It's that time of year again

It has been 25 years since the last major hurricane on Long Island. We have had several near misses over the years since Hurricane Gloria hit. We are well over due. Normally an impending storm gives me a major adrenaline rush. It is too early to tell if that will happen the next time. However, there is a storm out in the Atlantic right now that has my stomach in knots. I do not have a good feeling about this one and it is literally scaring me.

So, remember this name: Earl

This past weekend the boys and I went camping in CT. We left Friday morning to head to Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken NJ. Kevin had an admissions interview. From there we headed up to the CT / RI border for the weekend. It worked out very well that we were using a cabin instead of tents for this trip.

While we were away The north-east was hit with a major storm. It rained for a couple days. We got close to 4 inches. Living on an island means we don't get the same magnitude of flooding that many see on the mainland, but we do have some. Primarily along the coastal areas when the tides are extra high and back up through the storm drains.

The big problem was the wind. We were having gusts of 60 MPH. With all of the rain, the ground was soft. Add those two together and it leads to a lot of downed trees. My last couple days have been spent inspecting damage from the storm. Some very large trees fell on homes. Roofs were ripped off. Awnings were torn from walls of stores. The municipal gazebo collapsed. I even saw a portable carport hanging from the electric and phone wires. Many areas are still without power. Luckily the sun is out today and it is near 60 since no electric also means no heat.

My house sustained some damage. I lost roof shingles. I also had the hood ripped off one of my cars and it hit the sunroom. Fortunately it only dented one of the walls instead of going through it. We never lost power. Compared to many of the houses I have seen, I consider myself lucky.

The area we were camping also got hit pretty bad, but not as bad as what we saw when we got home. So now that the sun has returned, I will be spending tomorrow afternoon up on my roof fixing the mess that Mother Nature decided to leave me with.

Tyler and some friends played Monoply to pass some time.

While Kevin and friends opted for what turned out to be an 8 hour game of Risk

This was the cabin we stayed in

This is the type of destruction I came home to deal with at work.

Well, the do call them "portable!"

It helps to know some people still maintain a sense of humor! LOL

The thrill of a Hurricane

I have always had this fascination with the weather. Growing up I would track it and chart it. My favorite part is storms. Especially hurricanes. The power of the wind and the water is just amazing to watch. I actually get an adrenaline rush anytime we are even remotely threatened by one. I love the running around before a storm trying to prepare for the worst. Then when it hits, riding it out and seeing the destruction as it happens is just something I can't even begin to describe. I live on a giant sand bar that juts into the ocean. So if we get hit, it is not a pretty thing.

The first experience I had with a hurricane was in the mid 1970s when Hurricane Belle hit us. I remember the next day riding my bike around looking at the trees that were knocked over. I remember sleeping in the middle of the house that night as it passed over us. It was barely a hurricane when it hit so it was not as bad as it could have been.

In Sept of 1985 we got directly hit by Hurricane Gloria. This was a little more powerful than Belle. There was a lot more damage. There was major flooding in the south side of my town. The Atlantic Ocean had pushed water up into the bay over the barrier island that sits between the Ocean and the small Bay. People were without power for days if not weeks. We had winds upward of 90+ mph with some higher gusts. For days before that the weather channel had their Storm Chasers out. Watching those guys standing on the coastline as the storm raged was awesome. I wanted to be one of them. In fact to this day there is still a part of me that would love to be a storm chaser.

So, now that you know all that, you can imagine the excitement I am feeling as I watch the track of Hurricane Bill. According to the Hurricane Center, Bill will be a category 3 storm when it makes it's closest pass by us. That means sustained winds of about 130 mph. The forecasts all show the storm passing to the east of us. But they also make sure to toss in that disclaimer saying that it is all based on other weather features doing what they expect. So, until Bill is north and east of us, we are not totally out of the woods.

For the next several days I will be constantly checking the weather maps and my email for the latest predicitons. I have to keep on top of it for work. Part of my job is disaster preparedness. It is my favorite part of the job. The safety of about 20,000 people all depends on how well I do my job. Not to mention the safety of my own family.

Keep an eye on the weather over the next few days. If you see Hurricane Bill heading toward Long Island keep in mind I may not be able to post for awhile. And if it hits with the force it could, it will be weeks before I can contact anyone. Just know I will be out there in my yellow rain gear staring mother nature in the face and loving every minute of it!