In October 1954, Hurricane Hazel struck near Calabash, North Carolina, and lashed its way up the coast, creating 100 mph wind gusts and a storm surge that destroyed thousands of homes and other beach structures. The damage was so significant that the area around the Cape Fear coast was given the nickname “Hurricane Alley.” To this day, Hazel remains the strongest hurricane in North Carolina history and is the only Category 4 hurricane to have made landfall in the state. 

Though hurricane season runs from June through November, it peaks late August into September, so it's no surprise that September has historically been the busiest hurricane month for coastal North Carolinians. While recent storms like Florence in 2018 are still in recent memory, the pain of September hurricanes goes back decades. 

Let’s travel back in time via the WWAY Television News Archive to look at some you may have forgotten (or weren’t alive for yet!)...

HURRICANE FRAN - 1996 

Not yet fully recovered from Hurricane Bertha in July, the Cape Fear coast took another hit on September 5, 1996, when Hurricane Fran landed as a Category 3. At the time, Fran was the costliest hurricane for North Carolina since Hurricane Hazel in 1954, due largely to a 10+ foot storm surge that destroyed homes and businesses from Kure Beach to Emerald Isle. Famously, Fran swept away the temporary North Topsail Beach police station. 

This clip shows trees being replaced in Downtown Wilmington three months after the storm destroyed many:

Source: "Wilmington Downtown Tree Planting to Repair Damage after Hurricane Fran," WWAY Television News Archive, Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History

HURRICANE HUGO – 1989

On September 22, 1989, Hurricane Hugo—a Category 4 with winds as high as 140 mph—made landfall just north of Charleston, South Carolina, before moving up through North Carolina. The storm's intensity produced hurricane-force gusts that reached as far as western North Carolina and a historic storm tide nearing 20 feet. At the time, it was one of the strongest and costliest hurricanes to hit the East Coast. 

This clip shows the storm’s damage to Yaupon Beach in Oak Island just three days after: 

Source: "Yaupon Beach Damage from Hurricane Hugo," WWAY Television News Archive, Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History

HURRICANE DIANA - 1984 

Hurricane Diana was the first hurricane to strike Southeast North Carolina since Hurricane Donna in 1960 and the first major hurricane since Hurricane Hazel in 1954. As the strongest hurricane of the 1984 season, Diana hit along the coast on September 13 as a Category 2, making landfall at Bald Head Island. Both New Hanover County and Brunswick County were met with flooding and overflowing lakes, the result of over a foot of rainfall. 

This clip shows residents of Bald Head Island who took shelter in the Old Baldy Lighthouse rather than evacuate the island: 

Source: "Bald Head Island Residents Evacuate during Hurricane Diana while Some Take Shelter in Lighthouse," WWAY Television News Archive, Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History

As a final fun fact, all three hurricanes were severe enough that their names were retired from the official hurricane name list, which is maintained by the Hurricane Committee of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). 

You can search the WWAY Television News Archive digital collection for more hurricane-related videos, or check out the Calhoun Collection of Hurricane Preparedness Research and the North Carolina Coastal Federation Papers for guides and research on hurricane mitigation, evacuation plans, and recovery steps. 

In 2018, the Center acquired the WWAY Television News Archive, a massive collection of over 6,000 items (mostly U-matic and DVC Pro tapes and DVDS) primarily consisting of news segments and b-roll footage produced by the WWAY television news station, a long-time ABC affiliate station. The recordings contain footage spanning the period from 1982 through 2012 that was created for local news broadcast. With grant funding received from the Council on Library and Information Resources’ Recordings at Risk program, approximately 8,000 local news clips dating from 1982 to 1997 have been made viewable and searchable in the WWAY Television News Archive Digital Collection.  

"Wilmington Family of Michael Jordan Watches National Basketball Association Draft at Home," 1984 (more info)

The digital collection contains a wealth of video footage and coverage of major local and national events. Several clips dating from 1983 show the fallout of “Operation Gateway,” a two-year joint investigation by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the federal Drug Enforcement Agency that uncovered a major drug smuggling ring in southeast North Carolina involving several prominent Brunswick County citizens. Coverage of local campaign activity for several United States presidential elections is also featured. Users can view clips documenting the early days of Wilmington’s film industry, particularly the productions of 1984’s Firestarter and 1985’s Cat’s Eye, alongside footage of high school and college commencement ceremonies, local sports match-ups, and county commissioners’ meetings. 

"New Hanover County Trial of Brunswick County Sheriff Herman Strong, Hoyle Varnam, and Steve Jackson Varnam for Smuggling Marijuana During Operation Gateway," 1983 (more info)

To view the collection for yourself, browse the available clips through the digital collection or use the keyword search box in the top right corner of the page to search for specific people, events, or topics. The digital collection currently only includes about 15% of the collection's news footage for the years 1982-1997, so if you’re having trouble finding coverage of something, contact the Center’s archivists for assistance in locating additional clips.

"Wilmington Independence Mall Back-to-School Shopping, Featuring Boy Who Wants to Dress Like Michael Jackson," 1984 (more info)