THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 22, 1995 TAG: 9507220246
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
Severe thunderstorms played havoc with homebound traffic Friday afternoon, stalling the rush hour on almost every major thoroughfare with driving rain, poor visibility, power outages, accidents and flooded streets.
It wasn't even safe in the air.
The red and white Budweiser blimp, which had been cruising local skies Friday afternoon, made a quick and unscheduled landing at Norfolk International Airport as storms moved in.
The blimp was safely tethered just before 4 p.m. as the storm let loose with scores of lightning strikes, torrential rains and gusty winds around the airport.
Crew members huddled under the blimp as it hovered a few feet above the grass in a field near the airport's general aviation terminal. But even its immense size didn't spare them from the wind-driven rain.
Nearby, people were drier but almost as immobile as traffic slowed to a crawl and finally stalled on Interstate 64 and Military Highway.
At the height of the storm, visibility dropped to less than a tenth of a mile and traffic slowed to 30 mph in both directions on I-64 - at least in areas where it was moving at all.
Traffic heading to the Peninsula and points west through the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel was backed up bumper to bumper to Tidewater Drive, with motorists facing a delay of an hour or more. Folks heading east stalled as much as a mile ahead of the interchange with I-264 and the Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway.
Military Highway offered no relief for motorists who exited the interstate. It was a virtual parking lot from Robin Hood Road in Norfolk to Providence Road - in both directions - because of a combination of several accidents, heavy traffic and construction.
The Monitor-Merrimac Bridge-Tunnel offered some relief, but traffic was moderate to heavy there through some of the rush hour, especially for drivers heading to South Hampton Roads.
Things were no better in downtown Norfolk, where traffic at both the Downtown and Midtown tunnels was slow and heavy. And folks who might normally have said to heck with it and simply parked and wandered over to Town Point Park for TGIF were disappointed, too.
Because of the stormy weather and expectations of more storms, Friday evening's FM99 River Rocks Concert featuring the Marshal Tucker band was canceled.
Getting into downtown Norfolk on I-264 was also difficult, thanks to accidents that stalled traffic back to Military Highway.
Virginia Power reported about 3,000 customers without service, mostly in Virginia Beach, where power outages left several major intersections without traffic lights, forcing police officers to take up traffic control duties.
Among the intersections affected was the Northampton Boulevard and Diamond Springs Road crossing and several interchanges along Princess Anne Road. The lights also were out at Shore Drive and Independence Boulevard.
Police reported several accidents, most of them minor. In most cases, police said, the heavy rain and slick roads were contributing factors.
One unidentified trucker, apparently stuck in traffic on I-64 heading toward the Peninsula, summed it all up with a single frustrated observation on his CB radio: ``The only thing I see moving out here are the sea gulls.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by CHRISTOPHER REDDICK, Staff
A red and white Budweiser blimp was safely tethered just before the
storm let loose with lightning strikes, torrential rains and gusty
winds around Norfolk International Airport.
by CNB