PeterW
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Post by PeterW on Aug 25, 2011 15:50:21 GMT -5
I see on BBC UK news that Hurricane Irene, which has already battered the Bahamas, is gathering strength as it moves towards the east coast of the US.
It is likely to affect the area from North Carolina up to New York City and maybe beyond.
Winds higher than 120mph are expected to hit the US coast at the weekend together with huge tidal waves.
My prayers are with our members - and everyone else - in this region.
PeterW
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Post by Randy on Aug 25, 2011 16:07:29 GMT -5
I hope everyone involved takes the time to batten down the hatches and follow the emergency plans set forth. Living in Ohio, I don't think Freda and I have much to worry about, but we've had tornado warnings for the last couple of days and the electrical storms have been severe. Freda's sister lives in Florida, but she says she is inland and will only get storms. Bob lives in New England, and we haven't heard much from him. Hope he and Sherrie are okay.
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Doug T.
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Post by Doug T. on Aug 26, 2011 19:28:13 GMT -5
Hi! We're going to catch it here, but I've been monitoring the US Weather service and it appears that if it stays on its' current track, we'll just get a very nasty storm. It's been rather hard to deal with, as everyone here is totally freaking out. I mean, it's right to be prepared for a bad storm, quite another to be running around in a state of panic. I should have taken the camera with me as Barb and I went shopping for a few things this afternoon. Quite a show Doug
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Aug 27, 2011 1:46:25 GMT -5
You need to heed the advice of Corporal Jones (BBC comedy series, Dads Army): "DON'T PANIC".
It's probably my fault anyway. I did ask the Bill (I think it was was Bill) a week or so ago how the hurricane season was going. At that stage it seems that Irene was a mere tropical storm.
We sometimes get battered by strong nor-westerly winds but nothing of the ferocity of the hurricanes.
We had a holiday in Florida, June-July 1996, when there was a hurricane on the way up from the South and parts of Florida were being evacuated. In the event it had a change of mind, missed Florida completely, and hit the Carolinas instead. We did get a couple of tropical squalls and there were lively enough.
All I can do is hope as few as people as possible are 'affected' and damage to property is kept to a minimum - especially, of course, those I 'know' who live there.
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Post by Randy on Aug 28, 2011 18:45:37 GMT -5
Hope all of our Canadian Members are alright. I see Quebec was hit hard.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2011 18:58:40 GMT -5
blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tobyharnden/100102355/perfect-storm-of-hype-politicians-the-media-and-the-hurricane-irene-apocalypse-that-never-was/Sorry if my cynicism upsets anyone but as a former long-time member of the news media I agree with this U.K. columnist. Then there are the TV reporters standing on a beach in the wind and blowing rain. Why? They could have stood inside a building next to a widow and given their reports. It's like they have to show us how "involved" in the story they are. Yes, natural disaster are bad. But they are rated in the U.S., at least in part, by where they occur. Something that happens on the East Coast "where the media lives" is the only thing we hear for days when, if it happened on the Oregon-Washington coast on the far side of the country, it would be a footnote on the evening news.
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mickeyobe
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Post by mickeyobe on Aug 29, 2011 9:05:08 GMT -5
The actions taken by The City of New York were quite appropriate and should be commended as should the alacrity and efficiency of the operation and the cooperation of New Yorkers.
Despite not having received the brunt of the storm you may be sure lives have been saved.
Better safe than ..... you know the rest.
Mickey
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PeterW
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Post by PeterW on Aug 29, 2011 17:29:14 GMT -5
Lots of pictures and videos on BBC news today about damage caused by Irene, which was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm by the time it reached New York state.
The flash floods show a great deal of damage to property in some areas, and the latest report puts the number people killed at 18.
My heart goes out to all the folks in upper New York state and Vermont who saw the homes they built up over years detroyed in a matter of seconds.
PeterW
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casualcollector
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Post by casualcollector on Aug 29, 2011 20:07:07 GMT -5
Very sad to see many places I know well so hard hit. I think more bad news will be coming from Vermont in the next day or two. The Lower Bartonsville covered bridge was washed away. A somewhat iconic location to fans of the old Rutland RR. Rail photographer Jim Shaughnessy made a well know image there.
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Aug 30, 2011 6:01:44 GMT -5
Wayne, I know what you mean about footnotes.
The latest figure for the death toll is 44. One is one too many(especially if it's you or your family) but, in the great scheme of things, isn't a big number. There is that many, and more, being killed every day on the roads in the US - equally devastating to those involved but not, in the main, as newsworthy. What is different, though, is the damage to property which has come, and will continue to come over the next few days, with Irene.
Presumably more deaths will also be recorded over the coming days. There will also be stories of 'great escapes'. However, people will rebuild, as people always do.
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Doug T.
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Post by Doug T. on Aug 30, 2011 14:28:48 GMT -5
Hi All!
We had quite a few roads washed out, some places back in the hills are inaccessible. Many of my friends and family are still without power, but there were few injuries around here. Things can be replaced, people can't. It could have been a lot worse.
Doug
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Aug 30, 2011 16:30:09 GMT -5
Doug, it's good to hear you have come through relatively unscathed. I trust everyone else from here has too.
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Post by Randy on Aug 30, 2011 22:39:40 GMT -5
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mickeyobe
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Post by mickeyobe on Aug 30, 2011 22:52:45 GMT -5
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Aug 31, 2011 0:02:15 GMT -5
The really good film would have been taken standing on the bridge. I notice that there is almost no wind at all on the video. It could have been taken in the eye of the storm, except that there are no trees or even branches down so I presume the storm missed the area except for the flooding.
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