Hurricane Irene

[Khaian Memory]

So, because I live in England and the closest thing we get to Hurricanes and Tropical Storms is usually the Monday morning light drizzle, I have been following with interest the progress of Irene up towards the east coast of the USA and I was wondering if anyone on the site lived in or near any of the projected or affected areas? It really is an awesome sight to see something of so much power stroll up the coastline, but I also hope that there aren't too many people on here who will be directly affected by it.

[SirArtemis]

I'm in NYC. I should be hit soon enough. I'll let you know how it turns out. I also felt earthquake aftershock less than a week ago. If I die, I demand an IC funeral.

[Khaian Memory]

I'm in NYC. I should be hit soon enough. I'll let you know how it turns out. I also felt earthquake aftershock less than a week ago. If I die, I demand an IC funeral.

That's commitment to the Althanas cause, that is.

I hope for your safety, or at least some kickass surf, if that's how you roll.

[SirArtemis]

That's commitment to the Althanas cause, that is.

I hope for your safety, or at least some kickass surf, if that's how you roll.

I wish I could surf. Instead I'll be reading if they turn my electricity off. If it stays on, I'll continue on with my life.

[Khaian Memory]

I wish I could surf. Instead I'll be reading if they turn my electricity off. If it stays on, I'll continue on with my life.

Good stuff. Hopefully the winds will have died down a little by the time it hits Manhattan.

[Inkfinger]

I'm in PA (halfway between Harrisburg and Lancaster), and they're calling for 40+ MPH winds and about 5 inches of rain here, hitting about 8PM on. Seeing as I live in a region with a lot of rivers, streams and creeks (at least 3 of which are prone to flooding if you so much as spit in them, see also: my workplace's basement), tomorrow might be interesting...

[Khaian Memory]

I'm in PA (halfway between Harrisburg and Lancaster), and they're calling for 40+ MPH winds and about 5 inches of rain here, hitting about 8PM on. Seeing as I live in a region with a lot of rivers, streams and creeks (at least 3 of which are prone to flooding if you so much as spit in them, see also: my workplace's basement), tomorrow might be interesting...

Eesh, that's hardcore. Could be that you are sailing to work tomorrow...it's bad enough with the hurricane alone, never mind the flooding!

I know this is unrelated in terms of damage assessment but I still remember the images of New Orleans after Katrina, and I do worry about people in the wake of these beasts.

[Jasmine]

i just wanted to add my hopes and prayers for everyone's safety. Never been through a hurricane and I plan to never live in an area where they are a regular occurrence. I'll keep my earthquakes to the Lower 48's tornadoes and hurricanes.

[Silence Sei]

Jasmine: Hurricane proof, bitches.

[Atzar]

My family owns property in the Outer Banks of North Carolina - where Irene first made landfall.

[The International]

I live in North Carolina. We're used to this sort of stuff.

[Vigil]

Ohio. I'll start shivering when a hurricane touches down on Lake Erie.

[Inkfinger]

My family owns property in the Outer Banks of North Carolina - where Irene first made landfall.

Yeah, early pics out of there seem to be to the tune of It Could Have Been Worse so far....

[SirArtemis]

I live in North Carolina. We're used to this sort of stuff.

And that's exactly why I think it's bullshit that NYC shuts down all public transit, evacuates 370k people, and threatens to turn off electricity even though the storm is going to be of dismissive power by the time it gets here. So irritated. What a bunch of cowards.

[Cydnar]

To be fair, New York is one of the financial hubs of the world.

It's one of the largest population centres on the planet.

It houses a massive proportional share of the media and art infrastructure.

It's effectively the world's greatest and most renowned city.

They have every right to be cautious.

[Zook Murnig]

As well, NYC is relatively unprepared for such an occurrence. I'm in Richmond, VA, and we're getting lightly slapped right now. A few trees are down, a couple areas have lost power. It's a beautiful storm, as they go, but it's making me miss the new episode of Doctor Who tonight, because I don't have cable at my apartment, and my parents lost power.

[Elrundir]

Well, if I understand correctly, what NYC is really worried about are the low-lying areas like Manhattan. The storm doesn't need to be particularly strong to cause flooding, and you don't need a lot of flooding to sink a low-lying area. That's exactly what happened to New Orleans, so you can hardly blame them for being cautious, I guess.

[Atzar]

Yeah, early pics out of there seem to be to the tune of It Could Have Been Worse so far....

Yeah. It started playing that tune as soon as the thing started weakening yesterday - downgraded from a weak Category 3 to a 2, and I think it may have dropped all the way to a 1 by the time it hit.

