Deadheader at 1:20 Pm Sat.

[Tom]

Message from Harold.
---------------------------------------

Electric has been off since 9 AM. Got the generator running. Computer don't like modified square wave lectric. It ain't good here. LOTS of rain. Wind will get worse until dark. Limbs laying around. Someones shingles laying in our yard.

 Probably won't check in again until it blows over. It ain't good.

[dewwood]

Hope all is well with you Floridians.  Hope you have something solid to protect you from the storm.

Best of luck!

[DanG]

Just tried to call my son. Got voice mail on house and cell phones. Don't know if he can get the messages or respond. Will update when I hear anything.

[Ed_K]

 I talked to my son in St Augustine Fl. at 4:30 to day said it wasn't bad there yet. They were worried of tornato's on that side of the storm. Said it wasn't worth trying to go anywhere as the 3 major HWs were at 15 mph. On I 95 some one had a fender bender and it backed up traffic for 100 mi.
 By this time things are different, I hope everyone will be ok.

[sprucebunny]

Hope everyone's OK. Looks like Vero Beach is getting pounded.It's hard to even imagine getting 10-20 inches of rain in a day or two.

[OneWithWood]

It looks like you all are in for a bunch of rain.  I hope you can stay high and dry.  At least FDH can don some scuba gear if the water gets to high

I am thinking about you all and hoping the storm does not regain any strength as it lingers over the gulf stream.  

[etat]

Just want to say I been a thinking about yall and hope everybody's ok.

[Tom]

Deadheader called just before it got dark to let me know that he's still hanging in there.  He's lost a few shingles but the house is still OK.  

The TV says that he's getting 90 mph winds.  That's pretty good considering that the storm is stalled southeast of him and he's not in the middle of it yet.

He's getting Cabin Fever though.  His daughter is ready to leave and visit somewhere else. :D

Harold says his major problem is juggling the juice from the generator. When the freezer turns on, it strains the rest of the house.  When the freezer shuts off the electricity starts stacking up on top of the lights and he has to idle the generator down before the stuff falls off.

He's really concerned about his ice cream.  I told him there was but two solutions.  Either leave the freezer door closed or eat all of the ice cream..   I'm in favor of eating the ice cream.  :D

Winds are picking up in Jacksonville and we are beginning to get somr short-lived but heavy rain storms.   I think everybody wishes this thing would get off of dead center and do something.  

As bad as it could be to move ashore, it would, at least, knock the stuffings out of the storm.  Hurricanes don't handle being over land very good.   If this one would stall over land instead of the ocean, it would die a quick death.

[etat]

I gotta tell ya Fla. I've been watching the news and they just keep talking about Vero Beach.  Knowing that you're still holed up down there is making me nervous.  I really hope all yall Florida folks stay safe, and I will be EXTREMLY glad to hear from ya when this is over.

[Stephen_Wiley]

Tom,

Glad you and Harold can communicate.

How are the rest of the Florida FF members, any others keeping in touch?

Will pray you and yours will escape any serious threat!

God Bless

[Ianab]

Florida storm has made the headline news here in NZ tonight
Looks like a decent blow :|
Hope everyone is safe up that way

Ian

[Roxie]

Tom, thank you so much for the update!!  We can all see that Vero Beach is really in the center of the action, and we are all praying that FDH and ALL our FF Floridians are ok.  
DanG have you heard from your son?  

[Gordon]

Wish all of you down in that neck of the woods lots of luck! You all are in for one heck of a beating.

Flordia is going to be a mess for a long time after this storm passes.

Gordon

[DanG]

Hey Gordon!  Good to see you on here.  How's the family?

No Roxie, I haven't heard anything yet, but didn't really expect to until the local authorities down there can get some of their infrastructure fired back up. It is still blowing pretty hard down there, so I probably won't hear anything for a while yet.

Meanwhile, we're getting ready for a puff and a squirt ourselves. We don't expect a catastrophic wind event, but they say we could get up to 20" of rain.  Unlike the rest of Florida, it is rather hilly around here, so flash flooding is a problem whenever we have heavy rains, particularly in Tallahassee. They lose folks to that from time to time, mostly college students trying to make it to the Pizza Hut in spite of dangerous conditions.

[Tom]

Heard again from harold at 9am.  He's OK so far. He will be catching the trailing edge of the eye and the storm until it finally passes.  The winds he is experienceing now are coming from 180 degrees differently than what he saw yesterday and last night. Anything that was weakened in the Easterly winds last night will probably be blown over in the westerly winds today.  It's kinda like bending a bandblade back and forth till it breaks.

