Hurricane Irma?

[KMC0426]

Really the only way Nashville will get anything is if it takes the more Western path, which will also mean a more direct hit on Orlando, or put Orlando on the "dirty" side of the storm, so things may not be good in Orlando then. With the current more commonly projected paths, here in E. TN we are barely going to be getting scraped by the edges on Tuesday. So possible for Nashville but probably, if Nashville has rain on Tuesday, things may be pretty poor in Orlando.

I grew up in East TN and my parents are still there. Go Vols
My parents were going to fly out on the 13th and meet us at Daytona for a couple of days. Not sure if that will work out.

 

[wonder whisper]

Thank you




I noticed this on the 11am update from the National Hurricane Centre as well. They are now predicting that the eye will just graze the coast. But of course they still advise that the winds expand far in either direction from the track! They've also issued watches for south Florida, the Florida Keys, Lake Okeechobee, and Florida Bay. They've noted that additional hurricane watches expanding northward from those points could be issued later today.

To be objective, what NHC is predicting is an educated guess of where Irma may go, not an actual definitive track. And they themselves admit that any prediction made 4+ days out is historically rife with errors (note that the batting average of experienced meteorologists in correctly predicting the landfall point of hurricanes when they are just 25 miles of the coastline is practically zero).

And there are other elements of the 11AM NHC update not mentioned above:

• Irma continues to move toward the west-northwest near 16 mph (26 km/h) and this general motion is expected to continue with some decrease in forward speed for the next couple of days.

• Maximum sustained winds are near 175 mph (280 km/h) with higher gusts. Irma is still a category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Some fluctuations in intensity are likely during the next day or two, but Irma is forecast to remain a powerful category 4 or 5 hurricane during that time.

 

[HarperLeigh]

Thanks for the heads up! Looks like they will be doing contraflow on I-16
GDOT

• Contraflow on I-16 will begin at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9. See the attached graphic for more information. For more information on GDOT preparations, see the attached graphic or contact Natalie Dale, ndale@dot.ga.gov.

Isn't that what I said?

 

[HarperLeigh]

I am hearing people talk about the hurricane stretching 400 miles. I take that being a measurement in diameter. That would mean it is 200 miles radius from the eye. The outer edges of the hurricane are going to be much tamer than the eye wall. Orlando is roughly 75 miles from the coast? If the hurricane can just stay slightly off of the coast into waters, I don't think Orlando will get anywhere close to the 185mph winds that are being recorded and will be able to slide this mess. With that said, I still do not want to be in Orlando, or anywhere close to a hurricane. It will still has the ability to take a life. I just think Disney will be okay. I am praying for Miami, the keys, and everyone further south. I'm sure they are taking it serious. It's just not worth a life.

Orlando is less than 60 miles from the coast as the crow flies.

 

[wonder whisper]

The BEST source for information relating to the operations of Orlando International Airport is the official website and twitter account.

The Sept 7th update regarding operations was posted at 8:38am this morning

Yes, the media contradiction is aggravating (Tribune publications -- now owned by parent Tronc, Inc. -- are notorious for being weak on fact checking). That stated, the reality is given the way things are evolving the odds of an MCO shutdown sometime between tomorrow and late Saturday appear to be increasing.

 

[AngiTN]

I grew up in East TN and my parents are still there. Go Vols
My parents were going to fly out on the 13th and meet us at Daytona for a couple of days. Not sure if that will work out.

I hope it all comes together for you. We'll be at the game Saturday. Thanks to the previously mentioned high pressure system we'll have one of the best opening season games we've ever had. I'm not sure we've ever seen a 4:00 kick in Sept have sun and temps of only 80

 

[Interpol]

Orlando is less than 60 miles from the coast as the crow flies.

And if the eye stays close to the east coast, Orlando is easily within range of the eyewall, where the most severe storms and wind occur.

 

[dreiwhit]

We were there for Charley and power stayed on the whole time.

My family and I were there for Charley - I had a business conference and they tagged along. We stayed off property at a Hilton off Irlo Bronson, right by I-4. Its a different hotel now. We lost power midway through the night, and there was at least an inch of water in the ground floor of our building, including our rooms.

