So here we be! An evacuation has been ordered. And as dangerous category 4 Hurricane Matthew threatens to insert itself into the Carolina coast like a great meteorological suppository, it won’t be long before the official National Weather Service hurricane warning will be issued. As if our adrenalin wasn’t already elevated to a staggering degree, they’ll use that urgent tone to advise, “All preparations to secure life and property should be rushed to completion.”
Hurricane preparations (what I call “Preparation H”) began here on Ocracoke two days ago as folks began to haul out the plywood for boarding windows, haul out their trailerable boats, and break out the extra cordage and fenders for boats too big to haul out.
“What are you going to do?” is the question heard everywhere. Usually the answer is, “I don’t know … if it looks like a category 4 or 5…” That’s usually followed by, “I’m outa here!” Good thinking! While I’ve personally experienced several hurricanes on the lower end of the Saffir-Simpson scale and even rode out Hurricane Hugo in 1989 a little north of where the eye came ashore in South Carolina, I’ve known many people who rode out Andrew in motels in Homestead, Florida as the roofs were blown off right over their heads. They all suffered PTSD for months afterward and none said they’d ever do it again.
It’s been on-again-off-again with Matthew’s projected path and, so far today, the outlook is much better for us here in the outer banks. All the computer models seem in agreement that the storm will make a sharp loop to the right sometime tomorrow and Friday off the South Carolina coast. The weird part, however, is that many of them expect it to make a complete circle, pounding the Bahamas and Florida for a second round before possibly taking aim on us again!
With all the NE winds we’ve been having, the tides are already rising and the sound and creeks are beginning to engorge. If the swelling persists, this could become painful!
Editor's note: Team "Preparation H" took 2nd place at Trivia Night!
