Virginia Prison Evacuates Ahead of Hurricane Florence

A prison in Virginia has relocated some 1,000 inmates from a prison about 5 miles from the coast as Hurricane Florence bears down with 140-mph winds.

Inmates from Virginia’s Indian Creek Correctional Center in Chesapeake were evacuated on the night of Sept. 10 in accordance with statewide evacuation orders issued by the state’s governor.

Gov. Ralph Northam ordered about 245,000 residents in the lowest lying coastal areas, including the Eastern Shore and Hampton Roads, to evacuate as of 8 a.m. on Sept. 11, according to NTD.

“Hurricane Florence has the potential to cause catastrophic flooding, especially in our coastal areas,” Northam said on the state website. “This evacuation is for the safety of thousands of Virginians living in that zone. But the effects of this storm will be felt statewide, and I encourage everyone in Virginia to prepare now.”

Indian Creek Correctional Center is a medium security facility housing substance abuse offenders. It has been evacuated ahead of Hurricane Florence. Screenshot/Google Maps

Prison visitation was also canceled statewide for the upcoming weekend.

According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the prisoners were relocated to Greensville Correctional Center, in Jarratt. Greensville is the state’s largest prison.

Indian Creek Correctional Center is a medium security, dormitory-designed facility housing substance abusing offenders, according to the Department of Corrections website. The facility focuses on intensive long-term institution-based treatment programs for its inmates.

States of Emergency

Northam declared a statewide state of emergency as Florence continued to advance and grow in strength, NTD reported. “This is a serious storm and it’s going to affect the entire state of Virginia.”

Northam was not alone in taking the approaching storm seriously.

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser declared a state of emergency for the area on Sept. 11, NTD reported.

Bowser joined the governors of Maryland and North Carolina and South Carolina, as well as Northam, in deciding that Florence, with its high winds, heavy rain, and high projected storms surge, could wreak havoc in coastal communities.

South Carolina National Guard soldiers transfer bulk diesel fuel into tanker trucks for distribution in advance of Hurricane Florence, in North Charleston, South Carolina, on Sept. 10, 2018. U.S. Army National Guard/Sgt. Brian Calhoun/Handout via Reuters

According to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC), Florence has maximum sustained winds approaching 130 mph.

At 11 a.m. Tuesday, Florence was centered about 905 miles east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving west-northwest at 16 mph. Its center will move between Bermuda and the Bahamas on Tuesday and Wednesday, then approach the coast of South Carolina or North Carolina, according to AP.

The NHC predicts that Florence will make landfall north of the border of North Carolina and South Carolina on Friday morning, Sept. 14, according to NTD.

Cameras on the International Space Station captured views of Hurricane Florence. NASA

Power Plant Not in Peril

One worry caused by the projected path of Florence is that the storm could quite possibly hit with its full force directly on the Brunswick Nuclear Generating Station power plant located on North Carolina’s southern coast.

AccuWeather is predicting “catastrophic” flooding in the area. The Weather Channel is also predicting “heavy rain,” and it noted that the storm surge was already slamming Cape Hatteras and Cape Fear on Sept. 11. “Class I” buildings at the Brunswick Power Plant “are designed to withstand 300 mph tornado winds,” according to a 2004 report from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

“The nominal plant grade results in 2 feet of water depth surrounding the plant during maximum surge conditions, and all of the safety-related structures are waterproofed to an elevation of 22 feet,” the report said.

The Brunswick power plant has survived several other hurricanes. In 2016 Hurricane Matthew hit the Caribbean islands as a Category 5 storm, then weakened as it worked its way north.

Joe Pollock, the U.S. Nuclear Energy Institute vice president of nuclear operations, told World Nuclear News in October 2016, “All the nuclear power plants affected by Hurricane Matthew weathered the storm well and were well-prepared for the high winds and heavy rains.”

Florence might hit harder than Matthew did, but power plant officials are confident the power plant will be a reliable source of electricity for the surrounding areas no matter what the weather does.

From NTD.tv