Hurricane Season: What's The Fuss

[vintageray]

Originally Posted by unbusted67

I feel like a dummy asking this question but here goes any way: I always here about cruising boats delaying their trips South to avoid hurricane season. Many boats won't head below the Chesapeake until after November due to restrictions on their insurance.

Surely, though, their are people who own boat South of the Chesapeake and in the Caribbean, who keep their boats in the water all through Hurricane season. Their is a substantial liveaboard population in Miami and the USVI.

What do these folks do? Do they just get crushed by their insurance providers? Do people South of the Chesapeake play roulette with named storms, hauling out only at the last minute? What is it like to be one of the million boat owners living South of the Chesapeake or in the Caribbean during the thick of hurricane season?

Folks who live in hurricane prone areas have plans for what they'll do when one is approaching. Many yards have haulout lists and charge a yearly fee to be put on the list. Some are first come, first served. Most all marinas demand that all boats be removed from the docks.
I'd made arrangements to be hauled before Irene came through and even looked forward to a few days in a motel in town with restaurants nearby. Put the boat on the hard the day before the storm hit and stayed with it until the weather got bad. Drove to the city to find flooded streets, power lines down, high winds, sheets of rain, all businesses closed. Spent two days in a motel room, hungry, with soggy carpeting and no electricity.
One man at the marina couldn't afford to have his boat hauled and wouldn't accept help from neighbors. He said he was going to go offshore and ride it out. Don't know how that worked out for him as he didn't return to the marina after the storm passed.
Folks who live up north are wise to delay traveling into areas where they might find themselves in a bind.

[gonesail]

there are thousands of miles of shoreline that can get hit by a hurricane .. and if you track them it always looks like they are headed towards your boat. but the worst area to me is the carolinas and gulf of mexico. people in florida will double their lines but not much else. if you get hit by a big cane forget about it .. if your boat is in the water it will take a beating or be sunk. the big storms don't come ashore very often but they are terrible things that should be avoided at all costs.

[waterworldly]

As yet another frame of reverence, my insurance to stay below Beaufort NC btween June and October 15 doubles to stay anywhere south above Turks and Caicos, then triples to go as far south as Trinidad. Its a racket, but what can you do? Next year we may bite the bullet as well and stay south in the Bahamas for the summer. That is the really good season, warm water, gentle cooling winds, deserted anchorages. I tried to find stats on hurricanes that have crossed the Bahamas, along with tracking maps and have been unsuccessful.

[four winds]

Originally Posted by waterworldly

............I tried to find stats on hurricanes that have crossed the Bahamas, along with tracking maps and have been unsuccessful.

That info here,....Historical Hurricane Tracks

Zoom in on location, set radius in nm, then click "set location" and click on Nassau, for example.

Then hover on any track for details.

[Kettlewell]

My big question is why stay south during hurricane season if you are cruising? The Chesapeake, New England, and Maine, or even further north, all have spectacular cruising, less chance of serious hurricane strikes, many good hurricane holes, no problems with hurricane insurance, and cooler temperatures. You can't fight the weather--might as well take advantage of it.

[belizesailor]

I've lived in the hurricane zone all of my life. If you want to know what the fuss is all about just look up the history of some past category 4-5 hurricanes: Camile, Mitch, Andrew, unamed hurricane which annihilated Galveston, TX in 1900....

I saw the aftermath of Camile as a kid -- made a big impression -- tossed freighters upon the beach like they were pool toys...erased all structures from large swaths of coast line. Also saw Homestead after Andrew...total desolation.

Attempting to ride out a hurricane on a boat is simply foolish. I've sailed in Cat 1 conditions and trying to move about on deck in 65-80 knots of wind is a real physical challenge. Once winds are 100+ knots you are not physically able to do anything. A boat is just a boat -- you can get another one -- not worth risking your life.

My hurricane strategy, regardless of insurance, has always been to secure the boat as well as possible and get the hell out of Dodge. Better yet, keep the boat here in Rio Dulce, Guatemala where there are no worries about hurricanes.

That said there are hurricane prep strategies that work. One, get clear of other boats...a crowded marina is one of the worst places too be. Shrimpers on the Gulf Coast take their boats as far upstream as possible, remove electronics, plug up the engine and open the sea cocks...they ride it out just fine on the nice muddy bottom (of course these are just rough working boats not a fancy yacht). You can follow a similar strategy with a sailing vessel by getting her as far inland up in the mangroves as possible and lacing her in with lots of very long lines -- partially flooding the hull(s), especially on a multihull, is a good tactic. One of the best places for a sailboat is to get her out of the water, to an elevation above forecast storm surge, and plant her in a trench (monohull). Multihulls taken ashore should be strapped down to good strong anchor points (light weight is not an asset in 200 knots of wind).

