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CNN Saturday Morning News
Interview with Mayor Meyera Oberndorf
Aired September 20, 2003 - 07:11 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.
THOMAS ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Take you up the coastline now to Virginia, you know, and much of Virginia, the damage is both overhead and underfoot. The rain-engorged Potomac River has spilled out of its banks, and toppled trees are just littering the landscape.
Now, the mayor of Virginia Beach says the lack of functioning traffic lights has turned intersections into, quote, "a demolition derby."
Now, Meyera Oberndorf is the mayor of Virginia Beach, and she joins us on the telephone now. Madame Mayor, good morning.
MAYOR MEYERA OBERNDORF, VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA (on phone): Good morning.
ROBERTS: I guess first off, explain the situation. What are we seeing today in Virginia Beach? How badly damaged is it?
OBERNDORF: Well, we have managed to get the main highways, you know, cleared of debris and wire, but we still don't have power in most of the city. What we're seeing are people in their yards trying to get their trees cut up and moved out so that they can begin to try and make the repairs to their homes and their yards.
We are also looking at the fact, on the positive side, at the oceanfront. Fortunately, the Hurricane Protection Project worked as it was predicted to, and we did not have the horrendous loss to water. We are also very cognizant of the fact that the storm changed from a category five to a category two, thank goodness, and that may have been part of what -- that which spared us.
But if you go back into the neighborhoods in Virginia Beach -- and when I say that, we are a 310-square-mile city with 450,000 population -- we are finding the devastation in the neighborhoods seems to be much greater than down at the oceanfront. I guess it was the path the storm took.
So we are now struggling with getting, you know, the huge trees cut up and moved off as individuals. Our public employees have been absolutely marvelous. They are working seven days a week around the clock trying to help those of us in the neighborhoods to dig our way out. And we're very grateful.
ROBERTS: Meyera, I know you've been very busy too, keeping an up -- up to speed on all of the details coming out of there. I know curfew was just lifted at 7:00 a.m. this morning for Virginia Beach. Was that more because of the traffic light situation, or are you a little worried about looting taking place?
OBERNDORF: Very candidly, the traffic lights, by and large, are out. And when you get to an intersection in the daylight and we can all see each other, to, you know, ease our way in and to yield to somebody and get across, it's fine. But at night, there are no streetlights, plus no traffic lights, and we can't ask our police officers to stand in harm's way. During the day they are helping to direct the traffic.
ROBERTS: Mayor, before we run out of time here, just real quickly, for those tourists and other people that know the area really well, how did Chick's (ph) Beach, Rudy's Inlet, the Duck Inn, places like that, fare?
OBERNDORF: I have not had any reports negative about the Duck's Inn. We have heard that Sandbridge is heavily impacted, like many of the islands down in North Carolina. The oceanfront should be up and running full tilt in no more than another week. We actually have some hotels who are open, and have generators, so they have power.
The rest of the city, it's going to take us a good while to dig out. Of course, there is no power, and we're waiting patiently for Dominion Power to let us know how much longer they think it'll be.
ROBERTS: Well, mayor, we appreciate your time this morning. Mayor Meyera Oberndorf from Virginia Beach, talking to us this morning about the situation in Virginia Beach.
Mayor, good luck with the cleanup efforts there...
OBERNDORF: Thank you, and thank you all...
ROBERTS: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE) appreciate it.
OBERNDORF: ... for being so attentive while we've been going through this.
ROBERTS: Absolutely. And again, we do appreciate your time.
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 - 07:11 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THOMAS ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Take you up the coastline now to Virginia, you know, and much of Virginia, the damage is both overhead and underfoot. The rain-engorged Potomac River has spilled out of its banks, and toppled trees are just littering the landscape.
Now, the mayor of Virginia Beach says the lack of functioning traffic lights has turned intersections into, quote, "a demolition derby."
Now, Meyera Oberndorf is the mayor of Virginia Beach, and she joins us on the telephone now. Madame Mayor, good morning.
MAYOR MEYERA OBERNDORF, VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA (on phone): Good morning.
ROBERTS: I guess first off, explain the situation. What are we seeing today in Virginia Beach? How badly damaged is it?
OBERNDORF: Well, we have managed to get the main highways, you know, cleared of debris and wire, but we still don't have power in most of the city. What we're seeing are people in their yards trying to get their trees cut up and moved out so that they can begin to try and make the repairs to their homes and their yards.
We are also looking at the fact, on the positive side, at the oceanfront. Fortunately, the Hurricane Protection Project worked as it was predicted to, and we did not have the horrendous loss to water. We are also very cognizant of the fact that the storm changed from a category five to a category two, thank goodness, and that may have been part of what -- that which spared us.
But if you go back into the neighborhoods in Virginia Beach -- and when I say that, we are a 310-square-mile city with 450,000 population -- we are finding the devastation in the neighborhoods seems to be much greater than down at the oceanfront. I guess it was the path the storm took.
So we are now struggling with getting, you know, the huge trees cut up and moved off as individuals. Our public employees have been absolutely marvelous. They are working seven days a week around the clock trying to help those of us in the neighborhoods to dig our way out. And we're very grateful.
ROBERTS: Meyera, I know you've been very busy too, keeping an up -- up to speed on all of the details coming out of there. I know curfew was just lifted at 7:00 a.m. this morning for Virginia Beach. Was that more because of the traffic light situation, or are you a little worried about looting taking place?
OBERNDORF: Very candidly, the traffic lights, by and large, are out. And when you get to an intersection in the daylight and we can all see each other, to, you know, ease our way in and to yield to somebody and get across, it's fine. But at night, there are no streetlights, plus no traffic lights, and we can't ask our police officers to stand in harm's way. During the day they are helping to direct the traffic.
ROBERTS: Mayor, before we run out of time here, just real quickly, for those tourists and other people that know the area really well, how did Chick's (ph) Beach, Rudy's Inlet, the Duck Inn, places like that, fare?
OBERNDORF: I have not had any reports negative about the Duck's Inn. We have heard that Sandbridge is heavily impacted, like many of the islands down in North Carolina. The oceanfront should be up and running full tilt in no more than another week. We actually have some hotels who are open, and have generators, so they have power.
The rest of the city, it's going to take us a good while to dig out. Of course, there is no power, and we're waiting patiently for Dominion Power to let us know how much longer they think it'll be.
ROBERTS: Well, mayor, we appreciate your time this morning. Mayor Meyera Oberndorf from Virginia Beach, talking to us this morning about the situation in Virginia Beach.
Mayor, good luck with the cleanup efforts there...
OBERNDORF: Thank you, and thank you all...
ROBERTS: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE) appreciate it.
OBERNDORF: ... for being so attentive while we've been going through this.
ROBERTS: Absolutely. And again, we do appreciate your time.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
