Bus drivers move inmates safely through Irene's fury

Lt. Joshua Panter and Lead CO Benjamin Wood

They were hitting the road at dusk leaving Raleigh and headed into the direct path of Hurricane Irene. On that Saturday evening, Lt. Joshua Panter and Lead Officer Benjamin Wood of Central Prison did not know what to expect except that they were likely to encounter some rough weather and road conditions. They also knew they had an dangerous job to do— transfer 23 special control inmates out of Pamlico Correctional Institution in Bayboro. The prison was being evacuated due to a severely damaged roof and rains pouring in to the housing areas.

Lt. Panter described some of the things they saw along the way as they navigated east on Highway 70.
“It started to get really dark around Smithfield because power was out. I know it was difficult for Wood to see the lines in the roads because there was a blanket of pine needles on the highway,” explained Panter.
He added that the rain really started picking up in Wayne County and most towns they passed through were pitch-black. No power there either. Occasionally the headlights of the bus would light up uprooted trees and large branches along the highway.

“All I could think of was that this was going to be disastrous for North Carolina,” said Wood.
As the two got closer to Bayboro, they described going through a steady downpour and it was obvious others had recently traveled the same path because giant trees had been sawed into logs and pushed to the side of the road. Soon they learned that there was more work to be done to clear the way.

“We had to stop because there was a line about a half mile long of brake lights ahead,” described Panter. “I got out of the bus to see why everyone was stopped. There was a huge tree about 100 feet tall across the road that was resting on some power lines.”

Some Prison Emergency Response Team (PERT) members and others had a chain saw and were working on cutting the tree into pieces so it could be pushed off the road. Soon the logs were cleared and the line of buses and vans were able to make their way to the prison.

“It was impressive when we pulled up to the prison because in the dark you could see eight buses lined up with their strobe lights on the top beaming in the dark,” said Wood. He added, “I knew it was going to be a long night because we ended up being just one of the 17 buses that had arrived to transport inmates and there would be a lot of work to do to get the inmates ready to travel.”

He was right. Security checks had to be done on approximately 600 inmates. The inmate’s records jacket had to be gathered; a medical review completed on each inmate; and all their belongings had to be logged.

“As we waited, the rain started easing off. Since there was no power and no lights, and the clouds started moving out of the sky, the stars were really prominent and I could see flashes of lightning in the distance,” said Panter.

Around 5:30 Sunday morning, the buses were loaded and they lined up with those drivers who had the longest trip leading the way. The buses and the chase vehicles that provided additional security headed out to prisons in Salisbury, Maxton, Nashville, Butner and Raleigh.

Panter and Wood’s bus arrived in Raleigh around 10 that morning, which was about 15 hours after it had left. Everyone was safe and the inmates were secure in their temporary housing at Central Prison. All the buses that had picked up inmates at Pamlico CI arrived safely at their destinations too.

The officers both said it was a night they would remember forever. They commented that it was adrenaline and knowing they had an important job to do that carried them through.