Hurricane Irma

No doubt we will experience some effect of this.

Just what is yet to be determined.

Wal-Mart (Small Mart) is out of H20. Trucks come in nightly.

Lines after work at gas stations. Wal-Mart (Small Mart) could only take cash... Not a good start.

I'm hoping that the County will start to issue statements soon as to their expertise.

One good gauge is when beach vendors pull the storage units with chairs off beach and county issues a temp permit for driving on beach.

Might be time to think about serious prep...

This is definitely the biggest pre-mature panicking I've ever experienced. It's still FIVE DAYS away from being at the mouth of the Gulf. That means you can drive to Nashville and back with fifty gallons of water each trip FIVE TIMES before you even have a sure idea that it will affect us.

Need to wait for the 3 day model for a much better idea of path and power. Then make your decision.

South Walton Fire District provides Hurricane Preparedness Tips
TWITTER: @SWFDINFO | FB: South Walton Fire District

Early preparation is the key! Don’t wait, prepare both your home and your family so you can be ready when a hurricane strikes.
Build a hurricane kit filled with the basics to help you and your family survive comfortably if you are temporarily living without electricity or water during and after a storm.

An EMERGENCY SUPPLIES KIT should include:
• At least a 3-day supply of WATER (one gallon per person, per day)
• At least a 3-day supply of non-perishable FOOD per person (and per pet!)
• At least one change of CLOTHING and shoes per person
• One BLANKET or sleeping bag per person
• FIRST-AID kit
• Battery-powered weather radio, CELL PHONE and charger
• Emergency TOOLS
• FLASHLIGHT, LED lantern, and extra batteries
• Extra set of CAR KEYS
• Credit card and CASH
• SPECIAL ITEMS for infant, elderly, or disabled family members (and pets!)
• Prescription and non-prescription MEDICINES

Stay informed with credible information from @NWSNHC @NWSTallahassee @NOAA @FLSERT, Walton County Emergency Management & SWFD for safety messaging.
#HurricaneIrma

Walton County Emergency Management is active on Facebook providing local updates and info:
FB: Walton County Emergency Management

This is definitely the biggest pre-mature panicking I've ever experienced. It's still FIVE DAYS away from being at the mouth of the Gulf. That means you can drive to Nashville and back with fifty gallons of water each trip FIVE TIMES before you even have a sure idea that it will affect us.

I agree but there is a "but". A lot of people have bought a house or relocated here since the last major hurricane has threatened the area. They dont know any better. There are also plenty of long time locals that have been through this before. The locals have always have been left with nothing after the part-timers and tourists have left.

Latest model. Could bypass FL and hit Eastern states. Back and forth we go. Need to wait for 3 day model.

Wednesday morning will be 3/4 days out for some Florida beaches...get up,early and watch weather channel..kicker is where the Florida Hurricane watches are placed over night.

I'm not judging but I'm pretty sure I saw some post apocalyptic cannibal looking people at the gas station today when I was filling my tank.

Please understand that IRMA is almost 500 miles wide ....
Florida at it's widest is only around 250 miles and its length from the Keys to Jacksonville is only around 480 miles!
Stop asking/wondering "which side" it's going to hit... it doesn't matter! It's packing a PUNCH and it's not going to be a simple assault.

Also remember that when sustained winds are strong enough, 911 will NOT respond jeopardizing first responder lives. 150 MPH winds will blow their vehicles right off the road. If you are on oxygen and depend on electricity stock up on portable air tanks now. Don't wait because if you do they won't be able to get them to you.
..........

Getting gas today in Defuniak was a biotch..lines like crazy and some folks are so inconsiderate they took both gas lanes going in the same direction rather than one going each way. The lady in front of me from India, sat at the pumps after she had gotten gas talking on her cell phone with a line 5 deep behind me. I not so politely walked up to her car and asked her to get off her phone and move her vehicle.

NO WATER at Thriftway as of 2:30 this afternoon or at Wal Mart and Winn Dixie...crazy lines in all 3 stores as well. Never was so thankful just to get out of a parking lot. There is also a full moon...double whammy. No water in Crestview either but Wal Mart is saying they will have water at 7 AM....Winn Dixie says by 8 AM.

