why are they waiting so long to get the evac notices out?

[sea oat]

seems like this thing is going at a pretty fast clip and there are so many people down there. this is not a baby storm. i just can't believe they haven't called for that with the number of people. i couldn't imagine riding out a major hurricane on the interstate that happened to many people during opal and i'm sure it did with charley. i'd rather be safe than sorry!

[dhweather]

That goes back to the quandry we have.

If folks in Miami go to Orlando, and Frances does too, then what?

Everyone has to be ready to go, and go when told.

[rtd2]

IN the morning things will change and happen they wont a little time for media hype and the most for a safe evac! gray area!

[jaysonx]

I would hope that most of the coastal people are already packing up and heading out. Local authorities have been advising it all day in most areas.

[Guest]

If I lived on the East coast of Florida, Only one place would be safe in my mind. The Keys. If Frances hits around Daytona as forecasted, or even Miami, the winds there would be at most T.S force.

[Canelaw99]

But, we're under a 'Cane watch to Florida City which is the end of Dade County, and there's a TS watch all the way to the 7 Mile Bridge in the lower/middle Keys. They wouldn't put up watches if there wasn't a chance of the storm or conditions coming that way. It looks like the only safe place is in...hmmm...Michigan????

[sea oat]

i hear ya. i remember elana. had to evacuate twice cause she couldn't make up her mind where she wanted to go and seemed to follow us wherever my family went. but i live in the panhandle and i know how the hotel rooms got booked up as far as atlanta so i can't imagine 3 million people getting on the road all at once. and personally on a side note being inland in that part of florida is not a safe sopt to be with this size storm. IMHO

[KeyLargoDave]

Regarding evacuations, if you feel at all unsafe, Go. But I don't think there's any reason to tell millions of people to start evacuating when we don't know where in florida the storm is heading. At best, maybe only a small stretch of coast needs to be evacuated. Everyone with a strong home and shutters should stay put unless they are specifically in a storm surge zone, and maybe then only north of the landfall point. Of course, if the projected track is up the coast, the evacuation zone could be large, but people farther north have longer to get out.

I know some crazy things happen if you evacuate and don't need to. But many, many people can successfully ride out a storm with 80 mph winds --- which is what many people will experience at home. That's much better than if we send them all out onto the road and to flimsy hotels in Orlando.

This is pretty much what the emergency managers and NHC people have been emphasizing.