Thursday, September 13, 2018

A Rare Thursday Post: Hurricane Florence


I'm posting today because I've had a lot of messages asking if our son Sam is in the path of Hurricane Florence.  I appreciate the concern, and believe me, we are concerned as well because yes - he is in the path of the hurricane.  Clayton, the town that he recently moved to, is just southeast of Raleigh so he is in the zone, although seriously, it's looking bad for most of North and South Carolina.

Because the devastation that Hurricane Harvey caused to Houston is so fresh in our minds, I called Sam on Sunday to encourage him to start taking some action, and he did, buying non-perishable food (I knew the state of his pantry was practically empty when I left about 6 weeks ago, and sure enough, it was still pretty sparse until this week), some water, and filling his car with gas.  Not that he was planning on evacuating, but when Harvey struck, the power was off for so many people that they were relying on generators - which run on gas.  The gas stations HERE, over 100 miles away, were out of fuel because Houstonians were driving up, filling gas cans, and taking them back to Houston to power their generators for a few hours each day.

On Monday when Sam went to work, he was part of a conference call regarding hurricane planning.  He is an engineer at Verizon, and his territory is North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee - so yeah, there were some big plans to be made.  He told me later that day that they had cows and goats ready - wait, I mean COWs and GOATs - Cell on Wheels, which are temporary cell towers, and Generator on a Truck, which are portable generators.  I love all these acronyms, but mostly, I love the thought that he will still be able to stay in contact with us.

On Tuesday Sam and his coworkers made a pilgrimage to Sam's Club and they all bought more supplies.  The worry is that power will be out for an extended period of time, so they hedged their bets and decided that they'll have one heck of a potluck with all the food if they don't end up needing to use it during the hurricane.

Sam's new house should be OK - I mean, it's brand new, right?  He did get a fence and sod installed recently in his backyard, so hopefully they will withstand the high winds and rain.  We think the only issue he may have is a lot of mud washing onto the side of his yard and house because there are two empty lots on the higher side of the street next to him.  His house is above street level and there's a big culvert behind his house, so the water should have somewhere to go, even if they get a lot of rain.  Of course, it's been raining there for a week already, so the ground is saturated even before Florence will hit.  Not ideal, that's for sure.

Anyway, as you might tell, I'm nervous and wish he wasn't having to face this alone, although he has made friends with quite a few neighbors and I'm sure they'll all look after each other.  And writing all of this out is helping me to stay calm, although I've been doing quite a bit of nervous knitting this week and I'm sure will continue to do so.

Hang in there, North Carolina - I'm quite fond of you and your inhabitants.

12 comments:

  1. I hope Sam is safe! As well as everyone else in the path of the storm. We've really had some crazy weather the past couple of years.

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    1. We certainly have...but climate change isn't real, right? Sigh.

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  2. Oh man :( I am glad he is getting prepared and has met some of the neighbors so they can band together and help each other out if need be. I am hoping for safety for Sam and everyone in the path! I am glad he'll be able to keep in touch with you. Hugs! XOXO

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  3. I am sure his anxiety levels are high, especially with him being a new home owner. Having been through several hurricanes, I promise you neighborhoods band together like no other time. He'll be fine. Fingers crossed that he and his property sail through this.

    On another note, the Wilmington area is one of the areas we were thinking of retirement in. Right now I doubt I could even get my husband to agree to visit lol.

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    1. I'm surprised that he's not more stressed - but then, this is happening to everyone, so maybe he's more accepting of what might happen? That's what insurance is for...although I'm sure he hopes he won't need to make a claim.

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  4. That must be so scary, Shelley! It sounds like Sam is prepared, and it's good that he has his own little tribe there to weather the storm with. Keep us posted, and I hope he stays safe. Houses can always be repaired or rebuilt.

    I have an aunt in Charlotte and friends in Charlotte, Raleigh, and Wilmington (the one in Wilmington was able to safely evacuate to Florida yesterday) so I've definitely been following the storm. I really hope it's not as bad as they're predicting.

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    1. Thanks. And I'm glad your Wilmington friend evacuated - it sounds like there are many who chose to ride it out.

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  5. Thinking of you and Sam with hopes of an easy time of it!!

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  6. Thinking and praying for your family...and your son!!!

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  7. I hope Sam and his new home are both safe. If his yard gets messed up that will be a good excuse for his momma to come back and do more landscaping!

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  8. Brother & sister-in-law are in Charleston, and it appears they may luck out. Funnily, I sent bro a photo of my South Carolina Starbucks mug this morning with hugs and crossed fingers for making it through the weekend safely. Our collections are good for more than just coffee, right? It sounds like Sam is well taken care of and that there are lots of people looking out for each other. Still nervous-making, though, isn't it? Hang in there Mama!

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