I think you need to look at the NOAA National Hurricane Center Website closely as we move into this weekend. It is as precise and as accurate as you can get. Hurricane Irma is not 500 miles wide. Hurricane strength winds are about 120 miles wide (roughly as wide as from Pensacola to Panama City) and tropical storm winds (39 mph) are as wide as from Pensacola to Tallahassee. It will impact most of the Florida Peninsula, but we really won't know until about Sunday evening if the panhandle will get much impact. We will still be two or three days from feeling any winds at that point. Again, look at the National Hurricane Center cone of uncertainty. That is not the width of the hurricane. The smaller brown circle is the width of the hurricane.

I think everybody should get a full tank of gas, no question about that, but try to use a little logic about buying water. Maybe a case of water is prudent. But you only need to stock up on lots of water, if you are planning to stay, and ride it out. If you are planning to ride it out, you are stupid. I would suggest spending your time collecting your valuables into very secure, safe places, backing up your photos and documents onto portable hard drives, to take with you, and stuff like that.

I am leaving at precisely 7:21am on Monday , so I want none of ya to leave at that same time. OK? Or was it Sunday...

So people are going to camp out in sleeping bags to get water at Walmart and Win Dixie is my takeaway.

I think you need to look at the NOAA National Hurricane Center Website closely as we move into this weekend. It is as precise and as accurate as you can get. Hurricane Irma is not 500 miles wide. Hurricane strength winds are about 120 miles wide (roughly as wide as from Pensacola to Panama City) and tropical storm winds (39 mph) are as wide as from Pensacola to Tallahassee. It will impact most of the Florida Peninsula, but we really won't know until about Sunday evening if the panhandle will get much impact. We will still be two or three days from feeling any winds at that point. Again, look at the National Hurricane Center cone of uncertainty. That is not the width of the hurricane. The smaller brown circle is the width of the hurricane.

I think everybody should get a full tank of gas, no question about that, but try to use a little logic about buying water. Maybe a case of water is prudent. But you only need to stock up on lots of water, if you are planning to stay, and ride it out. If you are planning to ride it out, you are stupid. I would suggest spending your time collecting your valuables into very secure, safe places, backing up your photos and documents onto portable hard drives, to take with you, and stuff like that.

I am leaving at precisely 7:21am on Monday , so I want none of ya to leave at that same time. OK? Or was it Sunday...

For water, all that was left was mandarin orange.

I feel sooooo much better now that Rush has started to provide weather forecast.
Rush Limbaugh: Warnings about Irma inflated to advance "climate change agenda"

For water, all that was left was mandarin orange.

I wonder if Whole Foods has any of that $6 asparagus water in stock?

Although I am having a little fun with this storm, please be careful and take the warnings seriously!
And then there is this.

I am all boarded up except for 1 window and 2 doors just in case I don't get to return from my next shift. That is how serious I think this storm is.

Meteorologist Jason Dunning sorta put this in perspective for me ... "This is a massive storm, close to being the size of Florida if you measure the distance of its cloud shield from one end to the other. The tropical storm force wind field is 320 miles wide. The hurricane wind field is 120 miles wide. There's a high chance most all of Florida will be impacted in some way based on the storm's expected movement along the peninsula."

Again, look at the NOAA Hurricane Center Website and you will see a real comparison of the width of the tropical storm winds compared to the size of Florida. The cloud cover is not the hurricane. 320 miles is not 400 miles.

Stay safe everyone!! Sending prayers your way.

The Florida Peninsula is about 120 miles across. The projected center of the hurricane path seems to be around 50 miles off the eastern shore of the peninsula. The diameter of hurricane force winds is 120 miles. That means hurricane winds would occur about 10 or 20 miles inland, and tropical storm winds (39 MPH) might be felt another 100 miles inland. So, there might be almost no tropical storm winds on the west coast of the Florida Peninsula, and certainly none another 100 miles west of there, where we are. In other words, we are somewhere around 270 miles or more from the projected center and the extent of the hurricane's winds, of any kind, are maybe 170 miles or more away. Keep an eye on it, for sure, for any unforeseen moves, but it is significantly far from us. I think we need to prepare for an influx of refugees (however you do that) rather than any major winds or storm surge.

I look at this "overreaction" as kind of a drill. It's not a bad thing really.

I'm not so worried about tropical storm force winds. Plus if it hits Miami, and traverses up the middle of Florida, it's going to slow down considerably. I am concerned about the very real possibility that weather patterns could change and it could continue westward into the gulf. Then it could head north and the warm waters could keep it as a cat 5. I'm just saying it's possible. I wouldn't write it off.