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American Morning
Hurricane Dennis Continues Move Towards Florida Panhandle
Aired July 10, 2005 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everybody, to our special hurricane coverage, our special edition of AMERICAN MORNING this morning. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now American afternoon on the East Coast. I'm Miles O'Brien. We're at the CNN Center today in Atlanta.
S. O'BRIEN: Hurricane Dennis, a very powerful and extremely dangerous storm. It continues its onslaught towards the Gulf Coast, a region which is obviously still recovering from Hurricane Ivan, which hit just 10 months ago. Dennis, a category 4 storm, top sustained winds of 140 miles an hour. Now, keep in mind, Ivan was a category 3 storm.
M. O'BRIEN: At least one million people under evacuation orders along the Florida Panhandle, Alabama and Mississippi. Right now, Dennis is expected to come ashore in the area of Pensacola, Florida, give or take, and it will be the earliest category 4 hurricane to hit the United States since Hurricane Audrey in 1957, and the only category 4 in recorded history in that part of the world. So this is a historic storm, folks, this is a little piece of history that we're all kind of watching unfold here, and it's serious business.
Our meteorologists of course are tracking it very closely. We've got Chad Myers on the ground there, but Rob Marciano has been up in the weather center very busy all morning long, since 6:00 a.m. Eastern time, watching it as Dennis inexorably makes its way to the coast.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, you mentioned Audrey. I used to work in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and that was a big storm for them back in 1957 that came up and got there. The stories they tell, the folks who lived through it.
Luckily, now we have the satellites, we have the radars, we have the computer models, and we do such a much better job of getting people out of the way. And at least that's the good news, Miles.
Here's what's going on. Forecast from the National Hurricane Center, you know, in the broad scope of things hasn't really changed all that much in the past several days. So this is where they thought it would go, and that's where it's going. And this outer band just about maybe 20 miles outside of the northern wall is about to come into Pensacola right now, and that is going to be some nasty weather here in the next hour. I would suspect we'll start to see winds there gusting to hurricane strength at the least.
Let's compare this storm to Hurricane Ivan. Look how they're going to cross. Ivan came pretty much just to the east of Mobile Bay and through Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama. Dennis, a similar spot, different trajectory, and that is just unbelievable. Frances and Jeanne did the same thing last year, across parts of Florida.
All right, this is Orange Beach. This is a couple of buildings just off along the shores of Orange Beach, and this is what happened last year after Ivan came through. I mean, talk about some structural damage.
And Soledad, I should mention that as it stands right now, this storm is 10 to 20 miles an hour stronger than Ivan was. So it's going to get nasty in a hurry here. We're still looking at 2:00 p.m. for that outer wall to start to make inroads. I would expect in an hour now, Pensacola Beach will get hit with a really, really bad squall. Back to you.
S. O'BRIEN: You know, I think you're exactly right, and we've already seen, Rob, the conditions deteriorate as we watch our correspondents who are all over the place. Specifically, we're also watching Rick Sanchez, who's sort of traveling through the storm, so we're going to get to see some of the pictures as the storm comes rolling through. Thanks, Rob.
Well, with Dennis bearing down on the Florida Panhandle, thousands of military personnel on Eglin Air Force base aren't taking any chances, they're just getting out. CNN's Alina Cho is near that base in Mary Esther, Florida, and she joins us live. Hey, Alina, good morning -- or good afternoon, rather. Sorry about that.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, good afternoon to you, Soledad. We are just about three or four miles from Eglin Air Force base. And you are absolutely right, all nonessential personnel and all planes were flown out on Friday. We are standing on the second floor balcony of our hotel here in Mary Esther, Florida. We're about 40 miles east of Pensacola, and I can tell you, it is really the safest place for us right now, considering the storm will be making landfall somewhere in this area in the next several hours.
Now, mandatory evacuation order has been issued for all of the areas south of here, those are the low-lying and coastal areas. A curfew will be in place as of 6:00 tonight. And, remember, that this was a place that was hit hard by Hurricane Ivan just 10 months ago. The people seem to have learned from this. They say that they will be leaving the area. And they certainly have left the area. About 40,000 people in this county have fled for higher ground.
There are three shelters in this area. One of them is nearly filled to capacity; two of them still have a bit of room.
One county official, Soledad, told us that at this point, though, it is almost too late to leave, and her best advice was to stay put.
Behind me, the roads are fairly empty. The businesses are boarded up, and the hotel manager here told me that he is boarding up the hotel right now. He is going to leave, close up the front desk, and he won't be back until after this storm is over -- Soledad. S. O'BRIEN: People have to be really nervous, Alina, of course, because, you know, the last thing they have to look at is Ivan, which was a category 3, and we just heard from Rob moments ago, 20 miles an hour stronger winds this time around. It's got to really be making them nervous.
