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HANNA BRINGS RAIN, BUT LITTLE BLUSTER

September 7, 2008 12:16 am

Area residents scrambled to grocery stores Friday, anticipating Tropical Storm Hanna's wrath.

But the storm turned out to be more of a rainmaker than anything else, flooding roads and knocking out power.

Caroline County resident Sy Jarvis headed for the Dahlgren Marine Center in King George County.

He docks his sailboat, Sol Adventurer, at the marina and planned to drop anchor nearby. About a dozen boats were stored up on land, but Jarvis knew most damage occurs from marina debris or boats falling over onto one another.

"During storms, you're better off just facing the storm," Jarvis said.

And while Hanna wreaked havoc on area roads and power lines, Jarvis said the storm left his boat alone. Winds stayed near 35 mph, he said.

Jarvis lived aboard his boat for 10 years in Florida before moving to Virginia, and weathered 100-mph winds down there. Yesterday's winds compared to those of a typical winter day sailing, he said: not romantic sunset-cruise weather, but nothing to fret over.

Meteorologists predicted wind gusts of 50 mph, but yesterday's gusts barely hit more than 40. Rainfall also accumulated more slowly than forecast, though some parts of the area received upwards of 7 inches.

The wind and rain created difficulties for area residents--knocking out power to thousands and shutting down roads in Stafford, Orange and Lou-isa counties. Part of Interstate 95 and two Washington Metro lines also closed briefly because of Hanna.

The tropical storm had more of a punch in Northern Virginia, The Associated Press reported.

Heavy rain prompted evacuations and rescues as water levels rose. Fairfax County officials began evacuating homes about 12:30 p.m. yesterday in the Huntington area.

Three people were killed on Virginia highways in accidents blamed on the storm.

Visions of Hurricane Isabel kept Penny Flanagan, owner of the Riverboat on the Potomac in Colonial Beach, up Friday night. It took three years to rebuild the restaurant and gambling parlor after the 2003 hurricane whacked the town. Now, she tenses whenever a major storm is predicted.

"I get scared to death, I lose sleep," Flanagan said.

So she was relieved when Hanna arrived weaker than predicted.

Colonial Beach resident Eddy Barker also breathed a sigh of relief. Isabel, Tropical Storm Ernesto in 2006 and an unnamed storm that hit last Mother's Day flooded the first floor of his house, directly across the street from the Potomac River.

Barker now has his eye on Hurricane Ike, churning in the Caribbean, which was expected to hit the Bahamas this morning. The National Weather Service expects the 2008 hurricane season to be busier than usual, with as many as 18 named storms and 10 hurricanes.

That means Barker will spend more afternoons on his screened porch, watching the beating rain, high winds and fierce waves.

"This is a wonderful place to live for 350 days a year," Barker said. "It's the other 10 to 15 days that are a pain."

Amy Flowers Umble: 540/735-1973
Email: aumble@freelancestar.com