NORFOLK, Va. -- Area residents made a mass exodus from their homes to local hardware stores to stock up on post-hurricane essentials: generators and chain saws. One particular Home Depot in Norfolk had a line of hundreds waiting for their chance to enter the store. With large rollers and shopping carts, people were allowed one-by-one through the doors with the disclaimer on a make-shift sign: "Only 1 Generator Per Customer, Please." \n"We had some trees fall on our house, some limbs," said Virginia Beach resident Glen Curtis, who had been without power for more than 24 hours.\n"I need to get a chain saw. My neighbor has a tree about to come down on his house, too. We've got to help him out." \nA store employee walked along the line of customers and called out that only $1,100 generators were left.\n"If they've got any left by the time we get in there, we might buy one of those, too," Curtis said.
GRANDY, N.C. -- Along deserted Highway 158, cars could be found going east to Point Harbor, where authorities were turning away passers-through to the Outer Banks. Empty office buildings and boarded houses littered the side of the road, but Mike Richardson's restaurant, Mel's Diner, was still open for business.\n"We were very well prepared, I think," he said.\nRichardson attributed the endurance of his boxcar restaurant to its custom construction to withstand the severest of elements. Replete with double hurricane straps, the building only suffered minor damage to metal strips lining its top edge.\n"This is our 26th family business in 43 years. We know what we're doing," he said. "We're expected to have a full house tonight because every grocery store is sold out or closed right now." Richardson and his family took three days to prepare for the storm boarding windows and stocking up on mass quantities of ice. \nInside, a sign could be found advertising that for $5.95, patrons could enjoy the delicacies of chicken fried chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans -- The Hurricane Isabel Special.
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. -- Jeannie Oldham and her grandfather, Gene Burgess, spent much of the weekend outside the Pelican Marina pulling nails out of washed up dock planks and cleaning out the waterfront store. \n"We've been dealing with these things all our life," Oldham said of the area's hurricane history. "You've got to be prepared for it, and if not, you're out of luck."\nIsabel's winds forced the waters of the Pasquotank River through the building, shattering windows and doors and knocking down shelves of merchandise. A marina fueling dock and its tanks just alongside the building were now underwater, while a restaurant just 50 yards away remained virtually untouched.\n"It's just a lot of crap," Oldham said. "We took two weeks to clean up after the last storm. There was more water then, but I think there's more damage now."
EDENTON, N.C. -- While emergency crews came to fix downed power lines outside a nearby deserted school, Edenton residents were busy raking and hauling branches from their yards.\nResident Donna Farless said she had seen two hurricanes and noted the area suffered more flooding than during Isabel. Like then, her family was without electricity for days over the weekend and was unsure when lines would be running again.\n"We're so used to having so much technology, and now without having that, we can only use our radios," she said.\nFarless spent the afternoon cleaning up around her fallen pecan tree, a staple of her yard for over 30 years.\n"We've never had it quite this bad," she said. "Bad things happen, but you just stop and say your prayers for your life."\nShe continued raking and looked at the fallen branches.\n"Its just a tree," she said. "Not to be heartless toward the thing or that it doesn't mean anything, but at least it wasn't a life"
