Storm-Tossed Seas

Elise Felman stands by her son Josh Feldman, 11, of Leonardtown, Md., cautiously watching their footing as the pier breaks up from the force of the waves as Hurricane Isabel slams into the eastern seaboard Sept. 18, 2003. Josh was out to experience the hurricane to help him receive extra credit for school.

Storm chaser Warren Faidley of Tucson, Ariz., shoots videotape of the Triple SSS Pier in Atlantic Beach, N.C., as large waves pound the pier as Hurricane Isabel makes its approach to the coast Sept. 18, 2003.

Floodwaters crash into a submerged gas station in Buxton, N.C., as Hurricane Isabel makes landfall to the south on Sept. 18, 2003. The ocean waters flooded over this portion of Hatteras Island, meeting the waters of Pamlico Sound to the west.

Wind-whipped waters of the South River break over the shoreline about 25 miles north of Beaufort, N.C., Sept. 17, 2003, as Hurricane Isabel moved toward land. Residents of Beaufort finished preparations for Hurricane Isabel, then settled in to watch the skies and wait for the winds and rain.

Raymond Pugh pilots his hang glider over Nags Head Beach, Sept. 16, 2003, in Nags Head, N.C. Pugh was taking advantage of the high winds in advance of Hurricane Isabel.

A surfer rides the six- to eight-foot waves Sept. 16, 2003, in Surf City, N.C. Coastal residents from South Carolina to New Jersey boarded up homes and businesses and stocked up on batteries, water and other supplies.

A surfer prepares to ride the waves at Crescent Beach, Fla. Sept. 16, 2003

Surfers at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral, Fla., ride the waves generated by Hurricane Isabel Sept. 16, 2003. The waves were between 6-8 feet in height.

A lifeguard patrols the beach Sept. 16, 2003, at Nags Head, N.C., asking people to stay out of the water because of rough surf being created by Hurricane Isabel.

A couple watches the surf at sunrise in Ocean City, Md., Sept. 16, 2003, as preparations are made along the Atlantic coast for Hurricane Isabel.

Oceanfront homes in Sandbridge section of Virignia Beach are protected by a long expanse of beach in Sandbridge, Va., Sept. 16, 2003. The oceanfront's $125 million "Beach Erosion Control and Hurricane Protection Project" is about to get its first test with the arrival of Hurricane Isabel.

Roger Craveiro of West Port, Mass., sits on a jetty on the beach in Atlantic City, N.J., as high waves brought on by Hurricane Isabel crash Sept. 16, 2003.

Visitors watch as waves crash off the Johnny Mercer Pier on Wrightsville Beach, N.C., Sept. 16, 2003, as Hurricane Isabel churned off the coast of the eastern United States.