Erika is a naughty girl.

[Pelagic]

Weaves, I enjoyed your well written post and the thought provoking aspect of fate and circumstances during natural disasters.

Here in the Philippines, locals live under the annual threat of total destruction from Typhoons, yet seem less proactive and more fatalistic about their survival with a belief in a heavy dose of prayer to God as their most effective defense.

It is something the government is trying to change, but what amazes me is the resilience of the Filipino to pick themselves up after a destructive Typhoon, rebuild and put on a happy face.

[DefinitelyMe]

I guess i've grown up with hurricanes, first cyclones in Hong Kong when i was a kid and then the North-Atlantic hurricanes here in Bermuda. Last year we had two within a week. The first was forecast to be a mild tropical storm. I was on my motorboat rafted up with a friend in his C&C 36. By a complete fluke we decided to separate the two boats and move them to some friends moorings in the vicinity, but nobody expected what we got. The forecast steadily rose from 45-knot gusts in the morning up to 75-knot gusts by the evening forecast. We had very little time to prepare, hence we weren't on our own moorings. We were in an exceptionally well-sheltered spot. The winds we actually got clocked 116 knots before the anemometer blew away. We were very, very lucky. My friend was on his C&C about 100 yards from me and although i couldn't see him he said he was tacking back and forth on the mooring with the rail under each time. He went on deck to check the mooring lines at one point and got caught out by a gust. Only by leaping for the mast and clinging to it was he able to stay on the boat. I remember at one point just standing in disbelief that it could possibly be as windy as it was. If i'd had a waterproof camera i could have taken incredible footage from the top deck, where i crouched down behind a fibreglass shield. By sticking my head up just over the top i could watch the pressure waves coming and duck down just as they hit with shuddering crashes.

The attached video was taken once it was light enough to film, after the height of the storm had passed. It's a view looking aft from the cabin, so it taken from the most sheltered place on the boat. Still, you can get an idea of the kind of power the wind has. Many boats were lost. The dinghies of visiting yachts were flying behind the boats, engines still attached, spinning around on their painters. I was actually surprised by how many anchored visiting yachts survived. Only two were lost in that first storm I think, out of perhaps 20 or 30.

This was only a cat. 1 storm. The next one, which hit us the following weekend, was a little stronger. My friend, as well as many others, hauled their boats out of the water for that one and many, including his, were lost when they were knocked over in the yard by the force of the wind.

We are very lucky here to have our buildings made from limestone rather than lightweight board like many of the houses in Florida, or wooden structures with corrugated iron roofs like you find in the Caribbean. Usually a large number of houses lose parts of their roofs but total losses are rare.

[weavis]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Weaves, I enjoyed your well written post and the thought provoking aspect of fate and circumstances during natural disasters.

Here in the Philippines, locals live under the annual threat of total destruction from Typhoons, yet seem less proactive and more fatalistic about their survival with a belief in a heavy dose of prayer to God as their most effective defense.

It is something the government is trying to change, but what amazes me is the resilience of the Filipino to pick themselves up after a destructive Typhoon, rebuild and put on a happy face.

Thanks
Everyone deals with it differently. Doesnt take away the build up angst though.
I got caught in a field of tornadoes once on I 10....... that was very puckering.

[PortClydeMe]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

I've never bonded and had a strong attachment to "stuff." Twice in my life now, I've lost all my stuff and had to start over again and acquire new stuff, so I really don't get it.. Each time, we've just moved on and not looked back. Neither of us form emotional bonds to inanimate objects like houses, cars, boats etc. That stated, we have a basement full of stuff I'd like to get rid of.

In New England, we're constantly bombarded by storms of every kind. Other locals don't ask or expect any help, but offer it generously when it's needed by a neighbor or community, but basically... New Englanders just hunker down during the storm and "get on with it," after the storm or emergency passes.

Maybe I've just lived there long enough for the attitude to rub off. Always prepared for the worst, and hope for the best. Example: during one of the major snow storms hitting our area last winter (we received a cumulative 4 meters over four week period), the administrator of the hospital where I work, personally drove 20 miles in the storm in his 4x4 pickup truck to fetch me because the snow on our road was three feet deep. Everyone at work brought in a two day personal supply and was prepared to stay... Until the emergency was over. Why can the folks down south do the same? It's a puzzlement.

Bingo! It builds character. The type of character that comes in handy when caught in 20-foot breakers and gale-force winds far offshore.