CHO: Certainly, and one thing we can tell you, Soledad, is that one of the county officials that we spoke to said they really have learned from Ivan. And here's an example of that. They actually issued a voluntary evacuation order on Friday, which is quite early, but last time around in Ivan there was quite a bit of congestion, a lot of traffic, and they wanted to give people plenty of time to get out -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Alina Cho. Thanks, Alina. Appreciate it -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Coastal Alabama still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Ivan last September, and it's interesting, as we've been watching the eye of Dennis, it seems to be coming ashore or on a course at least to come ashore almost in the same spot. Now, many residents there shaking their heads in disbelief over the fact that they're waiting for Dennis and it seems to be doing the same thing.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim is in Foley, Alabama. He joins us on the videophone, gives us the scene there -- Keith.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Miles. We're joining you from a spot which is going to be what we believe is our home during this storm. Let's take a look a little bit behind me with our videophone view. You can see that the wind is picking up. I'm standing on a balcony at a Holiday Inn Express in Foley, which is about seven miles north of Gulf Shores.
Our initial plan was to do what we normally do, get as close to the storm as possible without getting ourselves in danger. We spoke to the Gulf Shores police. They said we could ride it out there, but when I spoke to the police chief from Gulf Shores this morning, he told me that the police department is evacuating from Gulf Shores itself, one clear sign that we could get trapped if we went that close to the water with the possibility of a storm surge in the range of 15 to 20 feet, causing a lot of flooding and no way out, because one has to take a bridge over an intracoastal waterway to get out of those barrier islands.
Just going to (INAUDIBLE) to the side of the second floor wall of this hotel. What one really needs when you're going to go through a severe hurricane is a spot that you can rely on. Barrier protection from a strong concrete building that can keep you safe. So I think you're probably getting the gist of what I'm talking about here, Miles. We are trying to show you the storm without getting ourselves into any serious trouble. You have to think about your safety, and that's obviously what so many people around here have done. They have left. I don't think I've ever covered a hurricane in the hours before the storm actually hit where I actually saw that many -- that few people around. The evacuation orders, the mandatory evacuation orders around here have really been heeded. It's quite a ghost town around here. Back to you, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Keith Oppenheim in Foley, Alabama. Thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Back to Pensacola, Florida now, where Randi Kaye not long ago was hanging on to a light post or a sign I think it was. Let's check in with Randi, see how she is doing now and where she is now. Randi, you're not holding on to anything. Does that mean that conditions are less windy? No?
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'm not hanging on to anything, Soledad, but if you could see my feet right now, I'm solidly braced on the ground, I got a nice wide stance, trying to anchor myself a little bit here.
Last time I talked with you, which wasn't that very long ago, the rain had pretty much stopped, and we were more just worried about the wind, which, as you can see from the tree you're looking at, has really, really picked up. But now the rain has picked up. And I'll tell you, it feels when you're standing in this, let me just give you an idea of what it is like to try and walk in this, it's just awful, absolutely awful.
But we can also see from I-10 out there, there's that bridge that's over Escambia Bay, the water is really creeping up slowly, but you can see that it's coming up. We are expecting 19 or 20-foot storm surges here, and we're at about 29 feet above sea level, so that's the situation here for us.
But it feels like when you're walking around in this, that it's like when it comes up from behind, just a big gust, because it comes and it quiets down a little, and then another gust comes, it feels like if somebody were behind you and they just shoved you really, really hard, that they just pushed you really, really hard. That's what this wind feels like, not to mention the rain, which feels just like little beads, little pellets just going at you. It's just an awful feeling.
But we are trying to tough it out as long as we can for you. Just to give you a sense, and give our viewers a sense at home of what it's like. I mean, you can't even back up into it. Just -- you can see how strong it is. We're probably looking at maybe 35- or 40 mile- an-hour winds.
John Zarrella from CNN was also just out here just a few minutes ago with his tool to measure the wind gust for me, because I wanted to know. And he said it was only about 35 miles an hour. And if this is 35 miles an hour, then Pensacola is certainly in trouble when Hurricane Dennis makes landfall.
S. O'BRIEN: Yeah, because Pensacola is looking at potentially and everywhere else that Hurricane Dennis hits, 145 miles per hour potentially when it hits. Have you guys sat down and had discussions about at what point you pack up and go and certainly get in from the outside? KAYE: Yeah, at one point we are just going to have to pack up and go inside, and probably find a stairwell or something to just hunker down in.
This hotel that we were staying at did stay open during Ivan, but they're not expected to let us in and out of the front door anymore as we go today. There's a chandelier that's actually hanging -- if we could just take a look at that chandelier -- that's actually hanging under the rooftop there in front of the front door. That chandelier, if you can see it, actually made its way -- we're having a little trouble here with the wind, as you can see -- but that chandelier actually survived Ivan. They've chosen not to take it down. They are hoping that it will make it through Dennis, but we'll have to wait and see. So we hope that everybody here makes it through.
S. O'BRIEN: Fingers crossed for them, too. Thanks, Randi -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, let's check in with some folks who are riding out the storm, and the location we're headed to right now is Destin, Florida, Destin, Florida, and on the line with us is Carol Marini. Carol, you're in your house and you're on the barrier island. Are you worried?
CAROL MARINI, DESTIN, FL. RESIDENT: Actually, I'm in a condo building that I'm the rental manager, and I'm standing here looking off the balcony on the eighth floor.
M. O'BRIEN: Eighth floor is a good place to be.
MARINI: Yeah, I'm looking down on the beach, what's left of it.
