Skiff

This storm had great potential, but veered east a bit and ran smack into the "spine" of Florida. A small ridge of hills runs the length of FL, down the centerline and this chopped the legs off the eye wall just below Clearmont about 30mile south of me. We took some 100 MPH blasts, which took the Water oaks and scrub pines down. My shop has a pine on it, and two oaks are on my fences, plus some shingle loses. Power, cable and interweb service has been out single 8:30 Sunday and a week or more will pass before it's restored.

 

Our subdivision has most of its power back. Some within it say they expect power within a couple of days. A huge transformer blew about 5 miles SSE of here that leaves huge number without power. It was estimated half the Florida population lost power.

 

Glad you are back, PAR. Hope your damage was not too severe.

 

The trees I figured to fall didn't, I do have trees on the fences and one into the back of the shop. No power, but phone and cable are back up.

 

Yeah I am one of the guys who used some sweat and plenty of money for materials, preparing for the storm. Battening down all the hatches and all that prep stuff. The center of the eye wall of the hurricane missed me by about four miles. to the west. That difference mattered little. I lost one large oak tree and had my five Queen palms shucked but not much other damage. I did load my little skiff onto the ground and filled her with water so that she would not likely move.

A hundred yards away a huge oak was plucked from the ground and presented its perhaps 25 f00t diameter root structure to the post storm observer. Two hundred yards away another big oak pulled out of the ground and landed squarely on an almost new Ford F150 pickup truck. The truck is totaled. Even the wheels are bent. Mother nature is a *****.

We had only a few fatalities. One of them was most disturbing. A seven year old girl was overcome with carbon monoxide because the single Mom was running a small generator indoors. The little girl died and the Mom is in critical care at the hospital. All that despite the frequent ans insistent warnings about CO from small engines.

My electric service was off for a few days and the Internet access was also kaput. Happy to say that we are back.

Now back to the important stuff: Boats.

 

Hoyt - & - PAR - & - Messabout​

I'm glad you're all personally OK after the event, and thanks for the reports !

Very sad what happened to the little girl . . .

 

Glad you are okay, messabout. Stores selling the generators should require verbal and written warning to each and every buyer.

 

The warnings are in big, bold labels on the generators. The instructions are also very well marked.

I'm still without power.

 

Enough fuel to run the gensets a bit longer ?

Any usable timber that came down, or only firewood ?

 

Watch your insurance premiums jump in the wake of it, happens every time something gets flattened by a cyclone here, even though the north of Australia is relatively sparsely populated where the big ones hit. Some incredible blows have hit places in the past, notably in the NW, and Far NE, but missed any built up areas. That isn't the case in Florida, which would have a bigger population that the entire cyclone-prone area of Australia.

 

I notice that the central pressure of these storms is rarely mentioned these days in weather warnings, probably considered info you don't need to know, but is certainly a key indicator for those with basic understanding of the physics.

 

We do get pressure readings here, though you're right most can't use this information.

I have one oak that I will save for timber and one pine that will also be saved, though not for good timber, just basic framing stock.

Still no power, one of the disavantages of being in the woods. The power company is doing all the large sub divisions before thinking about the more rural areas. My generator is running faithfully, though this camping out stuff has to end eventually. I have a bet with my golf buddy, that it'll be Monday or later, before power is restored. He just got power yesterday and he's in a big subdivision. He thinks I'm next, but there's just not enough customers on my street to see any help soon.

 

Par, I just got power last night around 7pm. In this part of Manatee County I went 5 & 1/2 days without power. I hope things are improving in your area..

 

Because of Irma I am still waiting for my new motor. Honda had to focus on deliveries of generators which have proved to be essential in this situation. I am assured that it will come soon.

 

No power yet . . .