Shoveling snow. My first private business at 10 years old. I charged 25 cents per driveway. I thought I was rich. Back then, 25 cents bought 2 chocolate bars, with money left over. Heaven, it was. "Ahayuhh!"

[Jon Eisberg]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

But some of you are right... I have no idea what it's like to live 15ft below sea level during a hurricane. That's because I've always had enough sense to seek out higher ground, and the common sense to not build my house below sea level.

Irony...

Even after getting flooded during Sandy, I'm quite comfortable living just a few feet above sea level here on the Jersey shore... But if I lived where you do, I'd definitely be thinking about seeking "higher ground"...

I'd rather reside in a Flood Zone, than a War Zone... ;-)

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Here in our Massachusetts city of 60,000, we have multiple armed robberies and burgalries each week along with a half dozen murders per year... All within a kilometer of our house. Dave, I can post the local headlines from this past week if you like? I'd have to say that it's the actual crime that's spreading and the criminals are getting bolder. Our firsthand experience seems to differ from your stats.

I'm going to keep locking the front door... Just in case.

...

The crime rate within 10 feet of my "ghetto" property has dropped off significantly over the past year, but that's most likely because the neighborhood dregs see me leaving the house in camo carrying a locked rifle case or crossbow on my way to the range a couple of times a week.

...

Really?? I just finished watching real life drama unfold from my kitchen window here in Massachusetts minutes ago. I needed to call 911 because a crazed woman was trying to break down my next door neigbor's front door. I needed to call a second time after 6 minutes as the situation got worse and more people became involved. The neighbors were surprisingly calm throughout the entire episode as it continued to escalate over the 12-15 minutes it took the police to finally arrive, by then, the crazed woman and her associates had left.

We live only 150 meters from the police station.

[Kenomac]

Jon,

You're apparently saving copies of postings I made on CF several years ago?

That's really kind of.... Weird and creepy. Do you save copies of other members posts too?

Ken

[Group9]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

I've never bonded and had a strong attachment to "stuff." Twice in my life now, I've lost all my stuff and had to start over again and acquire new stuff, so I really don't get it.. Each time, we've just moved on and not looked back. Neither of us form emotional bonds to inanimate objects like houses, cars, boats etc. That stated, we have a basement full of stuff I'd like to get rid of.

In New England, we're constantly bombarded by storms of every kind. Other locals don't ask or expect any help, but offer it generously when it's needed by a neighbor or community, but basically... New Englanders just hunker down during the storm and "get on with it," after the storm or emergency passes.

Maybe I've just lived there long enough for the attitude to rub off. Always prepared for the worst, and hope for the best. Example: during one of the major snow storms hitting our area last winter (we received a cumulative 4 meters over four week period), the administrator of the hospital where I work, personally drove 20 miles in the storm in his 4x4 pickup truck to fetch me because the snow on our road was three feet deep. Everyone at work brought in a two day personal supply and was prepared to stay... Until the emergency was over. Why can the folks down south do the same? It's a puzzlement.

Were 95 per cent of the homes and businesses in your town destroyed in that storm? Because, that's what happened to my town (including my house) in Katrina. It doesn't really matter how many supplies you lay on (and we laid on plenty) when the structure holding them is destroyed.

I don't blame people for not understanding how much worse storms can be than what they have ever seen. Until that day in 2005, I didn't understand, either.

[Kenomac]

Originally Posted by Group9

Were 95 per cent of the homes and businesses in your town destroyed in that storm? Because, that's what happened to my town (including my house) in Katrina. It doesn't really matter how many supplies you lay on (and we laid on plenty) when the structure holding them is destroyed.

I don't blame people for not understanding how much worse storms can be than what they have ever seen. Until that day in 2005, I didn't understand, either.

Back in 1991, hurricane Bob tracked directly over my house in Southern New Hampshire with me and my two infant children inside. But I was living 60ft above sea level at the time, so 95 percent of the homes and businesses in my immediate area weren't destroyed. Yes, the eye went directly over us, 135mph sustained winds.

So please don't try to tell me I don't know what is is like to be in a hurricane.

Like I said in an earlier post, twice in my lifetime I've lost all of my stuff through no fault of my own.... It's just stuff. Went back to work and bought new stuff. No ten year memorial services to commemorate the loss of my stuff. Like I wrote earlier, we just got on with it like everybody else from that era.