M. O'BRIEN: We're going to zoom in on where you are right now. You are on the scenic Highway 98. As a matter of fact, I think Rick Sanchez in Hurricane One is going to be headed your way very shortly.
MARINI: OK.
M. O'BRIEN: And maybe we'll have him drop by and say hello.
MARINI: OK.
M. O'BRIEN: As I look at the satellite map here, this is our keyhole.com, digital globe satellite imagery, it's very low-lying there. Are you concerned? Of course, being on the eighth floor helps a little bit, but are you concerned that the water is just going to wash right over that island there?
MARINI: Well, Destin Gulf Gate, where I work and that's where I am staying is right on the beach, and it -- I know that the water is going to come through the building. We have a garage that has windows. They have breakaway windows. The water will come through the building and go across the street. It did it with Ivan, it did it with Opal. But it's a complete concrete building. I know I'm safer here than I am in my home. I live in Destin. I live on the north side of 98, and I know that this is a much safer building than a wooden structure.
M. O'BRIEN: Really? It's safer to be on the beach?
MARINI: I know it sounds strange.
M. O'BRIEN: A lot of people would tell you that doesn't sound right.
MARINI: Well, you know, we have storm screens there, hurricane screens. They're made out of kevlar. They'll take up to 150 mile-an- hour winds. I'll be able to go out on the balcony during a lot of the hottest part of the storm and not feel the winds. That's how good these screens are.
M. O'BRIEN: Really?
MARINI: They protected us from Ivan. We did not have any structural damage for Ivan, and we didn't have any interior damage to our unit, so I feel very, very safe here.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow. That's pretty interesting. So -- and have you ridden out -- did you ride out Ivan in that very same location?
MARINI: Well, actually, I did have to go up north. I had a personal something in St. Louis, I had to go for. So I did evacuate, but my manager at the time stayed here, and she was perfectly safe.
M. O'BRIEN: OK. So you feel like you're in the right place...
MARINI: Yes, thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: These breakaway windows, I haven't heard about that, but that allows that surge to go through. You're up on...
MARINI: That's right.
M. O'BRIEN: ... pylons, and that kind of thing.
MARINI: It goes through the garage part of the building, and it will just wash right on through, and that way we have no structural damage. It's a very well designed building.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Carol, I hope you're in good shape, because when the power goes out, you are going to have to use the steps, not the elevators.
MARINI: Exactly.
M. O'BRIEN: Are you OK with that?
MARINI: Well, you know what, they told me yesterday that the stairwells in our building are -- is strongest structure in Destin, so if I get stuck in the stairwell, I'll be fine.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Carol. Would you do us a favor?
MARINI: Sure.
M. O'BRIEN: Check back with us as it gets a little closer. We just want to see how you're doing. OK?
MARINI: I sure will do that.
M. O'BRIEN: Appreciate that.
MARINI: Thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Dennis is expected to make landfall in just about two hours. Coming up, we're going to take you live to the National Hurricane center, with the latest on where Dennis is right now, and, of course, maybe most importantly, where Dennis is headed.
Plus, we'll take you back live to the areas in Florida and in Alabama that could be very hard hit by this very powerful storm. This special edition of AMERICAN MORNING continues on into the afternoon. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Smack dab between Pensacola and Panama City, Ft. Walton Beach. CNN's Drew Griffin checked in from there just a little while ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is Drew Griffin. We're on Okaloosa Island, Highway 98, which connects Destin, Florida, behind me, to Ft. Walton Beach. It's about 10:00 Eastern time. The storm several hours away, and you can see the surf has already risen to the level of the highway.
Highway 98 over here is most likely the first that will close in Okaloosa County. Following that, they will go up to the wind speed area of about 40, 45 miles an hour, and they will close the bridges. At that point, most people will be tucked inside their homes and just will have to ride it out.
We're already getting wind gusts here of about 38 miles an hour and increasing in strength. And also, the sand is beginning to kick up. So things are deteriorating rapidly here on Okaloosa Island, still on the eastern side of this storm. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Let's head over to Ed Rappaport. He's at the National Hurricane Center. Obviously knows Dennis inside and out. Let's get the very latest. Where exactly is Dennis? How fast is it traveling? Where are you thinking now it's going to hit?
ED RAPPAPORT, NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER: The center of Dennis now is just 60 miles or so south/southeast of Pensacola. You can see the center very clearly on this radar loop. It's right here. The eyewall surrounds it. That's where the worst of the weather is.
This is a compact hurricane. Hurricane-force winds and the strongest surges are in an area that's about 50 miles or so in diameter. So in about this area.
This pattern is moving towards the north/northwest at 18 miles per hour. That means that hurricane-force winds will be arriving on the coast in the next two hours or so, with the most intense weather coming ashore in about four hours.
This is Ft. Walton Beach, Pensacola, Mobile. This is the area at greatest risk from these very strong winds and the storm surge that will be pushing onshore.
S. O'BRIEN: It seems like the speed at which it's traveling -- earlier today it was 14 miles an hour, now it's up to 18 miles an hour -- does that make any significant difference in the kind of impact it's going to give when it actually makes landfall?
