Irene

[Csail]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14669374

 

[mandlmaunder]

Irene is massive and will impact the entire Eastern coast of the US and in to Canada, people are only now starting to take this storm seriously.

Mandatory evacuation s now being implemented in the path.

All the news and weather stations in the US are all about Irene, it is surreal, sort of like waiting for a train crash to happen, this could become a killer storm, unpressedented in recent history because of the path running up the coast.

180,000 tourist left North Carolina yesterday and more leaving hourly.

The big cities, ie Philadelphia and New York are preparing for massive loss of inferstructure and power possibly for days.

Mark

 

[Wansworth]

Will Barack make a better fist of it than Bush.....

 

[fergie_mac66]

heard on news has been downgraded to a 2

 

[Robin]

Category is one thing, size of storm is another and this one is huge, I think I saw 700mls across quoted.. Katrina was Cat2 I think that hit New Orleans. See below for current predictions and it is expected to go back to Cat 3 before making landfall.

I can assure you that people in it's way, especially those living on or with boats are taking it very seriously indeed, with many lifting out or moving to safer locations such as they are. Storm surge is a major factor with an extra rise above HW level in this case predicted from 7ft and above, 14ft is not unheard of. Imagine what a tide height 14ft above your local one would do to the surrounding area..

Our boat is in Florida and currently Irene is right on the same Latitude, fortunately for us far enough off east now to be OK. Had we stuck to our Plan A after purchase we would currently be approaching N Carolina on our way to Virgina, right on time for Irene to go straight overhead. Plan D is now in force and we are staying put in Florida and our pride and joy is ashore.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

whilst I am sympathetic to everybody in its path in the US, it does irritate me that the major news networks, especially the US, only care about the storms that affect them.

Hurricanes go through the Caribbean or up to Bermuda at least once a year, and they don't appear to know about them, let alone give a ****.

 

[Robin]

True of course but then how much notice does our press take of storms in say the eastern Med? The USA is a huge place with 4hrs time differences coast to coast.

This particular nasty went through the Caribbean islands and for a long time was threatening landfall on southern Florida before moving up the east coast of Florida. There wasn't much in the World or USA media then except in the more local areas (Florida TV and papers had it because I read their on line sites), but the difference now is Irene is going towards Washington DC and New York and Obama's holiday spot up in Martha's Vineyard..

 

[Zen Zero]

I wouldn't change places with my friend in Raleigh NC right now. He keeps his boat in Oriental on the Pamlico Sound. Just about exactly where Irene's due to hit land first. He's lashed and battened just about everything that can be lashed and battened, doubled lines and springs etc etc and retired to a safe distance (Raleigh). I really didn't want to get into a discussion with him about whether it wouldn't be better to get it out of the water and into a cradle; even thinking about what could happen in either case makes me shudder (and it's not my boat)!

Heavy rain.
Storm Surge.
Strong Winds.

By how much could the water level in a river estuary rise? Enough to lift a dock off its pilings?

Anyone want to share their expertise on how to prepare a boat for such a storm?

 

[Mad Pad]

Hurricane Prep.

My only experiance was hurricane Belle in 1976 when I was in Rhode Island after the singlehanded race.I didn't remain alongside but moored between 2 piers with long lines to cope with the expected surge.All the properties downtown were boarded up but luckily the wind peaked at about 50 knots so bit of a damp squib.
..IF IN DOUBT STAY OUT..
or if in a hurricane take your yacht 20 miles inland!!

 

[Rum_Pirate]

This is quite a good site

http://www.stormpulse.com/

 

[capnsensible]

This is quite a good site

http://www.stormpulse.com/

Thanks RP, added to favourites. Good site

CS

Friend just fetched us back some Ting. Last night we did as you suggest. Yum!!!!

 

[Appleyard]

From Yesterday's Herald newspaper....

"THE earthquake in the eastern US has naturally excited a lot of nervy Americans. As one of them tweeted afterwards: “Gosh! It’s only been like a half hour – and already I’ve finished my 15-day supply of emergency food."

