Hurricane Irma

[Aerides]

Welp.. Boca Raton here.

tl;dr version: long and shitty and if i had to groundhog day yesterday to live forever I would say NO.

We have impact/doors and windows... which I have to say, while nicer than being in the cave of shutters means you can see out and that's not always good.... quite scary. I tensed with every high gust. We had a crank/battery radio that kept saying "oops it jogged east 20 miles at the last minute so hey you're getting higher gusts than expected". And gusts... when it's a big storm means 7 hours of an intermittent battering ram.

We had tornado warnings a bunch but all missed us. It started saturday eve, and by sunday morning was foolish to go outside. Didn't really ebb until 11pm sunday night. The flooding wasn't an issue here ( less than 2 miles inland) but the wind was persistent. My garden looks like winter - all the leaves are gone... But we are safe, the cats are safe, and no damage is permanent.

My AC unit fritzed and fried a wire somewhere... we found an emergency($) service today but they have to come back tomorrow so fingers crossed....

88 degrees inside my house with over 70% humidity, at 6pm... first world problems at least!

 

[Moemg]

I am so glad I packed a cooler bag with food because none was available .I have never seen Florida so shut down .No restaurants ,stores or gas .

 

[Go-NoGo]

Does anyone know how this works, are the traveling power companies repayed all expenses including gas and labor.This has to cost a ton of money.

They are paid very well (and at times like this, they deserve it), with time and half and double time for Sundays - they will make out ok.

Utility crews stream into Florida for hurricane payday, adventure:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...-for-hurricane-payday-adventure-idUSKCN1BK0PP

 

[W2R]

We evacuated to a hotel inland.Today we checked on our house it was fine just a few shingles down and no power so we returned to the hotel .Hopefully we will get power soon.

Great news! So glad you and your SO are OK, and your house is fine with just a few shingles down, and that you can stay in the hotel until you have power. Thanks for letting everyone know..

 

[Alan]

Great news! So glad you and your SO are OK, and your house is fine with just a few shingles down, and that you can stay in the hotel until you have power. Thanks for letting everyone know..

+1

 

[MichaelB]

There are now water advisories across the tri-county. Drinking water has been contaminated with waste overrun. In some Palm Beach towns there is a request to not use the drains, as waste treatment plants are offline due to power loss.

The drawbridges on the intracoastal can't be operated, also due to power loss. According to the Sun Sentinel, they are stuck open.

Looks like the Keys have suffered very badly. Multiple reports now that there are 10k people who stayed behind and may now need to be evacuated.

 

[Lagniappe]

I just heard from a neighbor that with the exception of a few screens from a neighbors pool cage sitting on my roof and some significant tree damage, my house looks fine in Fort Myers.

I had braced myself for much worse, given that I didn't put up the storm shutters before leaving last Tuesday.

Waiting to hear when power is restored and flights resume, so I can get down there and see for myself.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Our power is back on our First Coast Barrier Island today. Jax Beach was flooded though 50 miles North of us. We faired fine all in all. Lots of clean up today, no significant home damage, but things could have been VERY different if this had hit my roof (See Pic). Another 5' would have been an insurance claim.

 

[LOL!]

After Ike when power was down and schools were closed, some residents just went to Disney World for the week. Is anybody in Florida going to Disneyland for the week?

 

[LOL!]

I am so glad I packed a cooler bag with food because none was available .I have never seen Florida so shut down .No restaurants ,stores or gas .

This is one reason I am not so keen on having lots of cash handy ... sometimes no place to use it anyways.

 

[nubill]

I have a concrete block stucco house built with the current wind mitigation specs. I live about 10 miles from the Villages. No damage. I found one shingle in my yard this morning but it was not the color of my roof. We lost power for 3 minutes. I consider myself very fortunate. I received an email from Chase Bank which has my Amazon Visa. Though I would share a portion of the notice.

Here’s how we're helping customers in FEMA-declared areas:

Automatically waiving or refunding through September 24:
• Late fees for mortgage, credit card, business banking and auto loans and leases
• Overdraft, service and ATM fees on consumer and business checking and savings accounts.

 

[MichaelB]

More bad news about the Florida Keys Irma Destroyed About 25 Percent of Houses in Florida Keys, FEMA Says | KTLA

Initial estimates indicate 25% of the houses in the Florida Keys have been destroyed, and 65% have major damage, said Brock Long, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s administrator.

 

[harley]

We're still without power in Bonita Springs, so can't check wifi cams or thermostat. Neighbor that watches our place hasn't returned yet. Others in the general vicinity report many down trees, lots of debris, significant flooding but not up to the level of our entry door, so good news there. The nearby Publix parking lot is a lake, and the canopy/roof over the Sunoco pumps collapsed. This is all based on a few pictures from our only HOA full timer.

My only concerns are whether or not our roof leaked (a new roof was on the agenda for this winter), and whether our fence is still standing. Oh yeah, and whether my kayak is still there.