RAPPAPORT: Not a significant impact. The bad news, there's less time to prepare. But we would hope everybody is now ready for this hurricane. They've moved away from the water, and they're in a solid structure.
The only good news about this is also that it means that the hurricane will linger in any one place for less time.
S. O'BRIEN: How far inland are you concerned about? You know, we've really been talking about when it makes landfall, when it makes landfall. But there's big problems after it makes landfall obviously.
RAPPAPORT: Yes, let's switch to a different graphic to see that. Here's the forecast. Again, the red here is the area of the worst conditions, perhaps hurricane force. You can see that it spreads well inland. Because this is an intense storm, it will take a while for it to weaken. And it's moving very fast which will bring the hurricane- force winds north/northwestward with the center perhaps 100 to 150 miles inland with tropical storm-force winds spreading farther inland than that.
S. O'BRIEN: All right. That's what it looks like. Ed Rappaport, obviously we're not going to let you go. We're going to check in with you throughout the afternoon. Thanks, Ed -- Miles.
RAPPAPORT: Thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: When last we checked in with Dan Lothian, he had moved to a little safer turf, a little more inland. He's more in the downtown area of Mobile, Alabama. And as you can see right now, the weather has worsened. If you remember seeing him last time.
And, Dan, we should tell our viewers in advance he's having problems with his microphone. I'm sure you understand with all the water that is there. You're going to get a couple of hits. But Dan, tell us what the situation is there now. LOTHIAN: Well, certainly, Miles. As you pointed out, the situation has deteriorated since the last time that we went on the air. In fact, over the last 20 minutes of so, this is the steadiest pounding of rain and wind that we felt all morning long.
And if you look down here at my feet it is not a whole lot, but I'll tell you it wasn't here -- at least across the street -- just about a half hour ago. So, it's already ready to pool on a main street headed right through town. This is Government Street.
This is what officials are concerned about. Certainly not at this level. They believe it's going to be much higher than this. That there will be localized flooding throughout areas. And these are higher elevations. We're not down in the bay where we were earlier this morning. They do expect that they will have flooding in these areas.
They're also concerned about a couple of other things. First of all, I was talking to an emergency management official. He was telling me that he expected that there would be widespread power outages. And that he was very concerned about debris, about trees falling down. So, they're already keeping that in mind, have crews prepared to respond so that they can get the power back on and they can start the cleanup.
Now, we're jumping way ahead, but they're looking ahead, as well. But once Dennis comes ashore and causes all of the problems that it will cause here that they can have the teams in place to clean everything up.
Now, one other interesting note is that here we are in an area where some people have evacuated too. We were talking to a lady who is from Gulf shores. And she evacuated to Mississippi last year and this time, decided she would come here. Now she is in the middle of the storm here in what could be a dicey situation here.
She lives right on the waterfront in Gulf Shores. Last year during Ivan got extensive damage. She said she fully expects that her house will be wiped away this time around. And now she's here evacuated from her hometown -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: What a sad note. And to sort of know it's coming has got to be even tougher. All right, Dan Lothian, thank you very much.
LOTHIAN: That's true.
M. O'BRIEN: Hang in there and stay safe, please, there in Mobile, Alabama -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: That is so tough. I think he really summed it up, which is these people have been through this ten months ago. I mean these are people with still tarp on their houses, because they quite haven't gotten the roof fixed.
M. O'BRIEN: I mean, on the one hands, I guess, it's good that they understand the gravity of the situation. And they act accordingly. But to just know, to dread it, to have gone through all of this. And long after the media leaves these storms back in September, they have contended with this agony of rebuilding for so long. And to just get kicked in the gut again.
S. O'BRIEN: It is tough.
M. O'BRIEN: Our hearts go out to you all on this afternoon.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, Pensacola Beach could actually be ground zero for the storm. The center of Dennis is located now 80 miles south/southeast of Pensacola, 125 southeast of Mobile, Alabama. We're going to take you live to both places as our special edition of AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: All right. We have new information for you on the conditions in Pensacola. Mark Douglas from our affiliate WFLA is there with the latest.
You know, the first hurricane I ever covered, Hurricane Elena, 1985 in Tampa. Mark Douglas was right there by my side. And look at us. Here we are.
S. O'BRIEN: Back again.
M. O'BRIEN: 20 years later still talking about storms. And, Mark, this one, how does this compare to all the other 40 storms you've covered over the years?
MARK DOUGLAS, WFLA CORRESPONDENT: Well, this may end up being the worst yet. And I was here for Ivan last year. I thought that was going to have my personal record. But this isn't looking too good.
You know, in the last few minutes it has gotten several shades darker here as one of these spiral bands, apparently, is moving over us. You can probably see the rain coming down pretty good behind us. And we've seen this steady deterioration in the weather, pretty much throughout the morning.
The winds are increasing. Nothing tremendous at this point, but down along the bay there in Pensacola, we saw waves breaking over the seawall at a place called Wayside Park. Now, last year during Ivan that was well under water after the storm hit. And I'm sure after this passes it will be underwater as well.
