The “Hurricane Harveys” of Wilmington’s past

The news of Harvey’s destruction in Texas is devastating, but over the course of Wilmington’s centuries of existence, the city is no stranger to the devastation experienced by those in Houston.

Due to its placement on the East Coast, Wilmington has been hit by a number of tropical cyclones, and while the vast majority do not inflict the damage that Harvey did to Houston, Hurricanes Floyd, Fran and Hazel were some of the worst of the storms that did.

Hurricane Floyd, 1999

Floyd hit the East Coast Sept. 16, 1999, just ten days after Hurricane Dennis, causing many fatalities and billions of dollars in damage.

According to NASA’s Earth Observatory, its eye contained winds blowing up to 130 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane, though it was much larger than the typical Atlantic hurricanes.

It first struck with nearly 20 inches of rain over the first 12 hours. This rain, in addition to the rain received by Dennis, caused the overflowing of rivers and creeks, which added tremendously to the flooding in Wilmington.

With the rain came many tornadoes spawned by the massive storm. There were over 15 in North Carolina, and around four were seen specifically in Wilmington, noted by Albert Pietrycha and Christina Hannon, two professors from the Department of Meteorology at Pennsylvania State University. In total, Floyd damaged over 65,000 homes and nearly 12,000 businesses.

Hurricane Fran, 1996

Just three years prior to Floyd was Hurricane Fran. Upon reaching the Cape Fear region the evening of Sept. 5, 1996, Fran’s winds were reaching up to 115 mph, as said by the National Weather Service. During that time, eastern North Carolina was still recovering from Hurricane Bertha, which struck July 1996.

The beaches of New Hanover and Brunswick counties began evacuating the previous evening, asking for residents to be cleared out by noon on Sept. 5.

UNCW evacuated campus, requesting students to leave until the passing of the storm.

Fran pushed the tides as high as 12 feet from Carolina Beach to Wrightsville Beach and all the way to Topsail Island. The high water levels and heavy winds destroyed much of the beaches.

Fran knocked out electricity for over 1 million people. Most of the homes in Wilmington were damaged. Galloway Hall at UNCW lost a portion of its roof and sustained significant water damage. Even after Fran left, there continued to be a 10 p.m. curfew for Wilmington.

Wrightsville, Kure and Carolina Beaches were all completely closed. One significant loss for Wrightsville Beach was the annihilation of the original Johnny Mercer’s pier built in the 1930s. The official Wrightsville Beach website notes that the pier was rebuilt with concrete between 1999 and 2002.

Fran’s damages were colossal. It destroyed over 8 million acres of forests, littered the beaches, leaked raw sewage into the ocean and caused over $7 billion in damage. In 2017 dollars, the damage amounts to almost $11 billion. Fran was one of the worst hurricanes to hit the East Coast since Hurricane Hazel, which hit Wilmington in October 1954.

Hurricane Hazel, 1954

The National Weather Service writes that Hurricane Hazel was “the deadliest and costliest hurricane of the 1954 hurricane season and is the strongest and only Category 4 hurricane to ever hit the North Carolina coast.”

After forming east of the Wayward Islands on Oct. 5, 1954, Hazel blew through the Caribbean where it gradually turned northeast across Haiti. As it began growing into a Category 3, a low pressure system from the Mississippi Valley sent it over the Bahamas.

Hazel took nine days to reach Wilmington, striking on the morning of Oct. 15. A case study by Michael Strickler, Douglas Schneider and Jonathan Blaes, on behalf of the National Weather Service, noted that upon hitting ground near the North Carolina/South Carolina border, Hazel was a Category 4 hurricane, with winds reaching a maximum of 150 mph. Wilmington was hit with winds almost as high as 100 mph.

Wrightsville beach took considerable damage, as around 90 houses were destroyed and over 150 were damaged. There was over $130 million in damage across North Carolina alone, which amounts to around $1.2 billion in 2017 dollars. In North Carolina, there were 19 deaths and 200 injuries.

After North Carolina, Hazel continued through Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and into Canada, lasting about three more days.

How to be hurricane-prepared

Throughout Wilmington’s history there have been over 10 recorded hurricanes that registered as a Category 3 or 4. Due to Wilmington’s placement and the potential to experience such storms again, it is incredibly important to know how to be prepared.

Make sure to have flashlights, batteries, portable phone chargers, and even a hand-crank radio on hand, just in case. Have a plan for evacuation ready, and do not forget about your pets.

Put anything important and irreplaceable, like photos or necessary documents, in a waterproof bag or container and up high to avoid water in case of flooding.

If evacuation isn’t necessary, then focus on preparing to be without power for at least a week, if not more. Canned goods and jugs of water—or any other food that does not need to be refrigerated or cooked—are two main things to snag from the grocery store.

Also, be aware of any places that could offer shelter or food during the storm. While it is not safe to be out in a hurricane, it is important to know where to find essential resources.

Go to the store on the earlier side to get a few items, maybe two jugs of water and a few food items. This will help you avoid being left wandering grocery store aisles that have been emptied in the panic of the storm.

Finally, do not forget to be aware of the hurricane season’s developments every year and prepare for any major storms that may come Wilmington’s way.