Just wondering how all our Floridian Fodorites are faring in the aftermath of the hurricane.

Olive Oyl, Scarlett, GoTravel, Tandoori Girl, Patrick, Croque Madame, AA, and the rest of our Florida friends, please let us know how you are and how you fared in the storm.

Ijust read on www.weather.com that the hurricane caused tremendous damage to a much larger area than originally thought.

Our friends in Florida may not have electricity for a while, but just wanted to say lots of people are thinking about all of you and hope you and your families are all safe. My Mother and Aunt who both passed away recently owned homes in the Port St. Richie area. I thought about how awful it would be for them to be in this storm.

Prayers heading out to all of you.

I hope they are all safe and sound. I am thinking of them all and everyone else who lives in the path of this dangerous storm.

My parents in Lake County (they're about 45 minutes north of Orlando) said they came through with surprisingly little damage. No tornadoes (big relief there), no significant damage in their community.

We live in a suburb south of Jacksonville and we are doing just fine. Wild night!
There will be no mail delivery today and the sad news is that apparently there was heavy loss of live in places associated with this storm.
Thank you for asking about us.

We were spared here in Sarasota County and the barrier islands. Unfortunately someone else had to take the hit. Yesterday morning/afternoon I thought that there was a very good possibility I may not see my house again, but the hurricane gods decided to make that last minute turn and spare Casey, Siesta , Longboat, Anna Maria Keys and the coastal cities. As a matter of fact, in some ways it was almost anti-climatic up here. We all sat around the entire Friday expecting the worst and got about 2 hours of rain and nothing else. I was able to return to Siesta Key yesterday around 8 pm. Nothing, not even a broken tree branch.

On the other hand, the reality of the massive destruction that this storm caused to our neighbors south of us is starting to sink in. I'm very happy that we were not hit, but I feel for the folks down there. I can't even imagine what that must feel like when your house is gone or damaged, when your place of employment doesn't exist anymore or the ultimate, a loss of family member or a friend, neighbor.

Some idiot on the Europe forum is making light of what happened down there, before knowing all the facts. There are talking piles of bodies and about $15 billion worth of damages.

This was not a joke. This was a serious storm that caused many deaths and total destruction to many communities.

I feel for the folks that were in the path of this killer storm.

Glad to hear that those of you who have posted made it thru fine, as well as your friends and family. We got a call this morning from some close friends who live 5 miles north of where the eye passed. We were happy to hear that they are ok with minimal damage to their area. South of them is another story, however.

It's horrific to watch the news this morning and see the destruction. I have been thru many bad hurricanes both here and on the Texas Gulf Coast, losing a portion of our home when I was young, so I really feel for all the people going thru this nightmare.

I was very sad to hear that Punta Gorda has ordered 60 body bags for their area, expecting the worst. I hope that they are wrong and don't have to use any of them.

My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who has been affected by this storm.

Joan from Tampa Bay checking in. Of course we are fine - back in our barrier island home by 7 pm last evening! Nobody was more surprised at the turn of events. I am praying for our South Floridians. Glad too that AAFF finally left.

The storm came ashore at Captiva. Haven't seen any photos from there...only Punta Gorda.

LilMsFoodie needs to check in! She lives right in the worst area...said she might go to Chalet Suzanne in Lake Wales. I hope she didn't though, because they keep showing the airport there - extensive damage. God Bless us all.

Joan, I'm counting my blessings this very minute. I was back at my house at about 6P, escaping the mess that seemed to follow me around the state. So grateful it lost interest in Tampa.

And yes, I was thinking about LMF also. The only hope is that buildings as old as Chalette Suzannes' where she said she was headed have weathered other storms and will do OK.

I've still got lots of things to do to get back to normal and catch up on work that was put off.

Thank you everyone for all your kind words and prayers in my behalf. They fell on fertile ground and my home and family were spared.

Oh, but what a mess everywhere else.

I am thinking of you ALL and praying you're safe and sound!

Patrick, how are you???!!

JAYNE! My emails to you are being returned....please let me / us know you're ok!!!

God bless you all!!!!

