Hurricane Florence and Forum Members

[dave.gt]

Awakening from a deep sleep this morning, my first thought for the coming day was the weather, as I know that dark storm clouds and a massive hurricane are approaching the Southeast coast. The maps now show a clear path indicating landfall on the North Carolina coast with inland areas projected to feel the effects. Those areas are certainly going to include our local area around Atlanta.

We have members in this forum who live on the coast. I am sure they have been preparing for the impending emergency. I wish them well along with the 1.5 million people who have fled to higher ground. Prayers, wishes, thoughts and a candle or three for everyone.

 

[k-hawinkler]

Please all of you in that area be safe.

 

[algrove]

We were wiped out in 1992 with Hurricane Andrew due to a 12 feet tidal wave coming through our house. Since it was pre-digital time period, I lost 25 years of Kodachrome slides. Never even found the carousels afterwards.

Those to be affected-protect your precious non-replaceables and forget the rest in order to protect you and your family. 55 gallon thick black plastic garbage bags can be very useful. Of course Pelican cases for photo gear and hard drives.

Dry out all wet electronics for 6-12 months to be safe. Keep in mind high humidity might prevail for many, many months. For example, we had a Matag washer full of salt water. Emptied it and dried it for 2 years (that was how long it took us to relocate with a home and not hotel nor apartment). After 2 years we tried it and it functioned for over 10 years after Andrew.

 

[Shashin]

This is from a different thread, but maybe useful here:

As a Certified Floodplain Manager (yes, there is such a thing, although I suspect you knew I was certified), I recommend evacuating over "riding the thing out." (85% of fatalities are from water, not wind (and no, you don't get to choose)) This storm is likely to stall at the coast, meaning the water trying to drain from the land will be prevented by the storm surge. This happened in Houston.

The weather is fine in Florida and almost everywhere else in driving distance.

By the way, if you want to see if you are in a floodplain, go here: https://msc.fema.gov/portal/home

A bit of background. 100-year flood zone does not mean that it floods every one hundred years, but that there is a 1% annual chance of flooding (or a 25% of flooding at least once over a 30-year mortgage). A 500-year flood zone is a 0.2% chance. These are based on historical records. A 100-year flood event in Florida is defined as 11" of rain in a 24 hour period. They are expecting up to 36" of rain where the hurricane hits and for possibly longer than 24 hours. Yes, a cat 3 storm sounds a lot nicer than a cat 4, but that is kind of like saying lung cancer is better than kidney cancer. Perhaps nothing will happen to you or your house, but feeling silly for retreating (which you should not) is a lot better than your good luck running out. Besides, the weather is really nice in Florida.

 

[stngoldberg]

The hurricane influenced the surf here in Newport.
These were taken about six hours before Florence struck the mainland in North Carolina
Stanley

 

[JohnBrew]

We expect first bands of rain around noon. At the moment we do not expect any storm surge which is the best news I've had all week. All the same I will move my wife's car to higher ground. My car is safe and sound in our garage on another island which is very high ground.
All my camera equipment was moved to a house in downtown Charleston, the street which has never flooded in recorded history.
You may ask why my camera gear is not with my car but it's a complicated story and basically we got caught by this storm between houses.

 

[jianghai]

Stay safe, all.

 

[JohnBrew]

Update. No rain or wind yet! My wife's hometown is the one hardest hit so far - New Bern, NC. Things are pretty normal here right now.
Latest forecast says rain and gusty winds to visit us early evening and then last until Sunday.
I've taken a few images of downtown Charleston which I will post on the Nikon forum sometime this morning.
To all forum members in NC and northern SC, please stay safe. Personal possessions can be replaced - you can't.

 

[stngoldberg]

Our power just went out. We are expected to have tropical storm force winds today and lots of rain. The "F" named storms haven't been kind to us. Floyd brought a big oak tree down on our roof. Fran required us to evacuate from a Hilton Head Island vacation and flooded my mom's basement just north of where we now live in central NC. We've taken precautions and are safe. The folks down east in Wilmington, New Bern and the other coastal communities will be hit hardest, with major flooding and extensive power outages. Unfortunately, some of the adjacent inland areas are the poorest economically in our state.

Wishing all a safe weekend,

Joe

Wishing you a safe weekend
Hoping you regain power soon
Apparently North Carolina State University made the correct decision cancelling the West Virginia football game
I read that the Wolfpack has an awesome recruiting class coming in 2019 mostly home grown
Stanley

 

[D&A]

Our power just went out. We are expected to have tropical storm force winds today and lots of rain. The "F" named storms haven't been kind to us. Floyd brought a big oak tree down on our roof. Fran required us to evacuate from a Hilton Head Island vacation and flooded my mom's basement just north of where we now live in central NC. We've taken precautions and are safe. The folks down east in Wilmington, New Bern and the other coastal communities will be hit hardest, with major flooding and extensive power outages. Unfortunately, some of the adjacent inland areas are the poorest economically in our state.

Wishing all a safe weekend,

Joe

The extremely slow crawl of this particular storm indicates that areas in its path will get days of persistent, moderately heavy rains as opposed to short duration torrential ones. The consequence is an accumulative effect resulting in severe flooding and extensive damage and potential for dangerous conditions. Please stay safe Joe and during the course or afterwards, if there is any assistance I can provide, especially if there is a prolonged power outage, we're not that distant in terms of how far the crow flies, so don't hesitate for even a moment to ask or pay us a visit. Be well!

Dave (D&A)

 

[dave.gt]

This morning, Saturday, appears to be an absolutely awful time for folks in North and South Carolina. What an awful, epic event!!! It is not even close to being over...

 

[k-hawinkler]

This morning, Sunday, appears to be an absolutely awful time for folks in North and South Carolina. What an awful, epic event!!! It is not even close to being over...

Today is Saturday, no?
Good luck to all the affected folks.

 

[dave.gt]

Today is Saturday, no?
Good luck to all the affected folks.

Haha! Stupid iPhone changes words/spelling/etc all the time. Thanks, just made the change!

Right now, I am watching the news reports. Lots of people walking around in polluted water. Sewage, chemicals, petroleum products, etc just to mention a few, are in the water. Sigh...

May this storm pass quickly, it will be a long recovery for many in the area.

 

[dave.gt]

While hurricanes are not uncommon in this part of the world, it is somewhat unsettling to know that other places like the Phillipines and Hong Kong, among others, are experiencing a super typhoon at the same time.

There are so many people being affected by the weather this morning, that one can only hope and pray for the well-being of millions of people. Wow.

The video documentation and still images coming out of these affected areas are indeed humbling.