Hurricane's a comin'!

Not looking good. Florida is first in line along with Geogia. With 155 MPH winds, we are starting to prepare here in Virginia. Outer Banks may really take a beating.

Could have a one, two, three punch after you see what Dennis did. You know what they say, three strikes and you're out.

If she comes in here with 100 plus winds, I'll be elsewhere. Went through Hazel here in '55 and that was enough for me.

Moby

Getting to old. The romance with a hurricane is gone!

Good Luck to Moby -- and all in the path of Floyd & Gert.

My parents have a vacation home in Beafort SC, about 6 miles inland from the Hunting Island lighthouse. We have already boarded it up and hauled out the boat. Not much more to do but wait and hope for the best. It looks like the entire Southeast coast could be in for a very rough time! I have been through Hugo, Gracy, Hazel and numerous other hurricans and I can assure you that anyone in the path of Floyd or Gert will need our prays and support. Good luck to all (and to our beloved lighthouse)!

Well, I'm right in the middle of two of the projected paths for Floyd. I'm in East Central Florida. The first thing I thought of was Mombo's map of the US and the pins representing forum members. I hope my pin doesn't end up having to be moved to the middle of the Gulf! With 2 dogs, 5 cats, 44 HL pieces, I've got a lot to do tonight to get ready. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hope everyone fares well.

Joanne

Just some addtional thoughts from my previous post. For any of you who do not live in a hurricane prone area or have not experienced one, here's something you may relate to.
The core winds of Floyd, at 155 mph, are equivalent to a F2 tornado! The difference, of course is that Floyd will remain on the "ground" for 1000's of miles and its' top winds extend out to a diameter of 100+ miles. [Floyd's tropical force winds (39-73mph) extend out almost 300 miles from the center,that's 600 miles wide!! (about the distance from Denver to Phoenix or Chicago to Oklahoma City).
So, just imagin a 100 mile wide F2 tornado racking the coast for hundreds of miles over several days! Consider too, the potential of 10+ inchs of rain and 18+ foot storm surge (enough water to reach the roof of a 2 story home, assuming the structure was able to withstand the massive pounding of the wind blown waves)!

Having lived along the Gulf Coast all my life I've been through many hurricanes. My prayers, hopes and best wishes are with you all in the path(s) of one.

Dittos Lamar.

Our prayers are with all during the travels of Floyd and Gert.

Gulf Coast La.



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Bob

Same here. My cousin is in Jupiter, and best friends in Charleston. I worry everytime one of these things starts up.

Any of you guys who are or have loved ones in the path of these storms, know that all our prayers are with you. Always try to stay positive.
Take care,
George

From what I've seen on the news, it looks like your all in for quite a storm. I can't imagine what It's like to have to endure such a rath of nature. Hang in there guys and good luck to you all. I'll be praying for everyone's safety!

To all of you on the east coast, prayer is going up for your safety.

Can't tell you how scared I am. I've removed all pictures, plates, shelves from the walls. Taped the windows and removed all items from my yard. The more I see of this storm, the harder I pray. It's going to be very severe. Thanks for keeping all of us in your prayers. I hope they work. Let's hope this monster stays off shore.

Joanne

I lived near Fort Lauderdale Fl (east coast for those of you who do not know Fl.) for a number of years. I had only one brush with a hurricane - Andrew. I was on the northern edge and was lucky to make it through with no damage. I did get to know people who lived in the Miami area and lost everything due to the storm. I am praying very hard for all the people living in Fl and Ga., people from this forum and everyone else. This does look like a bad one.

God speed to you all.
Jim

P.S. If you have the time to read this now before the storm - save yourselves - personal items can be replaced, lives cannot.

I echo all of the above sentiments and prayers. Let us all hope for the best.

-Todd

As with all the above, prayers and good thoughts for everyone on the east coast.

Dave

When I first saw the reports on the Weather Channel I checked the pins on my map. I pounded them in pretty good so hope you all stay put. Good luck to all those in the path, my thoughts and prayers are with you.

MOMBO

I remember Hazel. It even struck us up north. Remember it was Halloween. I was here in our camp (before the house replaced it). We sat in the kitchen watching the trees along the river come down. Quite a sight.

