Hurricane Irma CEF friends check in

I definitely need a diaper, started prep Sun, town is nuts. If the eye hits here it will be a matter of survival.

crankbndr
Hey brother I am a short 14 hr drive away and have space to keep you dry and well fed

Do not wait until last min

This is open invite to ANY CEF member in the potential path

If Central Texas is unreasonably too far away.... pick some way off beaten path dinky town well inland... get a reservation and head out with most important stuff and any critters

I have personally been in Typhoons, Tornadoes, and Hurricanes and can safely say surviving the actual storm is real easy...the long recovery aftermath with zero help or services is the more significant problem, and by being there, YOU are Part of That Problem

There's been many times in "my life".. where I've thought about joining the Red Cross or the Peace Corps. I didn't serve in the military. I envy all who have.. for their service to their country.. as well as the discipline that being in the military teaches. I don't take our safety/freedoms for granted. I've never been driven towards a materialistic lifestyle.. and have never "wanted" for much. I'm content to have peace of mind.. and a few paltry-things that pacify me.. and in conjunction; bring happiness to the people in my life. This has.. and will continue to be my course. I'd like to be able to spread that out somehow. My being a musician has helped somewhat.. but hasn't been necessarily channeled toward "helping others". I tried to explore playing solo-piano and singing in Senior/Nursing-homes; only to experience most all being booked-up with entertainment for a year. Going "on-call" while maintaining a regular full-time job simply wasn't an option.. so I abandoned that course. Some of you will remember my trying to make that happen.

Our "George Hostler" has volunteered much of his time to charity as a fellow Musician.. and although I am not in his "position".. I find his efforts very admirable.

Just my ramblings.. for what they're worth.

Thanks for the offer, I would love to hop a jet to Texas!! I have evac before, days early, can't wait like you say. Roads get clogged. One problem is Fl. is long and thin, you can only run North.
My last evac storm chased me to NC. LOL Now I have too many commitments to leave.

Right now I am in Ft Walton Beach. Even Northern Floridians are prepping. I have never seen a base Commissary so busy. Lines snaking through the entire store. Crazy!

In 35 years of on/off Florida residency we "survived" a couple of cat 1's and a few tropical storms.  All did minimal damage, it was the fear that got ya.  

First one was in Pensacola in 1957, we evacuated to a concrete structure on mainside and spent the night.  Our little 8 X 28' trailer was intact when we returned.  One of the cat 1's tore some shingles off the roof around 2008 and that was it.  

Irma appears to be a category 5, a whole different animal.  Seems it will hit the mountains in Cuba and lose strength, hopefully.  Times like this make me thankful I'm in West Virginia, but I still love the Sunshine State and pray for the best.





I do love wild weather though, especially when a front comes through.  Just had one here this afternoon.  Heavy wind and rain and I was in the middle of it, trees swaying back and forth and some thunder adding sound to the experience some lightening too adding to the visual aspects.  No death wish here, just lets you know your really alive.  Funny though despite the pictures, I have a fear of heights, get me more than 3 feet off mother earth and I'm shaking.  

Most impressive one was when a warm front came though and the temperature went from cool to warm in an instant. The warm air hit me in the face like a soft blanket.  Never forget it.

Bob

Hey Crankbndr,

Were you in Homestead for Andrew? I had to fly between Naples and Homestead a couple days after that nasty storm. The devastation was so totally complete it is almost impossible to describe. I just pulled the generator out and got out some spare gas cans to fill up for the generator. I hope this one passes us by.

Lots of people in Naples are operating on the fringes of panic.

Yes I was, we got plowed into oblivion, no power for months roofs were gone buildings were gone our idiot governor did nothing for like a week. Help came slowly at first.
Telephone poles were flying like missiles. I saw things I find hard to describe. Landmarks were gone you could be lost close to home. It took a decade for town to recover. Still not the same town.
This one has me scared.

Good luck to you west of me, response is better now, we needed basics like water and MRIs. Gov Lawton Cliles was asleep at the switch. Rick Scott is responding well.
Be safe and God bless to you.

God bless you, too. Buckle up tightly and let's pray for the best.

What a cat5+ can do








I lived a few miles from tower

crankbndr wrote:What a cat5+ can do








I lived a few miles from tower

Good Lord.. sending prayers from up here in Rhode Island. I hope the storm turns North sooner. Some models predict that it could.

You guys in the path stay aware and wishing the BEST will come out of this and Go another way !! We don't get much around here to scare the hair off ya but watching what happens freaks me out thoses pictures make me cringe

Awful destruction CB that Andrew caused.  We missed that one, thankfully stationed at Patuxent River Maryland but I remember it well.  That picture of the palm tree with the embedded 2X8 is iconic.  Florida changed it's building codes after Andrew requiring hold downs on the roof structure among others.  

You guys stock up and stay safe, I'm sure you both know the drill.  Our thoughts and best wishes will be with you over the coming days.  

Bob

Holley just left for a girlfriend vacation with her sister in Seattle. Right now she's 45 minutes into the 6 hour flight. She's supposed to fly back into Charleston Monday evening. Mmmm, I don't think so, not judging by what I see now.

Hugo was 135 mph and the size of Texas. Irma is off the scale and at least as big. Most of the spaghetti lines in the probability cone are changing hourly, but bunching up at the SC/GA border, 100 miles south of Charleston. I have all the meds I need except the ones that aren't allowed by law to be filled until the day after I run out(and only written a day or two before). Those are the ones that'll put me into dangerous withdrawals if I run out(Tuesday). I left a message on my Doc's patient portal today asking for some relaxation of the red tape, but no reply yet.

My first mission tomorrow is to buy what's left of batteries, a couple of new modern LED flashlights, water, and food that I can cook on an old Coleman fuel stove. I refurbished the Coleman pump stove and lanterns when Matthew was coming last year. They'll get a test run tomorrow.

Tonight I'm going to work on planes to prepare for tomorrow's flying expedition on the last nice day before the forecast storm days.

Take care, friends, and we'll see you on the other side of the big adventure.
Rusty

Rusty,

Be safe and take care of the Mrs.. I remember coming back into Charleston about a year after Hugo. The beach front looked as if nothing ever happened. But, once we crossed the train tracks it looked like a war zone. Mother Nature can be heartless. Keep an eye on things and be safe.

Fit
Are you staying put?

If true, I sure hope the European Model is wrong....
Irma's track middle or left of Florida tip is gonna be one of the worst in history

When I follow these things I pay close attention to what the OTHER highs and lows are doing in relation to steering the Jet Stream.....

I currently do not see a scenario where Irma is steered much to the East if any

We have a depression forming right now in the Gulf that is gong to be a player in steering Irma and skewing some of the models

Wife and I have all of the effected areas in out prayers

I hope none of you in the path are planning on staying. Don't gamble with this kind of stuff! Hoping and praying for the best.

Crank, Fit, Rusty and everyone else on the path... Take care of yourselves and look after others near you. You are in my thoughts.

Been there, done that!! Hold my beer!!

That's the spirit

Post storm must have items, keep calm and carry on

Good call, I do the same thing during a Tornado. Guns go in the shelter with me. Too many dirt bags out there.