Did you know that during hurricanes asphalt roofing shingles act like flying blades?  More on that momentarily….

Today Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was in the Punta Rassa area of South Fort Myers to celebrate a remarkable accomplishment.  The Sanibel bridges and causeway are open to civilian traffic. {Direct Rumble Link}

The massive, albeit temporary, repairs to the three spans and spoil islands have been completed three weeks after Hurricane Ian wiped them out.  A genuinely remarkable feat of engineering and git’ r done roughneck effort.  Truly an incredible accomplishment.  To check out the scale of it see PICTURES HERE.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that emergency repairs to the Sanibel Causeway have been completed in 15 days, more than a week ahead of schedule. As of this morning, access to Sanibel Island has been restored for residents, reconnecting Sanibel Island to the mainland. WATCH:

“The work that has been done to restore vehicle access to Sanibel Island has been historic,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Cutting through bureaucratic red tape and delivering on our promise to get Sanibel Island up and running has been a top priority. By restoring access over the causeway, repair crews, first responders, emergency vehicles, business owners and residents will be better able to expedite recovery from this storm.”

“I am grateful for our dedicated team members who quite literally built a road in the Gulf in 15 days,” said FDOT Secretary Jared W. Perdue, P.E. “While the bridges were largely undamaged by the storm, portions of the causeway which connect bridge structures together were washed away by Hurricane Ian, leaving the bridges unconnected to the mainland or the island.

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[National Hurricane Center Link]  Tropical Storm Ian has remained moving mostly westward throughout the previous 12 hours pushing the projected U.S. impact cone slightly further North into the big bend area of Florida.  However, everyone on Florida’s west and gulf coast should pay close attention, and residents in Louisiana, Mississippi and the Alabama coast should not dismiss this storm.

With more favorable conditions for storm development, TS Ian is now projected to intensify and be a major hurricane prior to arrival on the west coast of Cuba. That is a significant shift in the intensity forecast.  However, with the westward shift, the timeline is now delayed (see map below).  All U.S. gulf coast residents should be taking precautions and preparing for potential storm impacts with a path still uncertain.

(NHC) At 1100 AM EDT (1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Ian was located near latitude 15.2 North, longitude 79.8 West. Ian is moving toward the west-northwest near 14 mph (22 km/h). A turn toward the northwest at a similar forward speed is expected later today, followed by a north-northwestward motion on Monday and a northward motion on Tuesday with a slightly slower forward speed. On the forecast track, the center of Ian is forecast to pass well southwest of Jamaica today, and pass near or west of the Cayman Islands early Monday. Ian will then move near or over western Cuba Monday night and early Tuesday and emerge over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday. (more)

There is no cause for alarm, but with many new Florida residents’ officials are more firmly emphasizing preparation.  Several FL Civilian Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are now preparing, as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency – releasing additional responding resources. Take this storm seriously, but do not be alarmed; instead, take proactive steps to safeguard yourself and your family.

The westward storm movement has added one or two days to the projected U.S. landfall.

Proactively, do all your laundry.  Bleach sanitize and air dry all your water storage containers including the bathtub, today.  Do not panic if you cannot find bottled water. You can clean, sanitize and put a fresh garbage bag inside any trash can(s), then fill it/them with water from the shower.  This is an old school FL cracker way to prepare for water shortages that I still do every time.  Works like a charm.  You can also manually flush toilets with buckets of water.

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National Hurricane Center Data Here – After two years of relatively uneventful hurricane activity, and with two years of massive migration into the state since the COVID pandemic, there are millions of people potentially going to experience their first hurricane.  Thus, Florida emergency officials are being proactive in their alerts.

There is no cause for alarm, but the unspoken motive for officials to more firmly emphasize preparation is related to this ‘new resident’ dynamic. In the background several FL Civilian Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are now preparing.  Due to the confluence of events, all are is taking this storm seriously.