The hotel staff was utterly clueless as to what to do after Charley came through. No manager could be found and the employees wouldn't do anything. We bugged out and went to the Howard Johnson of Irlo Bronson, which had power and A/C.

 

[Vintage princess]

Since the CM told me she can't touch my flight info and put me on hold it's been over an hour, I'm starting to think she forgot about me. I'm currently using another phone to try calling in again while keeping this call on hold at the same time.

I've been on hold for 3 hours and 14 minutes so far. I doubt anyone forgot. I needed dining help desk yesterday and the cast member came back on after two hours and told me she had been afraid to get on the phone and let me know she was still aware of my call in case dining help called her then she said I could still wait, but after 4 hours total the music was making my head hurt and I would try again tomorrow. She also told me to try and call during the hurricane. She said that days leading up to matthew the phones were a mess and the day of the storm the phones were dead. I can't really call the day of the hurricane because I need to get some things taken care of before that, but it is a thought for someone who can wait....

Also, my ears are ringing from the music and I am so tired of the America song where JFK talks!!!!!!!!! I love America, but the song is getting so old!!!

 

[Clockwork]

I just wanted to add some information to this thread that may be helpful for some.

1) My brother and his family live in Houston and got out via Southwest a day before the hurricane hit. They flew to Boston where we have family. They all took advantage of 2 free suitcases allowed. Their luggage did not make it on the flight and what they received the next day was a pile of suitcases that were drenched with water, very damaged, and with totally unwearable clothing. Call it foolish but they did pack some mementos in ziploks which were ruined. They do not fault Southwest for the damaged and wet items. What is important to note is what Southwest instructed them to do with the damaged items if they wanted to file for compensation. They wanted receipts for the clothing and other belongings and before and after pictures. My sister-in-law didn't have the first two requirements. **So, if you are flying into a storm area on Southwest, it may be a good idea to lay out what you are packing and take photos of those items as well as of the luggage itself.

2) My early 20's daughter lives in the most flood-prone area of New Orleans. The first week in August delivered torrential rains and she has a first floor apartment in an old house. She walks to work in the French Quarter and was wading through the streets when she finally got home. I decided to order her a number of critical flood related items through Amazon 2 day Prime delivery on August 4th. As of August 31, the items were never delivered and inquiries showed that they hadn't left the warehouse/fulfillment center. On Sept. 1, I finally got an Amazon supervisor on the phone who told me that a huge amount of their stock is shipped from the Houston area fulfillment center so many people did not receive their orders throughout the country. When Harvey was hitting, Amazon continued to send items to this particular fulfillment center which didn't make sense to me. The agent suggested that in the future, I should avoid ordering items that are being fulfilled in disaster locations(how would I know where the items were being fulfilled?). Not a very helpful suggestion. I guess my tip here is not to count on anything that is being ordered for Irma relief to be delivered at the stated timeframe on your Amazon receipt. I learned my lesson, and of course the fine print does not promise any delivery date which I should have paid attention to.

Good luck to all travelers and those living in the affected areas. I can't imagine how difficult a time this must be.

threehearts

I live right outside of New Orleans am also having issues with Amazon, everything they ship using Prime goes through Humble,TX and they basically never rerouted any of their services, like you I've learned my lesson. Be safe.

 

[luvsJack]

I have a large one like that, but it's too heavy to move when it's full. You have to fill the five gallon and then use those to fill the big container. We used to use it when we had four cars and people working so we would be able to get to work afterward. But it's cumbersome to use and take care of. It is empty right now, since I have a hybrid that's full and won't need another fill for a month. I don't need gas for a generator and don't want the risk of that much fuel in the garage.

They were just showing some people evacuating from south Florida on TV and one family was filling six five gallon cans to take with them on the road so they wouldn't run out. I understand the sentiment but I'm not sure I would want that in the back of a pickup in the event of an accident during an evacuation. I definitely wouldn't want to be hauling it in a car trunk.

Many gas stations are starting to enforce filling only the vehicle you are driving. No gas cans, no boats, etc. Some even have law enforcement monitoring the situation along the evacuation routes.