Few venturing out into the streets. I think they really have learned their lessons from Ivan and are just doing a tremendous job of taking shelter for this storm. Most of the people we see out there are police and sheriff's deputies. Most homes and businesses we see out there boarded up and the streetlights actually, some of them tied to the base of utility poles in anticipation of those high winds that knocked down a lot of streetlights back during Ivan last year.
Now, in the downtown area about a thousand people now taking shelter in the civic center, which is a huge place. And when I asked what the capacity was, someone just smiled and said we're not going to turn anybody away. And they were still moving in a short while ago.
So really, things are getting worse here. And from all that I've been hearing it is going to get a lot worse before it gets better. We are in a place near the I-10 exchange near the University Mall. And quite frankly, we're concerned about protecting our equipment when these high winds move in. And, of course, watching out for our own safety, as well.
So we'll be watching and waiting for the worst of it. And trying to take as much video as we can from a relatively safe vantage point, if that's possible here in Pensacola as Dennis approaches -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Well Mark, clearly the lessons of Ivan loom very large there. I mean, I don't think I've never seen a town that actually latches the streetlights to the posts. That is truly thinking ahead for every last little thing.
DOUGLAS: Yeah, they have -- they've learned a lot from it. But on the other hand, they also ran out of fuel before the storm hit. And I'm not sure where the glitch was there. But as far as the regular folks out there, I think they've really heeded the lessons and they have taken a lot of precautions.
Anybody who's left town has probably already done that. And it really looks like a ghosttown here, Miles. It seems that there's few people living here when in fact we know many do.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Mark Douglas, be careful. You know, we're 20 years older now, so we've got to take it easy in these storms, all right?
DOUGLAS: Well, my little girl is worried about me. So I promised her I'd be safe.
M. O'BRIEN: Yeah. You tell you be safe, all right? We're going to make sure of that. Thanks. Well, check in with you later -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: All right. Let's check in with Hurricane 1. That's what Rick Sanchez is traveling in. He's making his way west towards Destin, Florida, along highway 98, I believe.
Hey, Rick. You know, you're a Floridian. You're a guy who has covered a lot of these hurricanes. How many would you guess you've reported on over the years?
Looks like we took a hit again. Miles, you're the only one who seems to have luck in chatting with Rick Sanchez. He, of course, is actually driving along in this kind of jury-rigged Hummer with a...
M. O'BRIEN: Let's give our satellite desk a little more credit. It's a little more than jury-rigged.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, satellite trucks were not meant to be working -- moving while they're...
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, it's a gyroscopically stabilized antenna...
S. O'BRIEN: ...on a Hummer.
M. O'BRIEN: On a Hummer.
S. O'BRIEN: That they used -- the essential idea what they used covering the war...
M. O'BRIEN: Same one.
S. O'BRIEN: So that you can broadcast the war.
M. O'BRIEN: Desert 1 is now Hurricane 1.
S. O'BRIEN: Desert 1 has now become Hurricane 1. And that is what Rick Sanchez -- but here's a guy who has covered, anybody who lives in Florida has lived through, and then probably covered a dozens not even enough hurricanes.
M. O'BRIEN: I mean, he's grown up there. And this is just a part of the fabric of living in Florida. And maybe he can hear us now -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: I guess we froze up.
M. O'BRIEN: I've never known Rick to freeze up ever. So obviously he's not hearing us. But -- anyway, well...
S. O'BRIEN: I'm looking forward, frankly, to what they're going to be able to show us over the next couple of hours as we know is going to start really getting bad. And that are on a backpack (ph).
M. O'BRIEN: Well, he is headed right toward it. And, you know, when you grow up in Florida they tell you not to do that. But, you know, Rick of course, marches to his own drummer.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, He's going to do it anyway. And we're going to show you the pictures as he does it.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, I mean -- once again, everything we do here, folks, is really thought out in a calculated way. So, we're not putting Rick in harms way. And if anybody knows how far to go in a storm, it is a guy like Rick Sanchez who grew up in South Florida.
Once again, on that note, if you would like to participate in the process of telling the story visually, we invite you to send your photos and your videos to us. Be safe getting them. But go ahead and send them along as long as the power is still on and the phones still work. We'd love to see them and see what's happening in your backyard or your front yard for that matter. And we'll air them later. CNN.com/hurricane is the place.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) S. O'BRIEN: Time to check in, once again, with all our correspondents who are based in some of the toughest spots that are sure to get hit in the next couple of hours. Let's go right to Chad Myers. He is in Panama City in Florida.
Hey, Chad. How is it looking?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, behind me you can actually see that the beach has disappeared. High tide is at 12:50. And it just keeps coming up and up and up. 12:5 Central time, so about 2:00 Eastern time.
But we found some people who just wanted to stay -- and I don't know, watch it, ride it out. I'm not sure. Colin, Aaron and Victoria Rosen. You guys are in a seventh floor. Do you know that the wind increases as you go higher? Do you know that when you decided to stay?
VICTORIA ROSEN, RESIDENT: Oh, yes. Windows blow out.
MYERS: Why did you stay? I mean, everybody -- I've seen maybe one or two other groups here. Other than the media people who, you know, we're here anyway. No one else is here. Why did you stay?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it seemed like the thing to do at the time. And frankly, we didn't want to have to deal with the traffic coming up from the tip of the peninsula or going along west on I-10.
