Hurricane Irma

[JerseyGirl]

St, Barts click here for video:
https://twitter.com/guadeloupe_1ere/status/905400122128916480

Martinique: https://twitter.com/Martinique1re/status/905408115574747137

https://twitter.com/la1ere

St. Barts:
The fire station is under 1m of water and fire engine are out of service. Firefighters are taking refuge of the first floor. Several homes have been damaged and roofs blown off.

St. Maarten:
Government offices have been partly destroyed. The island prefect and 23 staff are taking shelter in a concrete-lined room. The fire station has been damaged. The island has been without electricity since 6am. Police have reported several roofs have blown off in the storm. There is a total electricity blackout and the main EDF sub station is out of action.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/sep/06/hurricane-irma-caribbean-islands-category-5-storm

 

[Gnatcatcher]

I have family in Casselberry, Florida which is pretty far inland, but not far enough for my taste. Does anyone know if that area is in the path?

 

[JerseyGirl]

In the meantime, can't forget No Way, Jose:

Tropical storm Jose is following Hurricane Irma into the Caribbean and its wind speed is also predicted to reach hurricane levels. The NHC said it believed the storm's effects could be felt in the northernmost parts of the Lesser Antilles island chain by early next week.

TROPICAL STORM JOSE:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...damage-landfall-victims-a7931771.html#gallery

 

[Bently]

I have family in Casselberry, Florida which is pretty far inland, but not far enough for my taste. Does anyone know if that area is in the path?

Henry has been posting maps about the intensity after x many of days. We see from current maps that if it his there, worst case it will hit in x days, and you can look at intensity map to see how many days out it could possibly hit Orlando.

He and others here are the expert, but of course, I'll put in layman's for Henry, Cariis etc. to comment on as everyone here is so knowledgeable.

It looks like Casselberry is part of Orlando. If it does head through the state, it will take x days to get there. Henry's hours out intensity maps show that perhaps IF IF IF it hits there, it will be a Category X by then. IF IF IF it hits there, it will have gone through the state and lost intensity, or less so if goes up the east coast and Orlando is half way into the state.

I would look at topo maps as to are they on high ground where they live. Are they elderly and needy as to assistance from others as to health? Do they most importantly have readied for no power for a couple of days with food and ice etc, or if some flooding around them that they can shelter in place?

Henry and others best to speak to as to specifics I left open above. But most Florida homes, especially if built in last 10 years, are to code to meet a level 2 hurricane iirc.

I'm sure someone here can jump off this post to correct and add! as all this is :moo: :cow:

:grouphug:

 

[JerseyGirl]

Barbuda:
Irma tore the roof off a police station on Barbuda, forcing officers to take shelter in a nearby fire station. There had been damage to several homes but that the authorities had not yet assessed the extent of the destruction. Residents and officials were particularly worried about the storm surge. Barbuda is flat, with a maximum elevation of no more than 150 feet, though most of its small population lives in and around the town of Codrington, which is at or close to sea level. “Unfortunately, in Barbuda there are few buffers if a significant storm surge is experienced.” More than 1,000 residents moved before the storm into the island’s only shelter, leaving hundreds more potentially exposed. "It’s one of the flattest Caribbean islands, so the devastation will be a lot worse there, sad to say."

Antigua
Irma produced high gusts of wind across Antigua, in what appeared to be a less-than-eventful hit on the island early Wednesday. About 4 a.m. local time, the storm was 40 miles north of the island. In the Gambles Terrace neighborhood in St. John’s, the capital city, major structures were still intact and houses showed no significant damage. A few fallen branches littered the streets. On Wednesday, Elias Hadeed, a retired structural engineer and general contractor in Antigua, said that from his perspective, the storm was “much better than expected.” By 6 a.m., he said, the rains had stopped and there had been “no extensive damage” to his garden and his reinforced concrete home. He said in a text message, “We are lucky that it shifted a little bit to the north of Antigua, but feel sad for the people in our sister island Barbuda.”

St. Kitts and Nevis:
In St. Kitts and Nevis, Commissioner Ian Queeley of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force said in a text message on Wednesday that the early reports were encouraging. “Not too bad at this time,” he wrote. “Still plenty rain and strong winds.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/06/world/americas/hurricane-irma-update.html?mcubz=3

Wave heights north of #Barbuda have topped 40 feet.

[video=twitter;905342024081166336]https://twitter.com/bryanweather/status/905342024081166336[/video]

__

Hurricane Irma has caused "major damage" as it moves its way though the Caribbean. The four "most solid" buildings on the Island of Saint Maarten have been destroyed.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...damage-landfall-victims-a7931771.html#gallery

 

[Bently]

https://www.google.com/maps/@26.661197,-80.4387257,8z/data=!5m1!1e1
I've been up watching traffic maps since 5:30 am for southern Florida and the Keys.

Most of what I saw looked like merely rush hour traffic.

But recently NEW, At 9 am... it's beginning to look red south of Sarasota going North, and more activity around Miami (Boca to WestPalm) northward in the last 30 minutes which I didn't see before.

It could be rush hour, or folks leaving :dunno: but will keep tracking as to signs of interstates building up for our :websleuther: friends as to evacuation routes.

