thedrifter
09-14-05, 06:21 AM
Carolina bases brace for Ophelia’s brunt
By Christian Lowe
Times staff writer
Marine bases in North Carolina were bracing for violent weather Tuesday afternoon as tropical storm Ophelia churned its way toward the coast. Both Marine Corps Air Station New River and Camp Lejeune began preparations for evacuating base residents to nearby hurricane shelters and started staging emergency supplies.
The move comes as the federal government faces stinging criticism over its perceived slow disaster-relief response after Hurricane Katrina left a swath of destruction along the Gulf Coast.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Ophelia was packing maximum sustained winds of 70 mph with higher gusts, according to the National Weather Service. The storm was about 125 miles south of Wilmington, N.C., and was moving slowly toward the north-northwest at 4 mph.
Both Camp Lejeune and New River issued statements Tuesday to base personnel to begin preparations for evacuation and announcing the activation of special teams to deal with potential damage. New River activated its “destructive weather operations center” while Lejeune stood up its “base operations center.”
“During the course of a destructive weather event, the base operations center will initiate actions across the base in preparation for potential landfall of a storm,” the Camp Lejeune news release stated. “Essential personnel have been recalled and are manning shelters and key operations centers on the base.”
Residents were issued guidance on shelter locations and urged to assemble a “family disaster kit” and prepare their homes for high winds and flooding.
“Station personnel and families living on or off station are encouraged to tune into local TV and radio stations or call the Camp Lejeune information line … to stay abreast of changing weather conditions aboard Camp Lejeune and New River Air Station,” a New River statement said.
The National Weather Service has issued a hurricane warning from South Santee River, S.C., to Cape Lookout, N.C.
Ellie
By Christian Lowe
Times staff writer
Marine bases in North Carolina were bracing for violent weather Tuesday afternoon as tropical storm Ophelia churned its way toward the coast. Both Marine Corps Air Station New River and Camp Lejeune began preparations for evacuating base residents to nearby hurricane shelters and started staging emergency supplies.
The move comes as the federal government faces stinging criticism over its perceived slow disaster-relief response after Hurricane Katrina left a swath of destruction along the Gulf Coast.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Ophelia was packing maximum sustained winds of 70 mph with higher gusts, according to the National Weather Service. The storm was about 125 miles south of Wilmington, N.C., and was moving slowly toward the north-northwest at 4 mph.
Both Camp Lejeune and New River issued statements Tuesday to base personnel to begin preparations for evacuation and announcing the activation of special teams to deal with potential damage. New River activated its “destructive weather operations center” while Lejeune stood up its “base operations center.”
“During the course of a destructive weather event, the base operations center will initiate actions across the base in preparation for potential landfall of a storm,” the Camp Lejeune news release stated. “Essential personnel have been recalled and are manning shelters and key operations centers on the base.”
Residents were issued guidance on shelter locations and urged to assemble a “family disaster kit” and prepare their homes for high winds and flooding.
“Station personnel and families living on or off station are encouraged to tune into local TV and radio stations or call the Camp Lejeune information line … to stay abreast of changing weather conditions aboard Camp Lejeune and New River Air Station,” a New River statement said.
The National Weather Service has issued a hurricane warning from South Santee River, S.C., to Cape Lookout, N.C.
Ellie