These storms are making me insane.

I just saw on the weather channel that north of the Tampa area is looking at 18 foot surges. I hope that is at low tide.

TG and AA, Godspeed on your evacuations and I'm glad you are getting out. OO, get up on a high floor and I know you guys will be okay!

We're still under tornado watches and it is making me and the cats nuts.

The thunderstorms are horrendous. I can't beleive all the rain we are getting already! It is dumping water on us like crazy in the southern part of SC.

Hopefully Charlie will slow down its wind speed over Cuba. Unless a miracle happens, Key West is in for a rough rough night.

Forget the red wine, valium is my friend :-D of choice Miss Scarlett.

Patrick, what is the news with Naples?

LMsF and joan what is going on with y'all?

This is weird seeing the storms on the Weather Channel but getting real time updates from fellow Fodorites!

Thinking about you guys.

Phew...time for a break! Our dining room is now upstairs in the computer room. Oriental rugs rolled up and upstairs...important pictures put away. Plants in, patio furniture in the dining room. What do you do with the "debris" if you don't have a garage. I've got a shovel under the bed, empty pots decorating a side table. The cat is VERY upset, yowling, but she's 17 so doesn't stay awake long these days and after some serious yowls needed a nap to recover.

Cd, Please thank your husband for the extender tip. I was gone but saw the extenders this afternoon on a neighbor's boat, and was envying them. We will have them after this is over...assuming there is still something that needs them. :( I got more stern lines on so all lines are doubled and spring lines heading in all directions. Heaven help me...I hope my bowline knots hold. "the rabbit comes out of the hole, around the tree, back down in the hole again". Please hold. The half hour trip between the boat and home took me 1 1/2 hours this afternoon. Traffic was bumper to bumper inching along for miles and miles, cars were overheating and pulling off on the side of the Howard Frankland bridge! That convinced me to turn off my A/C. lol I have a standard shift car and i didn't get out of 1st gear for about an hour of the trip. My left foot was actually shaking after awhile from the constant pressure on the clutch.

We will stay at the hotel which, although on the bay, is a big safe, sturdy building. We will NOT request bay views! We've got sandbags out the wahzoo. This is exhausting. Will be OK, and there is plenty of food and water. I'm still hoping there is a chance it will turn. We've been through this before...heading directly for us in New Orleans more than once and turned every time at the last minute.

tully, Shore Acres is notorious for flooding, you are so right. Can your Mom come stay with you? I would not be there for anything. I know how worried she is.

Roast chicken with ratatouille, (heehee did I do that right?) sounds wonderful Scarlett. We can be there in about 3 hours (er, we can under normal conditions...it might be 3 days with what is happening.) One thing I have not done is cook. Maybe tomorrow.

Croque_Madame (nice to see you "in the US"), I would think you have tornado concerns as well, and probably more than that! Do they expect it to track near you? That, I have not heard.

All, stay safe, be SO careful on the highway if you are evacuating, and everyone thank you so much for your kind words and thoughts! They are very much appreciated. This has become really, really, stressful.

OMG,
Just saw they want 800,000 folks to evacuate the areas most in harm's way.
That must be physically impossible.
Good luck all!
M

Mike, 5 Million people were evacuated for Hurricane Floyd. It was the largest peacetime evacuation in the history of this country and the only time Disneyworld closed the parks since they opened.

Amazing. I don't have a TV so I thought Charley was nearly on top of you. Checking the weather site gave me a "rational" perspective.
Best wishes.
M

Have lived through several hurricanes including one in '63, I think, while on vacation with my Mother in Miami. We were in a high rise hotel and had to spend the night in the hall. Several people across the way got sucked out of windows. My Mother got "sea sick" from the swaying of the building.

Sending best wishes of you down south. Hoping these storms will move out to sea quickly.

Must report my husband's flight today from Heathrow landed early at JFK (and I hadn't arrived yet #-O) No apparent signs of floods or anything there. He is safely home (although his bag is not...)

Wishing everyone a safe night.

OO, relieved to hear you check in! Best of luck tomorrow. Stay safe!

Yes, we'll catching heck here tomorrow, too, though much safer this far inland. Flooding is the main concern, not wind damage. (Fingers crossed.)

As for you west coast guys evacuating your homes, I'll be among of the emergency response personnel reporting to duty at the shelters in Alachua County to meet you. (In everyday life, I'm a social worker.)When so many folks hurry our way, the hotels fill up quickly. We catch the overflow.

I'll reserve a folding cot for any fleeing Fodorites, along with a nice hot cup of high school cafeteria coffee. Now, doesn't that sound inviting? BTW, it's a BYOP affair. (Bring Your Own Pillow)

Bless you Croque! Be safe my friends!