MYERS: Right. Now, 98, actually, was a mess going that way. Sand was blowing over the highway already yesterday. I mean, was it a factor that you thought you weren't going to have a place to stay? You thought you would get stuck?
V. ROSEN: Part of it. Part of it.
MYERS: That has happened to one of your family members before. Is that right? Your mom or your dad?
V. ROSEN: My parents and my grandfather were in a car and they were 16 hours going over to Jacksonville during Opal.
MYERS: During Opal. So that was a long time ago. Hopefully the roads are a little better. But I tell you what, the traffic is still becomes a nightmare in this town.
Come on over here real quick. Now, I hear you're not a surfer. But I mean the waves out here are absolutely perfect. Your friends were out there yesterday?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, not my friends. In fact, I don't know these people.
MYERS: Or you're not going to claim to.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know these people. In my opinion these are horrible waves to go out surfing. MYERS: Did you think it would be this bad? I mean, we still have four more hours to get to the peak. Are you worried at all?
V. ROSEN: No. No. Not worried at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's about what we expected.
V. ROSEN: We expected this.
MYERS: Now, when you were watching the hurricane track, you realize that Panama City was always in that cone, right? If this thing made a right-hand turn, a lot of these apartments and some of these buildings, maybe not the tall ones we're seeing right now wouldn't be here tomorrow. So, were you taking a risk? Were you risking your family?
V. ROSEN: It's always a risk. No, we trust this building. Any other building probably we would have left, but buildings here are really, pretty stable.
MYERS: I realize that most of the buildings here do not have those storm shutters. You can't close them and keep the windows out. But I'll tell you what, those windows have been moving back and forth already. And as the wind turns from where we are -- it's behind me now, coming up the beach. But as it comes off the ocean, the waves are going to get bigger, the water is going to get higher and the windows are going to shake some more. And hopefully, they don't break. But I'll tell you what, I think we'll probably have some broken windows in this time, for sure, as the winds pick up to at least 100 at times.
Back to you guys.
S. O'BRIEN: Hey, Chad. Tell me, where exactly are you right now? The last we saw you, you were being splashed by the water as it started to come in. So, where are you now?
MYERS: I don't know if the cameraman can get behind me. But I am up now on a little platform where a restaurant is. That beach that was so popular earlier with all the reporters from news source and CNN International and all that. We were all down there for a little while, well, we're not there anymore because the beach isn't there anymore. The beach is absolutely gone. The water has been coming up.
We have another two feet just of tide to go. And then we have the storm surge on top of that so we're getting -- we're gradually getting to higher ground as the storm gets closer and closer.
S. O'BRIEN: And you're gradually moving up and up. All right, Chad, thanks -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's check the satellites, the radar screens. Rob Marciano is up there in the weather center. And where is it now?
MARCIANO: Still about 60 to 50 miles just offshore of Pensacola. Actually 60 miles from Pensacola, less than 50 miles from the beach. Here's where Chad is for the most part. And our tightened radar can give you a good estimate as to what the winds are doing right there, 31 mile-an-hour winds sustained, Sunnyside 30. You go towards Blue Mountain Beach, 33. If you haven't heard a lot of these places, you're not alone. Destin, 35.
You see the other interesting thing, at Destin it's a little more offshore so that gives you an idea of this circulation that comes around here.
Pensacola beach, 34 mile-an-hour winds, definitely a more northeasterly wind. And even out in the ocean, we can kind of give you a bit of an estimate. And there Perdido Key, which is where the Perdido River dumps out, at 28 miles an hour.
All right. A couple things for you. There's a couple of strong bands that are coming right through Pensacola Beach right now. And then this is the outer band, or the -- I should, the eyewall -- the northern eyewall that really is going to have the nastiest weather. And if you think you want to go out to Pensacola Beach and just check it out and see what's happening, go ahead. But later on today, you know, plan on getting your potatoes peeled because that's going to be nasty stuff.
All right. As far as what's going on, the north/northwesterly track with this thing -- the greatest threat, again, from say Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Perdido, Pensacola is right in the middle of where we think this thing is going to go. And back towards almost Destin.
So that's where the greatest threat is. And right now about 50 miles from there moving 18 to 20 miles an hour. So we're still, you know, hanging in here for the outer fringe of that eyewall to get there between 2:00 and 3:00, the nastiest weather will certainly will get there a little bit later.
Here's a visible satellite picture of this storm. This is just huge. I mean, look at the cloud canopy. We had weather across most of the southeast last night that spawned severe thunderstorms with heavy rain and flooding just last night, you know, 200, 300 miles away from the center of this thing. And the eyewall, the eye itself still very defined. Actually, the last couple of frames, God, I was hoping this thing would weaken. But it looks like it's even stronger now. So, that's not necessarily a good thing.
Category 4 storm. If it holes its strength right now, it looks like it may well do that, winds at 131 to 155. Storm surge 13 to 18 feet. That is why Chad is now off the beach.
