Beach locals unfazed by Hanna

Little damage left in storm's wake

If Tropical Storm Hanna is remembered at all along the coast, it will be as a modest storm that kept tourists away and gave locals an excuse to party.

Hanna made landfall about 3:20 a.m. near the South Carolina state line, according to the National Weather Service. It brought 1 to 2.5 inches of rain, along with gusty winds, to most coastal areas. The highest gust at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point was 57 mph.

Storm-seasoned residents stayed calm, and many hit the beach to gawk at rising waves and TV weather reporters.

Up and down the coast, daylight revealed little damage beyond some downed trees. At Wrightsville Beach, several parked cars had shattered windshields. The surf washed over the east end of Ocean Isle, including a vulnerable stretch of Shallotte Boulevard, where town officials disconnected water to several homes that had visible water leaks.

But Atlantic Beach residents who gathered for breakfast at the grill on the Oceanana Fishing Pier weren't impressed with Hanna's bite. The fast-moving storm hit at low tide, limiting the reach of the waves.

Pier owner Trace Cooper, also the town's mayor, stayed up most of the night monitoring reports from emergency officials.

"Most of the calls to police were complaints about hurricane parties more than hurricane damage," Cooper said. "Nothing more than the average Friday night."

In Nags Head, gusty winds kept fishermen in bed, but life mostly moved on as usual. Hanna's most exciting effect seemed to be the surf, with 6-foot waves rolling in near the former location of Jennette's Pier, which was destroyed by Hurricane Isabel in 2003. Locals drove on to the sand to watch the waves.

Though a hurricane never materialized, the festivities did.

On Friday night, Karen Sealock hosted friends who drove from West Virginia to party in Hanna's wake. Sealock, a manager at Sam & Omie's restaurant in Nags Head, served steamed shrimp and beer. A storm is always a good excuse to party, she said.

But by Saturday, Sealock had had enough of TV weather reporters. In September, weekenders from places such as Richmond and Virginia Beach account for much of the tourist trade along the Outer Banks, and they often stay home after watching the wind-beaten reporters on The Weather Channel, Sealock said.

Back to normal

The wind was still blowing hard in the early morning at Wrightsville Beach, but by 9 a.m. people were ready to get outside. Surfers were waxing their boards while the waves churned. A jogger ran down Lumina Avenue.

"All of us around here ... have already been out here putting our chairs back out, bringing back our flowers," said Susan Collins, who grew up in the area.

A parking area at the Masonboro Inlet beach access, on the south end of Wrightsville Beach, was quickly filling with bucket-toting shell-hunters. John and Kelly Fort brought their daughters, Bailey, 7, and Raigan, 5, to see the aftermath of the storm. John Kelly carried a coconut bigger than his head and covered with mussels.

"We're hoping it's from some faraway place," Kelly Fort said.

Across the dunes, the ocean had sculpted drip castles in the sand, and the water in the channel was frothy and wild against a fast-changing sky. Sand blew across the beach like a shallow fog and clung to sea grass like rime ice on trees in the mountains during winter storms.