Tuesday, September 15, 2009

This week marks 10 years since Hurricane Floyd made landfall in North Carolina, killing 35 people and forcing federal officials to order the first mass evacuation of millions of coastal residents from Florida to Virginia.

Today, officials are still learning what worked, and what didn't, during this historic storm and have made changes that other coastal states across the country are following. Those preparedness plans have contributed to a "evacuation lane-reversal" system where interstates become massive one-way highways for residents to escape hurricane zones quicker.

Some states, like North Carolina, have completed a detailed flood mapping system, to show which areas are more vulnerable to a hurricane's deadly storm surge, or its flooding rains.