There is a teeny bit of unremarkeable red on the Keys bridge which is there often and normal. I'll post if/when I see traffic outta the Keys.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Antigua update:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/sep/06/hurricane-irma-caribbean-islands-category-5-storm

Antigua resident, Geoffrey Pidduck, posted images to Facebook showing minor damage. “We were spared”, he wrote.
https://www.facebook.com/geoffrey.pidduck/posts/10155297225927400

 

[CARIIS]

Henry has been posting maps about the intensity after x many of days. We see from current maps that if it his there, worst case it will hit in x days, and you can look at intensity map to see how many days out it could possibly hit Orlando.

He and others here are the expert, but of course, I'll put in layman's for Henry, Cariis etc. to comment on as everyone here is so knowledgeable.

It looks like Casselberry is part of Orlando. If it does head through the state, it will take x days to get there. Henry's hours out intensity maps show that perhaps IF IF IF it hits there, it will be a Category X by then. IF IF IF it hits there, it will have gone through the state and lost intensity, or less so if goes up the east coast and Orlando is half way into the state.

I would look at topo maps as to are they on high ground where they live. Are they elderly and needy as to assistance from others as to health? Do they most importantly have readied for no power for a couple of days with food and ice etc, or if some flooding around them that they can shelter in place?

Henry and others best to speak to as to specifics I left open above. But most Florida homes, especially if built in last 10 years, are to code to meet a level 2 hurricane iirc.

I'm sure someone here can jump off this post to correct and add! as all this is :moo: :cow:

:grouphug:

I am about 25 minutes from Casselbery if I hear anything I will post.

She is quite bothersome. There is a area of dry air ahead of her and there is no anticipated intensity drop - just so much energy.

 

[JerseyGirl]

View attachment 122744


https://www.google.com/maps/@26.661197,-80.4387257,8z/data=!5m1!1e1
I've been up watching traffic maps since 5:30 am for southern Florida and the Keys.

Most of what I saw looked like merely rush hour traffic. At 9 am... it's beginning to look red south of Sarasota, and more activity around Miami (Boca to WestPalm) northward in the last 30 minutes which I didn't see before.

It could be rush hour, or folks leaving :dunno: but will keep tracking as to signs of interstates building up for our :websleuther: friends as to evacuation routes.

There is a teeny bit of unremarkeable red on the Keys bridge which is there often and normal. I'll post if/when I see traffic outta the Keys.

Traffic between Miami and Fort Lauderdale is notorious heavy at all times of the day. As of yesterday (may have been earlier than yesterday) there were no rental cars available and any tourists in the Keys were forced to evacuate, most using buses to get to Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

I think the traffic out of the Keys will start picking up today when the residents have mandatory evacuation.

From what I understand, tourists are finding flights at Miami International, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach airports so those areas will be very busy the next few days.

I also heard this morning that tourists are being evacuated from Miami Beach and are asking residents to also consider evacuating.

 

[turanna25]

As of yesterday, there was no water, no canned goods, no flash lights, and no gas cans anywhere within a 20 minute radius of me. My friend paid $87 for 3 cases of water!!! I'm really starting to worry. My family (mother and brother) are refusing to leave. We live less than 4 miles from the beach and my brother lives less than 2 miles from the beach... I'm really hoping the storm surges and winds aren't as bad as they are predicting. This is really starting to make me nervous.

 

[JerseyGirl]

For those Miami Beach residents wanting bags of sand, the city says they will be open from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. at the Public Works Department located at 451 Dade Blvd. until they run out or are forced to stop because of inclement weather. An ID is required.

http://miami.cbslocal.com/2017/09/05/miami-beach-evacuations-hurricane-irma/

 

[CARIIS]

Andrew Miami Cat 5 at landfall -a horror he intensified suddenly and unexpectally..

google images

 

[JerseyGirl]

As of yesterday, there was no water, no canned goods, no flash lights, and no gas cans anywhere within a 20 minute radius of me. My friend paid $87 for 3 cases of water!!! I'm really starting to worry. My family (mother and brother) are refusing to leave. We live less than 4 miles from the beach and my brother lives less than 2 miles from the beach... I'm really hoping the storm surges and winds aren't as bad as they are predicting. This is really starting to make me nervous.

It's a tough decision. The winds are what scares me. In Sandy, we just had to deal with storm surge and flooding. We stayed but my husband said if it were a Cat 3 or higher, we would have to leave. Again, those winds are what is going to be deadly in Irma, but then again homes up in this part of the USA are not hurricane-friendly.

I recall Hurricane Wilma, my in-laws lived about 5 miles from the Gulf in Naples. They stayed too but were frightened all night. The cage of their pool collapsed and the one small window on their patio that did not have hurricane shutters was about to bust, she stayed up all night reinforcing it.

I dunno what to say whether to evacuate or not. In hindsight, I'm glad we didn't evacuate for Sandy. Our thinking was that if the house were flooded we'd move upstairs, worse came to worse, we'd hop into my husband's boat. I was even tempted to bring the kayak in the hosue just in case we needed to evacute fast (we also had 2 cats and a dog, most shelters didn't accept them). By the next day, when we realized maybe we should leave since we will be without power for a long time, we could not find any rooms within 200 miles and all hotel rooms prices tripled and quadrupled. That's the worse part of a storm, the price gauging, whether it be a hotel room, gas, milk or water. It's disgusting.