Living in Missouri, in Tornado Alley, is quite enough for me. Have only experienced a tropical storm in my life (on my honeymoon cruise, no less) and really have no desire to be in anything worse. When we visit the southeast and see all the signs for hurricane evacuation routes, I feel a twinge of nervousness for anyone who has ever been through it. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone, epsecially the brave men and women of emergency services who ride it out so they can take care of the needs of others! God bless us every one.

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. Too early here for preparation yet being in SE Va. If she goes in at south NC, we will catch a real blow. Wind and rain. If she skirts the coast, depending how close, tide becomes a real problem. We will wait and see.

If she goes inland, flooding can be a major comcern, like Cameal in '69.

I'll keep you posted on VA. as long as power is on.

Moby

My thoughts are with all who may be affected by Hurricane Floyd.

Hopefully Mother Nature will be kind and spare all you from the brunt of the storm.

We are keeping a watchful eye here on Long Island although the current forecast indicates we will get some rain and wind.

Again, God Bless you all and my prayers are with you.

Thanks Mike,

If she comes up the coast as currently forecast, our lives will be changed forever. I'll keep you posted here where it is very warm and humid. Almost like Floyd is being guided in this direction.

Moby

God bless all of you in the path of Floyd. My thoughts and prayers are with you all. Please take care and be safe.

Many thoughts,
Amber

I've got a suitcase packed, bags of dog and cat food in the car, insurance papers, and my prized possession - a personally autographed picture to me by Frank Sinatra.

I'm ready to go if I have to.

Joanne

P.S. I hope you're not tired of hearing from me. It gives me something to do besides watch the news. I'll keep you posted, as long as I have electricity and phone.

Not at all Joanne. Lets us know you are still with us. Talked to my friend in Charleston, she's on her way to Kentucky. Now if I can just get my cousin to leave Jupiter.................

Joanne - That's what we are here for, Hang in there. just think about the other topic page where we are talking about dogs, ducks, fuzzy things, hammers, nails and how it all relates to when our HL's will retire.
Take care,
George

Joanne, please do keep us updated on how you're doing. Many of us in the Fora care a great deal. It looks to me like you've got the right priorities: take care care of yourself and your loved ones first. Your stuff can be replaced if necessary, but you can't.

We're keeping you in our prayers.

Joanne,

We have a Daughter Son in Law and two Grand Daughters living in Longwood, Fl.

We have been calling her everyday since the storm got closer to the coast. We could not make contact today something to do with Sprint, of course in her area Sprint goes down on a clear day.

As we pray for everyone safety, we hold a special prayer for our family.

My understanding is that they closed DW until Thursday Afternoon, I assume we are hearing truth not gossip?

Please keep us informed as long as you can.

God will Bless our Stephanie and all in the path of this storm.

Gods Speed



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Bob

I too live in Orlando, and yes Disney has closed today at 2 and all day on Wed. In my 10 years working at Disney, this is the first time it has closed. I put all my HL in boxes in case the roof might sustain damage on our 3rd floor apartment )-: (they at least might be a bit more protected).
We were all packed and really close to leaving even though our area is under no evacuation order, but the roads are really backed up and hotel rooms scarce. It seems safest at this point to stay home. The last weather report had the storm possible taking a bit more of a N-N/W turn which gives hope that that might keep the hurricane force winds off the coast of Florida.
Just thought I'd add an update. We're going to ride it out and hope all is well.

Tim

[This message has been edited by Tim3167 (edited 09-14-99).]

[This message has been edited by Tim3167 (edited 09-14-99).]

There are lots of shelters open and many are full. There are more being opened by the hour. Mostly, the folks staying at the shelters are those from the beach areas and the coast.

Yes, Disney has closed for the first time in history. They closed this afternoon and will be closed all day tomorrow. Sea World and Universal have also closed.

There are some power outages due to downed power lines. The power company has been on top of them and are making rapid repairs. At 1:00 today they said that the eye of the storm would be about 25 miles off shore and then it started to turn and now will be about 100 miles off shore. That's a huge relief. Originally this afternoon inland as far as west Orlando would have hurricane force winds and now it will only be tropical storm. (I knew that if I packed a suitcase, that would happen!)

