Carolinas await Hurricane Ophelia, remember Katrina
WILMINGTON - Hurricane Ophelia sat nearly stationary off the coast of the Carolinas on Sunday, taunting coastal residents made wary by the destruction that Katrina caused along the Gulf Coast.
The storm was more than 200 miles from land with sustained wind of 80 mph, but it was piling up heavy surf that challenged surfers and pounded the beaches. A hurricane watch remained in effect from just north of Edisto Beach, S.C., to North Carolina's Cape Lookout, a stretch of more than 250 miles.
Warning of the possibility of coastal flooding, Gov. Mike Easley sent 200 National Guard soldiers to staging centers in eastern North Carolina and ordered a mandatory evacuation of tourists visiting fragile Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks, reachable only by ferry. Residents of the island were allowed to stay.
With a history of several destructive storms, the county has a well-rehearsed disaster plan. But Katrina, a powerful Category Four hurricane when it devastated Mississippi and Louisiana, was on residents' minds even though Ophelia was only Category One and had been waxing and waning in strength.
By 8 p.m., Ophelia was centered 245 miles southeast of Charleston, S.C., and about 255 miles south of Cape Hatteras with maximum sustained wind at 75 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
TTA, other services work to support hurricane evacuees
The Triangle Transit Authority announced Thursday it has adjusted service to accommodate the more than 340 hurricane victims located at a shelter in Raleigh.
