Posted on 08/29/2006 7:28:42 PM PDT by conservative in nyc
For the first time in nearly five decades, this tiny coral atoll in the middle of the Pacific, where its highest point barely rises to about 18 feet, has been evacuated.
The reason is Super Typhoon Ioke, whose eye is aiming straight at Wake Island, home to an American base. The fragile atoll is expected to be pummeled by gusts of up to 160 knots and waves of up to 40 feet.
"This is the most excitement I have seen in years," said Bill Wilson, one of 188 residents who were evacuated by the Air Force and flown to Honolulu in two C-17 Globemaster cargo jets yesterday.
"It's a shocker how this storm has grown so big and stayed so strong," said Wilson, who supervises fuel operations and lives in a wooden duplex near the beach. He stored his personal items, including a computer and DVD player, in plastic garbage bags. Like many of his counterparts, he hopes his belongings will survive Ioke.
Rosie Noggle and her husband, Richard, are among a handful of people who actually consider Wake Island their home. She said a longtime resident told her that the last time people were forced to flee by a storm was in 1957.
"I am told that people weren't evacuated until after the typhoon hit," said Noggle, site administrator for the civilian contractor hired by the Air Force.
"There was a lot of damage, and no one was allowed to come back for three months until after the island was restored," she said.
Her company, Chugach Support Services in Anchorage, Alaska, has 149 Thai nationals and 33 Americans on its payroll.
WAKE ISLAND was captured by the Japanese following the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, and later recaptured by American forces. It is located about 2,300 miles west of the main Hawaiian islands, at about the same latitude as Kona on the Big Island. The islands of Peale, Wilkes and Wake make up the atoll, with a runway the dominating feature on Wake Island.
Residents and Air Force personnel stationed here were warned three days ago that they might have to evacuate, and they were ready when two C-17s landed early yesterday.
Henry Lau, National Weather Service forecaster, said last night that "it's too close to call if the eye will directly hit Wake or miss it."
Typically, the eye of a typhoon is about 20 to 25 miles in diameter, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters have predicted the eye could come within three miles of the atoll tomorrow.
Last night, Ioke was 60 miles east of Wake and rated as a Category 5 storm. Winds were recorded at 130 knots, with gusts up to 160 knots.
The Air Force said Wake, where the highest point is only 18 feet above sea level, could endure waves as high as 18 feet, with surges up to 40 feet.
The evacuees were taken to Hickam Air Force Base on the two C-17s operated by Air Force and Hawaii Air National Guard crews. Both cargo jets were configured to carry 104 passengers for the four-hour flight.
The C-17s left Hickam Air Force Base just before 3 a.m. yesterday. On Wake Island they were on the ground only for 90 minutes, long enough to load the evacuees and a small pallet of luggage.
Master Sgt. Reginald Solomon, an administrative contract officer who lives in a concrete structure about 100 yards from the beach, said all he was allowed to take was one bag and one carry-on.
"I don't know what's going to happen when the typhoon hits," said Solomon, who has lived here for almost a year. "These buildings are old."
"It's good to be leaving," he said. "It eases my peace of mind."
When did we hand over Wake to Thailand?
Looks like the place is in for some rough weather tomorrow.
Wake Island. Where America's day really begins.
That must be it. I kinda recall landing there and it was like a dot in the ocean. Funny that I remember it. I think they fed us something while we were there (maybe waiting to refuel?)
susie
Thanks for the info.
:)
susie
Oh, cool! I'm an X-Biology teacher, so that sounds fun. If only you didn't have to get on an airplane to get there.
;)
susie
hehehe--right..... ;)
susie
Wow, interesting story! Our trip was pretty uneventful (except of course my Mom flying alone with 4 children, one of whom was about a year old). We were headed to Itazuki to meet up with my Dad who was stationed there. We spent about 3 years in Japan and then the PI. Really good memories. When did you go? We were there in about 1962.
susie
I was there 47-49. Long time ago. But Japan was an influence on my life. Mostly for the art and craftsmanship. The craftsmanship on a simple wooden box was phenomenal.
I was lucky I was an Army "brat".
Dang. Looking at the island on Google Earth, there won't be anything left of it. It's not much bigger than the landing strip itself. That guy's computer and DVD player will wash up on somebody's shore.... someday.
A perfect storm.
I used to work with a woman whose then 19 yr. old husband was a civilian construction worker on Wake when it was captured by the Japanese. She was complaining that all the time he was in a Jap prison camp he did not recieve pay like the Marines that were captured with him (back pay that is).
I commented to her that prior to being captured, he was making about $100 per week, while the Marines were making $18 per MONTH. So he had nothing to complain about. She never brought it up to me again.
Thanks, good for you.
Can you imagine the unquestioning sacrifices and bravery of so many "ordinary" Americans that were made in WWII? Hundreds of thousands or millions of Americans that just went to their jobs or into the service and didn't complain or think they were doing anything special.
What about those 80 or 90 Wake Island POW's that the Japanese just machine gunned? Who remembers them? Who knows their names? Who's ever even heard of them?
And today all the "liberals" bitch about everything not being just perfect.
I despise the soft, whining, complaining wussy traitors and fifth columnists and useful idiots of today.
There won't be much left except the runway. This won't be fun for any of the people who left with just some luggage.
All buildings, vehicles, housing, and probably even the fuel storage tanks should be swept away.
Thai nationals? What's the story behind that?
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