[DeepFrz]

If you want the story of Katrina watch Frontline online.
Katrina, 10 Years Later: Three Documentaries to Watch

Katrina, 10 Years Later: Three Documentaries to Watch | Law & Disorder | FRONTLINE | PBS

[2hullvenus]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Back in 1991, hurricane Bob tracked directly over my house in Southern New Hampshire with me and my two infant children inside. But I was living 60ft above sea level at the time, so 95 percent of the homes and businesses in my immediate area weren't destroyed. Yes, the eye went directly over us, 135mph sustained winds.

So please don't try to tell me I don't know what is is like to be in a hurricane.

Like I said in an earlier post, twice in my lifetime I've lost all of my stuff through no fault of my own.... It's just stuff. Went back to work and bought new stuff. No ten year memorial services to commemorate the loss of my stuff. Like I wrote earlier, we just got on with it like everybody else from that era.

Major exaggeration.

That hurricane was basically dead when it hit us (im from southern nh).

Tops 60mph in gusts. Sustained was nothing. Barely tropical storm.

I was out riding my atv in it, for fun.

[Group9]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Back in 1991, hurricane Bob tracked directly over my house in Southern New Hampshire with me and my two infant children inside. But I was living 60ft above sea level at the time, so 95 percent of the homes and businesses in my immediate area weren't destroyed. Yes, the eye went directly over us, 135mph sustained winds.

So please don't try to tell me I don't know what is is like to be in a hurricane.

Like I said in an earlier post, twice in my lifetime I've lost all of my stuff through no fault of my own.... It's just stuff. Went back to work and bought new stuff. No ten year memorial services to commemorate the loss of my stuff. Like I wrote earlier, we just got on with it like everybody else from that era.

Did 300 people die in your community that time? What makes you think we are commemorating the stuff that got lost?

I've been through lots of hurricanes. I thought I had seen all there was to see with them, too. Not even close. I hope you spend the rest of your life thinking you have been in a bad hurricane, and never find out what a bad one is really like.

But I understand. A month after it hit, our headquarters was wanting to know why no one was answering the phones or e-mails. I had to say over and over again. "When we told you everything was destroyed, we didn't mean heavily damaged. We meant destroyed."

[The Garbone]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Back in 1991, hurricane Bob tracked directly over my house in Southern New Hampshire with me and my two infant children inside. But I was living 60ft above sea level at the time, so 95 percent of the homes and businesses in my immediate area weren't destroyed. Yes, the eye went directly over us, 135mph sustained winds.

So please don't try to tell me I don't know what is is like to be in a hurricane.

Like I said in an earlier post, twice in my lifetime I've lost all of my stuff through no fault of my own.... It's just stuff. Went back to work and bought new stuff. No ten year memorial services to commemorate the loss of my stuff. Like I wrote earlier, we just got on with it like everybody else from that era.

It is not the straight line winds, it is the surge and the tornados. Also keep in mind the land down here is predominantly flat and their are many more people.

Portsmouth has 20000 people, St Bernard Parish 40000, St Bernard went completely underwater, no buildings in the Perish had power but for the telephone central office as they put the generators on the 3rd floor so they did not flood.

We have doubled up our dock lines and stowed everything including the solar panels. Here is to hoping.

[Kenomac]

Originally Posted by 2hullvenus

Major exaggeration.

That hurricane was basically dead when it hit us (im from southern nh).

Tops 60mph in gusts. Sustained was nothing. Barely tropical storm.

I was out riding my atv in it, for fun.

Yeah right.... Sure thing buddy.

[Kenomac]

Originally Posted by The Garbone

It is not the straight line winds, it is the surge and the tornados. Also keep in mind the land down here is predominantly flat and their are many more people.

Portsmouth has 20000 people, St Bernard Parish 40000, St Bernard went completely underwater, no buildings in the Perish had power but for the telephone central office as they put the generators on the 3rd floor so they did not flood.

We have doubled up our dock lines and stowed everything including the solar panels. .

Well.... If I'd built my house below sea level, I'm sure I would have had much more damage, but I didnt. I chose instead to live above sea level. Choices have consequences, especially.... Bad choices.

[wellin]

Lots of people survive 12 feet of snow every year in alaska, and love it. Everyone knows florida is hurricane central. No secret there. I live in washington and will never see 12 feet of snow or a hurricane. But that is my choice. If you choose to live in a hurricane zone its your decision.

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