"THE BIG ONES"...

It seems that long time Carolina residents always have stories to tell about famous hurricanes. Naturally, if you live in a coastal community long enough, you're going to experience tropical weather of some kind. As I get older, I realize that I've gained a few memories of my own.

One of the first storms I remember is Diana, back in 1984. I was very young, still living with a fear of severe weather that stemmed from my experiences in the Carolinas Tornado Outbreak of that same year. Hurricane Diana was one of the classic "drunkard" storms. After staggering aimlessly off the coast for days, she eventually came ashore near Bald Head. It was mainly just a rain event for my hometown of Mount Olive, but Brunswick County residents dealt with much stronger winds and high seas.

Then came Gloria in 1985, a powerful storm that mostly spared southeastern NC (the full brunt of the storm would be felt from Hatteras northward into New England). In fact, coastal North Carolina had quite a few "close calls" during the 1980's. Who can forget Hugo? For a time, it looked as though our area would feel the full impact of the Category 4 level winds, but Hugo eventually turned westward and slammed the Charleston area. Still, it was Hugo that taught us that even western Carolina residents are not immune from hurricanes. Hugo moved swiftly inland and spread hurricane force conditions into Charlotte, catching some folks by surprise.

And then came the 90's. For my generation, there were 2 "benchmark" hurricanes- Fran and Floyd. Hurricane Fran was the first major hurricane to directly landfall in our area since Hazel in the 1950's. A strong Category 3 storm, Fran demolished my Aunt's home- despite the fact that she lived nearly 100 miles away from the coast! I was still a meteorologist in training back then, balancing my time between the forecasting office of NC State and the family farm in Mount Olive. I was also dating my wife Sharon at the time- I can still remember navigating a sea of downed trees to reach her family farm the day after the storm hit.

One little known fact about hurricanes is that the weather is usually extremely hot after the storm passes. We spent a week cleaning-up our farm in 100 degree heat, only to come home in the evening to no electricity. Of course, any time we hinted at complaining, my parents would remind us of the days when they didn't have electricity in the first place.

It would be only a few short years before Floyd slammed into our shores, reminding us that rain can be just as deadly as wind. Floyd would be my first major test as a broadcast meteorologist at WWAY. I remember hauling camera cables through the pouring rain. I think I slept a grand total of 5 hours over a 3 day stretch. Our station employees slept on cots in the sales offices, as many of the roadways home were underwater. Essentially, we all had a week-long sleep-over in the studio- surviving off bread, peanut butter, and canned fruit. Still, we were all blessed to be safe and healthy through the storm.

Chances are, I'll be adding a few more memories as the years progress. That's the beauty of the Cape Fear area- the weather is always changing- sometimes for the better, sometimes not...