Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Tropical Storm Isabel: Riding It Out

Aired September 19, 2003 - 08:31   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Beautiful in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. You can see this morning the sun rose and of course the beach looking fantastic, but North Carolina was hit by the full force of Isabel's fury. Thousands of people were evacuated from the coastal areas, including Kill Devil Hills. One family, however, only a mile from the ocean, decided to brave it out.
And Brian Cabell has their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Their house sits on stilts less than a mile from the ocean and a hurricane was threatening. But it's not called "the fun house" for nothing. Anita Fletcher and Paul Rodriguez and his two sons did just that, had fun, reading, watching TV. The boys watched a DVD in the van as Isabel was approaching. Evacuation for a minor hurricane was not a consideration for them.

ANITA FLETCHER, RODE OUT STORM: Everybody has to make their own personal choice, and I respect that choice. But for me, it just didn't make any sense to go.

PAUL RODRIGUES, RODE OUT STORM: A lot of times everybody wants to leave and you go to Virginia, all the motel rooms are taken. And I've known plenty of people who ended up riding out hurricanes in their cars in Virginia.

CABELL: So they stayed, heard some tree limbs snap outside and followed the wind speed on their anemometer.

FLETCHER: About the highest I saw here was 50 miles an hour.

CABELL (on camera) Which was nothing?

FLETCHER: No.

RODRIGUES: That was -- that was at a gust.

FLETCHER: Not even really a hurricane.

RODRIGUES: You feel the house shake.

CABELL: Were you ever afraid when they were talking about a big storm, a big hurricane coming? Did you think uh-oh, we better get out of here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I thought it would be cool.

CABELL: You thought it'd be cool?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I wanted it to come.

CABELL: Why? Now why is that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because we wanted the lights to go out.

CABELL (voice-over): And the lights did go out, but there were candles, a cat, a newly constructed fort in the bedroom, plenty of food, everything you need for a "fun house" on the day that Isabel paid a visit.

Brian Cabell, CNN, Nags Head, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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 19, 2003 - 08:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Beautiful in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. You can see this morning the sun rose and of course the beach looking fantastic, but North Carolina was hit by the full force of Isabel's fury. Thousands of people were evacuated from the coastal areas, including Kill Devil Hills. One family, however, only a mile from the ocean, decided to brave it out.
And Brian Cabell has their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Their house sits on stilts less than a mile from the ocean and a hurricane was threatening. But it's not called "the fun house" for nothing. Anita Fletcher and Paul Rodriguez and his two sons did just that, had fun, reading, watching TV. The boys watched a DVD in the van as Isabel was approaching. Evacuation for a minor hurricane was not a consideration for them.

ANITA FLETCHER, RODE OUT STORM: Everybody has to make their own personal choice, and I respect that choice. But for me, it just didn't make any sense to go.

PAUL RODRIGUES, RODE OUT STORM: A lot of times everybody wants to leave and you go to Virginia, all the motel rooms are taken. And I've known plenty of people who ended up riding out hurricanes in their cars in Virginia.

CABELL: So they stayed, heard some tree limbs snap outside and followed the wind speed on their anemometer.

FLETCHER: About the highest I saw here was 50 miles an hour.

CABELL (on camera) Which was nothing?

FLETCHER: No.

RODRIGUES: That was -- that was at a gust.

FLETCHER: Not even really a hurricane.

RODRIGUES: You feel the house shake.

CABELL: Were you ever afraid when they were talking about a big storm, a big hurricane coming? Did you think uh-oh, we better get out of here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I thought it would be cool.

CABELL: You thought it'd be cool?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I wanted it to come.

CABELL: Why? Now why is that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because we wanted the lights to go out.

CABELL (voice-over): And the lights did go out, but there were candles, a cat, a newly constructed fort in the bedroom, plenty of food, everything you need for a "fun house" on the day that Isabel paid a visit.

Brian Cabell, CNN, Nags Head, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com