Hugo remembered 25 years after hitting land

CHARLOTTE — Twenty-five years ago, Hurricane Hugo became one of the worst storms to ever hit the Carolinas.

Hugo churned inland after it made landfall in Charleston, South Carolina. The storm was a Category 1 hurricane when it hit Charlotte, blowing out windows, dumping inches of rain and topping thousands of trees.

Anchor Scott Wickersham spoke to residents who still remember the storm’s strength and the weeks of cleanup that followed.

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Mecklenburg County Commissioner Pat Cotham remembered the night Hugo came to town.

"I was more afraid that night than any time in my life," Cotham said. Like many others, Cotham and her family huddled in a hallway with no power for most of the night. They checked their car radio for updates, riding out the roaring winds.

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The next morning, the sun revealed devastation. Cotham remembers, in particular, the effects on her backyard swimming pool.

"It was totally green and brown, branches and sticks and dead animals," Cotham said.

Harry Norton has mounds in his yard that were tall trees 25 years ago.

"We heard a big crack. The top of my chimney came down. A tree had fallen on the side of my house," Norton said.

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The storm toppled thousands of trees in Charlotte and communication towers, including the Channel 9 transmitter that was left sprawling across our studios.

Hugo was blamed for more than a dozen deaths in the Carolinas.

Cotham also remembers people getting together to help, in the weeks and months it took to get the city back on its feet.

"Neighbors were helping neighbors. Everybody was just so kind of each other, and people got to know each other," Cotham said.

Click here to see a slideshow of damage from Hurricane Hugo.

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