When to leave when a Hurricane is approaching

fixer27

fixer27

Joined
Nov 17, 2004
Messages
14,031
Does anyone have any idea what kind of time frame it would take them to
evacuate their premises in the event of a major storm? The coverage of
Katrina approaching New Orleans shows the roads leading out of the city
congested and at a standstill.

With that in mind, would you try and ride the storm out or would you pack
the dogs and children up and hope to make it out even with the traffic?
 
If I were in New Orleans, a city that's under sea level and expecting 28' storm surges, I would have left at the first broadcast of intensity 5 and the family and I would have traveled inland for a nice two day vacation.
 
When the media interviewed the people who stayed behind their almost
universal answer was "The media hypes these things, we have been through
these things before and it never happens the way that they say it will"

There is some truth to that, the media does, but a Cat 5? A full tank of gas
and a nice trip to the country last night for me thanks.

Was it hurricane Ivan last yr that was supposed to hit New Orleans?
 
Man I wish there was a way I could get down there to help those guys out. I've got a bad feeling about this one. My prayers are going out that everyone can atleast find sound shelter quickly. :(

Soup
 
Word on another board is that those taking shelter in the Super Dome are being relieved of anything pointy and sharp, right down to nail clippers. I think I'd have put on my "travellin' shoes" and started walking before I sought shelter there!
 
x39 said:
Word on another board is that those taking shelter in the Super Dome are being relieved of anything pointy and sharp, right down to nail clippers. I think I'd have put on my "travellin' shoes" and started walking before I sought shelter there!
Click to expand...

That is true and standard operating procedure for that type of situation.

That is the last situation were I would want to be unarmed in. Not to mention
it's not like you can just "leave" anytime you would like.

My prayers are with them.
 
I wouldn't live there in the first place. Anyone left there who chooses to be there and kicks the can is doing the gene pool a favor as far as I am concerned.

YOu couldn't pay me enough to live on the gulf coast. ERRR well you could but it would be a lot ;) .

Skam
 
Loss of life and belongings aside, my understanding is that a full 30% of our oil goes through New Orleans/Gulf Coast. If that facility is destroyed, look for much higher fuel prices almost immediately. Kinda like that program "Oil Wars" or whatever the name was, isn't it?
 
Longbow, it was "Oil Storm" and it's REAL close to what's getting ready to go down. I posted a message similar to your at 4:00 am. Look for $75.00/barrel by the end of the week, $100.00 by the end of the year. That translates to $5 gas.

Skam, you are a heartless bastard.
 
It would probably take about 1hr to have the bulk of the stuff fast loaded
unto my vehicle and be on the road after a decision had been made to go.

And in a strange twist, the US's "Strategic Oil Reserve" is in Louisiana. This
storm could keep that from being accessed as well.

And once the wind tops 60mph there will be no 911 services. You can call if
the phones are working but they cannot respond to your call. That means
there will be no police service and no ambulances.
 
Don't know if this is "alarmist" or "realist", but it's interesting reading. Guess we'll know tomorrow.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/08/28/katrina.doomsday/index.html

Even if Gulf oil extraction and Gulf-region processing restarts tomorrow afternoon, the perceived loss will affect gasoline prices at least some. Prices are affected more by speculators and traders, not actual market conditions or supply/demand.

It's going to be a mess one way or the other. I'm certain I wouldn't put myself in a football stadium with thousands of other people during an emergency like this. For one thing, I'm not certain the stadium is more safe than other buildings. Definitely more safe than most houses, that's for sure. Seems like something that large would catch a lot of wind - or perhaps the round shape can effectively deflect the wind? Still, in a week from now when all of those people are still in there with no place else to go, eating only Red Cross rations, no running water, no electricity... There's going to be quite a stench.

And there's probably going to be kids in there there too. Can you imagine the noise of dozens (hundreds?) of scared children? Later replaced by the noise of hundreds of bored children running amuck in a football stadium. No thanks! I'll take my chances floating in a johnboat.

-Bob
 
Going to the Super Dome was not completely successful as a survival plan.

A section of the Dome's roof was blown off and it is raining inside the
shelter. And the police and emegerncy services are no longer able to
respond to 911 calls. People are on their own in case of problems.
 
Once it crossed Florida and entered the Gulf the storm track had it turning north into the Gulf coast and they were real close in their best guess on land fall. I'd have been closing up my home and packing the truck Friday, and out of town early Saturday morning when the estimated track firmed up. Even then they were talking category 4. Waiting until Sunday to be really sure was foolish.

Have a plan and when the time comes, execute the plan.

I'm in SOCAL and when the Oct 2003 wildfires were threatening (and destroying a lot of homes) I had my truck packed for three days just in case we got an evacuation order. Fortunately it never came and eventually I unloaded the truck.
 
ras said:
Once it crossed Florida and entered the Gulf the storm track had it turning north into the Gulf coast and they were real close in their best guess on land fall. I'd have been closing up my home and packing the truck Friday, and out of town early Saturday morning when the estimated track firmed up. Even then they were talking category 4. Waiting until Sunday to be really sure was foolish.

Have a plan and when the time comes, execute the plan.

I'm in SOCAL and when the Oct 2003 wildfires were threatening (and destroying a lot of homes) I had my truck packed for three days just in case we got an evacuation order. Fortunately it never came and eventually I unloaded the truck.
Click to expand...

Did you use your truck as a daily use car at that time or did you leave it
parked and used a different car?
And if there is one clear lesson from this storm, you will not be able to make
it out of a major city using the highways in this type of situation. IMO one
needs to leave no sooner than say 30 hrs before a "event" otherwise you
will be frozen in highway traffic.
 
Fixer,
My truck has a tonneau cover over the bed so even full it looks the same. I drove when I needed, but it was usually close to home as the fires seriously impacted where you could drive. I drove to the gym for a couple work-outs and made one additional food run while waiting to see what would happen.
 
There was someone who called a tv station and they had taken two cars
with the thought that if one broke down the other could still be used.
That seems wise if you can fill both tanks and both cars are in good shape.

If the fire had turned towards you do you think you could have still been
able to leave the area? That is what amazed me, total disregard then total
panic and the highways just packed with cars that can't move.

To me at least it would seem that is the major lesson from this. You will not
be able to leave by the highways if you wait to long.
 
I've got family all up and down the Gulf Coast, mostly from the LA/MS border all up into Mississippi proper. Most of mine were able to leave early - and the correct answer to the topic is "As soon as you can" - but a few of them had to stay for one reason or another. As you can imagine, I'm watching Katrina with more than passing interest.

Presumably the Gene Pool will remain intact even if a few of them happen to pull through.
 
fixer27 said:
Going to the Super Dome was not completely successful as a survival plan.

A section of the Dome's roof was blown off and it is raining inside the
shelter. And the police and emegerncy services are no longer able to
respond to 911 calls. People are on their own in case of problems.
Click to expand...

Refugees typically don't fare well even when things start off with the best intentions. Personally, I plan to exhaust every possible option before lining up like a cow on its way to the slaughterhouse.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top