Plan Before Storms To Secure Home. Evacuate To Shelter
BY SUSAN USHER
When a hurricane threatens, most
coastal residents in its expected path
need to do two things: secure their
homes; and, if asked to evacuate, re
treat to safer shelter.
Judging by past storms, most
South Brunswick Islands visitors
head directly for home, according to
Brunswick County Emergency
Management Coordinator Cecil
Lxjgan.
Area residents are encouraged to
take shelter with family members or
friends who live outside the evacua
tion area. Many seek shelter in their
local churches, though those facili
ties are not approved shelters and do
not receive county support before,
during or after a hurricane ? includ
ing liability protection.
But Brunswick County opens at
least 10 public shelters of its own,
using the facilities of the Brunswick
County Schools (see list).
When it comes to responding to a
hurricane threat, Brunswick County
considers itself to be one of the best
prepared of North Carolina's coastal
counties. It has an extensive re
sponse system in place that involves
all county employees, the public
schools, fire and rescue volunteers,
and American Red Cross personnel.
While local beach communities
work very well with county officials
when Brunswick County
Commissioners recommend evacua
tion of barrier islands, during past
storms not everyone has left the
beach.
"We never have had KM) percent
evacuation of the islands, "said
Logan. "We always have one or two
to stay."
The county only recommends
evacuation; to what degree it is en
forced is left to the towns and varies
from island to island. "Generally, if
someone chooses to stay on an is
land." said Ixigan, "what happens is
the officers ask for personal data:
name, address, next of kin. That's
pretty much all we can do."
When evacuation is advised in
Brunswick County, it applies not on
ly to barrier island beach communi
ties, but also other coastal areas,
low-lying areas subject to heavy
flooding, and to all mobile or pre
fabricated-type homes.
"We try before we make a deci
sion, to use all available informa
tion," said Logan, tapping state and
national resources such as personal
contacts at the National Hurricane
Center in Coral Gables, Fla.
Campgrounds are asked to evacu
ate early, under watch conditions,
because slow-moving vehicles can
turn local roadways into bottlenecks
during an evacuation.
Evacuation is ordered in time for
all parties to leave the barrier islands
safely ? before high tides or high
winds make the pontoon bridge at
Sunset Beach impassable and before
gale-force winds begin buffeting the
high-rise bridges to the Oak Island
beaches, Ocean Isle Beach and
Holden Beach. "Once you reach
gale-force winds, the bridges really
aren't safe to travel," said Logan. "If
someone chooses to stay on the is
land, they will have to stick it out.
You can't leave during the eye of the
storm and expect to get to safety.
The storm moves too quickly and
that wind can blow a vehicle off the
bridge."
While the state guideline is 8'/*
hours lead time in Brunswick
County, Logan said local officials
know that during the fall "fishing
season," evacuation can be complet
ed in as little as 4'A hours.
"We've done it," he said. "That
gives us a four-hour margin of error
this time of year in addition to the
fudge factor built into the computer
models themselves."
Under A Watch
Those who fare best when a hurri
cane threatens are those who have
planned ahead, who know what
steps to follow and are ready to act
quickly and calmly.
Logan especially recommends ad
vance planning for any elderly or ill
family member who may need spe
cial care, such as oxygen. Some area
nursing or rest homes will agree in
w
Brunswick County Shelters
Here are Brunswick County's existing shelters and the areas they
generally serve:
?Union Elementary School, Union School Road ? Ocean Isle to
Calabash;
?Shallotte Middle School, Village Road ? part of Ocean Isle Beach,
Shallotte and Shallotte Point;
?West Brunswick High School, N.G 130 West ? Holden Beach,
plus the areas listed above;
?Waccaraaw School, Waccamaw School Road, Ash ? overflow fa
cility for those heading away and unable to continue on because of high
winds, torrential rainfall or flooded roadways;
?Southport Elementary, West Ninth Street, Southport ? Oak Island,
Bald Head island and Southport;
?South Brunswick Middle, Cougar Road, Boiling Spring Lakes ?
same;
?South Brunswick High. Cougar Road. Boiling Spring Lakes ?
same;
?North Brunswick High, Leland Middle ?nd Lincoln Primary in the
Leland area also handle evacuees from the Southport-Oak Island area.
advance to accept such individuals
on an as-needed basis. Logan has
contacts in other counties he works
with as well.
When a hurricane watch is issued,
it means a hurricane is possible
within 24 to 36 hours. Logan said
that means it is time to:
?check batteries, prescription
medication and other supplies;
?stock up on water, bottled and
otherwise. Fill up bathtubs, sinks,
buckets, clean milk jugs, clean trash
cans, pots and pans. If electrical
power is slow to be restored, or wa
ter sources contaminated, you'll
need all the water you can provide
for drinking, food preparation, flush
ing toilets and washing.
