- In 1899 the old "August Storm" roared across Ocracoke Island causing considerable damage. Reports indicate that winds reached as high as 12o mph. Although the sea tide rushed through the village floating buildings off their foundations, and hurricane force winds blew down trees and lifted roofs off of houses, not a single life was lost.
- In 1918 the life savers of Hatteras Island, under the command of John Allen Midgett rescued 42 crew members of the British steamer, Mirlo. This dramatic rescue earned Midgett and his men the British Grand Cross for their bravery. Their citation reads:
"In a heavy northeast sea that caused the lifeboat to be tossed back upon the beach and the crew washed away from the oars time after time. Undaunted they returned to their task. After succeeding in getting their boat through the surf they were compelled to steer into a blazing inferno where the flames leaped at least 500 feet high, and were in serious danger of being burned to death if not drowned. They picked up a number of the crew of the Mirlo and towed four of the ship's boats ... They anchored the boats beyond the breakers and then made four trips in their surf boat bringing the entire 42 survivors safely ashore."
Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is "One Reason to NOT Move to Ocracoke." You can read it here.
Philip,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading todays post, I did a little more research on the Mirlo and it lead me to this website.
http://www.obxdive.com/NagsHead.htm
It list a lot of the ships off the coast that divers can dive on. Interesting to read what's left of them and where they are located. These old wrecks always interest me and I always enjoy reading what you post about them.
See you in November.
Nollie