Impact
As the hurricane passed south of Bermuda on September 23, it produced heavy waves, as well as gale force winds for 17 hours. The Kindley Air Force Base reported peak gusts of 75 mph (120 km/h). There was no reported damage, and the hurricane's passage failed to alleviate persistent drought conditions.
While Ginger was still in the vicinity of Bermuda, it produced high swells and riptides along the East Coast of the United States, prompting the issuing of small craft warnings from Florida to North Carolina. Wave heights reached 8 ft (2.4 m) in Sebastian, Florida, and one person was killed in St. Augustine from drowning. There were also initial reports of two missing people in Neptune Beach, Florida, but they were not listed as casualties in the year-end hurricane summary.
As it moved ashore in North Carolina, Ginger produced a storm tide of around 6 ft (1.8 m) along the Outer Banks and up to 7 ft (2.1 m) in Pamlico Sound. The storm dropped heavy rainfall peaking at 15.58 in (396 mm) in Bodie Island along the Outer Banks, making Ginger among the wettest tropical cyclones in the state. Rainfall from the storm extended southwestward into South Carolina, where precipitation reached 4.98 in (126 mm) in Cheraw. In Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, wind gusts reached 92 mph (148 km/h), the highest associated with Ginger in the United States. The hurricane had a large wind field upon moving ashore, affecting a large portion of North Carolina; one county official considered Ginger the largest storm in the region since 1936.
Strong winds from Ginger damaged store fronts and windows, and also downed power lines and trees. Morehead City, where the hurricane moved ashore, lost power and had debris strewn across the streets. The nearby cities of New Bern, Beaufort, and Atlantic Beach also lost power, and one company had 6,000 customers without power. Heavy rainfall caused the Neuse and Trent rivers to exceed their banks, resulting in flooding. Several oil tanks along the rivers broke open, creating dangerous boating conditions. Up to 4 ft (1.2 m) of water from the Pungo River flooded most of the city of Belhaven, and similar flooding occurred in Washington, entering dozens of buildings and houses. Across the region, the combination of high winds, tides, and flooding closed several bridges and roads, including a portion of U.S. Highway 70. The winds also destroyed several mobile homes, although coastal damage was less than expected. During Ginger's passage, the Salvation Army and Red Cross provided more than 3,000 people with food assistance.
Further inland, the combination of strong winds and rains left heavy crop damage, destroying 3 million bushels of corn and another million bushels of soybeans; losses to the corn crop were mitigated due to about half of the crop having been harvested before the storm's arrival. Heavy damage was also reported to the peanut crop as well as to various fruits and vegetables. In some locations, up to 15% of the cotton crop was lost, particularly in the northeastern portion of the state. In 45 counties in the eastern portion of the state, farmers affected by the hurricane were eligible for loans from the Farmers Home Administration, following federal approval from President Richard Nixon. Governor Robert W. Scott requested federal disaster aid for 24 counties, which was denied. Damage in North Carolina was estimated at $10 million (1971 USD, $57.4 million 2012 USD), of which about $1 million (1971 USD, $5.74 million 2012 USD) was from coastal flooding. One death occurred in Washington when a vehicle accident was possibly caused by a wind gust; however, it was not conclusively linked to Ginger.
As the storm crossed into Virginia, it continued to produce heavy rainfall, including a total of 7.61 in (193 mm) in Norfolk. Near the border between Virginia and North Carolina, the storm produced tides of up to 4 ft (1.2 m) above normal. Gusty winds of over 50 mph (80 km/h) downed a few trees, causing scattered power outages. Above-normal tides and waves caused moderate to heavy beach erosion in Virginia Beach. Further north, Ginger produced above-normal tides, light winds, and scattered rainfall along the Delmarva Peninsula and northward through New York.
Read more about this topic: Hurricane Ginger
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