My parents’ entire resort community in St. Martin is gone. Every wooden structure on the place has been leveled, or rather, disappeared. A few shells of concrete buildings remain, but with the roofs gone and all the contents of the buildings sucked out. People have no water and no electricity and are bracing for Jose, which is now a Cat 4.
My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone being affected by Irma. I hope you all stay safe.
I saw that video of Bitter End. I had a fabulous Vacation there years ago. The devastation is complete. Poor Key West and Sanibel, this is what’s in store for them.
@Sue22 , that’s appalling.
Jose is now at 155+ MPH winds and is being called “close to a 5”. Those poor people in the leeward islands! =((
They just had some city official of Naples (I think it was Naples) on MSNBC, saying that the city has instituted a 3 pm curfew tomorrow, and anyone found on the streets after that time will be detained and taken to a shelter.
I hope the US government is remembering the American citizens in the now-devastated US Virgin Islands. They need our help, just as Texas and Florida are getting our help.
^ And Puerto Rico!
OT but @doschicos thank you for that info about the baggage being sent to our home. I only live about 15 min from our airport so I’d rather go grab it than wait a few days (most of the time), but very good to know in case it gets lost on the way to somewhere.
One of Mr. B’s former bosses just bought a dream retirement house on the gulf side of FL. I looked up the area - mandatory evacuations… hope the house stands… this guy deserves a happy retirement.
Meanwhile, we’re getting lots of cruise mail and email. I think that’s a no.
Cruises have never appealed to me but if one of the cruise lines put together a “service trip” cruise where they would take folks and supplies to the devastated islands and engage in helping rebuild and service the population in some measurable way, now that is a cruise I might consider taking/supporting.
Twenty something son in the PNW actually called today- said “you’re so stupid” twice. We considered driving north to Indiana (relatives and friends there) but hearing about slow traffic and lack of gas leaving Tampa seemed less desirable. We live within a couple of miles of an elementary school on the evacuation list. They say to go 10’s, not 100’s of miles to evacuate as well. The risk of getting stuck on the road then getting caught as the storms move northward… Let those who are in evacuation areas have the roads and gas.
Then the projected path moved further west. Still west of center. None of our neighbors have gone- only the ones stuck in Puerto Rico who can’t get back are not here. No local friends who have been through hurricanes suggested we leave either. Past days of waiting are stressful. Schools (k-college) are closed, no sports, libraries closed. And the weather still good. Have supplies et al. Will move lanai furniture Saturday. Thankful our four live oaks close to the front/back of our house got a massive pruning two years ago- no huge rotten branches to fall. Hurricane windows. Pond to drain water to… Prepared and just waiting…
All of the Florida peninsula will be affected, regardless of the more westerly track. It is a huge storm. I’m catching up on posts after spending my evening switching between local updates/stories and CNN’s coverage. By Tuesday it will be over. IF power is to be out for a long time we can always use my full tank of gas…
I think the point’s been made that when it comes to Cat 4 or 5, you don’t count on past luck. You don’t wait so long that you have to shrug your shoulders about traffic and gas.
Bff’s relatives left Tampa on Weds. As it was, double the time to reach 95 in GA.
Are you folks in Tampa looking at significant storm surge in the latest prediction?
Theyre saying 3-5’, but that water has nowhere to go. And so much property is so close to sea level.
@“Cardinal Fang” my friend posted something on FB from a USVI resident lamenting that they’ve been forgotten. I’ve posted it below.
“From Jenn Manes who runs News of St. John in the US Virgin Islands:
Dear people who love St. John, we desperately need your help. Please contact the White House, NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN and all the other major news networks. We are being forgotten down here. As you know we have no cell service down here except for a quick blip here and there. We do have access to one NBC station out of New York. From what we are seeing, St. John and St. Thomas have completely been forgotten. The Today Show just now mentioned every damn island around but us - all non US islands too I’d like to point out. The United States Virgin Islands is just that - part of the United States. But right now, no one up north seems to remember that.
So why the desperate plea? People who I love so very much no longer have homes. They do not have possessions. Everything is gone. And it’s not just one or two people, it’s a lot. And if you’ve come here at least once, chances are you know the people directly affected. Those sailboats that you’ve all photographed in Cruz Bay- well at least eight of them are now slammed up against and jammed into Wharfside Village. Morgan’s Mango is gone. Barefoot Cowboy is destroyed. We’ve heard Caneel Bay is gone. St. John Water and Ice is destroyed too. People cannot get ice or water. Our food will quickly run out. We wont have power for months. We still haven’t heard anything about Coral Bay or the boats in Hurricane Hole, but we presume those are all gone too. We don’t know when the airport will reopen. We don’t know when our ferries and barges will run again. And we don’t know if we’re about to get hit again by Hurricane Jose.
So please, put yourselves in our shoes for a moment and start sharing. Start writing. Start calling. Start emailing. Get us some help please. We have never needed you all more than we do right now. I cannot beg you enough.
We are United States citizens. Please do not forget about us. Please help us.”
You can follow updates on “News of St. John” facebook page. Looks like some help is on the way from Coast Guard, Navy, FEMA, and Kenny Chesney who has a home on the island. I’m sure they could use monetary donations however. You can follow Chesney’s fb page as well for updates, photos, and donation news for the USVI and BVI.
Came across this article which may be beneficial for those of you who are affected or may have family in the disaster areas.
Apparently if you take a slow interest loan from the SBA you are penalized when the grants are doled out.
If you know people still on road without place to stay, Camp Fellowship (Presbyterian camp) is open on Lake Greenwood in SC. If you continue on to mountains, in Brevard NC the girls old summer camp, Rockbrook, is open. Rustic but beautiful. Safe trip to all still on road. First Red cross shelter here in columbia opens at noon today.
Dos, also several east coast states deployed National Guard.