?fuel vehicles;
Vnake sure the family boat is
sheltered, cither in storage or in safe
harbor;
?secure loose items outdoors,
such as lawn chairs;
?obtain a re-entry permit (avail
able at town hall) if you live in a
barrier island town. This permit
must be presented to guards in order
to return to the island after the
storm. This is a precaution aimed at
protecting the owner's or renter's
property from looting and vandal
ism.
?board windows to protect the
glass, or tape to prevent shattered
glass creating a hazard.
Under A Warning
When a watch is upgraded to a
warning ? which means a hurricane
is expected within 24 hours ? it's
time to get ready to leave, said
Logan.
He recommends that property
owners or renters:
?Cut off all fuel sources, such as
LP gas, natural gas or heating oil,
outside the house.
?Pull the main electrical breaker
for the house. Most likely the power
company is going to cut the power
off. However, pulling the breaker re
duces the potential for fire inside
your home when electrical service is
restored, should there be downed
power lines.
?Close doors and windows.
?Leave. Take pets to the kennel
(prearrange) and travel to your shel
ter of choice by a route you've
planned in advance, taking into ac
count the possibility of flooding in
low-lying areas.
Going To A County Shelter?
They provide temporary shelter,
not comfort. That's the thing to re
COORDINATING HURRICANE RESPONSE
Increased Public
BY SUSAN USHER
If South Brunswick Islands area
residents were ever complacent
about the potential threat of a major
hurricane, that's certainly not true
today
Cecil Logan, Brunswick County's
emergency management coordina
tor, rates the
awareness of lo
cal residents as
"high," citing
response to
Emily's threat
ening passage as
a good example.
He's glad of
it because when
the public is co
operative it ? LOGAN
makes his job ? coordinating local
response to protect lives and proper
ty ? easier.
Catching our attention: The feroc
ity of Hurricane Hugo, which
caused $6 billion in property dam
age in South Carolina in 1989, and
Hurricane Andrew, which caused
$18 billion in damage in Florida
alone last year.
Hugo made landfall 150 miles to
the south, near McClellanville, S.C.,
yet $7 million in damage claims was
paid in Brunswick County. Damage
was even more telling from a fierce
winter storm with hurricane-force
winds that struck March 13. Claims
totaled $23 million.
The damage from Hugo was an
eye-opener.
"It's not supposed to happen. We
were not supposed to get that kind
of damage, but it happened," said
Logan. "It shook everybody up ? the
federal people, the date people ?
when I showed them the video (tak
en from a local pier during the
storm). Now they are rethinking
their scenarios."
Data from the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers' updated hurricane
Awareness Of Th
modeling program should be avail
able for Brunswick County by mid
September. The new data should re
flect Brunwswick County's unique
coastal configuration ? beaches with
an east-west alignment, lying within
the curvature of the Long Bay.
Now that emergency managers
have the public's attention, they
want to keep it. For Logan, that
boils down to a simple approach:
"We try not to overreact to any situ
ation, but try to maintain a calm,
collective outlook. We take it step
by step."
That increased public awareness
of the threat posed by hurricanes
could be very important over the
coming decade.
The National Weather Center and
other students/observers of tropical
cyclones warn that changing weath
er conditions point to a future return
to the frequencies of hurricane activ
ity experienced during the 1940s
through 1960s.
For the past two decades major
hurricanes striking the United States
coast have been less frequent than
for the three previous decades.
Storm activity is expected to con
tinue slightly below average again
this hurricane season, which began
June 1 and continues through Nov.
30.
However an increase in both the
number and severity of hurricanes in
the Atlantic basin is expected in
coming decades.
A leading hurricane expert,
Professor William Gray of the
Department of Atmospheric
Science, Colorado State University,
has predicted six named storms
(tropical disturbances that intensify
to tropical storm status, with rotary
circulation and wind speeds above
39 mph), with three expected to
threaten the East Coast. He doesn't
predict how many will actually
make landfall.
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_ CI WO ! ME BRUNSWICK BtACON _
reat Considered P
"But the severity of the storms is
greater than they have been," said
Logan.
Gray bases his predictions on four
factors, giving weight to rainfall pat
terns and temperatures in West
Africa, where drought has ended
and one region appears to be enter
ing a wet period like that of 1947
69. He also looks at the relative
strength of El Nino, a warm-weather
pattern; barometic pressure in the
Caribbean basin and the direction of
equatorial winds at two levels of the
atmosphere.
Since June there have been five
named storms, Arlene, Bret, Cindy,
Dennis and Emily. Any future
storms will be named in alphabetical
order from a list that still includes:
Floyd, Gert, Harvey, Irene, Jose,
Katrina, Lenny, Maria, Nate, Ophe
lia, Philippe, Rita, Stan, Tammy,
Vince and Wilma.
September and October are the
peak hurricane months along the
coast of the Carolinas, with seawater
temperature a player in the overall
picture.
