said they theorize they're close enough to the Wright Memorial Bridge to watch and see how the storm will develop. ``Ninety-five percent of the time, it's not as bad as they've projected,'' added Bill Hutchins.
Hutchins said he's got some tape around, and he basically knows where his valuables are, but he theorizes that with today's weather warning system, there's plenty of time to buy emergency provisions and fill jugs and tubs with water.
Most of the 700 year-round Ocracoke residents, on the other hand, are less casual about hurricane preparedness, being completely dependent on ferries and boats if they need to evacuate. ``We always take precautions,'' said Charlie O'Neill, owner of O'Neill's Dockside Charters and Tackle Shop in Ocracoke. He said he always has stocks of food and candles on hand and watches storms carefully.
Then there's the other side of the spectrum: the surfers who thrive on the storm swells after hurricanes, and partiers whose idea of hurricane preparation consists only of getting to the liquor store before it closes.
``I know a lot of people who'd wanna stay,'' said Matt Norris, 22, a Richmond resident who has worked summers here for years. ``I'd pay money to sit through one. . .I mean, I'm sure they're deadly, but you can't go through life worrying about them.''
But David Stick, local historian and author of ``The Ash Wednesday Storm'' and other books, said hurricane preparedness has taken on a critical importance since the boom in development along the coast and the accompanied increase in population and tourism. To put things in perspective, Stick, 75, related how his father built a house on the beach in Kill Devil Hills in 1936. It was at that time the first and only permanent home in the area.
Prior to the 1930s, Outer Bankers had little warning about hurricanes, Stick said. ``They knew it was a storm when it hit them,'' he said drily. People used to go to higher ground, or board up their houses and wait it out. They had little other choice. But now, with so many tourists, it has become necessary to get as many people off the islands as fast as possible.
Stick said if a storm wasn't too severe, he'd batten up his Kitty Hawk house and wait it out at a neighbor's house who lives at a less vulnerable location. And now that he's older, ``if a bad one comes up our way, I might go.''
A ``bad'' storm - prolonged winds over 110 mph - hasn't hit North Carolina in over 40 years, said Wally DeMaurice, official in charge at Cape Hatteras National Weather Service. But he said he has no reason not to take dire warnings about the current season seriously - predictions have been for up to 10 Atlantic hurricanes, and of those three will be major storms. Major hurricanes are ranked as Category 3 (111-130 mph), Category 4 (131-155 mph) or Category 5 (155+mph).
DeMaurice warned that although most deaths and damages from hurricanes are caused by storm surges and flooding, structural damage of homes is a very real risk in any major hurricane. He said most homes on pilings can withstand only up to 110 mph winds.
``We will always have diehards that refuse to leave, but any intelligent person will know better than to be in (a hurricane's) path.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
In the aftermath of Hurricane Emily in 1994, beachgoers explore a
home undermined from severe erosion.
BEING PREPARED
A hurricane watch is isued when there is a threat of hurricane
conditions within 24-36 hours.
During a watch:
Turn on a battery-operated radio to get the latest emergency
information.
Fuel car.
Check emergency supplies.
Bring in outdoor objects such as lawn furniture, toys, garden
tools.
Secure garage and entry doors.
Review your evacuation plan.
Moor boat securely or move to a designated safe place. Check with
the Coast Guard on boat safety specifics.
Use rope or chain to secure boat to trailer. Use tie-downs to
anchor trailer to ground or house.
Source: American Red Cross
by CNB