This is (or was when I was last there) a service you can pay for in Corpus Christi Texas. A few related pics attached. One of a travel lift, hauling out my previous boat in preparation for a hurricane, waiting at a traffic light...not something you see every day! The other is of boats planted in the wide median of the beach front boulevard. Also a few pics from the aftermath of a tropical storm (just barely under hurricane strength) which hit SW Florida when I lived there.

Because of this great potential for loss many insurance policies specify a "named storm box" and have significant constraints on coverage (often dramatically increased deductible or even no coverage) if you are "in the box" during hurricane season.

[four winds]

This was interesting. A refined search of all hurricanes passing within 100nm of Nassau from 2000 to 2010.

Only 2, did I do something wrong? If not it's been eight years since a storm came within 100nm of Nassau, unless one did last season.

Historical Hurricane Tracks


At what radius would you folks suggest to search? As in, how far away should storm be to be considering non threatening?

[Kettlewell]

It doesn't matter what has happened in the last ten years--it just matters that you are on a major hurricane track. It just takes one. Also, that doesn't tell you how many storms looked like they might hit the Bahamas when the storm was say in the Virgin Islands, meaning everyone had to run for cover only to discover that the storm veered off. It's kind of a pain to have to leave the Exumas and run to Florida every few weeks during hurricane season.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by four winds

This was interesting. A refined search of all hurricanes passing within 100nm of Nassau from 2000 to 2010.

Only 2, did I do something wrong? If not it's been eight years since a storm came within 100nm of Nassau, unless one did last season.

Historical Hurricane Tracks


At what radius would you folks suggest to search? As in, how far away should storm be to be considering non threatening?

Something to do with your "category" selection I think. If you select "any category" then the number of storms increases quite a bit.

[four winds]

True, I chose H1 - H5.

Skipping tropical storms and others choices since the topic was Hurricanes.

Any category returns seven results.

Still and interesting site to me. Going to check out my current location just for fun.

[four winds]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

It doesn't matter what has happened in the last ten years--it just matters that you are on a major hurricane track. It just takes one. Also, that doesn't tell you how many storms looked like they might hit the Bahamas when the storm was say in the Virgin Islands, meaning everyone had to run for cover only to discover that the storm veered off. It's kind of a pain to have to leave the Exumas and run to Florida every few weeks during hurricane season.

Makes sense to me. I was just trying to demonstrate how to use the site.

But I find the tool interesting as I'm on the AL gulf coast for the season.

Hoping to make a first visit to the Bahamas in the next couple of years hopefully.

Do you have an opinion on the question I posed in the post you responded to?

[Kettlewell]

I consider most hurricanes "threatening" to anywhere on the East and Gulf Coasts once they reach the vicinity of the Virgin Islands/Honduras area. You just never know where they are headed at that point. I was chased all over the place by Hurricane Kate back in the '80s. It came in through the Bahamas and was beelining for Florida so I holed up in the Carolinas, then it went across Florida into the Gulf so I thought I was OK and headed down to Florida, only Kate doubled back and headed back across Florida so I had to speed south in order to get south of its track before holing up. Went back across northern Florida and back out into the Atlantic. Predictions do get better and better, but they are still not perfect, so you have to start prepping several days out meaning a lot of prepping or running if you are someplace like the Bahamas with not much shelter. The other thing is that even hundreds of miles from the track conditions can get pretty bad, especially if there isn't much shelter.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by four winds

True, I chose H1 - H5.

Skipping tropical storms and others choices since the topic was Hurricanes.

Any category returns seven results.

Still and interesting site to me. Going to check out my current location just for fun.

Still, two storms in 10 years for that area just does not sound right. Maybe, but having lived in FL the east coast sure is at least under the threat of hurricane quite often.

[four winds]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Still, two storms in 10 years for that area just does not sound right. Maybe, but having lived in FL the east coast sure is at least under the threat of hurricane quite often.

Agree, that's why it was confusing me.

But I think that those two actually came within 100nm of Nassau. And from memory folks know that many, many more threatened to come close.

Which is what Kettlewell is referring to in his comments.

[four winds]

Here is any storm, any year, within 1000nm of Miami.

More like what one would expect.

http://www.csc.noaa.gov/hurricanes/i...00&mos=default