"Whether we have a quick cool
ing off will make a difference," said
Logan. "If we maintain high water
temperature that serves almost like a
magnet for a hurricane. It draws bad
weather."
lus By Manager
Hurricanes are rated in strength
according to the Saffir/Simpson
scale of 1 to 5. A Category 5 hurri
cane has never made landfall in
North Carolina. The most intense
hurricane in North Carolina was
Hurricane Hazel, Category 4. It
made landfall in Brunswick County
on Oct. 15, 1954, with a storm tide
of 18 feet at Calabash and winds of
up to 150 mph.
"We've been real fortunate in that
we have had some hurricanes in re
cent years but we have not had the
storm surge," said Logan.
Left-Turn Lane
Proposed At Ash
State of a Section of
Shingletree Road isn't the only
action at Friday's State Board of
Transportation meeting expected
to be well received in Brunswick
County.
Also on the agenda is approval
of a center left-turn lane on N.C.
130 at its intersection with
Waccamaw School Road (S.R.
1330) and Longwood Road (S.R.
1321).
That public safety project is
expected to cost $68,215.
Pre-Kindergarten Services Offered By Five Schools
Five Brunswick County schools
will provide either home- or school
based pre-kindergarten services this
year to eligible four-year-old chil
dren.
Union Elementary in Shallotte
and Lincoln Primary in Leland will
serve approximately 18 children
each in school-based programs.
Home-based services will be of
fered by Waccamaw, Supply and
Bolivia elementary schools. In this
model a certified teacher will visit
the child's home each week to pro
vide activities and experiences that
are important for school readiness.
Any parents whose child will be
age 4 by Oct. 16 may register their
children for screening by Sept. 8.
Additional information and regis
tration forms are available at each
participating school or by contacting
Patricia Ward, Chapter 1 director,
754-9282 or 457-5241.
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member if you're contemplating go
ing to a county -operated. Red Cross
approved public shelter in a local
school.
You won't find the comforts of a
cheap motel room, much less of
home.
All county shelters generally open
at approximately the same time in
advance of a storm. If school is in
session, classes are dismissed in
time for students to return to their
homes and evacuate with their fami
lies, and for staffs to ready the shel
ters.
Each school is staffed by the
school principal, the head custodian
and the cafeteria manager, plus law
enforcement officers, personnel
from the Brunswick County De
partment of Social Services and a lo
cal "ham" radio enthusiast from the
Brunswick County Amateur Radio
League, which provides a vital com
munications link.
"If the power goes out and the
telephones go out, those folks will
still be operating," said Logan.
Thus year Logan is arranging with
the Brunswick County Parks and
Recreation Department to provide
staff members or volunteers to help
maintain morale in the shelters by
planning activities such as games.
If electricity goes out there are
backup generators at each site,
maintained and operated by school
system personnel, that provide
enough power "to run the lights, a
TV and the coffee pot," said Logan.
As an extra safety precaution dur
ing the actual passage of the storm,
evacuees will be moved into hall
ways and classrooms, away from
outside doors and windows and the
big-roofed area of the gymnasium or
cafeteria.
What To Take, Not Take
Carry only approved items inside
the shelter and prepare for a stay of
up to three days.
Approved items include the fol
lowing:
?blankets;
?jugs of drinking water (one gal
lon per person per day);
?important legal papers such as
identification, deed, insurance, etc.,
? prescribed medications;
?provisions for infants;
?games, etc. to keep children en
tertained.
Other items that you might need
immediately after the storm can re
main in your vehicle. Logan recom
mends making a videotape or photo
graphic inventory of any special col
lections, such as guns, jewelry or
crystal.
Any items brought into a public
shelter are subject to search by law
enforcement officers on duty at each
shelter.
Items that may not be brought:
?alcoholic beverages of any kind;
?coolers;
?food (other than infant formula,
etc.). Food will be provided as soon
as possible.
?weapons.
?pets. Make arrangements in ad
vance for your animals. If a pet is
brought to a shelter, it will be placed
in the temporary care of Brunswick
County Animal Control and remain
in a truck or portable animal shelter
outside the building.
Golf Courses Join
Marketing Program
Six Brunswick County golf cours
es have joined forces with Corporate
Sports Incentives (CSI) of Merri
mack, N.H., for a national marketing
program.
Carolina Shores, Lockwood
Links, Brick landing Plantation,
The Pearl, Ocean Harbour and Sea
Trail Plantation are participating in
CSI's nationwide Universal Golf
Ticket program.
The program currently works
with 500 golf courses across North
America, including 12 in North
Carolina, according to a CSI news
release.
CSI sells Universal Golf Tickets
to corporations, which distribute
them to employees, in business deals
and as part of consumer promotions.
Recipients can use the tickets for
free rounds of golf at participating
courses, and the courses remit the
tickets to CSI for payment.
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