Hanna makes landfall, attention turns to Ike

NBC
Published: September 6, 2008

Wind battered the Carolina coastline Saturday morning as Tropical Storm Hanna made landfall near the North-South Carolina coastlines. 

Hanna never strengthened into a hurricane but may still have the greatest reach of any storm so far this season. 

It is already the deadliest storm. 

In Haiti, close to five hundred more victims were killed and the death toll could rise. 

In the United States, as many as 40 million people up and down the East Coast could be affected. 

Along the Jersey shore, crews worked to build a temporary sea wall. 

Residents like Gina Zeccardi worried about evacuation plans. 

“I’m nervous. I’m very nervous,” said Zeccardi.  “I live here full time.

I can’t get off the island if there’s an emergency.”

But even as Hanna heads north, eyes are already turning to Hurricane Ike. 

Residents of the Bahamas are preparing for what could be a major storm. 

“Everything is mobilized. Everything. The Defense Force, the police, Customs and Immigration, the health sector. Everybody’s mobilized,” said Prime Minister of the Bahamas Hubert Ingraham.

As Hurricane Ike moves closer, Florida is getting ready for evacuations that could include more than a million people. 

Plans are underway to evacuate the Keys as well.  Visitors must leave Saturday morning, and residents will be under a phased mandatory evacuation beginning Sunday. 

With so many still dealing with Tropical Storm Hanna, there will be little calm before the next storm. 

This hurricane season is now in full swing, and the worst may still be on the way.