Hurricane Florence, a large and slow moving Category 1 hurricane, made landfall during the morning of September 14, 2018. After the eye crossed Wrightsville Beach, NC at 7:15 a.m. the storm spent the next two days producing record-breaking rainfall across eastern North Carolina and a portion of northeastern South Carolina. Over 30 inches of rain were measured in a few North Carolina locations, exceeding the highest single-storm rainfall amounts ever seen in this portion of the state. A station in Loris, SC recorded 23.63 inches rain, setting a rainfall record for the state of South Carolina.
The hurricane was unusual due to its strength, speed (or lack thereof) and the extraordinary amount of water it carried. Record flooding developed over the next several days, destroying roads and damaging thousands of homes and businesses. Wind gusts over 100 mph caused significant damage to buildings, trees, and electrical service across the Cape Fear area. The storm surge climbed over four feet, eroding beaches and damaging property between Cape Fear and Cape Lookout, including Marine Corps Base (MCB) Camp Lejeune, Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) New River and MCAS Cherry Point.
High winds marred rooftops on hundreds of older buildings across MCB Camp Lejeune, MCAS New River, and MCAS Cherry Point causing $3.6 billion in damage to over 800 facilities; a $1.7 billion repair and $1.7 billion replacement program was needed in order to restore Marine Corps Installations East (MCIEAST) readiness capabilities to full strength. Starting in FY19, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Mid-Atlantic began a two-year effort awarding repair projects, and also initiated acquisition planning for the $1.7 billion in Hurricane Florence-related new military construction (MILCON) at MCB Camp Lejeune, MCAS New River, and MCAS Cherry Point. This strategy included RFP development and awarding for 31 design build MILCON projects across seven contract packages.
On July 28, 2020, Officer in Charge of Construction (OICC) Florence was commissioned as a new NAVFAC command with the mission of executing the $3.4 billion program combination of MILCON and repair projects supporting recovery from Hurricane Florence. The command provides engineering, construction, and acquisition services supporting the Marine Corps’ recovery from the storm and deployment of the Joint Strike Fighter, re-establishing the readiness of expeditionary forces for Marine Corps Installation East and II Marine Expeditionary Force.