TD #9 is now Tropical Storm Ian, soon to be Hurricane Ian. – “At 1100 AM EDT (1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Ian was located near latitude 14.4 North, longitude 75.2 West. Ian is moving toward the west near 15 mph (24 km/h), and this general motion is expected to continue through tonight. A turn toward the northwest is forecast on Sunday, followed by a north-northwestward turn on Monday and a northward motion on Tuesday. On the forecast track, the center of Ian is forecast to move across the central Caribbean Sea today, pass southwest of Jamaica on Sunday, and pass near or over the Cayman Islands Sunday night and early Monday. Ian will then approach western Cuba late Monday and emerge over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday.” (link)

The general forecast path has not changed much in the past 12 hours, but the timeline has slowed as the storm slowly gathers strength.  We are now likely looking at a Wednesday night landfall (projected).  There is a very wide cone of uncertainty and also more time to prepare.

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Tropical Depression #9 has Florida officials paying attention as the storm is forecast to become a major hurricane early next week (Monday/Tuesday) in the Gulf of Mexico near Florida’s west coast.   [National Hurricane Center Advisory] In the background several Civilian Emergency Response Teams (CERT) have been activated.  Due to the confluence of events, everyone is taking this storm very seriously.

After two years of relatively uneventful hurricane activity, and with two years of massive migration into the state since the COVID pandemic, there are millions of people potentially going to experience their first hurricane.  Thus, Florida emergency officials are being proactive in their alerts.

(NHC) – At 500 PM EDT (2100 UTC), the center of Tropical Depression Nine was located near latitude 14.7 North, longitude 71.3 West. The depression is moving toward the west-northwest near 15 mph (24 km/h). A westward motion is expected to begin tonight and continue through Saturday night, followed by a turn toward the northwest and north-northwest on Sunday and Monday. On the forecast track, the center of the cyclone is forecast to move across the central Caribbean Sea through Saturday, pass south of Jamaica on Saturday night and Sunday, and approach the Cayman Islands on Sunday night and early Monday. (more)

With this much advanced notice residents along the west coast of Florida should begin reviewing their prior supplies and updating their hurricane preparations.  Much could change over the next 72-hours, but a review of supplies and locating stored material is a prudent approach.

Check your hurricane supplies of shelf-stable food, water, medicine and don’t forget pets.  Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.  Everything is replaceable, except you and your family.  We have a lot of Treepers in the path of this storm. If you need assistance, use the comments section of any ‘Update thread’ to reach out, or use the email address in the upper right of the site.

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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear gave a terrible update about the devastation in the aftermath of the horrific tornadoes that hit overnight Friday into Saturday morning.  According to the Governor, more than 70 are dead in a candle factory alone in Mayfield, and the death toll is expected to continue climbing as the list of missing people throughout the state is too long to fathom.

An official death count has not been released, but Beshear, appearing on CNN’s State of the Union, said at least 80 Kentuckians were feared dead with that number expected to rise. “I know we’ve lost more than 80 Kentuckians. That number is going to exceed more than 100,” he said. “This is the deadliest tornado event we’ve ever had.” WATCH:

Additional deaths have been reported outside of Kentucky including six at an Amazon warehouse in Illinois, four in Tennessee, two in Arkansas and two in Missouri.  More drone footage of the devastation was released earlier today. [See Below]

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The town of Mayfield, Kentucky has been absolutely devastated by at least one of several tornadoes that tore through six states overnight.  The video footage of the area shows widespread devastation, and the Kentucky governor is now reporting at least 70 people have been killed.

All Treepers in the region please check in and let us know how y’all are doing.  Our prayers are with everyone who was in the path of this massive storm system.  There are resources coming from all over the Southeast and Midwest into the region.  The images are jaw-dropping.

(Reuters) – A devastating swarm of tornadoes ripped through six U.S. states, killing more than 70 people in Kentucky and leaving a trail of destroyed homes and businesses along a path that stretched more than 200 miles, officials said on Saturday.

Dozens were feared dead at a candle factory in western Kentucky where about 110 people were working when a powerful tornado ripped through the facility late on Friday, causing the roof to cave in.  VIDEO:

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said 40 of the 110 workers had been rescued from the factory so far. “The level of devastation is unlike anything that I have ever seen,” Beshear said of the damage caused by the collection of twisters, with the primary tornado traveling more than 227 miles (365 km) across his state.