The rain is coming in bands. It's rained here about five times now for about 15 minutes of heavy rain each time. They are predicting a lot less rain than anticipated. The worst is expected to be here in the early morning, but I'm much more relaxed about it.

I give a heavy sigh of relief for Florida, but my heart goes out to Georgia and the Carolinas. MSNBC just announced that it looks like it may make landfall on Tybee Island.

Announcement on local news that two looting arrests in Merritt Island (near Melbourne in Brevard County). They caught the creeps thanks to the alertness of a power company worker.

Thank you for all the well wishes and prayers. I hope they work for the folks higher north too.

Joanne

I add my prayers and thoughts to all of the above for those along the East Coast. May God's protection be with you.

Barb

We also have Stan to think of. His pin is stuck in Ponte Vedra Beach, just south of Jacksonville Beach. Hope he has evacuated. Spoke to my sister-in-law this evening about her sister and husband. They have a mobile home in Orlando. They have been ordered to evacuate and are installed in a motel on the west coast of Florida.

Am naturally wondering about the lighthouses too. Shuttle launch towers at Cape Canaveral are built to withstand winds of 125mph (according to evening news). Any idea about the lighthouses in the path?

Mombo

The rain bands are coming in more frequently and longer now and the winds are picking up. The news reported that the wind in my area hit 50 mph at times, but I don't think so, at least not here. A gust comes up now and then but I don't think 50mph.

For those of you with relatives in Florida, Longwood is doing fine except for some downed power lines, I haven't heard of any major storm issues south of Brevard. Cocoa Beach in Brevard is getting hit right now, but it's expected to get worse in the next four hours or so. I would say that those in Jupiter, Palm Beaches, Ft Lauderdale and Miami areas are experiencing tropical storm and not hurricane rain or winds. Brevard (Cocoa Beach/Titusville) and Volusia (Daytona Beach) are in for a tough time. As far as the Jacksonville area, I haven't heard anything about that yet. The projected path has it closest to Brevard so hopefully Jacksonville will also just have tropical storm effects.

The Orlando airport is closed - all planes have flown to safer airports. It may not be opened until Thursday. They are going to try to get the planes back in tomorrow.

Will keep you posted in another few hours.

Joanne

I'm convinced that our prayers work for all people, in all places, at all times.

Joanne- maybe you should have packed several suitcases, pushed the storm further away. Does sound like Mombo is working to keep everyone in place "When I first saw the reports on the Weather Channel I checked the pins on my map. I pounded them in pretty good so hope you all stay put."

News just now said Floyd will hit north of Savanah and work its way up the coast. Moby, you be sure to hang on (and all the rest of you on the coast). Also had a story about a disaster team packing out tonite to be there when & if help is needed.

Will be sure to say a few extra prayers for all of you tonite.

Dave

Floyd is about 125 miles off shore right now at Patrick Air Force Base. The winds there are at 64 mph now which is what they said they would be at 125 to 150 miles from the center of the storm. Fifteen miles inland in Brevard the wind is 55 mph. Gusts are up to 125 mph. Wind at Daytona Beach is 50 to 55 mph.

There have been more looting arrests in Brevard and Volusia. One nut on Daytona Beach decided he was going to go swimming and caused three police officers to have to go into the ocean to get him.

I have heard no reports on any of the lighthouses in it's path. Luckily so far there aren't too many reports of damage along the shore.

It hasn't rained here in Orlando in a while, but it is very windy, just reported 30 mph in Seminole County (Sanford/Longwood/Winter Springs).

Joanne


[This message has been edited by Joanne (edited 09-15-99).]

Floridians, you escaped Floyd's wrath. Rain bands starting to come into radar range here in Newport News. It does appear that I am right and we will be in harms way.

Removed outboard from the skif so she can sink and not do any damage. Large trees are a real concern. Oak, Pecan and an 150 year old beech. Metal furniture stacked against the house.

We are under a watch and will get her in about 36 - 48 hours. Filled the car late last night and stocked up on water and batteries.

In a wait and see mode. Report in later. Hospital under disaster alert. Damage will be extensive.

Moby

Very glad to hear all the Floridians have been spared to some degree by the wrath of Floyd.

