Hatteras, N.C. – Ophelia finally took leave of North Carolina on Friday, downgraded to a tropical storm, but it was picking up speed for a possible run-in with the southeastern New England coast.
The storm left behind plenty of damage along North Carolina’s southern coast, including beach erosion and ravaged homes and businesses, but overall the region was spared the devastating blow that some feared when Ophelia first brushed the coast Tuesday.
One risk-modeling company estimated Friday that losses would top out at $800 million.
“There wasn’t much to it,” said lifelong Hatteras resident Allen Fagley, 54. “We were really blessed. … We had a potential to be neck-deep where we’re standing.”
Ophelia, which meandered north after forming off the Florida coast last week, was offshore again, moving north-northeast at about 8 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
A tropical storm warning was posted Friday for Rhode Island’s coast and southeastern Massachusetts, including Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
The warning meant tropical- storm force winds of a sustained 39 mph or higher were expected within 24 hours.
Stuart Smith, the harbormaster in Chatham, Mass., on the elbow off Cape Cod, said fishermen were moving their boats to sheltered waters Friday. Meanwhile, his patrol boats were checking remaining boats for loose moorings or debris.
Smith said the storm looks to be the equivalent of a strong winter Nor’easter and isn’t causing any panic. But full moon tides, with many boats still left in the water, created some cause for concern.
“These things are extremely difficult to forecast, and Ophelia has been a pain in the neck from the beginning,” said Mike Jackson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
