After all US Navy ships in the Hampton Roads area were ordered to set Sortie Condition Alpha ahead of Hurricane Florence, they began to sortie on September 10, according to the navy.
Yesterday, there were nearly 30 ships preparing to get underway from Naval Station Norfolk and Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek as Hurricane Florence is forecasted to bring high winds and rain to the Mid-Atlantic coast.
Ships will be directed to areas of the Atlantic where they will be best postured for storm avoidance.
Some units will not get underway due to maintenance status but will be taking extra precautions to avoid potential damage. Commanding officers have a number of options when staying in port, depending on the severity of the weather. Some of these options include adding additional mooring and storm lines, dropping the anchor, and disconnecting shore power cables.
“Our ships can better weather storms of this magnitude when they are underway,” US Fleet Forces Commander Adm. Christopher Grady in a news release earlier this weekend.
Additionally, Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic ordered all navy installations in the Hampton Roads area to set Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness Three (III), meaning sustained destructive winds of greater than 50 knots associated with a tropical system are expected within 48 hours.