Ivan the Terrible is now a Cat 5
 

As if this is news to anyone with a pulse in Florida. I awakened to look at the latest NHC track and swallowed hard. Straight up the middle.

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ftp/graphics...F/060908W5.gif

I'm having deja vu as my thoughts are the same as last week. My only concern in getting enough petrol to get out of the state.

160 mph means devastation for Jamaica. The path could still turn but where could one go for a short evacuation. Inland would appear to be out. LMF

God works in mysterious ways!

Top Man, I don't think you are on top of anything. People in Florida are in shock from three weeks of serious weather and many are in fear of the next storm.

My only regret is that Fodors does not have an ignore feature on their website. Over the past few weeks many people have come here to share their experiences and suggestions on how to handle the stress of living in Florida during the 2004 Hurricane Season.

I'm sorry that you are only able to be snide. Your remarks are not clever or amusing, you do not even qualify to be a minor troll.

TTFN LMF

LMF, I am so upset I had to take a sleeping pill last night! We are going on a 2 week trip to England on Tues, and now I am looking for contingency plans to get to Atlanta for our flight, because more than likely RSW will be closed Tues. This is just all toooo horrible IMO, esp for those heavily impacted by C. & F.

Like just about everyone else in the country, I know people and have relatives in Florida. The stress of the last couple of weeks has been palpable even from where I am in upstate New York (the other NY). My thoughts and prayers are with you all.
Since there is little that can be done from here other than to donate to the Red Cross, I spend a good bit of time tracking developments in the Tropics and Florida online. Here's a few of the hurricane sites that I've come upon that might help you residents make decisions about whether to hang in there or flee.

http://www.boatus.com/hurricanes/

Go to the "Ivan" page on boatus.com and then click on the "Spaghetti Model"...Very interesting.

A navy site with a frequently updated storm track:

http://www.nrlmry.navy.mil/tc_pages/tc_home.html

This one has reports from across the Carribean from residents of the islands...reports from Grenada are just coming in and are grim...

http://stormcarib.com/index.htm#reports

Let's hope Ivan jakes a sharp left and heads out to sea.

Lilmsfoodie,

If Topman is being "snide", Why is it that when hurricanes bear down on Florida, we all have them " in our prayers".

If people go to church on Sunday and pray that Ivan misses Florida, are they being "Snide"?

Think about it? Topman is right on in his assesment. Three storms that are considered an "act of god" is mysterious.

Please allow me to first say that my heart goes out to all Florida residents who have had to tolerate the last two hurricanes, and await (possibly) the next one. You've been hit very hard this season.

However, at the risk of being verbally attacked on this board, you knew the risks when you moved to a state that is susceptible to such storms. I also would like to add that here in the NE, we have suffered through several very harsh winters. Our transportation systems have been crippled, sometimes for several days at a time; we have lost power; lives have been lost in weather-related accidents; and on top of all that, we have to dig out. But I have never seen nearly as much coverage on this board for any of those very intense storms as there has been for the two recent hurricanes. At most, people who have booked trips to NY have posted their fears that the airports might be closed.

Again, my thoughts are with everyone who has been affected by these storms, but I felt that this needed to be said.

As a native New Englander, I think digging out your car and losing power pales in comparison to having your house blown away by a hurricane. I'll take the New England risks any day.

gojacks -
Did you read the previous post from TopMan about it being a result of the voting issues of 2000?

I think LMF had that in her mind when she responded to TopMan.
Renee

along with Jamaica, for the current time, keep the people of Grenada in your prayers. According to news reports, their island has been devastated.

.....On a different thread? I didn't see it.

OK. For everyone who says we "knew the risks when we moved to the state", I have to admit that when I was ten I had no idea! My choice to stay is my own. God has nothing to do with it.

Topman, pls. go take your lithium.

I can't find the posting now. Maybe it was pulled?

I just don't get people like TopMan (JonJon, or whatever his current name is). He is well traveled and sometimes offers very helpful advice, yet for some reason he feels compelled to "stir the pot." Attention-seeking, perhaps?

I can't believe a third one is coming. Stay strong.

As an aside, from what I understand as a Christian, God does not punish people here on earth; judgment comes later.

I'm so tired of hearing about "knowing the risks" when I moved here. I moved here in 1972 and this is only the second time in those 32 years that I have any noticeable affects from hurricanes (and so far, still none of any significance). Some of you act like it is a constant threat. There are few places in the entire United States that haven't been subjected to a couple of disasters in the past 32 years! Are you also suggesting that anyone who lives in New York city is an idiot since they have been the object of two terrorists within two years? Or that anyone who lives in an earthquake zone including the entire state of California "deserves" total devastation since they knew what they were getting into?

by the way I really do know the difference between "affects" and "effects".

Good old Fodors...only here will you find posts that indicate that God is punishing Florida for an election scandal or that victims of devastating storms don't deserve any sympathy because they chose to live in an area where such events are possible.

How embarrassing it must be to have such small minds. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves although I expect that that isn't something you're capable of. What the heck is wrong with you people?

You're so right Patrick. I've lived in Florida since 1973 and have only experienced three significant hurricanes and two of those were in the same year. I lived in California for 5 years as a child and went through two major earthquakes. It doesn't matter where you live...things happen. That's nature. The best advice for any natural disaster is to be as prepared as possible. I can't stress enough the importance of having hurricane shutters (and not living in a mobile home if at all possible). My thoughts are with you all in South Florida and I'm sure you'll forgive me if I keep hoping Ivan does not hit the Panhandle!

Now theres a secular post. "Thoughts " and "hoping" rather than praying.

It's OK to pray people. Floridians will be doing alot of it this week.

"How can people be so heartless, how can people be so cruel, easy to be hard... easy to be cruel.." "Hair"