OT Hurricane Frances

Be safe, Linda. Please do NOT hesitate to get out at the first sign of trouble--preferably before that! I'll be keeping you and Valerie S. in my thoughts as this progresses.

Lots of storm soothing vibes being sent! Stay safe, Linda!!

Stay safe and vibes are on their way.

I have nieces, nephews, cousins and friends in Florida. They are all worried and preparing. Just talked to a nephew in Orlando who is packing the car and leaving. Going north, somewhere. God bless them all. Carlinda

Hugs to you Linda and keep safe. Love Shirley

In message , Linda2 writes

My father just emailed and he's heading north even now (he lives in New Smyrna Beach, just south of Daytona Beach.) They had 85 mph winds with the last one as it went through and he doesn't want to have anything to do with this one. I'm hoping he can get through, and has something to come back to next week....

Karin

I've been thinking about you and the other Floridians. Keep safe.

Tina

I live in Port St. Lucie, about 50 miles North of you on the coast. About two miles from the ocean as the eagle flies, but we're well above sea level, so we haven't been asked to evacuate. (Not that I would anyway.) We're as prepared as we can be, with shutters up and plenty of gas for the generator. My Aunt is a hurricane Andrew survivor, so we know all too well what storms like this are capable of doing. My parents, Brian's parents and Brian's grandparents all live in mobile homes here. His family is evacuating and my family is staying with us. I usually get excited about hurricanes, but I just have a bad feeling about this one. Linda, please stay safe and remember. You can replace things, but we can't replace you! Hugs, Dawn

V I B E S V I B E S V I B E S V I B E S ~~ Sooz

I have family there as well. As of last night they are considering leaving home. Right now Volusia County is under a non-madatory evacuation order. As the storm grows nearer, the chances of it being mandatory grows. They may even head up here to Pennsylvania. They've promised to keep us up to date as long as they can.

Think some of those good vibes could be spread across the county?

Stay safe, Dawn. It looks as though it may be heading inland more your way.

Linda2

The winds have picked up a little but not so bad that I couldn't drive around and take some pre-Frances photos for my friend Elana in Boston who wants to move down here.

Most of the stores in the area are boarded up. Since plywood is now a most valuable and hard-to-find item, some people made use of sod pallets and other odd lumber to cover their windows.

The Metro busses have ceased service and have been pressed into use to shuttle residents and tourists who live on the beach to shelters inland.

Ft Lauderdale beach and Las Olas Boulevard are ghost towns. All stores, homes and most of the condos are shuttered and closed. There's only a few people on the beach. The waves are rougher than usual but not dangerously so. There's a wind, but the sand is not blowing yet, not like with Charley.

And even Larry Flynt's new store, Hustler Hollywood, has been closed and shuttered in preparation.

From what they are saying on the news right now, if the track remains as is, we will be feeling effects of this storm by tomorrow evening.

Where I work is closed tomorrow, but we can go in if the weather does not prohibit our driving. I'm going in until it seems to be close to non-driving weather. Yes, I will be careful, and if it's bad when I wake up, I'm staying put. I'm no dummy.

I'll try to keep you all posted on how we're faring. If someone wants to e-mail me their phone number so I can keep them and the group updated, I'll call on my cell which will hopefully keep working (charging it right now.)

ariel at gate dot net

Linda2

Everything is pretty much the same here. I was out and about today (helping family board up and move out, what I could do at least) and almost every gas station I passed had NO gas. Fast food places have either no bread or no meat. People are writing on the plywood on their homes "Go Away Frances". I even saw on one home down the street from me "You Loot, We Shoot :-( " It's getting rough at the stores too. Thank god that we went a few days ago to get all our supplies, you've got to walk into Home Depot with brass knuckles and a bat to get screws. I'll be offline soon too. The computer is getting shut down tomorrow until this is over. Love to you all,

Valerie

My friend said the same thing about gas and such. She said she would never get away from the hurricane now. Everywhere she looks there are either enormous lines or no gas. Mostly the latter. She and her cousin already went to get food a few days ago and the stuff from the home improvement stores. Their apartment complex refuses to board up the windows saying it would be too taxing on their maintenance crew. Bah humbug!

Thinking of you Valerie. Take care Shirley

In message , Valerie writes

GOOD LUCK HON!

-Kalera