All is fine here in St Pete, we dodged a major bullet with that turn it made - I just wish it wasn't at the expense of our neighbors to the South. I'm watching the local news now & the damage looks awful. I had several friends who headed East towards Lakeland - where Charley ended up going! I hope everyone is ok, my prayers go out to everyone who was in Charley's path.

Good Morning, Dear Friends!
Pup, the Yankee and I were blessed with good luck and made it through our first hurricane ( and a big one too!) with no damage and we were able to stay at home.
My heart breaks for all those poor people in Punta Gorda. I am so thankful that my friends and family are safe .How tragic that those who were so near the area that was evacuated were hit so hard.
My prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones and homes and family treasures.
Last night I was wondering , what if the storm or a tornado hit our house. What small items could I bring with me, when fleeing. How could I choose from all my momentos , that which would remind me of all my happy days and loved ones? To lose all that and more is so heartbreaking.
I appreciate so much the concern and kindness of the people on these boards. People I have mostly never met, who feel like good friends and when I speak of them, I refer to them as my 'friends'..
Thank you.
Scarlett and family

I woke up, turned on the TV, and couldn't believe what I saw. My prayers are with the people in Florida. Thanks for the Fodorites who have checked in; hopefully we'll hear from the others soon.

Checking in from Clermont, just west of Orlando, in south Lake County. Like tully, we mainly dodged a bullet here; if Charley had come in through Tampa, we would have had much more damage. That being said, though, Orlando was hit much harder than expected. Upwards of 2M people evacuated to the Orlando area, and it was originally thought that Orlando would escape the brunt of the storm. Essentially, they went from the frying pan into the fire. Where I live, Highway 27 intersects Highway 50. Charley seemed to go right up 27, then veered off toward Orlando -- you may be watching video of Lake Wales. They were NOT expecting to be in the path of the storm, and it is not good news there at all. Orlando is looking a few tough days of restoring services, though nothing remotely close to what Port Charlotte/Punta Gorda and those areas now face. Orlando International Airport seems to have quite a bit of damage. In Clermont right now, mostly tree damage and boiling your water. We are about to go check the mobile home park where mother-in-law's manufactured home is (she has recently passed away). I hope I never have to go through another one, and we were very lucky. To everyone in Florida affected by this storm, my thoughts and prayers are with you as well.

hope everyone is safe and didn't lose their home. check in when you can.

Thanks to God for those of you who have checked in safely.
Now, we have to still worry about our Carolina friends..both North and South.
I think GoTravel lives in SC and we had some friends at our beach house in North Myrtle who had to cut their vacation short
God Bless Us All

My thought and prayers to everyone in these areas. Still waiting to hear from nephew living if Ft. Myers. Daughter is moving to Tampa next week and feel fortunate that they were spared and that she still has a new job to go to. Such a tragic situation for so many people.

I called my parents who live in Naples (where another poster--Patrick--lives) and they're okay. Damage to palm trees, of course, but nothing too bad. They are west of I-75, though. I know Fort Meyers wasn't as fortunate.

I am so relieved that everyone is checking in and that you're all okay.

I am trying to hear from a friend who lives in the Villages in Lady Lakes? Outside of Orlando. Anyone know how that area is? I am not hearing from them at this time.

Just talked to a neighbor whose brother and niece both live in Port Charlotte. She was able to talk to them last night. Basically they said that their emergency management team NEVER warned anyone to leave. There was simply NO warnings until it was almost right upon them. All warnings were for the Tampa area.
So they hurriedly packed into their walk-in closet with provisions and matresses to protect them. When the worst was over, they saw major damage to trees which were in their pool, naturally their "birdcage" covering the pool was damaged. The niece's garage windows had blown out and that sustained damage. They have no electricity but do have phones. They feel extremely thankful.
Meanwhile we have not heard from our friends in Cape Coral and pary they are OK. By the way, we just visited that area a month ago in our hunt for a retirement home. We settled on a community in North Port (formerly known as North Port Charlotte!) because we loved the area and based on a hurricane "Hit" map that my husband had gotten prior to our visit, that area hadn't had a direct hit in about 50 yrs!!! We only have the land to worry about but my prayers are with all who have to clean-up after this disaster!