DUers in Irene's way: Be safe, take care and let us know you are safe

[Taverner]

If you don't I'm going to come kick your butt!

Seriously, be as safe as you can, and let us all know you're OK...but only if you can.

[HipChick]

1. I'm scared..

Going to hide in the closet and not come out...

[Taverner]

2. May I provide some Sweet Leaf for your nerves?

I rode out flooding with Sweet Leaf in the central valley, as well as monsoon rains in Thailand

Best stuff - because you can still make rational decisions

[calimary]

13. How to stay connected during Hurricane Irene

How to stay connected during Hurricane Irene
hosted.ap.org
‎- Cellphones may work even if the power goes out, but you can't count on them. The phones themselves, of course, have batteries. And the cell towers that relay your calls and other messages are often equipped with backup batteries and some have generators.

Posted by my friend the VERY smart and conscientious Karen Sloan at the AP -

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_IRENE_HOW_TO_COMMUNICATE_?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[malaise]

15. No need to be scared

Prepare for the worst and you'll find that it could have been much worse.
Water is the problem here not Cat 2 wind - a few days of inconvenience will follow but you'll get to know your neighbors and you'll discover board games and cards.
Buy coal for the BBQ and store up on your favorite 'spirits' or wines. :D

[calimary]

23. Please check in when/if you can. 'Cause otherwise we're gonna worry.

:grouphug:

[Warpy]

3. It could take a while for some areas

I know after Katrina it took until well after power was restored for one of the survivors to come online briefly to tell us how he had to chainsaw his way out of his house.

[H2O Man]

4. Recommended.

I hope that everyone is taking precautions. Be safe.

I'm in rural upstate NY. We'll likely get a good amount of a storm, but not of the level our DU friends on the coast are in for. I'm planning to sit it out, out at our cabin near my pond.

[applegrove]

5. Yes. Make an adventure out of getting out of the way of Irene instead of staying in her path.

Remember to bring a battery radio or a hand crank one...it could be days before power is restored. Good luck.

[Taverner]

8. Writers, this is your moment

Take advantage...

[gateley]

6. I wish we had a bulletin board-like thing where people could

check in.

I second Taverner -- check in, please! :grouphug:

[CTyankee]

7. I am anticipating trees down and that means power outages in CT..

Don't know about the water. Am filling up the tub tomorrow a.m. bucket by the side to assist toilet flushing.

Flashlights at the ready, extra batteries.

No window taping. Empty garbage can in garage (no flying object).

Only heavy furniture on porch, nothing light plastic.

Car full of gas.

Snacks and canned goods, including soups available.

All laundry done. Clean clothes all around!

We will shower right before the goddam thing starts, so we're "fresh" for the hysteria...

[Taverner]

11. Did you board the windows?

[CTyankee]

16. Nobody said to do that, unlike what they said back in Gloria's days.

I guess it didn't work out...


All I know is that taping the windows didn't make a damn bit of difference in Gloria of 1975...

[Taverner]

18. Particle board can handle more than tape and plastic

I remember this in Oregon, when we had local storms that threw shit around.

Usually around Winter.

[CTyankee]

19. Thanks, good to know!

[Taverner]

21. Sorry man - I'm just worried about you guys

[aquart]

9. I've been saying that to other people here for years.

Now it's my turn. Really, actually nervous.

[Taverner]

12. Take care - I've seen your posts

I hope it does as usual, hits the seaboard and gets a little crazy at first, and then dies down to nothing in a period of 3 hrs

[aquart]

26. Me, too.

I got out of Manhattan where my very narrow apartment has seven-foot windows, to stay at my Mom's in Queens which is all tall trees.

[woodsprite]

10. In DE - made our last run out to get fuel for the chipper and chainsaw

Will fill containers tonight of potable water and make sure all
flashlights and our radio have extra batteries with them. I'm not so
worried about flooding as I am about trees coming down. I'm
getting my tarps out too with some duct tape just in case we need
to cover something. Our friend had a tree fall through their den
ceiling last year.

[Taverner]

14. Gotta get that woodchipper goin'

Sorry, couldn't resist...

Take care

[Bonhomme Richard]

17. I'll get whacked 3 times....

Sailboat on the Chesapeake
House on the bay @ Jersey shore
home in CT

Woot!

[Taverner]

20. Some say being on your boat would be the safest

Others would say "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"


Take care and be safe. What I said up there is a joke :)

[Bonhomme Richard]

22. Seriously, my nephew is staying on the boat near Baltimore.

He is staying on the boat so that when the water comes over the dock he can adjust the lines.

[Taverner]

25. Depending on what happens, he may be really safe

Sometimes its better to be on the sea and just ride out the storm

I hope for the best for him!

[Ter]

24. Hurricane newbie questions:

1) Living in a normal 2-story house that;s like 5 years old, what can happen in a Cat 2 storm? Is it enough to do substantial damage, such as knock it down?

2) Are 90 mph winds enough to knock over a that's about 5-7 feet thick at the base, and like 70 feet tall? I know branches will be knocked down, but only the entire tree itself presents a problem.

[gkhouston]

27. Where is the 2-story house?

Do you need to be concerned about flooding/storm surge? If the winds are going to be 90mph when they pass over your house, that alone is unlikely to damage the house (could lose shingles), but if the winds have picked up something (trashcans, lawn furniture, branches), you could lose windows. An interior room or closet would be your best bet.

As for the tree, is it healthy? Does it have large leaves or small ones? How wet is the ground?

[Ter]

28. The house is about 3-4 miles from sea

Not in any evacuation areas. I have a back room with no windows, I could stay there while the worst hits. I do need to be concerned about flooding in the basement. There is a pump in there, but it won't work unless there's power. I will move all of the lowest furniture to higher ground tonight.

It probably won't be 90 mph when it hits the NY/NJ area, but just in case. I pray it's 70 or less (still strong, but not nearly as bad).

The tree is very healthy. Leaves come and go, always falling in my pool. :) Large or small leaves? Umm, I think large. Looking at them, a little smaller than my hand, and I'm an average sized male. The ground is an abandoned field. Lots of weeds around it, but not wet at all (for now).

[gkhouston]

29. Sounds like the tree has a good chance of staying up, unless

you get a tornado or a microburst. Seems like the trees with needles or tiny leaves (e.g., pine trees or live oaks) lose fewer branches than ones with larger leaves like maple trees.

At 70mph, you shouldn't worry about losing the roof (unless there's a tornado). It's a crap shoot for the windows, depending on airborne debris. If I were you, I'd be sure to have some work clothes, including stout shoes and work gloves, in that back room with you. We usually have clean-up tools at hand, too--it doesn't do you any good to have a crowbar or an axe in the garage if part of the house has come down on you. Similarly, we usually have some food and water in our "safe zone".