OO - I offered but as my sis lives in Shore Acres too they're both heading towards a friends near Tyrone. I'm in Allandale so no flooding, just all the trees are worrisome. And I have a 18-yr old cat, deaf & blind in one eye, but unless it's canned food he doesn't notice much of anything anymore :)

Reading all these dinners planned I think I am going to make some shrimp scampi & stop watching the weather for at least a couple hours! Stay safe everyone.

:D Now the calls are coming in from New York way..."how are you? is it bad? get in the car and come home!!"
I am really hoping that it loses steam, heads in a different direction, something!
OO, I want you to call me hourly LOL
and anyone else out there who feels alone or scared, I am here and Pup is great with sharing kisses.
Watch out Croque Madame, we might check into your shelter, just to get to give you a hug ((L))
Scarlett in Jax,7:49 pm, no wind, no rain.

It has been very odd weather this summer, in pa we have had more tornado warnings then i ever hope to see again, and one day lasy week it was down in the lower 50's....As for the people who had storm shelters, what execly are they, so most houses come with them or is it something you decided to build yourself? are they unerground or above?

amatters,

We are building a house in Oklahoma. The older homes around here have basements, which double as a storm shelter. Nowadays, it's cheaper (and just as safe according to the government) to incorporate a small room or closet into the foundation of the house, which is what we did. Our guest walk-in closet is reinforced with concrete and steel beams, has a secure phone line, and a steel door that bolts shut. I'm sure we'll spend a few tense moments in there, but hopefully it will never be tested in earnest. Growing up in KS, our "storm shelter" was an interior bathroom on the ground floor.

Ah, natural disasters.

Jocelyn_P, where do you put the wine cellar if you don't have a basement? ((a)) ((b))

Tandoori here. Sheepishly telling you that I did not flee Tampa -- yet. It's hard, you know, to leave everything behind. I've lifted everything up off the floor and pulled all the lawn furniture inside (although I'd heard the best thing is to chuck it into the pool). I've got my important papers and work related items in boxes ready to go. Dog crate handy.

Tampa has a mandatory evacuation time of 6AM -- now who is going to jump out of bed at 6A to hit the road when landfall is not until 2P?

AA, did you leave? I would if I were on the barrier islands. Actually many people are just heading inland to higher ground.

By the way, I just made a mean meatloaf. A power dinner for the night before the big one!!! I hope everyone is safe and comfy.

Gosh, Tandoori, if you are that, at the ready, you must leave. We all know it's hard but we don't want to worry about you. Keep yourselves safe, my friends.

TG, we evacuated for Hurricane Floyd (Category 5 at the time) around midnight so we could avoid the other 4,999,998 other people on the road.

It worked. We were free and clear in Columbia, SC in around two hours which is only a little over the normal time for us.

Easiest way is to throw the lawn furniture in the pool but your way works also.

Please don't stay. You can replace your things but those who love you cannot replace you.

Whatever you decide, please be careful and stay safe.

I won't stay. I'll be out of here in the morning bright and early with time to spare. I'm getting calls from neighbors who don't want to leave. But they say if I leave then they will too.

This is a fast-moving storm. I plan to be back home tomorrow evening. By that time it will be up near Jax.

Thank God, you are all leaving!!
remember your pets, money and valuables

Living with one foot in the 18th century has some appeal, but Lady "L" has been so involved this week she had no idea hurricanes were a threat to anyone.
Vayan con Dios, mis amigos!
M

We leave first thing in the morning. We still have to figure out what to do with that dang trampoline. 8-|
After that, we will rely on that insurance we've spent so much money on.[-o<
An eerie quiet falls along the coast....
But, heck, I have a ton of spaghettio's and chunky soap to eat! :-d
:)>-

Scarlett..I saw pictures of your tornado just now. Wow! It was huge...so glad it didn't stay on the ground long.

The saving grace with this may be its speed, TG. I guarantee sun for Saturday. Break out the sunscreen.

The Bengals were supposed to be staying with us. The NFL had them go to Orlando a day early instead to ensure they would be in the area anyway...so the game will go on Sunday as scheduled! Seems a bit surreal right now.

hibiscushouse, I sure hope you mean chunky SOUP! Please tell me you're not that desperate... :)

Budman, funny you ask about the wine cellar...there WAS one in the original plans, but as soon as DH found out how much it would cost, he nixed it. So now we have a nice little wine bar with a wine cooler/fridge strategically located between the dining room and kitchen (and bathroom!). Hey, no stairs, right?

