Hurricane Rita Preparations
All day, the forecasts have pointed to Rita stalling over northeast Texas. This is scary stuff because we could get three or more straight days of solid rain, totalling as much as 30 inches. Conditions will likely start deteriorating in the DFW area late Saturday.
Tonight I went and secured any loose items around the house. My plan is to stay at my apartment during the storm. The internet and tv and my pets are all here.
I’ve purchased a flashlight, 5 gallon water container, and several food items that require no refrigeration or cooking. I could probably last a few days without power if needed (though, they’d be quite warm). I also bought a weather radio — I’d wanted one for a while and now seemed as good a time as any (if you’re going to buy one, make sure to get one with SAME technology). The car is full of gas and I have some cash on hand.
I’m ready to hunker down here if needed.
Are you doing anything to prepare?
Northern Virginia’s pretty well clear of any danger at this point, though it was touch and go for a little while. We’ve got all our fingers and toes crossed for everyone in Texas and Louisiana. Good luck, and keep us posted!
I’m usually a total lameass when it comes to preparing for stuff like this . . . but I did fill my car up with gas yesterday and bought a case of water. After work today I’ll be hitting the grocery store for some nonperishables, and your cash idea is a very good one! Also, we are stocked up in the very important red wine (doesn’t need refrigeration)!
Word now, is that we will only get about 1-2 inches of rain from it. Who knows though, it IS Texas weather
I might add two things to your list: A pair of heavy boots and a tube of antibiotic ointment. If you do get flooding, make sure you wear long heavy pants (denim or canvas)and those boots when venturing outside, regardless of whether or not there is still standing water. Who knows what will have washed up and out of the sewers and landfills. After returning home, check your legs and feet carefully for scratches and punctures, and apply the antibiotics liberally if you find any.
We were in Humble (NE Houston near Kingwood) and drove to Lafayette, LA Wednesday night. Then, yesterday, the storm began to shift to the east. Now it seems the storm will land near Port Arthur, TX. We will get gusts of 50-60 mph and possible sustained winds of 40 mph.
We’ve gathered all of the same supplies over the past few days. We also bagged all of the ice in our ice makers and, though the city assures us that water plants will run on generators after the storm, we will fill bathtubs in the house this evening. Oh, and we bought beer – essential, no?
Three of the four women in our family that will be holed up in the house are nurses. So, we have double the medical supplies the experts are suggesting. But, should things get worse than expected here, they could be call out to help at the hospitals or medical centers.
You know, I have this shirt with the “numbers” from LOST printed across the front. Now I’m thinking I shouldn’t have packed that thing.
Good luck to everyone out there.
If you lose power and can’t blog, call me and I’ll blog for you! I want constant updates this weekend!
Aw, you wimps. In most of Dallas County we’ll get an inch of rain or less. The wind won’t get over 35 mph. The power isn’t going to go out for “days” (maybe an hour or two at most). You aren’t going to go without water, and you won’t have to boil it.
Preparations? I made sure I had a six-pack of Dos Equis and enough chips and salsa to last until the rain stops on Tuesday. I checked to make sure my rain suit was where I think I hung it up back in the spring (got to walk the dog even if it is raining).
I did move the trash cans back inside the fence, out of the alley, which turns into a wind tunnel even in mild weather.
Grow up. Travel some place where people have real problems. Volunteer to do some work with the Red Cross. No whining.
Bill, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Earlier this week the forecasts were calling for much more severe weather for the Dallas area. Power has gone out for days here in regular thunderstorms.
Nobody here is whining. I do volunteer with the Red Cross. I just finished volunteering in Katrina response efforts for the city of Dallas.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, go say it on your own site.
Leia, I apologize for the tone. I was just fed up with the news media trying their best (and succeeding, apparently) to get people frightened. On the news last night they showed some poor woman in N. Dallas who had spent the day putting plywood over her windows. An utter waste of time and money.
Maybe it’s an advantage to have lived here my whole life, apart from time away in the Navy. We are simply too far inland to suffer any effects from hurricanes other than a lot of rain, and that, as you can tell by looking outside today, ain’t happenin’. The storms that generate a lot of rain and tornados (such as is going on in East Texas and may go on for a couple more days) have to come ashore much farther to the west than Rita did in order to cause problems here.
In other words, we’re pretty safe here. If you’re going to worry about anything, worry about spring tornados and hailstorms. A good weather radio, which you have, basic first aid supplies, and a working flashlight are the practical things to have on hand. Put them in whatever location you plan to use for shelter (bathroom, closet, tornado cellar if you have one). You won’t need water, you won’t need food for tornado preparation (they’d probably just get blown away with the house anyway).
But hurricanes in Dallas? Phooey on the media for not being more responsible.
Bill
Believe me, I know hurricanes. I spent 21 years in Florida. I used to watch The Weather Channel for entertainment. I tracked hurricanes for kicks. Any assumptions I made about the potential devastion to the DFW area were based on me reading forecasts issued by the National Hurricane Center, reading blogs written by professional meteorologists whose opinions I trust, and looking at models, radar images, and water vapor loops.
A lot of what you are criticizing is based on information we have today. We know that Rita is going east of us. Wednesday, we did not know that. Wednesday was when I prepared myself in case I was stuck in my house for several days. Believe me, if I can’t drive to a place with food, I’m going to starve. It’s just how I live. So, I took steps to ensure I would not starve if it was pouring rain so hard that I couldn’t drive to Sonic.
Now, as far as the media goes, I haven’t seen much, so can’t speak for what’s going on there. What I did see didn’t seem to be overhyping any Dallas angle on things. But, I only saw maybe 10 minutes of coverage. Also, you know how those reporters love to stand in front of a camera getting hit by debris.
For what it’s worth, since I think you’re new to reading my site, I’m a student in Emergency Management, so I’m pretty aware of impending disasters and their ramifications.
Just to throw another wrench in Bill’s argument, it was always believed we wouldn’t get a hurricane here in Orlando. Last year, we got three. Power out for days, homes severely damaged, contaminated water, gas shortages, you name it…and we’re not even close to the coast. Nothing about the last two hurricane seasons has been typical, so it’s smart to be prepared. Here in Florida, we get tax-free holidays for purchasing storm supplies. Much love from your hype-loving television reporter sister. Keep up the good work!
Hi. I’m Happy Joe and I think your comment is very relevant.