Brunswick beaches brace for Florence as state of emergency declared

OAK ISLAND, NC (WWAY) –  A state of emergency declared county-wide in Brunswick County. Many Brunswick beaches as well as the municipalities inland  are mirroring that same declaration.

Neighbors on Oak Island are taking that very seriously and safeguarding what’s theirs. We saw several homes along Beach Drive and East Oak Island Drive with boarded up windows and doors.

“Anything that gets over a Cat 3 it’s time to go,” said homeowner Mike Lester who plans to board his home and clear out the garage along Beach Drive.

Neighbors fueling up on Oak Island (Andrew James/WWAY)

If they can’t go, many Brunswick County neighbors are stocking and fueling up.

“If it does hit, everything I own is here. I have a business here I have a house here,” said John Narcice who owns a hotel on Oak Island and has told his guests they need to leave town.

Visitors to Oak Island and Caswell Beach have already been told to evacuate. Business owners like Art Skipper have seen several storms pass the island over the years. He knows this is serious.

“This really looks worse and this is probably comparable to hurricane Hazel,” Skipper said.

Skipper has already boarded up his business and plans to board his home and leave town. Mike Lester is doing the same and heading south.

“There’s nothing about a house that’s worth staying here and risking your life,” said Lester.

Neighbors are filling up at station all over the island and sealing up homes.

“That air will get inside of a home and it will create a vortex and it will completely destroy the inside of the home,” said Nick Liles who had boarded three homes already on Monday.

Voluntary evacuation orders are in effect for Oak Island as well as at Caswell and

Workers board up Art Skipper Realty (Andrew James/WWAY)

neighboring beach towns. Lifelong neighbors like Skipper urge other to be proactive.

“Get boarded up and ready for it and hope it don’t come,” Skipper said.

Some towns and cities will be going under mandatory evacuation for their residents come Wednesday.

Southport Ocean Isle Beach and Holden are some that sit in that category. Some of these residents that now sit on voluntary evacuation orders don’t be surprised if that is upgraded to mandatory.