 

[mandlmaunder]

Irene made land fall at 7.30 est, just north of Beaufort NC, cat 1 85mph with gusts to 115mph.

New York city has declared a mandatory evacuation of lower ManHatton area A, the Battery park district.

All public transport in New York will be closed down at 12 noon today until after Irene has past.

Tornado watches all the way upto NYC.

So far only one person reported dead, a surfer! who went out into 15-20 ft waves for the rust.

Latest update at this link, http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/tracking/at201109.html

Mark

 

[mike_bryon]

“Hurricanes go through the Caribbean or up to Bermuda at least once a year, and they don't appear to know about them, let alone give a ****.”
I don’t agree Nick. A few hours after Tomas came through last year (it passed between St Lucia and St Vincent causing deaths and a lot of damage) a huge military cargo plane stuffed full of aid arrived from the US.

 

[Rum_Pirate]

Have a try on this site.

It gives a tremendous amount of detail and info

http://www.crownweather.com/

 

[Csail]

Irene made land fall at 7.30 est, just north of Beaufort NC, cat 1 85mph with gusts to 115mph.

New York city has declared a mandatory evacuation of lower ManHatton area A, the Battery park district.

All public transport in New York will be closed down at 12 noon today until after Irene has past.

Tornado watches all the way upto NYC.

So far only one person reported dead, a surfer! who went out into 15-20 ft waves for the rust.

Latest update at this link, http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/tracking/at201109.html

Mark

odd thing to do going looking for rust on a surf board.

 

[Rum_Pirate]

Anyone want to share their expertise on how to prepare a boat for such a storm?

I pull mine (twin outboard engined 22'0" Mako centre console)
out and store it under cover at Indigo Yachts.

Its the one on the right at her anchorage.

For KATE, a hurricane hole is dug and she sits it out with bare poles.

Thats Brimstone Hill (Gibralter of the West Indies) in the background
http://www.brimstonehillfortress.org/



The spot is St. Kitts Marine Works Ltd.

Less than two months after its official opening in 2009, the St. Kitts Marine Works Ltd. (SKMW) is regarded as one of three Caribbean yards than can accommodate larger and larger vessels for storage and repairs.

The new facility in St. Kitts boasts a 165-ton Travelift. This makes SKMW – along with Puerto Del Rey Marina in Puerto Rico with its 165-ton lift, and Peake Yacht Services in Trinidad with its 150-ton lift – the Big Three yards in the islands for yachts over 100 feet.

“The maximum length of vessel we can handle for now is 120 feet with a width of 35-feet. Draft at the ramp is 14 feet. An 85-ton grove truck crane is onsite with 180-foot of boom to lift masts. SKMW’s storage area is 12 acres and we are hoping to expand to 26 acres in about two years,” Regiwell Francis, the Kittitian owner of SKMW is quoted in the Triton – the Mega-Yacht News.


Pressure washing, steam cleaning, sandblasting and welding are among the services offered. Machinists and mechanics are on call. High speed Internet, closed-circuit TV linked on the Web, electricity, water and 24-hour manned security are also available.

“St. Kitts has very few bays and protected harbors, and while there is a small marina that was built when the town’s main port was expanded to accommodate cruise ship docking, it is more of a day docking operational marina rather than a storage facility for the long term,” said Patrick Ryan, co-founder of Fortress Marine, which rents space from SKMW.

“St. Kitts has not been a suitable place to leave boats during the hurricane season. Prior to the opening of SKMW, larger vessels would look for shelter in neighboring islands, mainly St. Maarten, said Ryan in the article written by freelance writer from St. Thomas, Carol Bareuther.

Proximity is what led Capt. Tessan Danet, head captain at The Four Seasons Resort on Nevis, to SKMW.

“We brought the property’s 51-foot power yacht in for its annual marine survey and haul because this is much closer for us than St. Maarten,” he said.