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There’s not much you can do except hunker down when winds of this scale start hitting the coastline.  Hurricane Ida is about to make landfall along the Louisiana coastal region with winds in excess of 150mph.  A very strong category-4 storm, with massive storm surge potential. The hurricane force winds (the buzzsaw) are approximately 100 miles wide.  Anyone who needs help, feel free to reach out in the comments section, or send us an email and we will do everything we can to assist.

NHC Report – At 1000 AM CDT (1500 UTC), the eye of Hurricane Ida was located by reconnaissance aircraft and NWS Doppler radar near latitude 28.8 North, longitude 90.0 West. Ida is moving toward the northwest near 13 mph (20 km/h). A slightly slower northwestward motion should continue through this evening. A turn toward the north should occur by Monday morning, followed by a slightly faster northeastward motion by Monday night and Tuesday. On the forecast track, the center of Ida will make landfall along the coast of southeastern Louisiana within the hurricane warning area within the next few hours.

Reports from NOAA and Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicated that the maximum sustained winds are near 150 mph (240km/h) with higher gusts. Ida is an extremely dangerous category-4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Some slight additional strengthening is still possible before Ida moves onshore along the Louisiana coast. (read more)

Hurricanes can be frightening; downright scary. There’s nothing quite like going through a few to reset your outlook on just how Mother Nature can deliver a cleansing cycle to an entire geographic region.  If there’s one positive aspect to this storm, it’s the daylight as she makes landfall…. at least it ain’t night.

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This seems a little odd to me.  Citing the time it takes to implement contra-flow traffic as a problem, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell stated there is not enough time for the city of New Orleans to execute a mandatory evacuation.   Additionally, she is asking all residents who do not evacuate to shelter in place for Hurricane Ida.

Contra-flow traffic is the process of turning inbound lanes into outbound lanes and depending on the metropolitan area takes around 8 hrs for local and state DOT to get set up.   The mayor is asking for a voluntary evacuation saying “time is not on our side.” “The City can not issue a mandatory evacuation because we do not have time, Cantrell continued. WATCH:

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Yikes… and Biden’s team is running FEMA.

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Ida is currently a tropical storm headed into the Gulf of Mexico. However, the conditions are perfect for Ida to quickly become a major hurricane as it heads toward the Louisiana coastal region.  Everyone along the gulf coast from East Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and western Alabama should be making preparations right now.  Do not delay.

In the background several Civilian Emergency Response Teams (CERT) have been activated.  Due to the confluence of events, everyone is taking this storm very seriously. Any Treeper in the coastal area of Louisiana and Mississippi should be taking preparatory action today. Those in the forecast areas are strongly advised to pay close attention to local officials and heed all evacuation orders.  [National Hurricane Center]

Check your hurricane supplies of shelf-stable food, water, medicine and don’t forget pets.  Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.  Everything is replaceable, except you and your family.  We have a lot of Treepers in the path of this storm. If you need assistance, use the comments section of any ‘Ida Update thread’ to reach out, or use the email address in the upper right of the site.

Right now you are in control.  Have a solid plan, work that plan – stay busy, and don’t get caught up in the hysteria.  Try to avoid national media hype. Stay updated via your local news stations. Sunday morning looks like the key day impact zones will be identified.  Reach out to your neighbors; touch-base and check to see if they are okay or need anything.  Community restoration begins before the storm arrives. Look out for each-other.

Additionally, I hate to note this, but Joe Biden is in charge of FEMA… So plan accordingly.

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All residents in the Northeast coastal region, specifically Long Island and Southern New England, should pay close attention to local officials regarding precautions as Hurricane Henri begins tracking in that direction. The forward speed is 21 mph and the wind speed around the storm is 75 mph, a category-1 hurricane.

[National Hurricane Center] – At 1100 PM EDT (0300 UTC), the center of Hurricane Henri was located near latitude 38.6 North, longitude 71.0 West. Henri is moving toward the north near 21 mph (33 km/h) and this motion is expected to continue through tonight. A decrease in forward speed and a
turn toward the north-northwest is expected on Sunday. On the forecast track, Henri is expected to make landfall in southern New England or on Long Island on Sunday. After landfall, a turn to the north and a slower forward speed are expected as Henri moves over southern New England. (LINK)

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