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CNN Live Saturday
Aftermath Of Isabel Still Causing Problems To East Coast
Aired September 20, 2003 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: The drama continues to unfold in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel. We have word of a dramatic rescue attempt under way off the coast of North Carolina. Freelance videographer Mike Phelps has taken a boat to Hatteras Island to document the efforts now. He's joining us by phone today.
Mike, what can you tell us about what's happening there on Hatteras?
MIKE PHELPS, FREELANCE VIDEOGRAPHER: Well, Hatteras right now is virtually cut off from the mainland. The main road, Highway 12 that goes into Hatteras Village, is gone. It was wiped out by the storm surge. So everybody here at Hatteras Village, which is now Hatteras Village Island, basically cut off. We are getting transports in, food and water by military. But these folks are really wondering when they are going to be able to go back to the mainland and stock up.
Utter devastation here at the beach. We had a five to eight-foot storm surge with Isabel come across this area of the north end of Hatteras Island, and every business along the beach is either damaged or literally gone right now. There are several businesses that have been wiped completely off the map, and homes as well. This storm surge was just devastating as it came in Thursday afternoon, as Hurricane Isabel, the brunt of the eyeball hit Hatteras Village.
COLLINS: Mike, if you would, line out a little bit for us for people who are not familiar with this area. What I'm understanding you to say is that in the Outer Banks now, down there in Hatteras, which is a very south of the Outer Banks Islands...
PHELPS: Right.
COLLINS: ... there are new inlets that have been sliced in and forced this land to be, as you say, isolated?
PHELPS: Absolutely. It's amazing. As a meteorologist, as well as a videographer, I'm utterly amazed that a Category 2 hurricane actually changed the landscape, and now new maps will be drawn as Hatteras Village is now Hatteras Village Island.
Three distinct inlets that we can see have been cut in the lower end of the Outer Banks. And it looks like they're permanent. They're very deep. And I would assume that they'll probably build a bridge over those and be -- forever more the map of the Outer Banks has been changed by this Category 2 storm. Just amazing.
COLLINS: Well, Mike, we certainly appreciate your insight on all of this, as you say, as a meteorologist and a freelance videographer. Three distinct inlets that seem to be permanent in the Hatteras Island -- Cape Hatteras, that is.
We want to go now to the Coast Guard. We have Matthew Hobby standing by to tell us a little bit more about what he is seeing in the area. Matthew, what can you tell us from where you are?
MATTHEW HOBBY, ENSIGN, U.S. COAST GUARD: Heidi, the Coast Guard is working closely with local, state, and federal officials to provide whatever assistance we can to Hatteras Village. We are checking aids (ph) and navigation along a route that an emergency ferry is running to provide supplies to the village. We have opened our station down at Hatteras on generator power, and we are providing search and rescue and shelter for sheriff's deputies and other local agencies at that location.
We have disaster response teams and Marine safety teams on the way with generators, chainsaws, shallow draft (ph) boats and personnel to help the local community as they can. And we've also been working with the postal service to collect mail and get it down to those residents as soon as possible.
COLLINS: Well, obviously, Matthew, it sounds to me like food and water and all of those things are much more the priority. How many people are we talking about here that are as isolated as we're learning today?
HOBBY: Heidi, the estimates I've gotten from local officials is there are about 300 people that are isolated there on the island. And, of course, water and food are the first priority, and they are being transported by the ferry system.
COLLINS: Well, Matthew, I know this area well. I am also with -- familiar with Ocracoke, which in order to get to Ocracoke, you also have to take a ferry. What sort of situation is there, and are there people stranded on Ocracoke Island as well?
HOBBY: I'm not really sure of the situation in Ocracoke. I understand that they got through the storm better than Hatteras did. I know DOT and the Coast Guard and all local officials are doing everything they can to connect those islands with the mainland.
