A favor to ask of those who are not potentially impacted by Irma.

[Pacifist Patriot]

When this storm is in the history books, please don't criticize residents in its eventual path who decide to stay or evacuate. My family has faced this decision numerous times and is facing it again. With the exception of coastal communities experiencing mandatory evacuations, the decision on whether to ride it out or flee is not as easy as it may seem from afar. Both options have pros and cons and frankly, many people don't have the financial or logistic ability to evacuate.

These storms are certainly easier to see coming than a tornado, but still incredibly unpredictable, even at the last minute. Last year my house was projected to be in the eye of a direct hit from Hurricane Matthew. We went to sleep at 11:00 p.m. in Tampa expecting to hear the worst when we awoke the next morning. We were stunned to hear it stayed off shore and we escaped with minimal property damage. Our neighbors who stayed weren't even inconvenienced with power outages above a flicker or two. Did we feel like idiots for evacuating? No.

Likewise in 1999, I have very dear friends who were projected to be in the outer bands of a storm that should weaken considerably over land by the time it reached them. They boarded up, hunkered down, and had to be rescued from flood waters in the Carolinas.

The uncertainty right now and the panic after seeing events unfold in Houston so recently is already impacting my community. Store shelves are empty, lines at the gas pump are around the corner, a friend just gave up getting sandbags because the line for those was so long. The fear is real and we have days yet before we are affected.

I am fortunate, I have the financial ability to reserve a hotel room up in Georgia as well as plenty of friends in Atlanta who will take in my family in a heartbeat. I can afford the gas to get there and back and the eating out evacuation entails. I have the luxury of choosing a hotel or securing my home and riding it out. Either way, I know I will have some relative privacy verses going to a crowded public shelter.

Don't second guess if you haven't done this yourself. It can be an excruciating decision to make. We have enough pressure second guessing ourselves.

Whether we stay or go, this will be my fifth evacuation or fifth hurricane experience over a 49 year lifetime. If one person says "so move somewhere else" I am going to haunt you for eternity. Don't even go there!

Thanks and be safe my fellow Floridians!

[randr]

1. I have friends who just happen to be in St. Thomas at the moment

They went down to repair a house they own and as of yesterday were unable to leave.
Got us a bit worried.

[MineralMan]

2. Difficult choices, for sure.

My wife's sister lives in Cape Coral on Florida's West Coast. She and her husband are debating whether to leave or not. Uncertainty about the exact path of the storm has them going back and forth on the decision. The danger lies in waiting too long to decide.

I'm not sure which decision they'll make. If it were me, I'd already be on the road, heading north. Even now, traffic is difficult. But, it's not my decision to make. We'll be worried about them, either way.

[cwydro]

3. I lived in the Keys for over 20 years.

I never evacuated.

During Andrew, our neighbors decided to flee north to the Homestead area. They ended up losing their car as well as having a terrifying experience.

We were fine in Key West, though the tieline to the mainland was severed. It was damn hot till the electricity came back on. My parents in NC were seeing reports that the Keys had been "destroyed." So much nonsense comes out of the panic-mongerers in these storms.

[steve2470]

6. excellent post

I've been in Florida for 59 freaking years.....

I've seen dozens and dozens of hurricanes. Trust me, I know what they can do. Andrew was like a nuclear bomb.

In 2004 I panicked and drove to Atlanta. From Orlando. After a few days I came home. The trip home, to put it mildly, was a tad terrifying. Long story. Anyway, when I got home, my apartment was in perfect condition. Absolutely perfect.

I will NOT panic. I will make a rational judgment about my safety. I do have a hotel reservation in Atlanta, and I WILL leave in time if I need to.....

Most of we Floridians are well aware of how bad it can get. We know we can die if we are foolish.

[Pacifist Patriot]

9. Exactly

2004 I went to Athens, GA twice. Because I had three small children I went to my parents' home during Frances and Jeanne. My husband stayed behind for Jeanne and was fine.

I too will not panic!!!

[madokie]

22. To compound this

hurricane is coming in on high tide plus its a monster. I'm not much for running but I'd be putting my nike's on about right now

[Pacifist Patriot]

23. Looked up this morning, saw that full moon and thought "oh crap!"

[madokie]

24. Same here

When I went out to get the paper off the drive I seen that big moon just a shining. Actually scared me

I just hope we as a nation survive these storms, 'specially the ones in power now. The 'CONs and the orange anus and company

[cwydro]

10. I think it was Georges where the cops actually came up our street during the mandatory evacuation.

Asked for next of kin names because we weren't leaving. Scare tactic.

