Tuesday, September 07, 2004

posted by: copernicus on 9/07/2004 12:23:00 AM
HURRICANE UPDATE

Todd decided not to come home to KC and to ride out the storm instead. He made arrangements with the general manager of the hotel he works for to help fortify the hotel and then stay in one of the rooms. He spent all day putting up about 500 metal storm shutters with a few other people. 498 storm shutters later, the owner shows up and says that he doesn't want anyone staying in the hotel for insurance reasons.

Todd had already turned down a plane ticket home, it was too late to get a travel permit from the vet to take the cat on the plane and 135 mph winds, flooding and flying debris were just 12 hours away.

So Todd did some last minute stocking up and sealed himself in his apartment with the cat. Luckily, Todd lives in a building that is protected on 3 sides by bigger buildings, hurricane windows rated to 115 mph and all the windows only have 15 feet of space to the next building. That means a pretty small chance of debris smashing through the glass.

So Todd hunkered down and braved the fierce storm.....which bypassed Miami Beach. He never saw anything worse than 50 mph winds and some rain. All 2.5 million folks that fleed north fleed right into the path of the hurricane.

West Palm Beach, where my Grandmother's sister lives, got nailed hard. I talked to her Saturday morning about 4 hours before it got bad. They had no storm shutters, it was their 1st hurricane in the new house and they wouldn't leave. This is a couple in their 80's, and it turns out that it was my Great Aunt's first EVER hurricane. She was always back in New York during hurricane season.

I gave her all the hurricane safety advice I could and told her I loved her. She said she knew she'd lose the power and phone, but would call me when it was over and things were restored.

The eye passed right over West Palm, and I know she got flooding and winds over 100 mph.

We haven't heard anything yet.