As far as coastal property goes, the thing that a lot of people don't know is that it's not the wind or the rain that causes the problems. These places are built to withstand winds well in excess of 100 miles per hour. The most problematic part of a hurricane is the storm surge. When you have places right on the water, that 10 foot storm surge can put the ground floor underwater. This is why New York is shutting a lot of things down. It's already destroyed a pier in the area where we have property. It definitely could have been worse, but this still isn't much fun.

For the record, we actually live in Massachusetts, so it's not like we're sitting down here staring this thing in the teeth. We're safe enough. Just not looking forward to seeing the damage this thing is causing.

[SirArtemis]

I actually live in NYC.

[Jasmine]

As much of an annoyance as NYC's precautions are, it's still better in the long run to be overly prepared than to say "oh it won't be that bad" and then things change unexpectedly and without enough warning to do anything about them. At least the city is preparing instead of leaving its citizens to fend for themselves.

[Max Dirks]

I'm right in the heart of this bitch, in Washington D.C.

It's been nothing more than a bad rainstorm here so far. My immediate concern is a power outage. The last snowstorm we had left us without power for 5 days, a repeat of which would leave me at a severe disadvantage in the Serenti! The hurricane party was fun though.

[Inkfinger]

i'm right in the heart of this bitch, in washington d.c.

It's been nothing more than a bad rainstorm here so far. My immediate concern is a power outage. The last snowstorm we had left us without power for 5 days, a repeat of which would leave me at a severe disadvantage in the serenti! The hurricane party was fun though.

SNOWPOCALYPSE has come for its revenge~

[SirArtemis]

SNOWPOCALYPSE has come for its revenge~

Post-melt.

[orphans]

The Sequel~

Hello :D I had work today and driving in the rain was fun. Some area's where I was had deadlocked traffic because some areas were... well... 2 feet of water, cars stalled.

[Slayer of the Rot]

I'm in PA. I'll never see this hurricane. Not because I'm inland and I think it won't rain here, but because the meds the doctor has me on has me seeing fucking sunshine no matter what hour it is.

[Skie and Avery]

Well it looks like the worst of it has come and gone for my area. We lost power for a bit and it flickered on and off. We're under a severe weather warning until five in the morning, but I am unworried. I enjoyed stalking facebook to watch my roommate's girlfriend lose her shit.

[Slayer of the Rot]

Well it looks like the worst of it has come and gone for my area. We lost power for a bit and it flickered on and off. We're under a severe weather warning until five in the morning, but I am unworried. I enjoyed stalking facebook to watch my roommate's girlfriend lose her shit.

Shut up Manda.

Anyway not a single drop or heavy gust here.

[Sagequeen]

Like Jasmine, my thoughts and prayers are with you guys! Not only for your lives but also for your internet connections. :D

In my part of Texas we haven't seen rain in months and we've had something like 50+ days of 100+ degree weather - serious drought.

Feast or famine this year.

[BlackAndBlueEyes]

SNOWPOCALYPSE has come for its revenge~

My Upstate New York upbringing laughs at your use of the word Snowpocalypse.

The rest of the country gets three feet of snow, they go into a panic. We get three feet of snow, we go out to get the morning paper in our jammies and a light coat and say, "That's it?"

Christoph, back me up on this one, will you?

[Letho]

http://files.sharenator.com/Meanwhile_in_Finland_Meanwhile_in_Finland-s800x600-46576-580.jpg

[Elrundir]

http://i51.tinypic.com/n4fg91.jpg

[Duffy]

ROFL!

Thanks Elrundir, that just made my day :).

[Shadar]

Wait. Wait. The roads are clear in that pic. Who in Canada has their freakin' roads that clean in winter?! What pampered assholes. That's from Quebec, isn't it?

[Silence Sei]

Toronto, actually.

[Letho]

http://www.travelermania.com/asia/snow-canyon-roads-in-japan/

Canada apparently doesn't have enough snow on their own. They have to steal Japan's.

[Elrundir]

Don't question the power of the meme!

[Inkfinger]

I mocked Snowpocalypse the whole time it happened. I grew up right outside Buffalo. We got 8 feet in 32 hours once. :D

During Snowpocalpyse, all of the town I live in currently shut down for days, while my family was pretty much just "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE throw some salt and everything'll be fine..."

That being said, all Irene did was shut off our power for two hours. Whee~

ETA: My gosh that is a hideous smiley. *disables smilies forever*

[Khaian Memory]

Latest news on the hurricane front is that Hurricane Twelve (currently Tropical Depression Twelve) is forecast for 1st September, forming roughly where Irene did. The fun hasn't stopped yet, people.