[Constitution Day]

[MEG33]

May the tiger become a kitten...Prayers for all in the storm path.

[Catspaw]

I just heard this on Fox News.

I wonder if there'll be a C or D cell battery available in Virginia by tomorrow.

[CholeraJoe]

Virginia Attorney General announces random roadblocks to search for illegal weapons.

[Psycho_Bunny]

lol....not that Isabel is in any way amusing, I was sitting here thinking "WTF?" because the first two times I read the headline I saw "Israel".

[11th_VA]

Interesting note from the VA weather discussions:

IMPORTANT TO NOTE...EVEN WTH THE WEAKEST PTNL INTENSITY FCST...WTH THE CURRENT TRACK FCST...STILL SGNFCNT IMPACT OVR THE ENTIRE CWA. CSTL AREAS WUD STILL SEE STORM SURGE...AND DUE TO WET GROUND...PSBLTY OF CNSDRBL TREES AND BRANCHES DOWN ALL AREAS. HEAVY RAIN MAY RESULT IN SOME INLAND FLOODING...AND ISOLD TORNADOES PSBL. AGN...THIS IS BASED ON THE GDNC WTH THE WEAKEST INTENSITY.

I'd hate to read the strongest potential intensity...

[Old Sarge]

Folks, this is only the first, and the beast hasn't made landfall yet.

We're getting things spun up in Emergency Management, but it'll help the first responders, and everyone else, to remember the basics.

First and best is, No Panic. Have a plan. Find a hurricane hole, somewhere safe to ride out the beast.

Batteries, radios, duct tape, MRE's - but add Common Sense to that, too.

I'll be back on watch tomorrow night, and every night this week. It's gonna be a helluva ride.

[appalachian_dweller]

Please excuse the all caps, I copied off the website. Here's the latest. Man I hope this thing turns out to sea!

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC
330 PM EDT MON SEP 15 2003

...DANGEROUS HURRICANE ISABEL MAY AFFECT THE REGION LATER THIS
WEEK...

THE CENTER OF HURRICANE ISABEL WAS LOCATED AT 780 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF CAPE HATTERAS NORTH CAROLINA THIS AFTERNOON. THIS POSITION IS ALSO ABOUT 505 MILES EAST OF NASSAU. ISABEL IS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST AROUND 8 MPH AND A TURN TO THE NORTHWEST IS EXPECTED OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS.

THE OFFICIAL TRACK FROM THE TROPICAL PREDICTION CENTER BRINGS THE STORM INLAND ALONG THE MID ATLANTIC COAST ON THURSDAY. AS WITH ALL TROPICAL SYSTEMS THERE IS A MARGIN OF ERROR...AT THIS TIME THE MARGIN OF ERROR FOR A THREE DAY FORECAST IS 200 MILES IN ANY DIRECTION.

WITH LANDFALL SLATED IN LESS THAN THREE DAYS...NOW IS THE TIME TO MAKE PREPARATIONS. GO OVER YOUR FAMILY DISASTER PLAN. GATHER NON PERISHABLE FOODS AND BOTTLED WATER. CHECK FLASH LIGHTS AND PORTABLE RADIOS. GET EXTRA BATTERIES. FILL YOUR VEHICLES WITH FUEL. GATHER MEDICATIONS AND EXTRA PERSONAL CARE ITEMS. SHOULD YOU HAVE TO EVACUATE OR MOVE TO A SHELTER...CONSIDER PLANS FOR PET CARE.

AS THE STORM NEARS THE COAST...THE STORM TRACK FORECAST WILL BE BETTER DEFINED. LANDFALLING HURRICANES CAN PRODUCE VIOLENT WINDS... TORNADOES...FLOODING RAINS...AND INUNDATION OF COASTAL AREAS BY STORM SURGE AND TIDAL FLOODING.

FROM THE CURRENT TRACK...THE STORM IS FORECAST TO BE A FAST MOVER. A FAST MOVING STORM IS GENERALLY ACCOMPANINED BY STRONGER WINDS. IF THE STORM SLOWS DOWN...EXCEPT HIGHER RAINFALL TOTALS. STORMS OF SIMILAR HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE ARE THE CHESAPEAKE-POTOMAC HURRICANE IN 1933 AND HURRICANE HAZEL IN 1954.

ALL ARE URGED TO FOLLOW THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS ON HURRICANE ISABEL THIS WEEK. BE READY TO TAKE ACTION IF A WATCH IS ISSUED FOR THE AREA. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER DETAILS AND UPDATES ON THIS DANGEROUS HURRICANE. YOU CAN ALSO CHECK OUR WEBSITE AT:

WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/LWX

[Pyro7480]

Pinging former Delawarean in the danger zone.

[judicial meanz]

Virginia National and State Guard on Alert One status...


Just got my notificiation

[jpl]

Every government employee in the D.C. area is probably already heading for the hills in panic.

[Timesink]

State of emergency declared to mobilize Va. for hurricane

By the Associated Press

September 15, 2003

RICHMOND, Va. -- Gov. Mark R. Warner declared a state of emergency in Virginia on Monday to brace the state for Hurricane Isabel, which was on course to smash into the East Coast as early as Thursday.

The declaration places the National Guard, the State Police and the Department of Transportation on full alert for what Warner said could be significant flooding across an already waterlogged state as well as wind and tornado damage.

MORE

[iceskater]

For once, this stupid governor is actually making a decision in a timely manner.

I hope things turn out to be less serious than are currently being predicted. I wouldn't even complain about Warner on this decision if things turned out better than expected.

[Rain-maker]

ISABEL - Wind Swath Forecast 

GREEN     -  34 KTS
YELLOW   -  50 KTS
RED          -  85 KTS and higher

[ForOurFuture]

It was supposedly to have weakened over last night. If it did, it must have been negligible.

[sonsofliberty2000]

I was through a few hurricanes in NC. I lived on the White oak River, right at the point where it met the ICW, and the ocean. My grandparents were reluctant to leave during the first hurricane, especially after the neighbors said, "Oh, there not too bad. We've stayed here during all the ones that came." The hurricane that came was bertha. I saw 3 100 ft piers stand on end and come crashing down, the water rise faster then you can go to the bathroom, and the wind rip trees out of the ground. It destroyed 3 cars we had, mine survived since I parked elsewhere, flooded my grandparents and the neighbors house, bringing the piers in at the doorway to the neighbors, where we ended up by the way due to the growing fears of my mom and grandparents, and pretty much scared the beejezus (spelling?) out of my family. I had fun for the most part seeing the storm rise, worried for everyones lifes a bit but came out unscathed. For those on the water though: GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN!!! Don't play with these storms. Tornados abound, a few tore throught the forest next to our home, and the water rises to fast to escape. Storm surge kills. Even going in an hour off the coast is dangerous. Raliegh and Greenville, where a friend of mine went and I went respectivly, both were hit especially hard in Floyd. Prayers to all concerned, and may God Bless you in your trials.

PS. My grandparents fled the second and thereon hurricanes. Finally going all the way back home to Gilbert,WV. They were awestruck in a way that only experience can teach.

Patriot Paradox: Interview with Flurry Online Now

[cold_dead_fingers]

From Homestead, FL, we will be praying for you! This one looks like it could be almost as bad as Andrew.

[MrConfettiMan]

"Auntie Em! Auntie Em! It's a twister, a twister!" (with apologies to the writers of Airplane)

Joe (MCM), Odenton, MD...who's currently in the path...