Thanks Joanne for keeping us updated.

I'd like to think that the prayers from the forum helped. Now we need to pray real hard for the folks in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Keep the Flame!!

Thank you Joanne.

Deanie and Bob
Lafayette, La.

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Bob

Well, the rain bands are here with thunder. Wind will start shortly. Currituck and Dare Co. now under mandatory evacuation.

Stores packed. Should get the full brunt tomorrow morning. Then she will come up to you on Long Island Mike. I'll post until we lose power, and we will lose power.

There she blows!

Moby

Thanks for keeping us posted Joanne. Glad you have been spared.

Was worried that I.O.'s mobile home in Clermont would blow away. And that I wouldn't get my annual vacation (when he goes there and I stay here) this winter!

Moby: Don't you think those lawn chairs should go inside? We're probably going to see some heavy rain and wind here in NYS too. Plan on bringing in the chairs!
If you have all those big trees, stay away from the windows and leave if necessary. Our last year's Labor Day storm that was classified as "straight line winds" in excess of 100mph did tremendous tree damage.

MOMBO

[This message has been edited by mombo (edited 09-15-99).]

Yes,luckily we have missed the brunt of the storm and I hope those up north will be as lucky.

Moby, take good care and I wish you the best. I'm praying for all of you in this storm's way. The winds have died down a little and they don't expect it to strengthen again. Not much consolation, but hopefully it will stay as offshore as possible.

Mombo, you did a real good job pushing in those pins. Your summer vacation is safe. Clermont is fine and I.O. will be able to visit his mobile home. I've got to say, even in the middle of a hurricane, you make me laugh.

Joanne

Anyone giving an update as of 11;00am today.
I am in the office, no windows or radio reception, but know that its already raining extremely hard outside with mild winds. I am in the center of the state here in North Carolina. Would like to have a feel of what to expect. I agree with all, that prayers of all do help, so we will keep them coming until all are out of his path.

I can't imagine the stress level of just waiting for a hurricane to hit, or having to evacuate and then come back, not knowing what you'll find. Thanks to all for the updates; our church's prayer chain will remain on "hurricane duty" for as long as necessary.

Donna

Moby,

Please bring in those chairs. You are making me a nervous wreck.

I went through a hurricane in Miami a few years ago (in the 70's) and we left our heavy metal porch furniture out under the inside edge of a carport. The only two pieces we found were the one that was stuck into the deck of a boat in the canal four over from ours and the other one that came through the plate glass window in the back of our house. And the garage port was in the front opposite corner. Better safe than to experience something like that.

Take care. Our prayers and thoughts are also with all of you.

Karen


[This message has been edited by Michael and Karen Power (edited 09-15-99).]

On the subject of outdoor furniture, I saw a video clip this morning at a hotel, where they had put all of the chairs and chaises into the swimming pool.

Continued prayers for all in the path.

Hello all -
Seems it is time to move our prayers from FL to GA, NC, SC, VA and the rest of the East Coast.
I hope that everyone there stays safe.

God protect everyone of you.
Jim

I really feel for all of you along the Mid Atlantic right now. Have never been through a Hurricane, but have been awfully close to a few tornadoes and the descruction they leave behind.

Our prayers are with you. Try and keep your mind on something else, like a good book to keep the anxiety levels down.

Moby,
I'll keep an eye out for your lawn furniture!
If you can try to keep as much of the wind down in VA. Being so close to DC, we Marylanders have enough wind to contend with everyday! Anyway, take care best of luck to VA. It started to rain here in earnest this AM. but from what I understand, it's going to get alot more fun, tomorrow. I'm keeping my eye on my lights.

Tony

Has anyone heard recently from Paul Brady? Isn't he near the North Carolina shore?

Joanne

The last reports that I heard at around 10:00 pm said that Floyd might make a direct hit close to Cape Hatteras. Sure hope the lighthouse is secure.

"TheLightkeeper"

Joanne, Paul is in Indianapolis.

MOMBO

Hi, I am in west palm, Fl. Thanks to all your prayers we were spared. The storm ended up being VERY light here, hardly had any rain, but a good bit of wind. Now I join the rest af ya'll in praying for those further north up the coast. Hope ya'll get out as well as I did!?!?! Thank you all!!
Keep us posted.