I totally understand the WANT to have that much gas with you during these times but I am glad they are limiting it. The important thing is that everyone who needs to get out is able to get out, they can worry about more gas on down the road.

As for 12 gallon cans being legal, after Katrina a lot of people bought or had big barrels that they would put in the back of their trucks and go from place to place buying gas (we had a limit to how much gas you could buy at one place for awhile) so I guess its legal if its the right kind of can.

 

[Jimmy Mouse]

We arrived around 11:00. It's unbelievably empty.

 

[patrickpiteo]

It is very troubling that their local Fox station hasn't taken down the bad information

Yes not good but even if I saw that I would double check with my airline..

 

[rastandrea]

It has been 24 hours since I cancelled and it still was not showing up. I called back today and this time have a cancellation number. Also, the wording on the right side of the reservation on the web page has changed. Fingers crossed it "sticks" this time.

I have asked for a cancellation number the three times I called yesterday and the one time I called today and was told Disney does not issue a cancellation number. I am wondering if it is just who you talk with. I am worried sick because I called Pop to see if our reservation was cancelled and was told no and that tomorrow if it was still there we would be charged a no show.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I am hearing people talk about the hurricane stretching 400 miles. I take that being a measurement in diameter. That would mean it is 200 miles radius from the eye. The outer edges of the hurricane are going to be much tamer than the eye wall. Orlando is roughly 75 miles from the coast? If the hurricane can just stay slightly off of the coast into waters, I don't think Orlando will get anywhere close to the 185mph winds that are being recorded and will be able to slide this mess. With that said, I still do not want to be in Orlando, or anywhere close to a hurricane. It will still has the ability to take a life. I just think Disney will be okay. I am praying for Miami, the keys, and everyone further south. I'm sure they are taking it serious. It's just not worth a life.

Orlando is about 40 miles from the coast as the crow flies. WDW is a bit further

 

[Dr B0b L0blaw]

you might be delayed or cancelled out of Atlanta Tuesday since the storm is supposed to be around there to the east but since its 400 miles wide you are going to be affected no matter what

We are actually flying out of Bham now. Sorry, should've been more specific! Thank so for concern though

 

[wonder whisper]

We're flying from Nashville to Orlando on Tuesday. Do you think it will be clear by then? Just hoping our flight doesn't get canceled.

Nobody can possibly give you anything more than their opinion (ergo, a guess) in trying to answer that question. While I'd like to help, I won't wager one, because there are just too many variables (where will Irma go, will the Orlando area be affected, will any disaster area declarations have been made, etc.) Be wary of anyone who says things are "likely" or "definitely" going to be X or Y. You don't want to get into jam because of a recommendation that was based on an incorrect guess.

 

[rastandrea]

Yes, same here. It's stressing me out too but I see that money was removed from my bank account for our new reservations in January so..... Hopefully it will just take time to catch up.

Did you receive a cancellation number? I have called several times. Our package is still showing as of today. Called Pop and was told as long as it was showing and we don't show we would be considered a no show. I am really stressed.

 

[fla4fun]

I totally understand the WANT to have that much gas with you during these times but I am glad they are limiting it. The important thing is that everyone who needs to get out is able to get out, they can worry about more gas on down the road.

As for 12 gallon cans being legal, after Katrina a lot of people bought or had big barrels that they would put in the back of their trucks and go from place to place buying gas (we had a limit to how much gas you could buy at one place for awhile) so I guess its legal if its the right kind of can.

Mine is an actual container for gasoline with a gravity hose to fill the car or a smaller can. We ordered it several years ago and really used it in 2004-2005. But you have to pretty much fill and use it in place. It's not portable with gas inside (at least, I wouldn't). We have it up on a workbench to facilitate the gravity hose.

 

[MEP5]

I have asked for a cancellation number the three times I called yesterday and the one time I called today and was told Disney does not issue a cancellation number. I am wondering if it is just who you talk with. I am worried sick because I called Pop to see if our reservation was cancelled and was told no and that tomorrow if it was still there we would be charged a no show.

I was told I'd get an email with a number and I haven't.We were supposed to check in tomorrow but I called and canceled last night. I was told to give Disney time bc they are over run with cancellations.