In Virginia Beach, the holiday weekend will go on after Earl

By STEVE SZKOTAK

VIRGINIA BEACH

A rich tourism weekend hung in the balance Thursday for Virginia Beach, as officials and emergency planners tried to gauge Hurricane Earl's impact on the city's 12,000 hotel rooms and the dozens of fluorescent-colored shops and restaurants lining Atlantic Avenue.

"Public safety always comes first. That's how we're looking at," said Ron Kuhlman, vice president of tourism, marketing and sales with the Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Whether the public would be in harm's way was still a question mark as Earl made his way up the East Coast. Earl was downgraded to a Category 3 storm Thursday afternoon, but a hurricane watch and tropical storm warning were posted for the coast in advance of the storm's swing through the area early Friday.

Thomas Green, a division chief with the Virginia Beach Department of Emergency Medical Services, said officials were watching Earl's track to see "whether it will be a mad dash or as normal as can be."

Still, emergency planners met Thursday and decided to go ahead with concerts that included the Village People and Pat Benatar and a big lineup of smaller musical events. Some 22,000 runners were also heading into Virginia's largest city for a half-marathon scheduled for Sunday.

"We're planning business as normal Friday night," said Michael Barakey, a battalion chief and spokesman for the Virginia Beach Fire Department. He said city officials and tourism leaders felt the worst of the storm would be past by the time events began Friday night.

"We have people here to be entertained," Barakey said. "We need to keep the activity level high for them."

Tourism draws 2.45 million overnight visitors to Virginia Beach annually, generating $815 million in 2009 in food, lodging, gas and souvenirs. The city's population of 430,000 can balloon to nearly a half-million during peak tourism periods, such as July 4th and Memorial Day.

"We wouldn't be going forward with an activity if it would put the public at risk at all," Kuhlman said.

Tourism officials look for guidance from the National Weather Service and other forecasting and news sources as they counsel travelers and plan events. Kuhlman said the Labor Day weekend is a "key element" of the resort city's overall tourism attractions.

For the most part, hospitality officials have asked visitors who have called to monitor weather reports and plan their trips accordingly.

"We've had some reservation cancelations," said Al Wiles of Crestline Hotels & Resorts Inc., which has eight hotels on Virginia Beach's oceanfront and a total 17 properties in the Hampton Roads area. "We're telling people to make their own decisions."

Signs of storm preparation and a big tourism weekend were apparent throughout Virginia Beach on Thursday.

Crews were replenishing sand along the oceanfront at 2nd Street and hotel workers were stowing balcony furniture inside, while tent frames were assembled along the beach. Beachgoers were strolling the surf early Thursday and blankets and umbrellas were unfurled and opened by noon.

Virginia Beach was a default choice for many visitors sunning themselves.

As 4-foot waves crashed onto the beach, Abigail Hapil, 20, and her parents lay under an umbrella after scaling back on a planned longer trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., for an overnight in Virginia Beach.

"Since we heard the hurricane was probably going to hit there, we decided to just come here instead," Hapil said. "It's a lot closer but we don't have to worry."

In Sandbridge, 14 miles north of the North Carolina line, children played in the surf under cloudy skies. Lifeguards walked the beach and rode ATVs, stopping by to warn beachgoers to keep their children close and beware of rip currents.

Over the past 10 days, lifeguards along this small stretch of beach had rescued 35 people from the surf, Green said. Swimmers were only allowed to go in waist deep.

"The ocean is the worst part," Green said, looking out over choppy seas. "The winds and the flooding - we're used to that. There's a lot of people who underestimate the power of the ocean."

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Associated Press Writer Dena Potter in Sandbridge, Va., contribute to this report.