Tuesday, September 11, 2018
The storm approaches
Hurricane Florence is slowly closing in on the East Coast. It reached Category 4 status yesterday, and may get even more dangerous. It looks most likely to make landfall in the Carolinas, though those predictions seem to often go awry.
Even though the storm is not expected to make landfall until the end of the week, some coastal areas have already issued a mandatory evacuation, and some highways have been made one-way on both sides to maximize the flow of traffic heading away from the shore. A few thoughts on all this:
-- It would be pretty cool to drive the wrong way on a highway along with everyone else. Just sayin'.
-- The decision to evacuate is a tricky one. It shuts down the economy of that area, disrupts school, and separates families. Still, I think it is best to err on the side of caution, and I am glad they are already moving to get people out of there.
-- If I lived in that area, I would probably head off to the west and take the opportunity to explore some other community. Of course, the trip would be plagued with worry as I thought about what was happening back in the storm zone...
-- The beach area are going to get slammed. The Outer Banks of North Carolina are just narrow sand bars in the ocean, barrier reefs that move in reaction to natural events. That means that this storm may move them, leaving houses in the ocean where land existed before.
-- Has anyone been through a hurricane? Any advice for those facing this one?
Comments:
<< Home
Two years ago during Hurricane Matthew - everyone on the SC coast evacuated to Asheville, NC. This made for an interesting overnight stay as I was driving back to NC from Florida and instead of my normal route up I-95 I was forced to head up I-75 (not a long day drive) which was flooded with evacuees. Being stuck in evacuation traffic is not fun. Congested roads and gas availability dwindles.
Coincidently, this drive home was with my best friend and we had planned on a night in Savannah which included the ghost tour and then a day or so in Charleston. Instead we booked, barely, a hotel in downtown Asheville and two days later drove up to Monticello and spent a day touring Richmond, Virginia. Not what we had planned, but an adventure none the less.
It is difficult to pick your destination as storms impact has such a wide girth and no one is ever totally sure which direction will be least impacted. Even now, Hurricane Flo is still changing direction. Last night, the eye, was going to pass almost directly over our house in Durham (within 10 miles), today it is heading a bit more west. One can only prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
Coincidently, this drive home was with my best friend and we had planned on a night in Savannah which included the ghost tour and then a day or so in Charleston. Instead we booked, barely, a hotel in downtown Asheville and two days later drove up to Monticello and spent a day touring Richmond, Virginia. Not what we had planned, but an adventure none the less.
It is difficult to pick your destination as storms impact has such a wide girth and no one is ever totally sure which direction will be least impacted. Even now, Hurricane Flo is still changing direction. Last night, the eye, was going to pass almost directly over our house in Durham (within 10 miles), today it is heading a bit more west. One can only prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
1) Do not evacuate unless you are (a) directed to do so by the authorities or (b) in the path of major wind or storm surge risk and do not have access to a safe structure and supplies (in which case, you are likely to be directed to evacuate anyway). I lived about 60 miles NW of Houston in 2005 when Hurricane Rita was predicted to make landfall along the Texas coast near Galveston. This was just a month or two after Katrina, and a combination of fear, media sensationalism, and local government incompetence led 3-4 million people to flee the city (north and west) all at the same time, most of whom were not in direct danger. I remember being unable to get home from school because the rural roads where I lived were clogged (by which I mean at a complete standstill, not merely a slow crawl) with voluntary evacuees. At the same time, folks who were actually in the storm's path were stuck there as other's further inland blocked evacuation routes. Thousands of vehicles stalled or ran out of gas. Emergency services could not navigate the city. Supplies like water and food were impossible for travelers to find. Ultimately, the storm tracked well east of early predictions (where it did inflict major damage), and Houston was spared. But more than 110 people were killed in the evacuation attempt before the storm even made landfall. Compare that with Hurricane Harvey, which hit Houston directly and caused massive economic damage but actually resulted in fewer deaths than the Rita evacuation.
2) If you're even near the storm's path, and you're wondering whether you should get supplies and when, the answers are YES and NOW. Hurricanes are inherently difficult to forecast and you won't know what to expect until it happens. As a consequence, you should be prepared with basic supplies to survive without power, water, or navigable roads. Bottled water, non-perishable food, batteries, flashlights, etc. I admit to being caught off-guard by Harvey. Living in central Houston, I didn't try to get supplies until stores were mostly shopped out. I ended up with a case of some fancy alkaline water (all that was left) and a few bags of random (and I mean random) groceries. Then I lost water service for four days with three guests in my apartment, and while I was high and dry I couldn't go anywhere because surrounding roads were flooded. It was...not fun. In the end, I was very fortunate--but lots of people weren't. Don't count on luck.
2) If you're even near the storm's path, and you're wondering whether you should get supplies and when, the answers are YES and NOW. Hurricanes are inherently difficult to forecast and you won't know what to expect until it happens. As a consequence, you should be prepared with basic supplies to survive without power, water, or navigable roads. Bottled water, non-perishable food, batteries, flashlights, etc. I admit to being caught off-guard by Harvey. Living in central Houston, I didn't try to get supplies until stores were mostly shopped out. I ended up with a case of some fancy alkaline water (all that was left) and a few bags of random (and I mean random) groceries. Then I lost water service for four days with three guests in my apartment, and while I was high and dry I couldn't go anywhere because surrounding roads were flooded. It was...not fun. In the end, I was very fortunate--but lots of people weren't. Don't count on luck.
CTL - I agree with you. I lived in Florida for 25 years. Most of them within a block of the Gulf of Mexico or Tampa Bay. My Mom lives along the water. The other day I saw the map. Aside from Florence there are at least three other disturbances, most of them named.
It prompted me to email my Mom and suggest she check for important paper brief case and to stock up on water, and a few other hurricane staples. Amazingly, shes took me seriously.
Even here in Durham this morning gas stations were out of gas and the grocery stores were bare. And people in the stores were not worried about the rain or wind but that the power would go out for 4 or 5 days. Funny thing, as of 5 pm today the storm track has shifted to the west of our area and we may get 3 or 4 inches of rain and a light breeze.
Coincidently the people here act equally manic when the weather man suggests it might snow even 1/2 inch.
It prompted me to email my Mom and suggest she check for important paper brief case and to stock up on water, and a few other hurricane staples. Amazingly, shes took me seriously.
Even here in Durham this morning gas stations were out of gas and the grocery stores were bare. And people in the stores were not worried about the rain or wind but that the power would go out for 4 or 5 days. Funny thing, as of 5 pm today the storm track has shifted to the west of our area and we may get 3 or 4 inches of rain and a light breeze.
Coincidently the people here act equally manic when the weather man suggests it might snow even 1/2 inch.
I grew up in hurricane country. My earliest memory is evacuating for Hurricane Carla.
My very practical midwestern mother spent the last 20 years of her life living on the beach, and she always said, "When they tell you to evacuate, lock your door and go. It's just stuff. Grab the things that have the most meaning to you" -- for her, that was photos of her family and some antique glass she'd inherited -- "...and then just GO. Your life is more important than stuff."
She was right.
Post a Comment
My very practical midwestern mother spent the last 20 years of her life living on the beach, and she always said, "When they tell you to evacuate, lock your door and go. It's just stuff. Grab the things that have the most meaning to you" -- for her, that was photos of her family and some antique glass she'd inherited -- "...and then just GO. Your life is more important than stuff."
She was right.
<< Home