COLLINS: All right. Everyone has their work cut out for them, obviously. Matthew Hobby, we appreciate you being with us from the Coast Guard. We hope that you can continue your work there successfully as we look at these pictures. More devastation today.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 20, 2003 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: The drama continues to unfold in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel. We have word of a dramatic rescue attempt under way off the coast of North Carolina. Freelance videographer Mike Phelps has taken a boat to Hatteras Island to document the efforts now. He's joining us by phone today.
Mike, what can you tell us about what's happening there on Hatteras?
MIKE PHELPS, FREELANCE VIDEOGRAPHER: Well, Hatteras right now is virtually cut off from the mainland. The main road, Highway 12 that goes into Hatteras Village, is gone. It was wiped out by the storm surge. So everybody here at Hatteras Village, which is now Hatteras Village Island, basically cut off. We are getting transports in, food and water by military. But these folks are really wondering when they are going to be able to go back to the mainland and stock up.
Utter devastation here at the beach. We had a five to eight-foot storm surge with Isabel come across this area of the north end of Hatteras Island, and every business along the beach is either damaged or literally gone right now. There are several businesses that have been wiped completely off the map, and homes as well. This storm surge was just devastating as it came in Thursday afternoon, as Hurricane Isabel, the brunt of the eyeball hit Hatteras Village.
COLLINS: Mike, if you would, line out a little bit for us for people who are not familiar with this area. What I'm understanding you to say is that in the Outer Banks now, down there in Hatteras, which is a very south of the Outer Banks Islands...
PHELPS: Right.
COLLINS: ... there are new inlets that have been sliced in and forced this land to be, as you say, isolated?
PHELPS: Absolutely. It's amazing. As a meteorologist, as well as a videographer, I'm utterly amazed that a Category 2 hurricane actually changed the landscape, and now new maps will be drawn as Hatteras Village is now Hatteras Village Island.
Three distinct inlets that we can see have been cut in the lower end of the Outer Banks. And it looks like they're permanent. They're very deep. And I would assume that they'll probably build a bridge over those and be -- forever more the map of the Outer Banks has been changed by this Category 2 storm. Just amazing.
COLLINS: Well, Mike, we certainly appreciate your insight on all of this, as you say, as a meteorologist and a freelance videographer. Three distinct inlets that seem to be permanent in the Hatteras Island -- Cape Hatteras, that is.
We want to go now to the Coast Guard. We have Matthew Hobby standing by to tell us a little bit more about what he is seeing in the area. Matthew, what can you tell us from where you are?
MATTHEW HOBBY, ENSIGN, U.S. COAST GUARD: Heidi, the Coast Guard is working closely with local, state, and federal officials to provide whatever assistance we can to Hatteras Village. We are checking aids (ph) and navigation along a route that an emergency ferry is running to provide supplies to the village. We have opened our station down at Hatteras on generator power, and we are providing search and rescue and shelter for sheriff's deputies and other local agencies at that location.
We have disaster response teams and Marine safety teams on the way with generators, chainsaws, shallow draft (ph) boats and personnel to help the local community as they can. And we've also been working with the postal service to collect mail and get it down to those residents as soon as possible.
COLLINS: Well, obviously, Matthew, it sounds to me like food and water and all of those things are much more the priority. How many people are we talking about here that are as isolated as we're learning today?
HOBBY: Heidi, the estimates I've gotten from local officials is there are about 300 people that are isolated there on the island. And, of course, water and food are the first priority, and they are being transported by the ferry system.
COLLINS: Well, Matthew, I know this area well. I am also with -- familiar with Ocracoke, which in order to get to Ocracoke, you also have to take a ferry. What sort of situation is there, and are there people stranded on Ocracoke Island as well?
HOBBY: I'm not really sure of the situation in Ocracoke. I understand that they got through the storm better than Hatteras did. I know DOT and the Coast Guard and all local officials are doing everything they can to connect those islands with the mainland.
COLLINS: All right. Everyone has their work cut out for them, obviously. Matthew Hobby, we appreciate you being with us from the Coast Guard. We hope that you can continue your work there successfully as we look at these pictures. More devastation today.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
