lrak wrote:Dang Ed, you are making me worry.
A Cat 2, while meaning days, even weeks of enjoying Texas July weather w/o AC, shouldn't mean major destruction, provided you live in a well built house safely above sea level and away from the flood plains of local creeks and rivers, and you don't have the bad luck of a direct hit of a tornado in an outer rain band.
IIRC, In Galveston when Carla (it could be Celia or Beulah) hit, a dozen people were killed by an unusually strong for a TC tornado, an F-2 or F-3.
But really, if lucky, well built, and away from water, and a big tree isn't next to the house, the biggest issue is days of no AC and rotting food in the fridge.
One of the pro-mets pointed out there are over a hundred thousand people in assisted living or with health issues, who would have serious problems with prolonged loss of electricity.
Note also, and this is key enough for a disclaimer, no worse than a Cat 2 is my personal and unofficial opinion, and I am an amateur, and if the NWS or Pro-Mets forecast something stronger than that or a different main threat area, you'd be foolish to take my advice over their's.
