Ivan The Terrible

[Anonymous]

Todays NHC plot takes this very dangerous storm up into the panhandle of Storm Ravaged Forida. Other areas of the gulf will also be affected. My nerves are finally calming down after "Francis", as we thought for a while that "Ivan" also had our number. I really feel for those that are now in the path of this monster. To those that are, my hopes and prayers are with you for a safe outcome.

[dave9999]

Emerald,
It looks as if it might be headed this way. We have been lucky with the last two, but
Ivan looks like he is coming to visit. I just hope it loses some strength before it hits
anywhere.

If it stays on it's current path, I will be leaving on Tuesday P.M. to seek higher ground.
Dave

[tomwatkins]

Dave,
That's a really good idea. Discretion is definitely the better part of valor where one this powerful is concerned. Everybody in the path of this monster please take care and stay safe.
Tom Watkins

[rexhea]

Doesn't look good for you guys in the panhandle. I know you've learned from experience not to take chances. Come on up to Alabama. Everyone will welcome you with opened arms. We may end up getting a blow, but it's bettter than what you will have on the coast.

Rex
Tuscaloosa

[dave9999]

QUOTE: Originally posted by rexhea

Doesn't look good for you guys in the panhandle. I know you've learned from experience not to take chances. Come on up to Alabama. Everyone will welcome you with opened arms. We may end up getting a blow, but it's bettter than what you will have on the coast.

Rex
Tuscaloosa

Hey Rex,
We actually have some land in Alabama. It's just outside of Evergreen. It has
power and we use it as a hunting/camping/family reunion place.
I just don't know if it is far enough away!! Plus there is no shelter other than my camper that I would pull up there.
Don't think I want to ride this out in a camper. [xx(]
Dave

[rexhea]

DAVE,
If you have to leave your home, I don't think Evergreen will be far enough away to help much in a camper. But, if your camper has a generator, loaded with food/water, and you can get far enough away, that would be the ticket. You sure will want to leave early. It would be hell driving or pulling a camper in the wind. Heck, with the camper you can head towards Birmingham and use the rest stops or camp grounds.

Most of the problems up here will be power outages and the possibility of tornado's. I know that doesn't sound good, but what else can you do. [sigh]

Let us all know if you have to take off.
(if you come to Alabama, we will give you a big "A" to stick on your car [:D] )

REX

[krump]

God Bless You all in the path, know that you are in our thoughts and prayers.

Emeraldisle - thanks for the recent posts, ... been missing you on the forum buddy. Cheers,

[lupo]

My thoughts are with you all that are in the path of these hurricanes
I hope you all get through safe and undamaged

take care and stay safe

[dave9999]

Right now they have it making a B-line for Pensacola, BUT they keep moving the projected path west.
So maybe we will be spared from a direct hit. Even so, they east side of the storm is the worst side. I'll
be keeping a eye out for this thing. Maybe it will die down a little and spare everyone a lot of grief.

Rex,
Thanks for the support, but I would rather ride out a hurricane, outside, tied to a tree than put a big red "A"
on my truck[:D][(-D][;)]. BTW that was quiet a spanking that Bama put on Ole Miss. Dave

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by krump

God Bless You all in the path, know that you are in our thoughts and prayers.

Emeraldisle - thanks for the recent posts, ... been missing you on the forum buddy. Cheers,

Thanks, just had a lot going on this summer, not much of it good. Hopefully we have a light at the end of this tunnel.

[Anonymous]

I'll pray for ya'll in the hurricain. Hey come up to Oklahoma ! We have Torndoes in the spring and early summer, and some pretty nasty winters. not to mention boiling summers. but right now the weather is quite agreeable.

[Wdlgln005]

Ya'll be careful coming up from the Gulf to get away from the storm. Traffic jams have been reported as far north as Chattanooga on I-75 and I suspect we could get a crowd coming up I-65 as well. Some of the KOA parks have been full. The parking lot at WalMart looks better than some places. Hope you can get a Cracker Barrell nearby. Lately, the weather has been good with warm days & cool nites. Be sure to stop at the Welcome Centers at the state borders to get discount prices on rooms or help finding a nice place to stay.

