...how things are with you and your area with Dean bearing down for a direct strike. My thoughts are with you.
Q.
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...how things are with you and your area with Dean bearing down for a direct strike. My thoughts are with you.
Q.
I just looked at the sat. image of the storm and it looks like the storm really just hit St. Lucia. They are in for a long night! I am sure the internet will be one of the first things to go down over there, but you never know.
Lottie and anyone else over in that area, we are with you and wish you the best! Hope that tomorrow is bright and sunny for you!
Hey Guys,
It's not too bad over here at the moment (about 10pm - same time zone as new york!)
We've had rain, mad rumbles of thunder, a bit of wind, some branches have fallen off the trees and onto the road and quite a bit of sheet lightening. Nothing scary as yet.
I was supposed to go diving this afternoon, but the LDS phoned me up and said that they were cancelling the afternoon boat dive due to the storm - so instead I did the morning boat dive. The current was a bit stronger than normal (Ace - i didn't have any problems with my ears and equalized on every few breaths - ha!)
They were hankering down for the storm as well - clearing things away, filling up sandbags and getting the boats up to marigot bay which is more enclosed.
I'll update again in the morning and let you know that i'm still here :)
Please do that.
Take care.
ASW
Hope all is well over there.
Keep us updated.
FD
Best wishes!
So this is a news report from AOL taken Friday.
"The Atlantic season's first hurricane grew into a Category 3 storm with sustained winds of 125 mph after crossing over the warm waters of the Caribbean and forecasters warned it could grow into a monster tempest with 150 mph winds before steering next week into the Gulf of Mexico, with its 4,000 oil and gas platforms.
Dean could threaten the United States by Wednesday, forecasters said, and Texas Gov. Rick Perry's office suggested people get ready.
On tiny St. Lucia, fierce winds tore corrugated metal roofs from dozens of houses and a hospital's pediatric ward, whose patients had been evacuated hours earlier. Police said a 62-year-old man drowned when he tried to retrieve a cow from a rain-swollen river......
......Dean was forecast to brush the southern coast of Haiti late Saturday, then hit Jamaica on Sunday and strengthen to Category 4 status, with winds between 131 and 155 mph, before clipping Yucatan two days later. The State Department was preparing to authorize some U.S. diplomats on Jamaica to leave before the storm.
On Yucatan, Mexican authorities broadcast radio alerts, including in the Yucatec Maya language, warning people to "be prepared." Some people boarded up windows and stocked up on supplies, while officials prepared some 570 schools, gymnasiums and public buildings as shelters.
People on Martinique, St. Lucia and Dominica mostly stayed indoors Friday while the hurricane swept the islands with heavy rain and wind. People who ventured out said the islands seemed to have escaped serious damage....
...On St. Lucia, the storm washed boulders from the sea onto downtown streets and knocked down trees. The power company shut off electricity across the island to prevent people from being electrocuted by wires broken by falling trees and power poles.......
......At 1:45 p.m. EDT, Dean was centered about 175 miles west of Martinique and moving west at 22 mph.
Forecasters said it was too early to tell whether the storm would eventually strike the U.S. coast somewhere, but officials were getting ready just in case.
"It's so far out, but it's not too early to start preparing," said Katherine Cesinger, a spokeswoman for Texas's governor.
Energy futures rose Friday on the news that Dean could move into the Gulf of Mexico, which produces roughly 25 percent of the United States' oil and 15 percent of its natural gas. Royal Dutch Shell PLC said it would evacuate 275 nonessential personnel from the Gulf, adding to the 188 who left earlier this week before another tropical storm struck Texas.
In Mexico, government emergency officials on Yucatan made plans for dealing with the region's 60,000 domestic and foreign tourists. If Dean continued on its track toward the peninsula, which includes the resort of Cancun, State Tourism Secretary Gabriela Rodriguez said the government would advise the U.S., Canada and Europe to warn tourists to postpone visits.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Dean could develop into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane as it approached Yucatan on Tuesday. But the forecasters stressed that intensity predictions can be inaccurate so far in advance.
Associated Press writers Ellsworth Carter in Roseau, Dominica, Herve Preval in Fort-de-France, Martinique, and Paul Kiernan in Mexico City contributed to this report.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2007-08-17 03:55:25
Please keep Lottie and her island neighbors in your thoughts and prayers until we hear from her.
Anthony
Hey guys.
Just got electricity back - I switched on my PC this morning at 6AM (its now 7PM) and it all went off after 2 mins!
We've had thunder, sheet lightening, howling wind, rain like anything on and off all day...
Looking at the weather forecasts, even though it looks as though its gone past St Lucia, we're still, even now, getting rain and thunder rumblings.
It's also been quite boring due to no TV and no PC, plus no water! All i've been doing is sleeping, then up for a bit to see whats happening outside, then going back to sleep...
Well, I've got electricity back, but no water. Oh well !! they might turn it back on later (hopefully!)
I haven't been out to see what the local area is like as I don't have any petrol in the jeep and no where is open (well, apart from one rum bar, so i've heard!!!)
Edit - Anthony - you typed that up quick!!! that wasn't there when I started this reply!
Welcome back!
Heck with the water, go for a hurricane dive!
Good to hear you are now on the back side of the storm!
Yeah, in my experience the wind from hurricanes/typhoons/tropical storms stays around for a long time, but shifts direction usually. "Your" storm is moving pretty fast, so you should be seeing more sporadic bands of rain as the day passes. Good luck with the island clean up. Next time (yes, next time), fill your bathtub with water before the storm hits so that you've got some clean water for post-storm usage. It often takes a while for water mains to get all the sludge out and know that supplies are safe.
