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Virginia Beach emergency manager warns of coastal flooding, urges resident preparedness for Hurricane Aaron
Summary
Director of Emergency Management David Toplitzy told council that Hurricane Aaron—forecast as a Category 2–3 storm offshore—may bring strong onshore winds, coastal flooding and large surf in the next 48–72 hours and urged residents to follow official updates, sign up for B.B. Alert, and secure loose items and vehicles.
David Toplitzy, the city’s director of emergency management, briefed Virginia Beach City Council on preparations for Hurricane Aaron and the likely impacts to the shoreline.
Toplitzy said Aaron remained a powerful system in the Atlantic and, while models showed a north‑northeast turn that would keep the storm offshore, the projected westward shift in its track raised the risk of stronger onshore winds, higher waves and coastal flooding near Virginia Beach. He highlighted that outer bands could start affecting the area tomorrow afternoon and that conditions could be worst Wednesday night through Thursday night with improvement by Friday afternoon.
Toplitzy emphasized that the current threat profile is primarily coastal: large surf (forecasts of 8–14 foot oceanfront waves and 6–8 foot bay waves), potential stacking of waves in the Chesapeake/Lynnhaven Bay that could elevate tides, and a risk of 1–3 feet of storm surge in some Atlantic shoreline locations. He cautioned that rain is likely limited to brief outer‑band showers and that the event is not expected to be a prolonged inland rain event.
The city has activated the Emergency Operations Center to enhanced monitoring (Level 1) and stands ready to elevate to a partial activation (Level 2) if the storm tracks closer to shore. Toplitzy described operational measures already under way: staging high‑water response vehicles and marine rescue assets, positioning additional crews (landscape, public works, utilities) and lifeguards on the oceanfront and Sandbridge to remove or secure loose items, making Town Center parking garages available to residents in flood‑prone areas Wednesday through Friday, and up‑staffing 911/311 to handle increased call volumes.
Toplitzy urged residents not to panic but to take common‑sense preparedness steps: sign up for the city’s B.B. Alert system and beach‑condition alerts (text keywords to 67283 or via ReadyVB/ReadyVB’s QR code), secure boats and lightweight objects, top off generator fuel supplies if applicable, move vehicles out of known flood zones, and follow official city and local media updates. He said the city was coordinating with Dominion Energy, which planned to stage restoration crews if outages occur, and that public safety departments had plans to up‑staff if needed.
Mayor Dyer thanked Toplitzy and council members asked about the timing and staging of resources for the Shore Drive and oceanfront areas. Toplitzy reiterated that the forecast could change and that the city would reassess tonight and tomorrow morning as new model runs are issued.
