#4380963 - 09/23/17 01:10 PM
Re: Florida Flyboys
[Re: JFM]
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Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 7,993
Robert_Wiggins
BWOC Survivor!...So Far!!
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BWOC Survivor!...So Far!!
Hotshot
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 7,993
Lindsay, Ontario, Canada
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Ahoy! We have power and our phone landline came back yesterday.
Short story: We wound up leaving Saturday morning. I didn't want to go but it was forecast as a Cat 5 direct hit then in the Florida Straights. My two elderly in-laws were adamant about leaving and I couldn't let them attempt it alone. Me, wife, two kids, in-laws, and three dogs drove to just across the state line in Georgia. Drive was hell, bumper-to-bumper/stop-and-go. In Georgia, Irma hit as a tropical storm but the place was so freaked out by that that everything shut down, so we had to live on snacks we had brought with us. Being a Floridian now, I left with shorts and a t-shirt but it was 60 degrees, windy and raining in GA--I don't even think about places being cold in September! So I froze to death. We left there after two days and went to Tampa--another hell drive--and stayed there for days until the power came back on. I was dying to return anyway but was outvoted by everyone. I thought we'd be gone two days but NINE days later we came back. Thankfully by then the drive from Tampa to Naples was 85 mph.
House survived. Damage to roof shingles and soffits. Lost our lanai cage, though. I theorize the tree in back came down on the corner and once the structural integrity was compromised, the wind did the rest. When we got home the cage was a mass of twisted wreckage. I had metal, screws, screens, and about 5000 bushels of leaves and twigs in the pool, too. We came back on Sunday and I worked all week to get the cage dismantled, broken down, dragged to the curb, pool cleaned, etc. Back in shape now! We were on the verge of upgrading the pavers and pool tiles out there anyway, and we have leaks in the pool and have to resurface it at least, so we have to do all that before we get a new cage.
I'm with Hellshade. I'm getting a whole house generator. I've also calculated how much water we need to survive for 2-4 weeks and will stockpile that amount August-through-November, replenished yearly. I'll also have stockpiles of food and gasoline that I'll accumulate the same months, and I already have plenty of weapons to discourage looters. I want our house and cars to be self-sufficient off-the-grid for a few weeks when the next hurricane hits. There will be a next one; just a matter of when, not if. Hopefully, not for a while! But I'm not leaving again. Sucked not being here to see the damage and initiate repairs, etc. In-laws can just hunker down here or call Delta; I've already advised them. Naples survived a Cat 3/4 direct hit--I saw the airport clocked a 142 mph gust--and the house survived with very minor damage, and no damage that would have endangered any occupants in any way. I'll just make this place a self-sustaining fortress and stay right here.
I'll attach photos in a following post.
Good play for the future JFM!! Don't forget to hurricane proof your windows (and boarding up capabilities), and have a safe enclosed reinforced room to hole up in. Glad to see things didn't get out of hand at your residence. Cheers mate!
Last edited by Robert_Wiggins; 09/23/17 01:11 PM.
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#4380968 - 09/23/17 02:52 PM
Re: Florida Flyboys
[Re: Hellshade]
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Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 799
Stache
Member
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Member
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 799
Michigan, USA
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Good to hear you guys came though okay.
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. A. Einstein I7-6700k OC 4.4GHZ, 16GB DDR4 3200Mhz; Gigabyte Gaming 7 MB, G1 OC'ed GTX980ti; Three-Acer XB271HU WQHD Gsync 144Mhz; Samsung 950-512GB NVMe SSD; WD 2TB-7200rpm; Cooler Master HAF XB EVO, Nepton 240M cooler, V1000 PS; Windows 10 PRO; VKB GunfighterPro Stick; Thrustmaster TPR Pedals; Saitek Throttle; Dual TM MFD panels; TrackIR 5; Windows 10 v1909
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#4381047 - 09/24/17 01:30 PM
Re: Florida Flyboys
[Re: Hellshade]
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Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
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BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
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Jim, very glad to see that you and yours also made it through the storm. All things considered it does appear you got by with fairly minimal damage and loss. And to that generator, I also need to invest in one, but for a different reason - heat in the winter when a monster blizzard takes out our power for any length of time at all.
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Three RFC Brass Hats were strolling down a street in London. Two walked into a bar, the third one ducked._________________________________________________________________________ Former Cold War Warrior, USAF Security Service 1974-1978, E-4, Morse Systems Intercept, England, Europe, and points above. "pippy-pahpah-pippy pah-pip-pah"
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