Glenn Counts NewsChannel 36 Reporter

I had never covered a hurricane before, so I have no problem admitting that I was naive in regards to the kind of damage they could inflict.

I remember going to bed the night before Hugo's arrival, never in a million years expecting hurricane force winds in Charlotte.

I was in the middle of a good night's sleep when the phone rang around 3 a.m. It was somebody on the assignment desk telling me to come in. It took me a few seconds to knock the sleep out of my eyes.

I quickly realized I didn't have any power, and the wind was as strong as I have ever heard. Then I thought, 'Wow, this is serious,' and not just the overactive imagination of some rookie assignment editor.

Ronnie Beagle, one of my best friends at the station and a photographer, lived in the first floor beneath me in the same apartment building.

He had also been called. I walked down and we decided to travel to the station in his news unit, but first we had to go pick up Alicia Powell, an associate producer who lived along Albemarle road.

That sounds simple, but this morning nothing would be simple. Alicia lived in a 2nd floor unit, and had a broken leg. I don't even remember how she got hurt. She had been hobbling around on crutches for a couple of weeks.

Ronnie and I had to carry Alicia down the stairs. We were being whipped by 70 to 80 mph winds and the rain was so hard it felt like tiny pin pricks hitting you in the face.

Twenty years ago the station was in the old building located on Hood Road. That place was like an outhouse compared to what we have now.

The drive in was always a bit scenic with tall trees lining the road. As we proceeded to head in we were forced to turn around, many of those trees that lined the road were now in it, acting as roadblocks.

Now that I think about it, I guess we were lucky we could have easily have gotten hit. We got what video we could from east Charlotte and waited for the worst of the storm to leave.

If you've been through Myers Park I don't have to tell you what an attractive neighborhood it is. But the morning we rolled up Kings Street looking for damage, I could not believe my eyes.

As far as the eye could see trees covered the road. I was stunned; the place looked like a war zone.

Residents who were out walking all shared the same look of disbelief. Many homes were damaged; instead of dropping bombs Mother Nature used Oaks and Maples and Pine.

I remember one man invited us into his bedroom. A large tree crashed through his roof and came to rest over his bed just a couple of inches from his face. I don't remember his name, but I do remember that he thanked God for sparing his life. There were so many stories like that.

The cleanup lasted weeks. We did stories about neighbor helping neighbor, and cops and emergency room staff working around the clock.

Then we did stories that surprised us, for example, because of the massive damage to the tree population, yellow jackets went crazy and a lot of people went to the ER who had been stung.

I've been to the coast many times to cover hurricanes, riding out the storm when everyone has been told to evacuate.

I suppose you get a certain rush when you do dumb things and you live to tell the tale. In heading to the coast at least you are aware that you are taking a chance, I never thought that kind of risk would show up on my doorstep here in Charlotte.

It's a lesson that I doubt any of us who lived through Hugo will ever forget.

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