Looks like Cape Lookout is going to be very vulnerable. Will probably get the dreaded northeast edge of the storm with the heavy tidal surges. Probably the first light to get the heaviest hit from Floyd.

From Long Island where the wind is gaining strength and the rain is coming down........

It looks like, if the forecast models remain true, most of Long Island will be spared the full effects of Floyd. However, the eastern end will be far worse than my neck of the woods.

We haven't heard from Moby since around 8:00AM yesterday.

In addition to our our thoughts and prayers for all affected please add an extra one for our friend in Virginia.

It's looking good here this morning. We lost a pier at Long Beach just south of Wilmington and power to some 300,000 homes. But no loss of life. Wind & rain here with no flying objects so far. Keep the "faith".
My HL's are safe.
Hopefully Gert will continue to favor us and stay out at sea.

Have a "Good One".

9:10 AM

wind at 45 mph. 10" rain. still have power. Eye passing through va beach, less tornadoes here.

12 noon to 3 pm full impact. hurricane force winds, 6' storm surge. dock boat and trees on the house will be my problem. OK to this point.

Probably my last til later. power will go out shortly

Moby

Moby
Good Luck! Will be thinking of you. Many prayers are coming your way.
George

All the best Moby. The family and I are praying that you make it through this.

Moby,

We are praying for you and all in the path of this storm.

Remember there is power much greater than Floyd and Gert put together, he will carry you and all through this.

------------------
Bob

We are getting Floyd now way up here in upstate NY (Troy). Over three inches of rain so far and some pretty good wind gusts.

"TheLightkeeper'

I have been reading all of your postings as this storm has progressed northward, and am glad to hear that none of you seem to have gone through any really drastic damage. The fringe seems to have now hit New England, where flooding is probably the worst to worry about. The rain here in s. NH is beating against the windows with strong wind gusts that come and go. I am about 40 miles n.of Boston and about 50 minute drive from the ocean, and we do get very strong storms each year. Photography is one of my main hobbies; and I have seen some gorgeous photos of Portland Head Light with high surf following these storms. I wish you all continued good luck with any dangers from the fringes of the storm.

Rain all day here but not too much wind.

Mike don't let the Hudson flood or I'll have to bring the hip boots!

Mombo

Moby, hope you have not sustained to much damage?!?!? Prayers are still with U & family. Also ya'll further north. Please everyone continue everyone to let us know what is happening. I usely only get to forms a couple of time a week, but am now checking every day to find out how ya'll are surviveing & where prayers are needed most. Thanks & good luck to all ya'll!!!!

Contacted my father in Beaufort (SC) and all is well. Lots of limbs and debris and power out but no major damage. Also, Charleston, Hilton Head and Savannah came through with relatively minor damage and flooding. I,m glad that Floyd stayed off the coast for as long as it did. I hate that it could not have turned just a little more and spared the rest of the East coast as well. Mother nature has her own way of doing things!

We were spared major damage. Two large oaks crashed on the next hill by the pond. 12-15" rain. Major flooding elsewhere in the low flat parts of the city. I-64, 60 and 143 closed to flooding from rain water at the reservoir. 5' deep in places.

at noon turned black and we sustained 60 mph winds from ne for about 1 1/2 hours. family stayed in center of home in interior hallway in case 150 yr old beech decided to come down on us. 200,000 out of power. we were lucky and blessed.

HLs came through unharmed.

We appreciate your thoughts and prayers. Nature has a way of showing us just how small and insignificant we really are.

Moby

Where the clean up begins.

Moby,

Extremely happy to hear that you made through the storm with no real losses.

Up here on L.I. it seems that Floyds bark was worse than his bite. We have some clean up to do but it could have been a lot worse.

I'm 15 miles north of Providence, Rhode Island and we escaped with no damage at all. I had my boat hauled as a precaution. There is some minor flooding in the Rhode Island area accompanied by power outages. The coast lines of Massachusetts and Rhode Island seemed to weahter the storm with no problems.

Bob

In reality when I look back, Lloyd was soooo big that the land mass distroyed her power while her eye remained at sea. The land mass also slowed her west side but kicked her to sea with the land side drag.

