Tropical Depression # 3 - This one has major written all over it!

[mojo4trav]

Yesterday fulfilled the stereotype of a 'Friday the 13th' like never before. We are in 'new construction' (poured concrete frame) so decided to wait out the storm in North Naples, after securing the windows and making ourselves a cocoon in an interior room. We lost power and phone service just after 2pm, and waited anxiously for it all to end. The worst portion of the storm gave us 80+ MPH winds and threw debris around like legos. Trees, roofing tiles, plastic, fences, patio furniture, umbrellas, etc - went flying past our lanai throughout the storm. The sound of the wind against the building was unreal. A neighbor foolishly attempted flying a kite during the storm, but when a gust of wind pelted him with rain so hard that he let go of the kite, he ran back inside. The storm and all outer bands had passed almost completely by 8pm. Power was restored around midnight.

 

Today I went around Collier County with FEMA to document major structural damage and found little that qualified. There is an enormous amount of debris strewn all over the place, hundred year old trees snapped in half, laying across power lines. Over 100,000 residents of Collier remain without power tonight. Many homes have shingle damage, some have trees in their living room or through windows. Several fuel station canopies collapsed onto their supporting structure making gas nearly impossible to obtain. Few places are open and with so many without power, the stores and businesses that are open, are busting at the seams with people waiting in lines. We stopped mid-day to eat and found a McDonalds with over 20+ cars waiting for the drive through, the line snaking through the parking lot. We chose to 'go inside' and waited in line for almost an hour, I noticed many ordering not only lunch but also dinner as they expected not to have power or didn't want to wait in line again later in the day.

 

Punta Gorda, Sanibel Island, and Charlotte County (to our north) were hit much harder and have significant loss of life. Some are blaming local weather reporters and one man even called in on a live broadcast to blame the reporter for not warning them that the hurricane was coming. I suppose some people cannot be told in any clearer terms that a hurricane is heading in their general direction. The photos, which many of you have seen, certainly showcase the areas hardest hit where loss of life could push into the dozens or even hundreds. Cleanup has already begun, as Tropical Storm Earl is making his way on an nearly identical path as Charley. If the man upstairs has any compassion he will give us time to heal before hitting us again so soon. Only time will tell, Earl is due to be south of Cuba by Thursday afternoon.

 

Thanks once again to everyone for their thoughts and prayers...signing out...Travis. ;)

[brn2crz]

Hi Travis......

 

Been out of touch,went to see the TexansVCowboys...(we wont talk about that)

SO very sorry to hear everyone..hopefully you have good insurance,and your family is safe..

It amazed me when I heard there were so many people in Punta Gunda that did not leave...If I were directly anywhere on that West Coast,or the Keys.I would have been out of there.If though they do a great job of forecasting the path of these storms now...We all know they usually take some sort of jag just as they approach...I live 20 min Inland from Galveston,but we are on Galveston Bayou. we are in stage 3 flood plane...stage 5 would devaste us.

Good Luck,and lets see if we can get this one to swing out into the Atlantic...We sure don't want it here....

[judyzoo]

brn2crz,

The trouble with evacuating is that you could evacuate into, instead of out of, the hurricane's path if it takes a turn. Or if everyone's evacuating the traffic can be so bad that everyone's stuck out on the road, in traffic, in their vehicles, when the hurricane blows through. On the other hand, IMHO anyone living in a mobile home that might be in the path of a hurricane simply must get out of there, somehow.

[Melissa_A]

If you're going all the way to Florida for a Caribbean cruise in the middle of hurricane season...and you don't pay attention to the weather in the tropics...and don't call ahead to find out the situation or even realize that there's a hurricane brewing...then you deserve to be left behind!