Hang in there DanG!
You're going to need a raincoat for this one. :D

[Bro. Noble]

My son-in-law Michael is heading for Florida Wed. with a forest service crew to help with cleanup.

[Tom]

He'll certainlly be needed.  Tell him to stay aware of downed power lines.  Errant electricity and traffic accidents are the worse killers here after a storm.

[DanG]

I got the Ark ready for launch. 8)  'Course my Ark consists of a 12 foot jon boat. By the time I load 10 dogs, 32 cats and four horses in it, there won't be room for me. Thank goodness!

Those down lines are a REAL problem!  My son told me Friday eve that they were gonna shut off all power as the storm started ashore. From the films I've seen so far, that didn't happen. ??? ???

Noble, thank Michael for me.  They will need all the QUALIFIED help they can get. Over and over, we see people from all over the country streaming into any area that's in trouble. Ain't this a great Country? 8) 8)

[Tom]

I got the Ark ready for launch.   'Course my Ark consists of a 12 foot jon boat. By the time I load 10 dogs, 32 cats and four horses in it, there won't be room for me. Thank goodness!

You need to keep up on the educational threads in this forum to stay reminded of how to get 5 Elephants into a VW. :D

[DanG]

I did study that with interest, Tom. Problem is, I don't have any elephants(all this finger snapping is keeping them away) or a Volkswagen.  The biggest challenge the passengers will face is the two horses that like to chase dogs, and the four dogs that like to chase cats.  I'll just be content to tread water, myself. ;D :D

[Buzz-sawyer]

I believe America is a special country....if theres trouble anywhere in the world WE send help of all kinds....many Americans are willing to spend thier money , time and lives to help others in trouble....and they will this time TOO....Im humbled and honored to live here

[Tom]

It's noon here and we are getting strong bands of rain and wind.  While it isn't steady or hurricane force, it is in the 50-60 mph gust bracket and our power is off and on intermittently.    Could be I'll disappears from the forum for awhile if the lines go down.

Y'all in Florida, hang in there .......and those outside....most of us seem to be OK.  I've checked with family in the Vero area and they weathered it OK. Harold made it the last I heard and DanG is due for a bit of a blow in a few hours.

I'll stay on line as long as I can.   Saw a few shingles pass the door window and heard a few thumps in the night. :D  Haven't been able to take inventory yet.  I have the cars parked around the sawmill so it doesn't get hurt. :D :D

Just one thing I want to say in case I lose this thing.  

Everyone everywhere is going to want to help.  Before anyone takes off for Florida, keep in mind that you will need food, toilets, beds, clothes, fuel and everything else that we Floridians will be trying to find.  It's great to know that everyone wants to help, but, there will be no open restaurants or hotels and you will be in the same fix as the citizens of the state.  It would be a shame to arrive in South Florida, not have fuel for chainsaws and equipment and run out of gas in your truck too.   Then you become a Hurricane victim and will need to be taken care of the same as the people you came to help. :P

http://www.floridadisaster.org/eoc/index.htm

[Paschale]

Hang in there, Tom!

[DanG]

Good luck, Tom!!  I know you've been through this many times, and you'll be ok. Hope you don't get much damage. Same to the rest of you in the path. I'm not worried about it here. As I said before, we'll get a breeze and a bunch of rain, but I'm on high ground and can do ok for quite a while with the resources I have here.

Just to reitterate and reinforce what Tom was saying about offering help;  The best thing you can do to help is to make donations to the organizations that are set up to provide relief. The Red Cross and Salvation Army are two that come to mind. No doubt, the civic organizations and businesses in your areas will be conducting drives to collect money and supplies. That's a good way to make your contribution. If you ain't got money to donate, they'll need somebody to load the trucks, too. Just be sure the organization you donate to is a reputable one that you can trust.

Just heard a strange howling noise at my window, and it weren't no dog! :D  The breeze is starting to pick up a little, but the sky doesn't look threatening at all. Not near as bad as our daily t-storms, so far. Things should go downhill from here.

[Gordon]

Tom posted---there will be no open restaurants

Sorry guys your on our own

On the serious side hope all is well. From what little I've seen on tv it's not a pretty sight. You guys have your hatches battened down? hope so. Tub full of water and all that good stuff. Hope your pantries are full.

Gordon