SENTINAL WATCH October 13, 2003 ISSUE

In the aftermath of Isabel

By Jim Corbett

I WRITE THIS BY CANDLELIGHT —pen in one hand, candle in the other. It has been four days now since Hurricane Isabel hit the east coast of the United States. No electric power yet. Authorities have cordoned off my street. Phones work, then don't work. But everyone has running water again. It's 6:00 a.m. Outdoors I see nothing but darkness, hear nothing but heavy rain. Will there be flooding conditions, too?

I live in Richmond, Virginia, population about 750,000. Normally it's a quiet, unassuming community. Isabel temporarily changed that. The storm's eye passed just outside of town. The high winds and rain didn't—they hit dead center.