5 year anniversary of Ivan

[docjoe]

5 years ago tonight Ivan reminded the Florida Panhandle and coastal Alabama what a big storm could do. Lives were changed forever that night. It took years for the area to return to normal and if you know where to look there is still work to do.It seemed that the wind would never stop that night. When we saw the damage the next morning when the sun came upI remember thinking if it is this bad where I am...(Milton, Fl) I cannot imagine what the immediate coast would be like. The creek in my backyard normally was about 40 feet across and about 4 feet deep. About 4 miles downstream it emptied into Blackwater Bay. That morning it was about 20 feet deep and about 300 feet across. The water had a salt taste as the surge came that far inland. About 30 trees were down in my yard alone.Due to no power and communications being down it was 2 days later before I really started to learn the scope of what happened. I know I will always remember Ivan and so will thousands upon thousands in the area.

[hurricanetrack]

Here is our encounter with Ivan for those who have not seen it. It was a benchmark hurricane for us and our remote sensing project. It was also the end of the Isuzu Rodeo, but quite on purpose.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vxz2PuyfAc

[Gustywind]

IVAN
Awfull damages !

Southern Grenada after Hurricane Ivan passed just to the south of the island. Not since Hurricane Janet in 1955 had Grenada suffered such a storm (Photo WW-2004).

Another pic in Grenada...

[Ivanhater]

Here is a powerful video of the damage Ivan did..That night was a nightmare

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5riDJDJestA

[IvanSurvivor]

On one hand it seems like an eternity ago...on the other like only yesterday! I had a condo on Perdido Key that was my primary residence until that night. The keyword is HAD! After the storm, it was 5 days before the "powers that be" even allowed us to go over the bridge at Perdido Key to see if we still had a home. I believe it was the National Guard that was standing at the foot of the bridge with their AK 47's or whatever telling us we couldn't go home! Once they did take us across to the island on buses, we were dropped off and told to walk because the road was out in many places. I have pictures of us standing under the asphalt formerly known as Perdido Key Dr...the road was 8' above our heads where the water had washed the sand out underneath...not on the Gulf side, but on the River side where the waves were going out. The pine trees in the state park looked like there had been a fire because they were orange...come to find out it was from the salt that was sprayed in from the waves. It looked like someone had dropped a bomb on the island. The wave heights that were recorded off shore were something out of a movie...I don't remember what the highest recorded was, but think it was between 50-90 ft. I also purchased a little cottage 2 weeks before the storm about 100 yards from Pensacola Bay (took 4 1/2 ft of water/sludge).
In conversation around here, things are referenced "before the hurricane" or "after the hurricane". All of mother natures power was unleashed on us that night! The memories of the noise and of the destruction we stumbled out to see at first light will stay with us forever.
We got tore up from the floor up!

[IvanSurvivor]

I'm sure most of you have heard this before, but just in case...

What's a 7 course meal during/after a hurricane?

A 6 pack and an MRE...

[docjoe]

IVAN
Awfull damages !

Southern Grenada after Hurricane Ivan passed just to the south of the island. Not since Hurricane Janet in 1955 had Grenada suffered such a storm (Photo WW-2004).

Another pic in Grenada...

I think that second picture is most likely Grand Lagoon. Looks like pine trees you would see there and similar architecture. also looking across the water appears to be perdido key

docjoe

[micktooth]

My family and I were in Jackson,MS having evacuated NOLA. Who knew that the following year we would end up at the same hotel for Katrina!

[StormClouds63]

Ivan was the last of the "dodging the bullet" hurricanes for New Orleans. From 1966-2004 (after Betsy and before Katrina), these were the "misses" so to speak:

Camille (1969)
Carmen (1974)
Eloise (1975)
Frederic (1979)
Elena (1985)
Andrew (1992)
Erin (1995)
Opal (1995)
Georges (1998)
Lili (2002)
Ivan (2004)

Bob (1979) and Florence (1988) were direct hits, but behaved very well for category 1 storms. Cindy, in 2005, probably more significant in terms of wind and flooding.

Lili did cause considerable flooding, but spared the city its worst winds and surge. Juan (1985) caused considerable coastal erosion. Had the levees held, would Katrina be considered a hit or miss? Moderate to significant wind damage still occurred, especially for the eastern sections of the city. However, the worst winds and surge were over extreme southeastern Louisiana and the Mississippi coast.

[Gustywind]

IVAN
Awfull damages !

Southern Grenada after Hurricane Ivan passed just to the south of the island. Not since Hurricane Janet in 1955 had Grenada suffered such a storm (Photo WW-2004).

Another pic in Grenada...

I think that second picture is most likely Grand Lagoon. Looks like pine trees you would see there and similar architecture. also looking across the water appears to be perdido key

docjoe

Tkanks, but on the weather site it's not mentionned like that with my untrained eyes but i'm proud that you can correct me with efficiency i appreciate my friend. Tkanks, friendly Gustywind.

[docjoe]

IVAN
Awfull damages !

Southern Grenada after Hurricane Ivan passed just to the south of the island. Not since Hurricane Janet in 1955 had Grenada suffered such a storm (Photo WW-2004).

Another pic in Grenada...

I think that second picture is most likely Grand Lagoon. Looks like pine trees you would see there and similar architecture. also looking across the water appears to be perdido key

docjoe

Tkanks, but on the weather site it's not mentionned like that with my untrained eyes but i'm proud that you can correct me with efficiency i appreciate my friend. Tkanks, friendly Gustywind.

well i thought i recognized the area as i lived just a few miles away and spent alot of time out on the key

docjoe

[Gustywind]

Okk, Yes pretty interresting docjoe! I went to the Keys there's 14 years ago , beautiful area remembering Guadeloupe and its tropical vegetation. Whereas i'm sad to see all these damages in this area, but life has restarted:D.... as when Hugo stricked Guadeloupe there's 20 years day of day! We're celebrating today this sad event. But all is not sad, let's go!
Welcome to Guadeloupe Here is a great site in the butterfly island: "Les Chutes du Carbet" at Capesterre-Belle-Eau...looks like our Niagara! Enjoy it my friend, we're on the same boat in spite of our differents roots...

Nice Regards
Gustywind:)

[Derek Ortt]

Special audio broadcast on Ivan and Jeanne at PNJ

http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/sectio ... fe.pnj.com

[brunota2003]

Storm case and one of the camera housings



The HLP Isuzu after Hurricane Ivan uprooted it:

[HEY_NICE_PANTS]

Ivan demonstrated how catastrophic storm surge can really be. Before then nobody knew a cat 3 was capable of doing this.

[Category 5]

I was a freshman in high school, stayed up for landfall, and fell asleep in homeroom that morning.

2 days later, on the anniversary of Hurricane Isabel, its remnants waffled us. (thankfully no onshore flow this time)