I do know the nearby trailer parks were trashed, as well as a couple of my favorite waterside eateries. I suspect my Snook Inn (Marco Island) t-shirts have just become collectors items. While Irma was not as bad as expected, she still kicked our butts in SWFL.

 

[MRG]

.snip...
I do know the nearby trailer parks were trashed, as well as a couple of my favorite waterside eateries. I suspect my Snook Inn (Marco Island) t-shirts have just become collectors items. While Irma was not as bad as expected, she still kicked our butts in SWFL.

Snook Inn's gone?

That was my late in-laws favorite place.

Glad the important stuff is safe.

 

[harley]

Snook Inn's gone?

That was my late in-laws favorite place.

Glad the important stuff is safe.

The building may still be there, but the Tiki Hut was destroyed. Not sure about the pickle barrel.

 

[Moemg]

We arrived home at noon today and power was on . I am so happy .Our one fence seems to be leaning a little but that is it.

 

[Huston55]

We arrived home at noon today and power was on . I am so happy .Our one fence seems to be leaning a little but that is it.

Glad to hear it.

Did lots of Sarasota residents in reinforced concrete, high rise condos shelter in place?

PS: did the 'kiss' statue make it unscathed?

 

[omni550]

Reports from folks at my condo complex in Estero indicate no damage to buildings. The giant Cheekee hut in the pool area survived, too. Lots of downed trees and branches on nearby roads.

Someone sent me a text stating that a large palm tree had fallen alongside my condo. It should be cleared away before I arrive in ~6 weeks.

Coconut Point Mall has had its power restored this morning. The Publix and Target stores there are open for business.

omni

 

[omni550]

Just received a text from Florida Power & Light. They expect the power to the entire west coast to be restored by end of day Sept. 22, except for areas with tornadoes and severe flooding.

omni

 

[MichaelB]

We arrived home at noon today and power was on . I am so happy .Our one fence seems to be leaning a little but that is it.

 

[Moemg]

Glad to hear it.

Did lots of Sarasota residents in reinforced concrete, high rise condos shelter in place?

PS: did the 'kiss' statue make it unscathed?

A lot of people left that have never left before and the ones who stayed had hurricane shutters .We have stayed before but this one scared the crap out of me.Plus the sound of the winds coming off the bay were horrendous.

 

[Moemg]

Reports from folks at my condo complex in Estero indicate no damage to buildings. The giant Cheekee hut in the pool area survived, too. Lots of downed trees and branches on nearby roads.

Someone sent me a text stating that a large palm tree had fallen alongside my condo. It should be cleared away before I arrive in ~6 weeks.

Coconut Point Mall has had its power restored this morning. The Publix and Target stores there are open for business.

omni

All Publix's were open by us and gas was available .I have lived in Florida for 22 years thru many hurricanes and I never saw so many people evacuate and every single business was closed for a few days even pharmacies .I think coming so shortly after Texas everybody was scared .I know I was .Now of course the people who left for Georgia are traveling at 10 mph on 95 .

 

[MichaelB]

All Publix's were open by us and gas was available .I have lived in Florida for 22 years thru many hurricanes and I never saw so many people evacuate and every single business was closed for a few days even pharmacies .I think coming so shortly after Texas everybody was scared .I know I was .Now of course the people who left for Georgia are traveling at 10 mph on 95 .

I agree that the H. Harvey helped make people more fearful, but this was a very bad storm, and just a few miles change in track could have led to a real devastation in SW Florida. Getting out was definitely the right move.

My daughter called a few minutes ago. They were staying with in-laws. Their power's back on, so they went home and found a soaked carpet and buckled floors.

 

[Breedlove]

Key West Fake news

Just talked to Louie C Rocks a DJ who rode the storm out in KW and who is there right now.
Key West was not destroyed ( KW is in OK )
The 25% people who lost home is correct , these are mostly people who live in travel trailers and motor homes.
The Keys are REBUILDING as we talk !
Only one fatality , an older person in a evacuation center!
Cudjoe Key is tore up badly , but things are progressing.
US navy has an aircraft carrier in KW .
This storm was not as bad as Hurricane Wilma !
If you want, follow Louie on his facebook .

We are planning to go to Fantasy Fest this year and made reservations . The hotel we are staying will be reopening Thursday 09/14/2017

Louie C. , said do not count the Keys out ! This year's Fantasy Fest will be bigger and better then ever !

 

[MichaelB]

Breedlove, you may disagree, but that does not make the news "fake".

This is the Monroe County web site MONROE COUNTY TO OPEN RE-ENTRY INTO KEYS FOR UPPER KEYS RESIDENTS & BUSINESS OWNERS » Florida Keys Weekly Newspapers
They are only allowing reentry to the Upper Keys, and only residents and businesses.

US-1 is only open to the upper Keys. It is still closed south of Islamorada. The Dept of Defense issued a warning yesterday about damage in the Keys (here). FEMA reported the 25% number - houses, not people - and also reported that "most of the structures on the island" were damaged.

The lower Keys are still closed, residents cannot yet return. Hopefully by Fantasy Fest everything will be hunky-dory and you'll have a great time.