I guess no one wants to come here to get away from the storm, as we are being warned now of full hurricane force winds expected here too :(
I sat for years watching tv in NY, while people nailed boards on the windows.
Here I am, I maybe should have nailed a board to my windows, but I have no boards.
I hope everyone keeps in touch, as long as they can.
I feel like I am in a Science Fiction movie- one of those end of the world things ~ :)

Lordy, Lordy. b(
You never know what one will do in the face of danger. O-)

Scarlett and friends,

Just home from flying simba...

Be safe and know that you are in our hearts and minds. Thanks to all who realized it was time to evacuate and not endganger rescue worker's lives. You cannot save your valuables when you are trying to save your life.

I pray for only happy adventurous stories in a few days. Let's laugh together! Godspeed, stay safe and take care of each other out there

gyppie

gippelou, at least you are now one, not to worry about. I wish everyone would listen to you. I'm in Boston, and we are having strange off and on very heavy rainfalls.

There are flood warnings where i live (in Pa) but it looks like we will have more rain by the weekend from these hurricans...does anyone else feel like its the end of the world? ;-)

All quiet here on the western front (St Pete :) ). No wind or rain yet. I hope that anyone who was mulling over the decision to evacuate or not has already left.

Floridians, please continue to keep us updated.

An excellent place to keep updated on the storms is at www.weather.com They have the top left section dedicated to the Charley. There are video updates - I just watched two of them that were from 7 AM EST. Great maps and explanations of where it will/might go, winds, recent reports, etc.

Looks like Tampa area will get the worst of it first. The Max. winds will be only a 30 mile radius from the eye.

We haven't been able to access www.weather.com lately. It won't load. Probably too much traffic.
It's been pretty rainy and windy off and on here (Brussels) the last few days...we're getting the remains of Alex after it went across the Atlantic. So after Charley blows up and past the East Coast, we should see what's left of it in about 5 or 6 days.

BT - I've accessed weather.com a few times this AM with no problems at all. You might try it now. Interesting info there.

Scarlett - as it stands now, the eye of Charley will be no where near Jax. Looks like you all will get the mild or possibly moderate winds. Fingers crossed.

Greetings to all - Here's hoping Charley fizzles in the Gulf and everyone stays safe. But to AA, in spite of what didn't happen to the Keys overnight: having lived in Homestead before/during/after Hurricane Andrew, it's hard to imagine that anyone would not pack up and go long before the storm makes its first appearance. All Floridians should know exactly what would go in the car, what would have to stay and how to secure it, what would take it's own chances. For me, the CATS were on the top of the list. No animal should have to deal with that terror. One big problem with Charley is it's course straight up the state. In evacuating for Andrew we drove north, I to Gainesville, then Jacksonville, but this time there really is no where to go. Good luck to all. Let's just hope the worst will be over when the storm leaves. Dealing with the destruction after the storm - and all that stuff coming out from under rocks - was most terrifying.

Fort myers update: Charlie looks like he might be coming close to Sanibel. The island and all the other barriers are shut down with police and fire and ambulance gone as well. It is more than likely that part of the island will seriously flood. I'm thinking that I might get water up to my lanai. Our elevation is over 10 ft. Lee County is expanding evacuation. It is hard to imagine 18' waves but those are a possibility for Sanibel/Captiva and others. I'll report back as I can. LMF

Before I go offline today- I want to send out the very best wishes to everyone for their show of concern and to those who are facing much worse weather than we ( Jacksonville ) are.
Our dear Olive Oyl for one, is right there in Tampa Bay, battened down and waiting. I hope everyone out there stays safe !
We are having thunderstorms now and heavy rain. Our weather service has said something about Hurricane force winds here tonight, I am hoping traveling over land, it will lose its punch.
Take care everyone!
See ya when the sun comes out ((F)) Scarlett

There's a good number of us sitting in the north worrying what Bonnie or Charley are going to do to our little abodes there in southwest Florida.

Stay safe everyone - you're worth a lot more than a house or a boat.

Now Cat 3 core winds of 125 mph + and "building" - now 2 Mil rec evacuees.
Really awful.
M

Just read MSNBC is now reporting Charley went from a Cat 2 to a Cat 4 in the last 90 mins. Cat 4 = 145 mph sustained winds!

CNN says it's now a category 4. 145 mph. Best to you all in it's path.

My thoughts and prayers with all Floridians this afternoon: get out of harms way with your loved ones, while you can.

I have been reading all these posts, and like LN, thinking about our place on the Gulf in Sanibel -- our refuge from New England winters every February. We've seen heavy storms there occasionally, and can't imagine what it must be like right now. I just clicked back to weather.com to see news of the upgrade to Cat 4.

Hold on tight, in every sense. Blessings.