During that one, we left our little trailer in Big Coppitt Key and went to stay in a friend's house 20 miles up the road in Cudjoe Key.

The eye came right over us. Awful. Lost both our cars in the surge. When we got back to our trailer, it was dry and fine. A tree had come down, but no one had any surge there. People simply don't realize how hard it is to make that evacuation or not decision.

Stay safe. Keep us posted. I know EXACTLY how you feel. Wilma made me almost panic. It's scary.

[ProfessorGAC]

32. All Are Friends in KW Bugged Out

And our two friends in Tavernier did too. Like you they stayed during Andrew though. Somehow they thought this one different.

Maybe seeing Houston under water changed their mind.

[cwydro]

33. None of my friends in KW have left.

And I hope to god the storm continues this shift to the east.

[ProfessorGAC]

35. Last I Saw, It Was Looking That Way

But, it changed direction once. Who knows if it's done bouncing around.

[Phoenix61]

4. You are so right

A lot of people have to work until the very end. Think grocery stores, gas stations, Home Depot etc. There's a point where leaving is less safe than staying. I got caught on the road in Opal. That I didn't wind up in a flooded ditch as nothing short of a miracle. Would have been safer to stay put.

[raven mad]

5. The hardest thing I ever had to do was evacuate.

Only 3 for me, once as a child, then a teen, then an adult. Duct tape, tarps, boarding windows, that was all. Then the cleanup.

I hope everyone comes out of this healthy and whole.

[yardwork]

7. Natural disasters are disasters. It's impossible to predict impact.

Hurricane Matthew, for instance, destroyed eastern North Carolina and some communities will never recover.

Many people don't have the opportunity to take off work and still be paid. People have elderly relatives or are elderly themselves. Evacuation itself can literally be life-threatening. People have animals and children and their cars won't hold them all, and there's nowhere to go when you don't have a lot of money in savings and won't get paid if you can't work.

Millions of people are making very difficult decisions with highly uncertain data. We owe them compassion and help, never criticism.

[steve2470]

8. amen nt

[KY_EnviroGuy]

11. Out hearts go out to...

everyone having to suffer from these natural disasters, but most of all to those who prefer to leave but cannot. Financial barriers, lack of transportation, homelessness, poor health, and many other factors cause many to stay. We just hope everyone finds safe shelter. And, their animals too!

[GulfCoast66]

12. And many of have pressing obligations to others

Tens of thousands of tourists will be unable to leave and those that do will vacate rooms that will be filled by people from the coastal areas.

Someone has to keep these people safe. There will be thousands in the hospitality industry working up till it hits. And often working thru the storm. First responders are not the only ones who feel an obligation to keep others safe.

I have seen people continue to come to work serving others while knowing their home is damaged.

[dembotoz]

13. the monday morning quarterback is an american tradition

the sport may change but second guessing never does

some things do warrant a second look as in flood control vs zoning in houston....

but you have a home there.
i am not there.
You make the best decisions based on the information and resources available....

[IronLionZion]

14. It's logistically impossible to evacuate Florida

since most of the state is in the danger zone. And many people don't have a place to go or would prefer to be part of the rescue/rebuilding efforts immediately after the storm.

I hope DUers will be empathetic this time. As someone who has moved all across America and is constantly told to "move somewhere else", I empathize. Every place I've ever lived is the "wrong place" to someone.

[Nay]

15. In the case of Florida, "evacuate" may be as simple as going inland. As a

native Floridian who grew up and lived there for the first 28 years of my life, we just went inland (we lived on the beach near Clearwater).

Of course people can only do what they can do. Let's hope that it makes a hard right and goes up on the east coast side, but way offshore. That's still possible.

[Pacifist Patriot]

16. 19 Million people on I-75 and I-95

Yeah, not happening.

[steve2470]

19. can you imagine the parking lots the roads would be ?

It would be insane.........totally insane. Mass chaos.

[Mariana]

26. Yeah, I want to be stuck on the road when a hurricane hits

and ride it out in my car, rather than be in a shelter close to home, in a sturdy building on high ground.

[Achilleaze]

17. .

[mcar]

18. Thank you for saying this

Some of us work and could lose our jobs if we left now. Some cannot afford to pack up and go.

[Pacifist Patriot]

20. I am so glad I work for a sane company.

My sister's company is based in Chicago and absolutely clueless. They are refusing to close their Brevard County location and any employee who misses work because of hurricane prep/evacuation has to use their vacation time.

My company is closing at noon today and allowing everyone, exempt and non-exempt, to use the code "snow day" for their hours at full pay. We code it as "snow day" because I create the codes and I'm weird. LOL!

