Monday September 26
Here we go again. Our last date with destiny was September 10, 2017, H. Irma, and it appears we are in for at least a drive by with H. Ian. We learned a lot from Irma and hopefully we are prepared. Just a few weeks ago I gave away my 13HP gas generator. With less than an hour of run time on it in 2017 it failed to start during our 7 day loss of power. I took it in for repairs, and have given it the prescribed attention instructed by the technician. I have faithfully pulled it out of the garage, connected it to the transfer switch, started it with fresh gas and let it run dry followed by a gulp of gas stabilizer. Three weeks ago I rolled it out of the garage again and stopped trying to get it started before I yanked my shoulder out of commission. Truth is, keeping your refrigerator running for an extended period is futile. It is impossible to find gas when there is no power at the gas stations and thanks to Ralph Nader it is nearly impossible to siphon your reserve gas from the cars. This time we will resolve to eat what is safe and chuck the rest in the event of an extended loss of electricity. Our community does not yet have natural gas which would be the most helpful reliable source of energy for long term use of a generator.
Our community, Longshore Lake, took a direct hit from Irma. We lost a lot of trees, and had a very close call with the level of our storm water retention pond which we call a lake. Today the level of the lake is significantly lower than in 2017 and as long as this storm does not stall offshore we will be spared flooding. At it’s peak, Irma brought the water level to within a fraction of an inch of our garage floor less than six inches from the main level of the house.
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| August 2017 before Irma |
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| Today |
Irma also inspired our community to develop a comprehensive emergency plan which has been tested and refined with subsequent tropical storms. Our local utilities have also made improvements inspired by Irma. Our electrical grid has been fortified and back up generators will move sewage and prevent turning off our water supply.
The most unpleasant part of the last experience was the complete lack air movement at night when sleeping. I just broke out a brand new Ridgid battery powered fan and blasted Nace with it to see how it works. This should minimize our suffering while sleeping. I chose this fan since I have at least seven Ridgid cordless tools and plenty of batteries.
Current storm track shows us to be on the dirty side of the storm but not in it’s direct path. Lots of time yet for that to change. Since Irma, we now have hurricane impact windows. The investment was really triggered by the energy and sound benefits but today I enjoyed not having to deal with putting protective panels on the windows. We spent a few hows relocating potential airborne items to the lanai where they will be secure behind our roll down shutters.
During the height of Irma, our roads were knee deep with water and it was helpful to rake away the debris clogging the storm drains and let the water return to the lake. It is im
possible to locate these obstructed drains when they are under a foot or two of water.
By lunch time today our administrative and club staff had relocated all of the outdoor furniture from the tennis, dining and pool area safely inside the dining room. They have painstakingly followed the emergency plan checklists which will minimize loss of property for our community.
