FROM THE EDITOR 



Storm Stories 



lor many, the enduring image of 

 Isabel's visit is the new inlet on Hatteras 

 Island. But. what of other impacts of the 

 storm? 



Floodwaters swamped communities 

 profiled in past issues of Coastwcttch — 

 Cedar Island in Carteret County, Swan 

 Quarter in Hyde County and Edenton in 

 Chowan County. Damage extended to 

 countless towns in Virginia and 

 Maryland. 



As clean-up and rebuilding 

 continues. Sea Grant researchers are 

 evaluating a wide variety of impacts from 

 Isabel. 



Xian Lie and Len Pietrafesa, both of North Carolina State University, 

 were gathering new data before the storm. A new model for predicting 

 coastal storm flooding was funded initially as a Sea Grant/National Severe 

 Storms Lab partnership and now is a major NOAA project. 



Their model is still in development stages, but it provided preliminary 

 storm surge forecasts to the National Weather Service days ahead of the 

 storm — rather than hours ahead with existing models. 



As the storm was headed our way, so, too, were wind researchers 

 from South Carolina, Texas and Florida who work with Spencer Rogers, 

 North Carolina Sea Grant's coastal construction specialist. Temporary 

 towers along the coast from Wilmington to Elizabeth City documented a 

 full wind field for the storm, including readings on Hatteras Island. 



Soon after the storm passed, the Federal Emergency Management 

 Agency asked Rogers to join a team to evaluate oceanfront damage from 

 Kitty Hawk to Hatteras Village. The survey showed flooding and wave 

 damage to newer homes that did not follow traditional designs of only 



The eye of Hurricane Isabel hit shore 

 on the Outer Banks, just south of Cape Hatteras 



allowing parking within the piling 

 foundations. The team will review flood 

 map accuracy and compare damage to 

 codes when the structures were built. 



Immediately after Hurricane Isabel, 

 western Pamlico Sound showed a well- 

 mixed water column, but low salinity 

 levels, reports Larry Crowder, a Sea Grant 

 researcher at Duke University's Marine 

 Lab, who collaborates with Joe Ramus of 

 Duke and Hans Paerl of the University of 

 North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 



When the researchers crossed Bluff 

 Shoal into the eastern sections of the 

 sound, closer to Hatteras and Ocracoke 

 islands, the water column became stratified, which could lead to oxygen 

 depletion problems. Sea Grant is funding additional studies there. 



Meanwhile, Jeff Buckel of NC State found the lower Chowan River 

 had low-oxygen areas as well as some with no dissolved oxygen — and 

 few or no fish. In the Albemarle Sound, oxygen and species counts were 

 higher. 



These are just a few of the science lessons from Isabel that we expect 

 to update in 2004. But, there are also lessons in human resilience — ones 

 that are especially poignant during the holiday season. 



On page 20, read about celebrations in Columbia and at Somerset 

 Place that will take place despite weeks of cleanup after the storm. 



And in the last issue of Coastwatch, you met Lissie McNamee, a 

 Nutrition Leader who tested recipes for Sea Grant's Mariner's Menu 

 seafood book. Her Carteret County home was flooded, but her mood was 

 upbeat at a book reception after the storm. 



'The view is still as beautiful as it ever was," she said with a smile. 



Katie Mosher, Managing Editor 



IN THIS ISSUE 



Contributing Writers: 

 Ann Green D David G. Gordon D Cynthia Henderson 

 Lilly Loughner ° Melissa Lee Phillips 

 Julie Powers ° Pam Smith 



Contributing Photographers: 

 Margaret Ann Griffin D Jeff Otto D Karen Orders 



Marie Read ° Robyn Ricks a Pam Smith 

 Ken Taylor D Scott D. Taylor D Roger Winstead 



North Carolina's diverse coast offers countless interesting subjects. 

 The large dots on the locator map indicate story settings in this issue — 

 including Tyrrell, Brunswick and Carteret counties. 