 

[Bently]

Traffic between Miami and Fort Lauderdale is notorious heavy at all times of the day. As of yesterday (may have been earlier than yesterday) there were no rental cars available and any tourists in the Keys were forced to evacuate, most using buses to get to Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

I think the traffic out of the Keys will start picking up today when the residents have mandatory evacuation.

From what I understand, tourists are finding flights at Miami International, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach airports so those areas will be very busy the next few days.

I also heard this morning that tourists are being evacuated from Miami Beach and are asking residents to also consider evacuating.

Sad that tourists are stuck without transportation. :gaah:

The airlines these days are so focused on flying capacity, so would they add planes merely to go down there empty (no revenue) knowing just to pick up passengers without having an incentive of $ from gov'ment, or sticker shock from passengers.

(This is NOT NOT NOT a political comment, just really wanting to know a fact if when a state of emergency, how does that work to help others out for companies to cover losses etc.)

Same with buses and rental cars as my guess, rental car agencies wouldn't want their cars in the area to get flooded so they want them all OUT, but not to bring more in?

 

[JerseyGirl]

Sad that tourists are stuck without transportation. :gaah:

The airlines these days are so focused on flying capacity, so would they add planes merely to go down there empty (no revenue) knowing just to pick up passengers without having an incentive of $ from gov'ment, or sticker shock from passengers.

(This is NOT NOT NOT a political comment, just really wanting to know a fact if when a state of emergency, how does that work to help others out for companies to cover losses etc.)

Same with buses and rental cars as my guess, rental car agencies wouldn't want their cars in the area to get flooded so they want them all OUT, but not to bring more in?

It's tough bringing rental cars in to Key West. There is one road in and one road out (basically a 2 lane highway). It takes a little more than 3 hours to drive from Miami (at the tip of the keys) to Key West (the end).

I'm also guessing that they don't want all these rental cars on the road, creates more of a traffic jam. Busing tourists out of Key West is the better alternative, makes sure they completely leave the Keys and all those rental cards don't cause traffic jams or create longer lines at gas stations.

Also, I don't think it's was the airlines that stopped flights out of Key West. It was the TSA who forced the airport closing today as they announced that they will cease screening airline passengers as Hurricane Irma approaches.

 

[CARIIS]

[video=youtube;vTz8zIW3O9k]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTz8zIW3O9k[/video]

 

[turanna25]

It's a tough decision. The winds are what scares me. In Sandy, we just had to deal with storm surge and flooding. We stayed but my husband said if it were a Cat 3 or higher, we would have to leave. Again, those winds are what is going to be deadly in Irma, but then again homes up in this part of the USA are not hurricane-friendly.

I recall Hurricane Wilma, my in-laws lived about 5 miles from the Gulf in Naples. They stayed too but were frightened all night. The cage of their pool collapsed and the one small window on their patio that did not have hurricane shutters was about to bust, she stayed up all night reinforcing it.

I dunno what to say whether to evacuate or not. In hindsight, I'm glad we didn't evacuate for Sandy. Our thinking was that if the house were flooded we'd move upstairs, worse came to worse, we'd hop into my husband's boat. I was even tempted to bring the kayak in the hosue just in case we needed to evacute fast (we also had 2 cats and a dog, most shelters didn't accept them). By the next day, when we realized maybe we should leave since we will be without power for a long time, we could not find any rooms within 200 miles and all hotel rooms prices tripled and quadrupled. That's the worse part of a storm, the price gauging, whether it be a hotel room, gas, milk or water. It's disgusting.

Yes, the price gauging is absolutely disgusting. I understand the need/demand system.. but I think it should be illegal to price gauge during a state of emergency! Sandy was rough. I lived in Jersey at the time. I was stuck at the hospital for 4 days and had no power at home for a week and a half. It was devastating to see all the damage that occurred from the flooding. I'm really hoping this storm doesn't do too much damage here (WPB/Jupiter).

 

[terpstra1]

Yes, the price gauging is absolutely disgusting. I understand the need/demand system.. but I think it should be illegal to price gauge during a state of emergency! Sandy was rough. I lived in Jersey at the time. I was stuck at the hospital for 4 days and had no power at home for a week and a half. It was devastating to see all the damage that occurred from the flooding. I'm really hoping this storm doesn't do too much damage here (WPB/Jupiter).

Florida has set up a price gouging hotline. Please report any cases you run across. (866)9-NO-SCAM

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[Henry2326]

[video=youtube;vTz8zIW3O9k]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTz8zIW3O9k[/video]

Cariis- good job. Pic is worth a thousand words. I'm leaving Charleston if cat3 or higher.

Sent from my VK815 using Tapatalk

 

[Henry2326]

Models are aligning. Should have consistent message by this time tomorrow. Be safe...

Sent from my VK815 using Tapatalk
http://spaghettimodels.com