AP/The Charlotte Observer
Jeff Cargill, left, and his brother John Cargill work to secure boards over the windows on one of the five houses their mother owns along the ocean in Kill Devil Hills, N.C., Sept. 16, 2003. More than 100,000 people were urged to evacuate the North Carolina coast before the arrival of Hurricane Isabel.
AP/The Charlotte Observer
Vacationers in the Nags Head, N.C. area load up their belongings after a mandatory evacuation order was issued ahead of Hurricane Isabel, Sept. 16, 2003.
AP
Joy Mosley, of Minneapolis, Minn., hangs on to her hat as she walks through foam created by rough surf from Hurricane Isabel on the beach in Nags Head, N.C., Sept. 16, 2003.
AP
Sailors head for duty aboard the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan as it prepares to leave the Norfolk Naval Station in Norfolk, Va., Sept. 16, 2003. The second fleet ordered 40 ships to sea to avoid the potential damage from Hurricane Isabel.
AP
Surfers in Ocean City, N.J. take advantage of the high waves brought on by Hurricane Isabel, Sept. 15, 2003. A hurricane hasn't made direct landfall over the New Jersey coast since 1903, but many passing storms have done severe damage.
AP
Scott Tivon, left, and Phil Paget, right, place sections of swan boats in a row in Boston's Public Garden as they dismantle the boats in Boston's Public Garden for another season, Sept. 16, 2003. The operators of the popular attraction decided to close a week early due to the uncertain path of Hurricane Isabel.
AP/Newport News Daily Press
Andrea Pertginides, left, and Harriett Rutter eye the last two cases of water on a pallet inside the Harris Teeter food market in Newport News, Va. Sept. 15, 2003. Shoppers were preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Isabel.
AP/Daytona Beach News-Journal
Danny Spradley watches a huge wave approach as he fishes off the Main Street Pier in Daytona Beach, Fla., Sept. 15, 2003. A combination of high tide and swells generated by Hurricane Isabel kept cars off the beach most of the day.
AP/The Island Packet, Jay Karr
A surf kayaker catches a wave in the Atlantic Ocean at North Forest Beach as a shrimp trawler rolls past during high tide along the shore of Hilton Head Island, S.C., Sept. 14, 2003.
AP/Florida Today, Emily Barnes
Floyd Roecker of Melbourne, Fla., secures three pieces of plywood to other pieces of wood Sept. 13 to haul in his truck in the parking lot of Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse in Melbourne. He is putting them on the front door of his workplace, Brunswick Harbour Lanes, in case Hurricane Isabel hits the East Coast.
AP/El Nuevo Herald
Sergio Figueredo looks for some fasteners for hurricane shutters at a Home Depot store Sept. 12, 2003, in Miami, just in case Hurricane Isabel threatens south Florida.
AP
Director of the National Hurricane Center Max Mayfield briefs other government agencies via a conference call on the status of Hurricane Isabel on Sept. 11, 2003, in Miami.
AP/Jacksonville Daily News
Mark Twisdale carries a piece of plywood as he boards up his vacation home in Atlantic Beach, N.C., Sept. 14, 2003. He is preparing for the possible arrival of Hurricane Isabel.
AP/Jacksonville Daily News
Mark Twisdale of Raleigh boards up his vacation home.
AP/Jacksonville Daily News
People load plywood into the back of a truck Sept. 14, 2003, in Morehead City, N.C.
AP/Jacksonville Daily News
Tyler Lindman, center, and his family, of Swansboro, push a portable generator they purchased Sept. 14, 2003, in Morehead City, N.C., as they prepare for the chance Hurricane Isabel could hit the coast of North Carolina.
AP/The Post and Courier, Mic Smith
Lowe's employee James Jeter, right, helps Tom Read, load a generator into the back of his car Sept, 13, 2003, in James Island, S.C. Read's wife, Anne, left, looks on. Read bought the generator in case Hurricane Isabel comes ashore.
AP/Florida Today, Emily Barnes
Floyd Roecker secures lumber to his truck in the parking lot of a home improvement store Sept. 13, 2003, in Melbourne, Fla. Roecker bought the items to secure the front door of his workplace, Brunswick Harbour Lanes, in case Hurricane Isabel hits the area.
AP
B.J. Whittacker of Dover, Del., loads his truck with sheets of plywood at a Lowe's store Sept. 15, 2003. Whittacker saw Hurricane Floyd while vacationing near Myrtle Beach a few years ago. He is wearing a T-shirt that reads "I Survived Floyd."
AP
Manny Carrar, right, and Steve Deeney, behind the wood, load their truck with plywood in Dover, Del., Sept. 15, 2003. In addition to the wood, they bought a water pump and a few flashlights, among other things. Deeney said, "We've always skirted them (hurricanes) but this one is to be different."