A widespread structural damage with those kind of winds. I suppose to be optimistic here, we should point out once again that those winds are likely only within a 20-mile radius, so there won't be that many people affected by those winds of that sort of damaging 131 to 155 mile-an-hour winds. But outside of that, we get tropical storm-force winds to over 200 miles. So as this thing comes ashore a lot of folks will be affected by that. Also, as far as the tides are concerned, Miles or Soledad, tide -- high tide comes in in about an hour right along the beaches. And, of course, the bay is a couple hours after that. But the good news with the Gulf of Mexico, which I think you or the National Hurricane Center has pointed out, the tides don't vary that much, maybe one or two feet. So, you know, even though it's coming in at high tide, it could be a lot worse if it was in another part of the country.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Rob Marciano, thank you very much. Appreciate that.
MARCIANO: You bet.
M. O'BRIEN: Any hotel can keep guests fed when the sun is shining. But these are times, to paraphrase Thomas Payne, that try innkeepers' souls. Linda Parkinson manages the Pensacola Ramada and lives there too, having lost her home to Ivan last September. But come what may, hell or high water or anything in between, she is the soul of hospitality.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How are you doing?
LINDA PARKINSON, PENSACOLA RAMADA MANAGER: I'm doing wonderful, thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You don't know. You're so busy.
PARKINSON: But welcome back. We're glad to see you back again.
We're going to lose it. Why not cook it all and give it to the people? We've got to keep them fed, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've been living in this hotel for how long?
PARKINSON: I've been here since the hurricane.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ivan?
PARKINSON: Yes, since Ivan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And your house?
PARKINSON: OK. Got it.
Good morning, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi.
PARKINSON: And they're starting -- look at it. It's starting to pick up now.
I got to have a cup of coffee. Where is the decaf, Melissa?
I just am kidding. I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Pretty well.
OK, honey, you need some help? What about...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got two cans of that.
PARKINSON: Yes. And we've good lots of rice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. I saw that.
PARKINSON: ...this afternoon, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going back and find out what kind.
PARKINSON: OK. We're going to make chicken soup.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chicken noodle or chicken rice?
PARKINSON: Chicken rice soup. And we've got all kinds of sandwiches. So, we'll have lunch around 4:00, something like that. And that...
Any of our Russian people come in yet?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
PARKINSON: OK. I need -- call maintenance. I need these trash cans emptied. They're getting so full.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Linda Parkinson, a little bit of the hostess with the mostest. She's helping out the folks who have come to her inn where she is living because she no longer has a home and basically she's taking care of the people that are with her as the storm making its way -- pretty imminently, going to come on land and really give a big whack to Pensacola.
You're looking at pictures here from our affiliate WEAR. And you can see some...
M. O'BRIEN: A fair amount of flooding there.
S. O'BRIEN: A fair amount of flooding. And I think I'm told that the pier that we've been watching all morning, if we can see if they pan on over -- yeah, look at those are the parking lots now under a fair amount of water there.
And, of course, the high winds obviously indicating that things are shaking around that camera a lot.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, folks need a Dramamine for this one. But -- and when you zoom in, it's obviously going to exacerbate that problem.
S. O'BRIEN: But, we've been watching that Pensacola Beach pier, Beach Gulf Pier all day. And apparently now it's under a fair amount -- well, yes, that is it and it's -- it looks like it's getting under a little bit of water there. We've been watching the tide come in, as well. In the next hour, as Rob told us, we expect high tide.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, now, he was saying 50 miles offshore. And we were told hurricane-force winds in a 40-mile radius -- diameter around the eye. So in theory, ten miles away is some serious stuff which is less than an hour.
S. O'BRIEN: Right.
M. O'BRIEN: So.
S. O'BRIEN: Brings us right to our correspondents. You can see Anderson Cooper and John Zarrella kind of look like they're yucking it up a bit. Let's see if we can -- if they can hear us. Can you guys hear us?
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, Soledad. How are you doing?
S. O'BRIEN: We're doing fine. How are you doing? Because it looks like it's miserable conditions. And the two of you look like you're kind of...
COOPER: Yeah. I'm holding on to the big guy.
S. O'BRIEN: That's what I was going to say, but I didn't want to say, Anderson.
M. O'BRIEN: She was kind of stuck for a moment.
Anderson, thanks for bailing her out.
S. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.
COOPER: This assignment I said I got to be with someone big, because I am going to get blown away.
I'll just -- just let me set the scene of where we are. Conditions have really deteriorated, I would say over the last 30 minutes.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, absolutely.
COOPER: You've been here all day.
ZARRELLA: Absolutely. Gone downhill very, very fast. It's getting bad.
COOPER: And we are in Pensacola on Escambia Bay. And over my shoulder on our other camera, you can see the I-10 highway that goes over the water. And, John, you were here back in Ivan. This got broken.
ZARRELLA: Yes. Just right on this section. And I (AUDIO GAP) the viewers recall very well that famous picture of the semi hanging over the edge. (AUDIO GAP) And a permanent fix to come sometime next year. But they'll have a lot more work to do, I would think. COOPER: And as you look at that picture -- already, it is -- you can't even really see much further down the I-10 highway. About ten minutes ago, you could see really far down that highway. The wind is moving in very quickly. Visibility is falling very fast. We are anticipating this area to really -- as far as we know this might bear the brunt of the storm.