[barbtries]

21. good advice.

i will try very hard to stop judging people who made choices that may have been different from the choices i would have made. after all, i'm not there, i don't know. for people without means there can be no judging.

recently i found this difficult after seeing how many people drove into flood waters in TX. but i must put it aside and feel compassion for them. it could have been me.

stay safe. unsettling times we live in.

[Pacifist Patriot]

25. I'm actually starting to tip to being more nervous about evacuating.

The current plans are to go from Brevard County (Atlantic coast near the space center) to Gainesville tomorrow morning, and then on to a hotel in Georgia early Saturday.

The traffic is going to be horrific and I'm increasingly concerned about fuel supplies along our route. But I'm relatively coastal, so staying scares me more.

I was calm about this until this morning's report from Bryan Norcross and my dad reporting that almost all of the gas stations in my town are out of fuel. It's going to be bad whether we stay or go!

[cwydro]

34. Be safe.

I've been in your shoes.

Do whatever you think is right. Keep us posted as you can.

I'm no longer in the Keys, but I'm right on the path if it comes toward NC. This one is scary.

[barbtries]

36. best of luck.

i do not envy you. please keep us posted if you can.

[Mariana]

29. Some people will make decisions that are frankly stupid.

But it won't be many. Most people will do the best they can do, and almost everyone will survive.

[yallerdawg]

27. Some people can't afford to leave evrything behind and go God knows where.

When you live paycheck to paycheck, you're not going to suddenly be able to "go on vacation" - even a tankful of gas could be an unaffordable extravagance.

Like they keep saying, listen to the local authorities, and if you have any doubt about your present location, head to the nearest shelter. That's the best place to ride out a hurricane.

[JustAnotherGen]

28. I will not do that

And adding to all of the many issues/items you listed - Florida is a much larger land mass than say - NJ.

When Sandy hit - it was easy to get to a friend or family member's house in the Watchung.

It's not a 30 minute/1 hour drive east - especially not this storm at the width I saw last night.

Stay safe, be safe and I'm worrying with you.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

30. The south-north movement of this storm has made it very difficult to evacuate Florida.

Because Florida's a narrow peninsula that runs south to north and because the path of the storm runs south to north, essentially all of the state is at risk, up until perhaps the final day when the actual path becomes clearer.

For people in the southern portion of the state, that makes it even more difficult. You have to close up your house, make sure you have gas in the car, and then head in one direction and one direction only--north, and out of the state. And really just northwest, because coastal Georgia and South Carolina are at risk now too. So we're basically talking Atlanta or thereabouts.

And there's only two and a half major expressways leading north out of Florida--I-95, I-75, and you have the Turnpike which runs into I-75 halfway up the state. So all of those will be mobbed. You could take a side road like US 441 or US 27, but those will take long as well just due to their meandering nature.

And if you're coming up from South Florida, even if you have a full tank of gas, it will probably run out somewhere around Ocala or Gainesville. And all reports are that those places are having shortages as well, because of concerned people up there who are also in the cone of danger. So people will be panicking trying to find gas around those places which technically still aren't out of the area of danger at the moment.

As I said, it's a judgment call if you want to flee or fight. It all depends on the integrity of your own home situation. If you live on the coast or intercoastal, or in a flood zone, or if your house is not built up to hurricane protected standards--concrete blocks, shutters, etc., you should not stay in your own house. You can consider leaving Florida but if that's the case get a move on it sooner than later. And consider a side road out of the state like 441, 301, 27 or 19. If you can't or don't want to leave the area, go to a place in the area that is not in the highest area of risk and secure. Either a friend or family member in a hurricane protected home, or to a designated shelter.

If you are living in a home that's built up to hurricane code, has cement block construction, has shutters, has a post-Andrew roof, and isn't in a floodzone or on the water, it might be worth the while just to stay put. Make sure you are stocked with supplies. And remember bottled water isn't the only water out there. Your tap water should be safe right now so fill up as many containers as you can with it.

If this was an east to west (or west to east) storm it would have been much easier for me. I have family up in Gainesville and I could have long ago packed up and moved the family and pets up there, all in a single tank of gas. That's simply not the case here. The whole state is at risk. Fortunately I live in a house built up to hurricane standards which isn't on the water or in a flood zone, so fingers crossed I should be okay.

[Weekend Warrior]

31. " the decision on whether to ride it out or flee is not as easy as it may seem from afar."

Well said. Lived on the coast of FL my whole life. It's not an easy decision to make. I stayed put during Elena in '85. The center and strongest winds recorded over land came from the city I was in. Then again, that was really a serious tidal and rain event more than the wind.