[Anonymous]

We have been spared so far were I'am from dodge acpl. of them so far but Miami is always on the list been here awhile Andrew did us back in in '92 but that was South of me.Felt the breeze from Francis so will just wait and see about the next one after Ivan that's trying to brew in the Atlantic Hey bring it on.

[rexhea]

I heard on the news that the Talladega Speedway has opened for those coming up with campers. This is a bit off the north bound routes (off of I20 few miles east of B'ham), but they do have good facilities and your assured of any help you may need. Also, many of the parks are setting up for the same. You can probably contact your local EMS and find out details.

REX
T-Town

Edit: Just looked at the NWS track for IVAN. Now it looks like Gulfport to Mobile. Heck, you Fla panhandle guys might want to go East-----like, Jacksonville.

[railman]

My sympathies for all in the path of these storms. We might get a big snowstorm every few years here in Minnesota, but nobody deserves three huge hurricanes in a month. Good luck and stay safe, to everyone.

[dave9999]

QUOTE: Originally posted by rexhea

I heard on the news that the Talladega Speedway has opened for those coming up with campers. This is a bit off the north bound routes (off of I20 few miles east of B'ham), but they do have good facilities and your assured of any help you may need. Also, many of the parks are setting up for the same. You can probably contact your local EMS and find out details.

REX
T-Town

Edit: Just looked at the NWS track for IVAN. Now it looks like Gulfport to Mobile. Heck, you Fla panhandle guys might want to go East-----like, Jacksonville.

Good morning Rex,

This (in my best Bobby Bowden voice) DADGUM hurricane is all over the map.
I honestly dont know which way to go. The Talldega Speedway sounds like
a plan, BUT so does heading East. I'm gonna wait 'til just before I hit the road to
make a decision. I hear Alaska is nice this time of year[:D].

I can't seem to get Nancy to realize the seriousness of the situation. We have
had our share of storms, but this one is brutal. I think a lot of people think this
is just another storm.
I was talking with my neighbor last night who lives directly across the street. He works for the school board and is on call during the storm. He HAS to stay.
He is going to keep an eye out on my place, but I am concerned for the safety of him and his family.
We started his generator only to find the fan in the electric motor is made of
plastic and had broken. We spent last night trying to get it fixed. I hope they
make it through ok.
Anyway, I'm just rambling on trying to kill some time. I'll feel better when we are
on the road. Thanks for the heads up on the speedway. I'll be keeping tabs on
the storm and plan my route. Dave

[cwclark]

The gulf coast is a dangerous place to be in the summer and fall...I rode out a number of storms here in the Houston area...Alicia in '83 was pretty bad, but the worst was Allison just a few years ago which was a mere tropical storm..It rained and rained and then rained some more...The entire city and surrounding towns looked like the flooded streets of Venice..(I think 36" of rain in 3 days is enough for anybody) I feel for ya'll...get out of there!..it's to risky to stay....you can re-build your homes and train layouts but no one can replace YOU!....Chuck

[rexhea]

Dave and all,
Don't wait too long to decide. Ivan is a mean one. I hope it's not going to be anything like Frederic was in '79. It dropped to 130mph winds and still did 2.3 billion dollars in damage. That one tore up trees and power lines with flooding all over Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia.
The Weather Channel said the west side of the storm is running into drier air which should cut its strength some. But, some isn't enough to take any chances. It still has a lot of water to cross.
Grab your loved ones (and your favorite Loco's [:D] )and boogy on out of there.

Alaska sounds real good, Dave. (or go visit Big_Boy in Minn., Ha!)

Just know that everyone's thoughts and prayers are with you.
REX

[cjcrescent]

Dave;
Just remember that currently this storm is 250-300 miles in diameter, and the northeast-east side of the storm is most intense part. So even if it moves ashore between Mobile and Pascagoula, it will put Mobile, Gulf Shores, Fairhope and P'Cola right in that worst section. My wife and I sat out Freddy in 1979 and although we got no damage, (loss 3 shingles and a roof vent), the neighbors on both sides of us lost their houses, one was even wiped completely off the slab. I vowed never to sit through another one. I was real glad when AT&T transferred my wife to Birmingham.