Damage is as follows.

Boat full of muddy water but still float due to floation seats.

Pond has 2 lange trees from neighbors hillside in it.

Traffic cones from road crossing deep creek and Hoggs Pond, not my pond, junction spread down the creek.

Loss of about 6 inch creek shoreline because of rapid flow of water during the excessive rain.

All in all, I'm glad it is over and am glad everyone was blessed witj a light impact.

Goodbye Floyd.

Moby

Metal chairs remained as placed. Have open web back and seat so no where for wind to catch and push.

Relieved to hear everything is okay with you Moby. So far, we have all been really lucky with this monster storm. I hope all our friends higher north do as well as we did considering what we were facing.

Joanne

Many thanks to all who expressed concern for those of us in the (potential) path of Hurricane Floyd. Your thoughts & prayers were much appreciated.
Happy to report that, although we had moderately strong winds here in Ponte Vedra Beach, we had no damage. The storm surge caused some minor flooding (I had about 10 inches of the Intracoastal waterway in my back yard) but again no damage. We did, indeed, evacuate the area on Tuesday. There's no way I was going to stay in the path of a monster storm like Floyd. We were extremely lucky that it made a small course change Tue night that took us just out of harms way.
Again, thanks to all for your thoughts & prayers. This really is a great group of people.

So glad to hear that all of our extended HL family appears to have come thru Floyd in decent shape. All in all, though Floyd did plenty of damage it could have been far, far worse. Our collective prayers were answered.

Dave

amen!!

Hate to break up the celebration, but I was just in NJ this past weekend for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary surprise party. It was a bittersweet visit home.

What Floyd lacked in aeolean punch it made up for with a deluge, especially from Wilmington, NC (nearly 20" of rain in 24 hours) to North-Central NJ (over 15" of rain in just a few hours). Flying over southern NJ on the approach to Newark International, I couldn't pick out any prominent geographic features aside from the shoreline, for all was inundated. A network of little creeks looked more like the Chesapeake Bay's upper reaches as the floodwaters made the bottomlands all run together.

One of my sisters lost everything in the basement, including irreplaceable items such as photo albums, but otherwise was pretty lucky as the water came to the very top of the basement walls. Two sump pumps and a portable were no match for Floyd.

Another sister fared far worse. In just a couple of hours, the rivulet in the field behind the house became a torrential monster that enveloped her entire lower level. Surrounded by rushing water and trapped within the immediate neighborhood, all they could do is sit around in the candlelight (no electricity, gas or water, and no way out), staring at each other, watching the rising water and wondering if they would end up on the roof awaiting a chopper rescue. The waterline came within about 3 inches of flooding the second floor.

Everything outside, in the basement, in the garage and on the lower level of the house that was too heavy to move upstairs was destroyed.

I went by her house on Sunday after the waters receded. Re-reading my words above, I realize that I cannot adequately capture the devastation that I had witnessed. They still have no electricity, no phone (thank goodness for cellular), no water, no gas. Everything already smells of mildew. Those in the area who do have water must boil it before using it for bathing, drinking or cooking, since the treatment plants were also inundated. My sister and her family sleep in a hard-found hotel room some 30 miles away from the house and spend long days cleaning up.

Thank God so few were lost to the storm; it might have been much, much worse. In that light, this might seem like ungrateful whining, but my heart goes out to them and to all the others along the Atlantic seaboard who suffered a similar fate. It will be many months before their lives get back to normal.

Please don't stop praying yet.

------------------
-Art

My heart goes out to your family Art. We have had the same just within our state and NC's inner eastern sections. Franklin Va. has been under 15' of water for days. 1st day the snakes were a problem. 2nd day all snakes died due to contamination by propane, oil, chemicals, etc. Don't light a match near the Blackwater river. No flood insurance and everything is gone.

Moby

I also spoke to soon earlier this week as Floyd had passed us with no loss of lives. But now the after effects of flooding of our Tar river in south east North Carolina there has been loss of life. We have a plant in that area with some 600 employees, of those 20 lost everything to flooding. And today we here there is a chance of another 5 inches of rain to fall on them. Yes, please keep up your prayers and watch for your own local agenices who are willing to help these families and offer any assistance that you can.