Navy, CG Ready to Move if Earl Strikes

NORFOLK -- Earl has put the military on alert.

As of Wednesday evening, neither the Navy nor the Coast Guard in Hampton Roads had issued orders to move large numbers of ships in preparation for Earl, although they're ready to go if they have to, officials with both service branches said.

If a heavy hit in southeast Virginia becomes likely, the Coast Guard will haul most of its smaller boats out of the water for safekeeping, said Lt. Chris Svencer, hurricane officer for the Hampton Roads area. Svencer said larger vessels probably would be taken out to sea to avoid the storm's path.

"It's a balancing act," he said. "We need to stay close to do our job in protecting the public, but we also have to protect ourselves so we maintain our full capacity to respond."

Officials at Norfolk Naval Station said they don't expect to have to move the roughly three dozen ships sitting pierside, but Sailors nonetheless remain on standby to go on a moment's notice.

Recreational boaters in Hampton Roads should be making similar preparations, said Ed Parkman with the Coast Guard Auxiliary, an all-volunteer organization that inspects pleasure vessels and assists the regular Coast Guard in emergencies.

"We're telling people to keep a very close watch on the weather reports and to use their best judgment," Parkman said. "If things start looking bad and you can get your vessel out of the water and tied down -- do it."

For owners who can't get their boats inland, Parkman advised bringing in as much as possible, including deck furniture, motors, sunshades and all other removable parts. Recreational boaters also should re-read their marinas' hurricane plans, he said.

In North Carolina, the Coast Guard already is battening down the hatches. It's working to set up an incident command post and its station on Ocracoke Island has been secured and abandoned; it will stay that way until Earl passes, said Lt. j.g. Caleb Peacock, a spokesman for the Coast Guard's North Carolina sector.

He said two more search-and-rescue offices at Oregon and Hatteras inlets will close today. Cutters and some smaller boats already have been moved. More could be relocated if forecasts worsen, Peacock said.