ZARRELLA: Yeah. We will probably be very close if not in the eye or the eyewall here as the storm comes. Out of this direction, from the southeast at us -- everybody can see the wind is pushing us this way, the water is being pushed this way, so it's coming at us fast.
COOPER: And, Soledad And Miles, the woman you just saw who was making breakfast. She's in a Ramada Hotel. That's about 500, 600 or so feet or so feet away from where we are. We're actually right on the bay. And that's going to be our fall-back location if this proves too unsafe.
We took a couple hours to find this location. We think we're going to be able to stay here for a good long time, but if things get too dangerous, we're just going to move a little bit more inland, about 600 feet or so.
ZARRELLA: Yeah, you know, we're actually not underneath the overhang from the gas station which is right behind us, but all this corrugated aluminum slates will start coming out. And the Ramada Inn sign over there that made it through Ivan, you know, this is a lot more powerful than Ivan.
COOPER: This is really the strongest storm to hit this region.
ZARRELLA: Yes. In recorded history. It's in recorded history.
COOPER: It's -- yes, I think my mic went out. That's one of the problems. You know, all these things you don't anticipate. (AUDIO GAP) think of everything as much as possible. But water gets into the mics. Our camera just now starting to blow a little bit.
As you can tell, minute by minute here, the winds are really, really picking up, they're moving horizontally. The rain is actually just cutting across. It hits right into your eyes as the wind picks up. That is only going to increase. And we anticipate a really bad storm.
ZARRELLA: That is the squall line moving through us now. These bands that will continue to grow and grow. And then, of course, we'll get the sustained hurricane-force winds probably not too far offshore now.
COOPER: Right now, we're -- last I heard, it was 140 mile-an- hour winds moving about 18 miles an hour. That's a fast-moving storm.
ZARRELLA: Yeah, it is. They get up to these northern latitudes, they start moving -- and they pick up that forward speed, which, you know, is good news, because it will get in and out of here in a hurry. So if there is anything good about it, it will move through more quickly.
COOPER: Well, we certainly hope that is the case.
Miles and Soledad, I'm sure you are glad you are high and dry right now.
S. O'BRIEN: You know what, we didn't want to rub that in at all, Anderson. But as you said, hang on to the big guy. I think that's your best bet for now.
M. O'BRIEN: We're enjoying your work in the field there. Good work, guys.
S. O'BRIEN: Anderson Cooper and John Zarrella. Obviously, we're going to check in with them. I mean, they are, already, you know, -- we're an hour away from what they had predicted would be landfall. And, of course, that's not exactly a set time. But, still, I mean, that deterioration in that location.
M. O'BRIEN: It's really dramatic. I mean, within the past 15 minutes, it's all really gone to seed along the coast there. So we are going to stay in close contact with them as long as the cables hold out. And that's basically going to be the limiting factor.
S. O'BRIEN: And that is the problem. I mean, any time you're out there covering any kind of storm, you know, whether or not they can hold up to the -- the technology can hold up to the inclement conditions is really the big question there.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Can we all hold up to the inclement conditions? Hopefully everybody is hunkered down and ready for it by now. Now it's just a matter of watching it all unfold. Stay with us. We are your hurricane headquarters.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. Hurricane Dennis is now a category 4 storm headed for the Gulf coast. Let's check in with Alan Collins. He is with WBRC our affiliate there standing by in Baldwin City, Alabama.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALAN COLLINS, WBRC CORRESPONDENT: Baldwin County so far this morning being hit by a lot of intense rain and winds. Hurricane Dennis getting ever closer.
Now, hurricane officials have been telling people in Baldwin County they may have dodged a bullet. The eyewall of Hurricane Dennis may just hit the northern tip of the county. And that means the destruction may not be as large as Hurricane Ivan last year. Still, hurricane-force winds, expecting a lot of damage here.
So the folks' prayers and for one part may be answered, but it's already too late for a lot of folks to evacuate. We're told that from I-10 southward, the mandatory evacuation area, 90 percent have evacuated. That still leaves 10 percent, more than likely thousands, will try to ride it out.
Again, they're being told to hunker down, it's too late to leave. Just hope for the best.
Reporting in Robertsville, Alan Collins, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: And Baldwin County, in Alabama.
You know, what he just reported is true for I think now across the board in that area: too late to go. If you have not left, it's time to hunker down.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, boy. Yeah. Please, please, if you're thinking about driving anywhere, don't do it. The only guy that should be out there should be Rick Sanchez in Hurricane 1. He has got an armored hummer, for gosh sakes. And he is going to -- will employ a lifetime's experience with hurricanes in the course of doing that.
So, yes, stay put if you're watching us right now, wherever you may be. And if you're at your home, find a place without windows and hunker down.
S. O'BRIEN: We should also mention that we're just a couple minutes away from a news conference that we are expecting. The governor of Alabama, Bob Riley -- we spoke to him not long ago -- we're waiting to hear from him. He's at the state's emergency management operations. And he'll update what they're doing there in order to protect the folks. So, we'll bring that to you live when it happens .
M. O'BRIEN: And we'll check in with our reporters all along the coast. You are at the only place you need to be to stay current on where Hurricane Dennis is and what Dennis is doing. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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