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By: David Williams, CHSCA Emergency Coordinator

Connection? Answer. Both lose their effectiveness if not used before the critical event. As Virginia Beach readies for the hurricane season, it is time to review or develop a Hurricane Emergency Plan specifically tailored for your family. The residents of Virginia Beach have not been significantly impacted by a hurricane since Isabel gave us a glancing blow in September 2003 delivering Category 1 winds of 74 MPH at the South Island Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel and a 5 foot tidal surge. Many of us watched as the water came up in our yards wondering just how close it would come to our homes. Cape Henry Shores caught a dose of reality as many of us lost electricity, some residents for a few days, for some a week or more. We forget how much we are dependent on electricity in our daily lives until most essential items stop or go dead. Despite being barely a Category 1 hurricane (Saffir-Simpson scale 74-95 MPH) Isabel’s collateral damage left 2 million households without power and caused $625 million in damages. Residents had to cope with the power outage and deal with food spoilage, its proper disposal and the loss of air conditioning. For many, it became an extended camping experience with Coleman stoves and lanterns, coolers, and barbeque grills. We should remind ourselves that Isabel was only a Category 1 and that it could have been much worse.

As we approach hurricane season, ask yourself what you would do if you were told by weather officials that this area was going to be hit by a major Category 3-4 hurricane (131-155 MPH/13-18’ storm surge) in 7 days. How would you start your preparations? (Oh, you also have a daily real life job to perform and your boss wants you to prepare the office for possible damage). For starters, you would need to meet your family’s basic needs; food and water, gas for your car, refill medicine prescriptions, cash at the ATM, find insurance paperwork, prepare your house, new propane bottle for grill, take in lawn furniture, and find a kennel for 80 pound lab Fido, because local shelters do not accept pets, and do a computer backup. Now, compress that previous 7 days of preparation into a more likely 3 days (2 days prep allowing for evacuation to an area shelter no less than 24 hours before the storm’s arrival). If you expect to load supplies, clothing, family, and Fido in the car to evacuate out of the area, expect to leave much earlier.

Without long term planning and a plan, you would have a very difficult time meeting your needs within your timeframe. If you miss in your planning or your timeline compresses too much, you could potentially put yourself and family in a dangerous position of not evacuating soon enough, not able to “shelter in place” in your home because it has not been prepared, provisioned, or lies in an expected flood area and now forced to seek other shelter options. Our city shelters could be very adequate in a minor storm or barely marginal in a major hurricane as more residents would be forced to seek protection there. Evacuating via highways from our CHS area is dangerous if you get caught in the gridlock that would occur as many people inundate the escape routes. As storm conditions worsen, our tunnel at Hampton Roads will be closed to prevent flood damage thereby stopping all traffic. Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is not a designated evacuation route and will also be closed at some point before the storm as winds increase. Evacuating through the Chesapeake HW64 high-rise bridge route would be hazardous if attempted too late. Residents and city planners will face many challenges.

During a recent discussion with a senior Virginia Beach emergency official, I was told that we had little likelihood of being struck by a hurricane because of our geographic position, and that I was putting much effort into something that would probably not happen. While historically correct, this area has suffered major hurricanes including that which formed Willougby Spit (1749) and the “Great Hurricane” (Sept 14, 1944) which had 134 MPH winds/gust to 150 MPH at Cape Henry. Hurricanes are random events brought about by many variable meteorological conditions of water temperature, wind circulation and pressure gradients. These conditions combine to make hurricanes, build them or break them down. Hurricanes neither conform to statistical analysis nor comply with historical schedules.

To deal with the possibility of a hurricane affecting this area, I believe that planning is essential. Hurricane planning gives you time and options. Emergency planning is like a life boat on a cruise ship. Historically rarely used, but priceless when the situation warrants. So, look over your needs and situation. Check out the basic hurricane planning guide in the back of the Cape Henry Shore Directory 2001-2002 (much has changed though), the last published CHSCA Hurricane Preparation and Recovery Plan ( July 2006), or come to the next CHSCA meeting scheduled tentatively for April-May.

DEVELOP YOUR PLAN NOW, and next time you get into your car, consider where you could be without your seatbelt.

David Williams is the President of Safety Net Consulting, an emergency planning company.