{"id":6742,"date":"2026-08-29T12:34:55","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T16:34:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/?p=6742"},"modified":"2026-08-29T13:50:47","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T17:50:47","slug":"emily","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/?p=6742","title":{"rendered":"Emily"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Each Summer my mind drifts to what a hurricane season might bring. It\u2019s hard to describe the feeling when one&#8217;s bearing down on you. Different hurricanes can have similarities, but no two \u00a0are exactly alike. As strength increases, so does the anxiety.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Toward the end of August 1993, the fifth named storm was<em><strong> Emily<\/strong><\/em> and heading our way. On the 31st, it had strengthened to a <strong><em>category 3<\/em><\/strong> with an eye about 50 miles wide, centered about 25 miles to the east of <strong><em>Cape Hatteras<\/em><\/strong>. That put Buxton and Frisco in the eye wall. The unofficial highest wind gust there was reported to be 107 miles an hour, but I\u2019d venture a guess from hearing locals, it must have been much higher.<\/p>\n<p>Boarding every window on my house, I hunkered down with Denise and close friend Tim Merritt. Tim had sent his wife and young son off island. I checked the barometer while getting a phone call from <em><strong>WTOP-TV<\/strong><\/em> in Washington, and gave an on the air live report. The barometer read <strong><em>978 millibars<\/em><\/strong>. When the wind switched northwest, the water in <strong><em>Pamlico Sound<\/em><\/strong> rose quickly. There was flooding in Buxton and Frisco that almost never had that inundation before.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/gas-station-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6743\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/gas-station-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"398\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/gas-station-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/gas-station-copy-400x265.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The next day after <em><strong>Emily<\/strong><\/em> passed, I drove south, noticing damage along the way.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/boat-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6744\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/boat-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/boat-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/boat-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The sound side of Buxton took the brunt of the storm with surge and winds of hurricane force.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trailer-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6745\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trailer-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trailer-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trailer-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Nearby the <strong><em>Scott Boatyard<\/em><\/strong> was this shattered mobile home court.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/oak-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6746\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/oak-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/oak-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/oak-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Live oaks were uprooted rather than broken.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cars.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6747\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cars.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cars.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cars-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>In <em><strong>Buxton Woods<\/strong><\/em> the cleanup was ongoing. Cars were flooded and pines snapped like matchsticks.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tree-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6748\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tree-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tree-copy.jpg 400w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tree-copy-267x400.jpg 267w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trees-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6749\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trees-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trees-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/trees-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/DOT.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6750\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/DOT.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/DOT.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/DOT-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Crews from <em><strong>NCDOT<\/strong><\/em> and <strong><em>Cape Hatteras EMC<\/em><\/strong> had their work cut out for them.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/EMC.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6751\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/EMC.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/EMC.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/EMC-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/stacking.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6752\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/stacking.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/stacking.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/stacking-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Rob and Susan West were stacking cords of wood.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Mark-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6753\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Mark-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Mark-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Mark-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I visited Mark Nash in Frisco. His wife Barbara evacuated with their daughter \u00a0while he stayed at home. His story how the tide came in from the <strong><em>Pamlico Sound<\/em><\/strong> when the wind backed out from the northwest was harrowing. Standing in knee deep water, he put on his wetsuit and climbed\u00a0out the bathroom window on the lee side of the house. The waterline nearly came to the bottom of the window.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Sign-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6755\" src=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Sign-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Sign-copy.jpg 600w, http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Sign-copy-400x267.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Emily<\/strong><\/em> is one of the top five storms I&#8217;ve experienced. I&#8217;m not the only one grateful to have gotten through this.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Each Summer my mind drifts to what a hurricane season might bring. It\u2019s hard to describe the feeling when one&#8217;s bearing down on you. Different hurricanes can have similarities, but no two \u00a0are exactly alike. As strength increases, so does the anxiety.\u00a0 \u00a0 Toward the end of August 1993, the fifth named storm was Emily [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,26,27,30,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history","category-outer-banks","category-pamlico-sound","category-storms","category-weather"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6742"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6742\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6763,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6742\/revisions\/6763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/photoblog.michaelhalminski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}