Dawn broke sunny and calm over these barrier islands, without a hint of the monstrous storm churning its way up the coast. Perhaps most eerie are the beaches deserted by the vacationers who normally populate the sandy stretches, but who have heeded evacuation orders and headed inland. A store owner leaves a message for Hurricane Bonnie. On Wednesday, the beaches have been left to the sandpipers and seagulls. Only the surf offers any clues to what is coming.
Heavy seas pound the sand, advance scouts for the massive assault to come.
The windows of businesses and homes alike are taped or shuttered, plywood once again a precious commodity in the region. Makeshift signs abound, most of them imploring Hurricane Bonnie to remain at sea, some with strong language. The airwaves are filled with increasingly strident warnings, urging those who have ignored the mandatory evacuation orders to think again, to try and appreciate the dramatic consequences of the projected 12-foot storm surges. The North Carolina coast before Bonnie hit. Along the famous Cape Hatteras National Seashore, all evidence of human life is gone.