On Sat, Aug 27, 2011 at 9:06 AM, <[email protected]> wrote: > "last week we were amused out here by the quake anxiety 300 miles from the > epicenter of a 5.8; this week we are concerned about the destructive > potential of a force that seems more powerful (and is more mysterious to > those of us out west). " > > Not to downplay your concerns...hurricanes are serious business...but > speaking as a guy down here in hurricane alley, you've probably hit the nail > on the head there. Most of your worry is likely caused by your lack of > experience with them, just as everybody in Virginia was freaking out about > "only a 5.8 quake." As already pointed out, the biggest dangers are getting > trapped at ground-level or lower during a storm surge, or being outside > playing in the wind and getting hit by a shingle or other debris that gets > peeled off the roof of a building. If she's on the second floor, all she > has to do is stay inside, away from the windows and she should be fine. Bad > case scenario, she may get a little nervous if the water rises higher than > expected, and she sees it slowly creeping toward her up the stairs if the > first floor gets flooded. But that would take a pretty incredible storm > surge for the water to rise to the 15+ feet you'd need to reach a second > floor apartment. I've already heard reports that Irene's not expected to > get any stronger than Category I as it moves north, and likely will be > downgraded to tropical storm strength by the time it reaches NYC. If that > happens, then it would be akin to what we refer to down here in Florida as > "September". :) > > I'm sure she'll be fine, but I'll be pulling for you. We may need the > favor returned later this season. >
Right - at least I am hoping you are right. I just got off the Skype with her and she said that New York Bohemians around her were all pretty cool when she was out last night, but this morning a little more sober about things as they watch the news. As others have noted, it now seems unlikely they will be evacuating Zone B, so I told her to just stay inside. But Irene is so big and slow that even at tropical storm strength she will be pushing and dumping a lot of water on the east coast. One good piece of advice she got was to fill her bathtub with water before going to sleep tonight, in case they lose water pressure they can use it to flush their toilet. She did report very long lines at the local drug store (I think it is called Duane Reed - apparently a popular chain back there). At the same time, I did see this morning the news of a man who was killed by a flying tree branch in North Carolina while I think checking on his property - there is an increased chance of bad things happening. Hope everyone back there stays safe. -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
