NHC: Upper Bay Could Escape Storm Surge, Not Coast

BALTIMORE (AP) -- The director of the National Hurricane Center says five to 10 inches of rain are expected to fall across the mid-Atlantic region due to Hurricane Irene, but may not push much water into the upper Chesapeake Bay.

Bill Read made the comments Saturday in a conference call with the media as Hurricane Irene was making landfall in North Carolina. Read says the track of the storm shows that the upper Chesapeake Bay could escape the storm surge that caused problems during Hurricane Isabel in 2003.

But he says coastal areas won't be so lucky, with the storm threatening to cause damage to beaches and low-lying properties. Heavy rains could cause also problems because the ground in the region is already saturated from recent rains.

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