SW Florida Thread -- Lee, Collier, Charlotte-EVACS/SHELTERS

[Tiny]

wow, collier county still has wilma labeled as "possible development".

[hiflyer]

I'm leaving on a cruise Saturday out of Ft Lauderdale. Great timing.


Should be a snotty Saturday night. That passage is rough in normal weather.

Trader just a heads up but Broward County closes Port Everglades at Tropical Storm levels due to the narrow channel and the MIA NWS Discussion calls for Trop Storm conditions Sat for Broward with Hurricane for Palm Beach north.

[Trader Ron]

I'm leaving on a cruise Saturday out of Ft Lauderdale. Great timing.


Should be a snotty Saturday night. That passage is rough in normal weather.

Trader just a heads up but Broward County closes Port Everglades at Tropical Storm levels due to the narrow channel and the MIA NWS Discussion calls for Trop Storm conditions Sat for Broward with Hurricane for Palm Beach north.

Yes, i know. I've gone out of that channel many times. It's not very wide. lol

Thanks for the reminder.

[Ixolib]

I think we are in evacuation zone 3. According to our developer, the house is at 14 ft and we are about a mile inland.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE... Folks, please do not rely solely on historical flood maps, developers advice, or hunches when making plans. Unless your particular area has been affected by the same exact type of storm and approach in the past, there is NO TELLING what the impact might be from a future storm that has no precedence.

Thousands here on the MS Coast are now realizing that zones 1, 2, 3 or a, b, c really mean nothing. These storms can and do rewrite history in the blink of an eye. Where you are when that happens could mean a huge difference for your continued existence.

My advice - whatever the HIGHEST surge the NHC predicts, add 5 feet to that. Example: in Katrina, the prediction was 18-22 feet and 28 feet locally. What I should have done was assume the supposed "28 feet" would be in my area, and THEN add five feet to that. Had I done that, I would not have been in my house to watch the surge come in. But since I used the "flood zone" advice, I didn't evacuate. About 10am on August 29, I realized that was a BIG mistake!!

[Tiny]

Thanks for the advice Ixolib!

[tracyswfla]

Prepare to leave, officials say

Published by news-press.com on October 19, 2005


For people who can afford to leave for a long weekend away from home, now is a good time to do it with the prospect of Hurricane Wilma battering the Southwest Florida coast by Saturday or Sunday, a Collier County spokeswoman said.

Officials are recommending that residents review evacuation plans now and contact relatives who they can stay with who are out of harm's way, said Jaime Sarbaugh, a spokeswoman for the Collier County Emergency Management Department.

"They can leave Thursday or Friday for a long weekend. This will relieve some congestion on the roads," she said.

The monster storm packing 175 mph winds is currently churning through the Caribbean Sea off Central America and south of Cuba.
National forecasters predict the storm may make landfall in Southwest Florida on Saturday night or early Sunday morning, Sarbaugh said.

She said that people who choose to stay through the storm should make sure they have emergency supplies.

Boaters are advised to stay out of the Gulf of Mexico starting on Friday, Sarbaugh said

[jim09091]

Doc's Beach House.. Will ever a storm take it out ?? Nah..Doc's will stand!! "Bonita's Alamo!!"

DOC's WILL NEVER DIE!


In all seriousness, my home and family is just off Hickory Blvd (about 1 mile north of Doc's) in Bonita Beach. We are in tropical storm surge flooding category (bottom floor house elevation, 6 ft above sea level). Lucikly due to code (house built in 2001) bottom floor is not "living space". Have booked a hotel room inland Fort Myers for now. Have a 27' boat in the back yard on a lift.... no trailer. Will begin preparing all outdoor items, boat, shutters, etc. as tomorrow progresses. Do not want to "freak-out" too early yet still want to be safe. I personally am in Boston, monitoring if I need to depart to the house tomorrow.

What a year....... didn't we just do Charley here not long ago? And with Charley, as compact as it was, we had minimal damage as it turned north at the last minute. But Hickory Blvd and our street did go under water for a little bit according to neighbors who freaked out and left at the last minute.

[DIDDLESBABE]

I have a question for you guys. Some are saying they are booking
rooms here - in Ft. Myers. If Wilma makes the projected hit that
is being predicted - would Ft. Myers not be evacuated??? Or am I
WAY OFF.....

Charley took us by surprise around here, so I am really getting antsy
about what to do with Wilma...

Am I the only one scared ? ? ?

[tracyswfla]

I have a question for you guys. Some are saying they are booking
rooms here - in Ft. Myers. If Wilma makes the projected hit that
is being predicted - would Ft. Myers not be evacuated??? Or am I
WAY OFF.....

Charley took us by surprise around here, so I am really getting antsy
about what to do with Wilma...

Am I the only one scared ? ? ?

HECK NO! I am scared too.

[jim09091]

room booked in the cat 4/5 zone for now.... beats staying at the house in the tropical storm surge zone. will reassess tomorrow.

[edbri871]

I'm in the category 1 zone. I'll be staying with my parents in cape coral whichis on the border of a cat 2-3 zone.

[DIDDLESBABE]

Jim - Your room booked in the area where I live, will look forward to
seeing your re-evaluation tomorrow !

My husband just went down to "gas up" - line at our local Race Trac
all the way out into the side street....YUK

[LSue]

We have 7 rooms booked for a bunch of family and friends (+ 3 dogs!!) at a hotel in Brandon and one in Orlando. Tough decision! My thinking is if for some reason the storm tracks much further north, then we wouldn't evacuate anyway. The issue for us will be if we have to leave, can we get out early enough.

If anyone needs to find pet friendly hotels, here are a few sites:

http://www.dogfriendly.com
http://www.letsgopets.com
http://www.takeyourpets.com

Back to prepping!

Linda

[storms in NC]

Well all my family in Ft myers and Leigh are not going any where they are going to stay. They all said my house is safe.
Well they didn't see what I did when I was in La for 3 weeks either. If they did they would leave. Nothing I can do.

[Myersgirl]

I live on the water in Fort Myers and we are trying to decide on evac plans. Do you think Sarasota (family lives there) is any safer?

[Sanibel]

Sanibel here. Don't need to do the lead-in, you know the story.

The models are clustered over us for 36 hours now and Wilma has followed the track so far.

SW Florida and Ft Myers should treat this today as if it is the worst case hurricane scenario and expect the worst.

Idiot local weathermen are telling people the surge won't be that bad because of the forward speed. Mayfield said, "expect surge of 15-25 feet".

I'm starting full swing evacuation preparations NOW. Landfall angle will make evacuation difficult. Only sure direction is north to panhandle...

(Sarasota not safe evacuation destination)


- "Sanibel"

[tracyswfla]

from NBC-2.com

Collier County Schools Closed Friday.

[Sanibel]

Sanibel gas stations out of fuel.

Some people still on beach vacationing.

Roads busy, but no panic.


Thunderstorm north of island in reaction to Wilma energy.

Hazy broken overcast. Warm and humid. Disturbed clouds...

[floridahurricaneguy]

Good luck guys. We are still worried up here in Tampa. Still possible it could come more up this way. I am thinking turn wont be as sharp as currently thought. They are talking possible Evacs here in 24-36 hours. Good luck! Everyone in the should be preparing CAT 3 storm!

Matt

[Aquawind]

Gas lines are long all over.. People are worried.. Some of the grocery shelves are getting low.. Fortunately people are already getting prepared to leave..

Paul