So I would get out of there ASAP and please be real careful. The roads even up here are clogged with evacuees and most of the motels are filling up. I wouldn't try to come here with a camper though, as if the latest from the NHC is right, it also puts B'ham and T-Town on the east side of the storm, and even if it is a tropical storm by the time it gets here that can still mean SUSTAINED winds of up to 73 miles an hour. Never mind the gusts , heavy rain, and tornadoes it will spit out.

[dave9999]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers.

I'm packing up the computer now and getting ready to hit the road. I will talk to you all in a few days.
thanks again, Dave

[cjcrescent]

Good Luck, Dave .

[Anonymous]

Yes, good luck! I remember when Floyd hit my area in '99, it dumped almost a foot of rain in my town (and 6 feet an hour away in Jersey), hopefully something will happen and the storm will lose its power.

[cjcrescent]

Latest from NHC via local weather site:
*Ivan should maintain its current intensity and may even stregthen a bit this afternoon. The storm is experiencing some wind shear, but the Hurricane Center expects this to relax during the next 24 hours. This combined with the fact that Ivan will pass over water with high oceanic heat content means that Ivan may go through a period of intensification over the Central Gulf of Mexico. It will be a strong category3 or category 4 hurricane by the time it makes landfall with sustained winds of 125-135 mph and gusts to 155 -165 mph. Much like a Frederic in 1979..
*The 10 am official NHC track takes the hurricane to the Alabama/Mississippi border between Mobile and Pascagoula. It then moves to a point near Birmingham by 7 a.m. Friday morning and then exits the state near Fort Payne.
*This track means that much of the state will be in the path of some of the worst hurricane conditions our state has seen. The NHC seems pretty confident about this forecast, but still cautions that Ivan's track could vary by 100 miles or more at this point and that severe weather conditions will impact a wide area.
*The NHC is warning that steering currents are weakening and the storm could slow down. They give an ominous statement about it slowing after landfall over the Apalachians. This could produce a serious flood event.

[rexhea]

cjcrescent,
Just came back inside from digging a trench around one side of my shop to keep water from building up and going inside. (one of these days I will put up a gutter) That tells you that I am a believer! Besides, I haven't any plans for a dockside scene on my layout [:D] .
Channel 33 at noon said it is very possible that we will have sustained hurricane force winds as far north as Birmingham.

My biggest worry is two big 3ft diameter pines in the backyard. I don't care to sleep with the squirrels.[(-D]

REX
Tuscaloosa (T-town)

[cjcrescent]

Rex;
Yeah, I am sort of a part time weather freak and have been following storms like this since Camille. It don't look good for us. My brother and his family still live in Mobile and he just notified me that they are gonna sit through this one, as is my wife's mother and her hubbie. Since the NHC says this storm may not weaken as much as anticipated, it could concieveably still be a Category 5 when it hits. My wife and I are real worried about them but they will not leave.

[cjcrescent]

Heard from family this morning, all are fine in Mobile. Ivan took a jog to the right and hit Baldwin County at about 2:30AM as a strong Cat3 weak Cat4, with sustained winds 130-150 MPH. The jog spared Mobile from being in NE quadrant which is worse part of storm. Reports indicate that communities on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay and over to Panama City are extensively damaged. Pensacola has had severe damage including all 4 hospitals. The Civic Auditorium which was a shelter was damaged as well.
Ivan has sped up to approx 17MPH and should hit here in B'ham shorlty after noon with winds in the 80MPH range possibly as a Cat1 storm. Still expecting 8-12" of rain as well.

[rexhea]

cjcrescent

Very glad to read that your family is ok in Mobile. Hope you and yours stay safe.
Over here in Tuscaloosa (on the NNW track) we are having gust of around 58mph with sustained around 35mph with tons of rain. The worst to come in a few hours. East Alabama is really catching the devil.
We lost power around 5am this morning for about two hours. I have been trying to post this for an hour, but I keep getting power fluctuations. I really really hate it when you lose power. You certainly learn to appreciate electricity after you lose it. They said power companies from as far away as Big_Boy's state are sending help.
There is over 880,000 are without power so far and that's just one power company.

Does anyone out there in Cyperspace want to buy some rain? We are overstocked and are offering great savings. You must act now to take advantage of this great sale. CHEAP! CHEAP!

Oops! We just got a flash flood warning for the area. It said we've had 3-5 inches this morning with at least 4 more before 4 pm. I'm sure glad we sold our place on the river. [^]

REX