Hurricane Florence

[gonzo]

If have or can still find...
Battery powered fan and mucho batteries. I'm assuming it's still warm out there.
Wet wash cloth on chest or upper back with air flow lowers body temperature decently.
No fan? Wet towel.

[jgoens]

This storm must be no joke--top story on Cnn instead of Trump.

[upstatedoc]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

One suggestion for those in the path inland (anyone on coast should have already evacuated) who might be at risk of losing power: get some ziplock gallon and quart freezer bags, fill about 2/3 full with water, zip shut and put in freezer today. You will get blocks of ice that last longer than ice cubes. Surely they won't last days, but is something easy to do with low cost / effort.

Something that's also a necessity for this type of situation:

[JamesWWIII]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

One suggestion for those in the path inland (anyone on coast should have already evacuated) who might be at risk of losing power: get some ziplock gallon and quart freezer bags, fill about 2/3 full with water, zip shut and put in freezer today. You will get blocks of ice that last longer than ice cubes. Surely they won't last days, but is something easy to do with low cost / effort.

Good idea. Here's another if you're evacuating:

Put a large cup of water in the freezer until it's frozen solid. Then take it out, and put a coin on top of the ice. Return the cup—with the coin—back to the freezer.

When you return to your home, if you find the coin has moved to the bottom of the cup, then you'll know your food was unrefrigerated while you were gone and it's no longer safe to eat. Found the coin in the middle? The food is likely still okay, but if you don't feel good about it, just throw it out.

Where you ideally want the coin to be is exactly where you left it—on the top. That means your freezer's contents stayed frozen the entire time.

[gonzo]

^ Crafty.


Latest. Ugh.

[LanceW]

Yeah, looking pretty bad for us. Local news says @ 60% evacuated so far.
Boarded up today and gonna leave out in the morning.

[JamesWWIII]

Originally Posted by LanceW

Yeah, looking pretty bad for us. Local news says @ 60% evacuated so far.
Boarded up today and gonna leave out in the morning.

Best of luck and stay safe.

[Azkael]

good luck to all those involved

[aozer]

ive always wanted to live near the beach but times like these make me so happy im not near a coast.

[Never_Enough]

Stay safe everyone!!!!

[kscarrol]

Originally Posted by upstatedoc

Something that's also a necessity for this type of situation:

Having lived through Katrina, another pro!!

[irishbimmer]

Originally Posted by kscarrol

Having lived through Katrina, another pro!!

Good luck to you and your properties, pets and loved ones.
Bill

[Yugo]

Forecast has it making an odd move to the SW than back up NW, looks like Virginia could be sparred somewhat or at least not as bad as originally forecasted. I am in the middle of the state. Stay safe everyone.

[JamesWWIII]

Flo has weakened a bit to a Cat 3. No one really thought this would happen given the warmth of the waters she’s moving over and the lack of high-level wind shear, some were even predicting strengthening, so this is at least a little good news for the coast, although they’re still going to get slammed. The forecast track makes her look like a drunk hurricane.

[wdb]

My hurricane prep is a generator test and full gas cans.

And beer.

Stay safe everyone!

[JamesWWIII]

Weakened again, down to Cat 2 now. This is very unexpected, but we’ll take what we can get. Still going to get deluged due to slow forward motion of storm after it makes landfall.

[Ivan Ivanov]

I've always wondered - why American build such flimsy homes, usually made of wood or plywood?
On the one hand, it is clear that a good climate allows you to do so. But on the other hand, in these places there are hurricanes and these hurricanes often destroy houses.
Why not build a normal house: made of brick, concrete, aerated concrete and so on?

[nyalpine90]

be safe everyone

[bbbbmw]

Originally Posted by Ivan Ivanov

I've always wondered - why American build such flimsy homes, usually made of wood or plywood?
On the one hand, it is clear that a good climate allows you to do so. But on the other hand, in these places there are hurricanes and these hurricanes often destroy houses.
Why not build a normal house: made of brick, concrete, aerated concrete and so on?

Because we have federally-backed flood insurance.

[bbbbmw]

Originally Posted by JamesWWIII

Good idea. Here's another if you're evacuating:

Put a large cup of water in the freezer until it's frozen solid. Then take it out, and put a coin on top of the ice. Return the cup—with the coin—back to the freezer.

When you return to your home, if you find the coin has moved to the bottom of the cup, then you'll know your food was unrefrigerated while you were gone and it's no longer safe to eat. Found the coin in the middle? The food is likely still okay, but if you don't feel good about it, just throw it out.

Where you ideally want the coin to be is exactly where you left it—on the top. That means your freezer's contents stayed frozen the entire time.

That's a really good idea, but would it be the same if you look at your ice maker drawer, and there's a frozen block of any sort at the bottom, you know the food thawed and refroze (so beware)? That's assuming you have an ice maker, of course.

[Chihuahua]

Originally Posted by Ivan Ivanov

I've always wondered - why American build such flimsy homes, usually made of wood or plywood?

Not all of them are. I am about 2 miles from the coast in Florida. My house is constructed of concrete block.

[Ivan Ivanov]

Originally Posted by bbbbmw

Because we have federally-backed flood insurance.

Insurance - it's certainly good, the house must necessarily be insured, but what reason to stay at all without anything and expect insurance payment? Insurance still does not cover all the little things, but having built a solid house it would be possible to stay in this house with minimal disruption?