I would do that except I dont' have a tub (only shower cubicle!!) - my parents had the right idea by getting an overflow water tank that collects all the rainwater - so if i do get short on water, I can go down to theirs and get some more water (they are only a 5 min walk away.)Quote:
Originally Posted by Quero
Now I need to watch what happens with Erin...it never rains but it pours BWAHAHAHAH!!! :D
damnn this all sounds like a blast. I love rough weather. Keep safe but LUCKY YOU! :D
Hey that's a great idea with the bath tub.
Another thing you can do is get a rain barrel. If you can't get one or don't have one handy, you can make one in a pinch.
Get a trash can (nice big one for outside), clean it out really well, I would use some bleach. Put a few big heavy rocks or weights in the bottom. (Omit this step with a new can)Take a new can liner(heavy duty water proof one) and line the can. Take some cheese cloth or similar and place over the top of the can, duct tape it in place as a filter. Place the can under the edge of your roof after the rain has started (wait until the rain has started for a while to make sure everything is clean).
Fresh drinking water provided by the storm that stoped your water to start with. Of course you can boil or filter the water if you feel necessary, but the water should be more than fine as it is.
Anyway, back to things:
Glad to hear everything is settling down from the storm. Sounds like you suffered so much.....LOL, some relax time is always good!
Hope your water calms down soon so you can get out diving again. I had an excellent dive today, I took a friend inside his first wreck and he loved it! Plus when we surfaced, it was sunny but raining....strange as it was not raining when we went under.....and it was sunny the entire time...Crazy.
Wow, as I was typing this you must have posted about your folks rain collector. Guess you know about that then.
Well..seems as though we've had it quite easy in the south, compared to the north - loads of destruction, boulders being shifted by the winds, boats wrecked up onto shore, roof came off the childrens hospital, telegraph poles down, coconut and breadfruit trees fallen, plus i think two people have died. The island hasn't got the all-clear as yet as there's still rain pounding down on the roof now (10:30pm), thunder and lightening to boot as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by acelockco
I hope the seas get calmer by the end of next week - got my AOW booked for Thursday and Friday...
Glad to hear from ya, is this your 1st big storm?
Yep - this is my first big storm. Everythings now sunny and very humid here now (about 8AM). It's as though nothing happened. Walking the dog this morning i've seen coconut trees that have fallen (luckily its in a deserted area). Need to try and get some gas, then i'm going out exploring :D
Still got no water :(
Ciao for now
Good to hear. Any reporters asking stupid questions yet?
LOL..not that i know of....but i'll let you know if that changes :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Daddy-h2O
Winds tearing off roofs, boulders from the sea rolling onto downtown streets, drowning to save livestock, etc. all sound terrible! Reassuring (especially since we get the worst from the news) that someone from there remains her usual ebullient self and -- despite, despite -- still thinking of the diving!
Lu Ann, Thanks for that, seems you know me better than I know myself :DQuote:
Originally Posted by PinayDiver
Better get back to reading my AOW book on UW Navigation :rolleyes:
If anyone's interested. I took a drive around the area earlier today and took some photos of Deans 'wrath' which can be found here -->
http://www.lotties-shenanigans.com/A...ks/CALR-767LAN
Right, back to that AOW book :D
Nice pics; did you find your livestock?
Nah....don't have any...except the dogs!!! and they were all fine
What, no chickens?
LOL
I liked your photos. Looks like the damage was minor, good thing.
Now get back into dive mode. ;)
Glad to hear the pooches or ok!
Lottie,
Glad to hear that you, your family and the island are all ok! :)
Hey Ace,Quote:
Originally Posted by acelockco
Have you been in a Hurricane? The wind is whipping around so strong that anything that isn't rooted in concrete and driven down into the ground several feet is flying away.
Filling containers with water, is a must. Portable generators are a must. propane grills to replace electric stoves are a must. (this is why propane and kerosene stove/refrigerators are good) I have nice little list from the 2004 and 2005 season here in Florida.:o :o
Glad to hear all made it through the storm. Look out for trees that are leaning precariously. Loose limbs and the like are more likely to kill and injure than the actual storm.
Amtrosie - you're right about the containers, If i didn't have the quick thinking of filling up the jugs that morning, I would have been a bit stuck for water (i did have 5 bottles of water, but in the end didn't use them).
The only problem with portable generators is that they are expensive over here...as my parents look in on them for the guesthouse...
I went up to Castries this morning - which is in the north of the island - and there are still debris over the road. Some of the tree trunks have been cut with a chainsaw, so the traffic can get past. There's a numerous amount of landslides on the west coast (as thats the most hilly side and the pitons), plus it's been raining today (still friggin' hot and humid), which probably doesn't help the clearing up.
Yes I have been in a few.Quote:
Originally Posted by amtrosie
I agree with you 100% with all of your ideas. Anyway my idea with the rain barrel to collect water was to be used if there was not water already stored and you were still getting rain. Considering the high winds, I said to put weights in the bottom or large rocks. You could even tie it or steak it down. Of course filling up jugs with water BEFORE the storm is the best idea.
Hey Lottie.. I've been gone for a few days.. Glad everything turned out ok for you with Dean. I've got a friend that's working on Cayman Brac that I'm worried about now.. Hopefully she will spared any major damage as you were.. We'll see.. But, glad you're ok.
Dale - one good site that I look at (and post on) is http://www.stormcarib.com
They have local correspondents from all the islands in the Caribbean - that might give you some info about how Cayman Brac faired with Dean
HTH
Awesome.. Thanks Lottie.. I just checked it out.. Looks like they faired pretty well. Still haven't heard from her, but, honestly, that's nothing new. :D