Hurricane Irma Looks VERY Bad

[Dave Hounddriver]

Hurricane Irma: Strongest ever Atlantic storm causes 'major damage' on Caribbean islands

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/06/hurricane-irma-latest-live-news-strongest-ever-atlantic-storm/

[Snowy79]

Sad times ahead but one thing that amazes me is Florida gets hit regularly yet they still build kit houses out of wood. You'd think it would make sense to build like in the Philippines with a little more quality obviously. 

[MikeB]

We're on the gulf side, north of Tampa. Hoping it goes east which is the usual path. Bottled water was already gone when I went to store yesterday. Panic buying. Trying to get flood insurance today even though we're not in a "flood plain". Turns out the flood plain maps are decades old. 85% of the homes destroyed or severely damaged by water in Houston DID NOT have flood insurance. 

[Reboot]

51 minutes ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

Hurricane Irma: Strongest ever Atlantic storm causes 'major damage' on Caribbean islands

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/06/hurricane-irma-latest-live-news-strongest-ever-atlantic-storm/

No kidding. In SW FL here. 

[OnMyWay]

8 minutes ago, Snowy79 said:

Sad times ahead but one thing that amazes me is Florida gets hit regularly yet they still build kit houses out of wood. You'd think it would make sense to build like in the Philippines with a little more quality obviously. 

I'm not sure of the exact standards in place, but Florida put in a lot of new building codes after Andrew in '92.  My house in south Florida was built of concrete block in 1998, and the roof structure is tied down to the concrete structure.  The garage door is reinforced and the house is fully equipped metal hurricane shutters.  I think those 4 things were some of the major changes.  I never saw a house being built out of just wood or metal framed outer walls; always concrete block.

The first year I lived there 3 hurricanes came through.  I had some roof tiles damaged but that was it.  Here is Wilma in 2005 when it was about a 2:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/4D0g6LowGx6vkJ862

This is a big one!  I'm hoping it curves north and spares most of south Florida.  My tenant says he is ready!

[OnMyWay]

4 minutes ago, Reboot said:

No kidding. In SW FL here. 

Reboot, my house is in Pembroke Pines, probably not far from you.  Stay safe!

[Old55]

Stay safe we will pray the storm will somehow avoid you.

[mogo51]

It looks like Nth Korea is not the only 'big wind' brewing at the moment.

[marine6357]

11 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

Reboot, my house is in Pembroke Pines, probably not far from you.  Stay safe!

Yeah talked to my friend who lives in Lehigh Acres and he told me that it is like a ghost town there now and very eerie says he is leaving tomorrow but, doesn't know which way to go because it keeps changing where it is going to hit. Good luck to all down there.

[OnMyWay]

1 hour ago, marine6357 said:

Yeah talked to my friend who lives in Lehigh Acres and he told me that it is like a ghost town there now and very eerie says he is leaving tomorrow but, doesn't know which way to go because it keeps changing where it is going to hit. Good luck to all down there.

In Broward County the only mandatory evacuation zones are on the east coast within a mile or two of the coast.  My house is way out west close to the Everglades and nobody has evacuated there in the past.  I read that the rain from the storm is not too bad.  It is the storm surge and wind that will get you.