Photo reference: The Outer Banks Voice
Twenty years ago when we moved to the Outer Banks, we had three hurricanes in six weeks. What that taught us was to be prepared for a storm! Since then we have been through many hurricanes and “noreasters.” As each storm forms, we watch the weather reports and updates from Dare County and prepare for the storms. We have been very fortunate over the twenty years to have only lost power once. That was with Hurricane Isabell, and it was only for three hours. Sure there are storms where the power flickers on and off but only once where we lost it.
Well, lessons were learned, the hard way. Hurricane Hermine, which made landfall in Florida in September, traveled up the east coast before going out to sea over the Outer Banks. It turns out Tropical Storm Hermine packed more of a punch than anyone thought the Outer Banks would see over Labor Day Weekend. To prepare, we brought in pool cushions, took down the umbrellas, cleaned up the deck furniture and made sure everything was secure. We went to the store to get bottled water, munchies, and food to have in the house for the long holiday weekend.
However, we did not prepare for 48 hours without power. We awoke to no power early Saturday morning. With the wind and rain blowing hard, we stayed inside and called Dominion NC Power to report the outage.
We drove around Saturday afternoon, checking on homes. We did not see any trees or lines down, and there were no power trucks on the street. On Saturday evening we called Dominion NC Power again for an update on when power might be restored. With no idea what the issue was, they indicated maybe by Monday, between 1 pm- 5 pm.
Finally, on Sunday morning a power truck appeared on our street. They discovered the problem but had no idea when we would have power. Thankfully on Sunday evening around 10:30 pm the lights and power came on! Many thanks to Dominion Power and their crews that came in to help everyone on the Outer Banks.
When all was said and done, we ended up throwing away everything in two refrigerators. It was probably time for a good clean out, but I don’t recommend this way to anyone. We’re grateful for our wonderful neighbors across the street who provided us with a charging station for our mobile phones! Thanks, Barbara & Jerry Brown!
So the lesson learned is ALWAYS to be prepared. Take every storm seriously even if the weather forecasters do not. Prepare and be ready, as you never know what will happen with a storm.
Click here to access the Dare County Emergency Management Department hurricane guide.