w/ 2 storms on the wayRELOOK @ Tropical storm prep

[Carey]

EDIT: This was posted in April....Make sure you are prepared!!!
Tomorrow is the start of the "official" tropical storm season & there is a weak depression in the eastern Pacific, so I thought it was time again to remind us to have our storm prep ready (where is your To-Go bag & is it up-to-date & do you have your pet carriers & To-Go for your furry friends?)!

a good bookmark in the CPHC:
http://www.hawaii-vacation-fun.com/bon-dance.html

and to check on the water vapor (& storm) movement, I like the wv loop (normally you see a nice dry sheer over the island, pushing eastward towards the mainland...when that rides way north of the islands...time to really watch the storm development):
http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/tpac/h5-loop-wv.html
from:
http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/imagery/tpac.html


_I know it is a wee bit early, yet with Hurricane Season just a wee bit over a month away, I figure, it is time to post some reminders...
I am posting the lists compiled before Iselle hit, which have a lot of info & links, and some reminders
If you have pets, storm shelters that allow pets WILL NOT allow pets without cages or carriers...so make sure you have enough for your furry friends (during Iseelle, the Keaau shelter had to turn away people that came with pets that didn't have...& one cat in a soft carrier ripped out of the carrier at the height of the storm, so think about how well confined your friend is
Taping your windows & glass doors is no longer recommended, and without the glass, your house is under far more stresses...we are looking into storm shuttering now (there are many different types, from plywood to fully automated gizmos)
KHON "Surviving a Storm" has some good info
http://khon2.com/category/weather/surviving-a-storm/

the ol' Punaweb threads:
http://www.punaweb.org/Forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=19091
http://www.punaweb.org/Forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=19841

[TomK]

Thank you for the reminder, Carey. Iselle was bad enough and it was a tropical storm/weak hurricane when it hit. Even though El Nino looks to be weakening it doesn't mean we're protected from a devastating storm this summer, so definitely a good time to make sure you're prepared.

[terracore]

We already started... Two weeks ago I started putting the old gas from our cans into the car and replacing it with fresh gas treated with PRI-G. Last week I got more gas and water containers... Walmart only had two 5 gallon water containers ($8 dollars) on the shelves. If you need some, now is the time to get them. Filled the propane tanks. I just now finished removing a tree that would have wound up crashing our roof during the next big wind storm. While hauling the tree to the green waste I noticed that we need more rope. The yellow nylon variety is crap because it literally dissolves over several months when exposed to sun and rain. Other than the water catchment place, where is a good place to get the black UV resistant variety? I looked at HD and didn't see any.

Last week I chatted with somebody who was living on Kauai when Iniki hit. Her first-hand recollections of living for several months without power, water, or regular access to all services was a great reminder. They had one of the few houses on their block that survived with most of the roof intact. By the middle of the storm they had 3 neighbor families hunkering down with them. They didn't board up their windows (all they could get at the last minute was duct tape) and lost many of them. They parked their cars in front of their main window to provide as much deflection as possible and a chunk of a neighbor's house went through the windshield. Their house got flooded from the water coming in with the blowing winds.

Technically, Iselle was just a wind storm when it made landfall. Few of us are prepared for an actual hurricane hitting us.

[SoCal_to_Hawaii]

This will be my first storm season in our lovely section of the world. I've got a start on preparations but I have a question about storm-shutters/plywood. I'm on Kaloli point .4 to .5 miles from the ocean on three sides.

My husband assures me the windows will not 'blow' out from the wind (I'm more of a worrier than he, so I'm not sure I buy that), but wind driven projectiles may be a concern. Our lot is mostly clear of large trees on the windward sides (at least nothing that can fall on the house or water tank), and there no obvious projectile sources like coconuts on our lot. The lots to either side of us have been ripped/grubbed and are full of low weeds. The lots across the street are either built on or in a jungle state.

So my question is... is boarding up the windows recommended given the information above?

[SoCal_to_Hawaii]

I should add... under what circumstances? Hurricane vs storm, winds at X MPH, etc.

[terracore]

Only mother nature can answer that question. What she can't answer is if the stores will have plywood, wood screws, and powered screwdrivers for you to buy in the hours before the storm hits, or if they have all been purchased and sold-out, or the store itself closes because the employees need to go secure their own homes. A powerful tropical storm here will knock out power for days or weeks. A category 5 storm will destroy most infrastructure. Your windows may survive either type of storm, regardless.

At one time we almost had enough plywood to protect all our windows, but we keep raiding our storm hoard for livestock projects. Just because you have plywood and wood screws doesn't make you a fearing-hurricane-nutter. There are other practical reasons to keep that stuff on hand.

[Hunt Stoddard]

I knew someone who kept a stack of window sized plywood pieces in a closet in her garage (on Kaloli point, by coincidence). They basically went with the house. Even if your windows don't blow out, it might be useful to have them on hand in case you need to move out temporarily until power is restored. It's amazing how quickly people abandon their house when the toilet isn't working. Plywood covering everything would impede looting until power was restored. (On the other hand plywood makes it easy to spot unoccupied houses, so your mileage may vary.)

If you made careful measurements, Home Depot will cut the pieces to the size you need. But don't wait until the week of a storm.

[TomK]

SoCal,

You live near me. In the nearly two-decades I've been here I've never boarded up my windows, but as terracore mentions, it really is up to nature. I don't think it's possible to give a definitive answer to your question, but if you want to be cautious, having material handy to barricade windows won't do any harm.

Personally, my priorities are a source of power (i.e., a portable generator) and a decent emergency kit with food, water, medications etc. I've not had to use the emergency kit so far, but it's good to know it's there.

Iselle devastated Paradise Drive in HPP but fortunately left Kaloli Drive more-or-less alone, so there was access to Kaloli Point, but the next storm might be different so I would prepare for a few days of being unreachable just to be on the safe side.

[SoCal_to_Hawaii]

Thanks all. I'll be buying plywood in the coming week. I'd much rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. I think I have, or will have, all my other bases covered.

[EightFingers]

I put in threaded 1/2" lag screws on my windows and have plywood cut and ready to go on in case of a storm. I used a template so most of the pieces can be put on any window without having to figure out which piece went where. All I do to put the plywood up line up with the bolts and screw down with wing nuts. Whole process should take about two hours, but I did a test run to be sure. All my windows are big and the plywood is heavy, but at least I got something!
Only thing I dread is most likely these will have to put up while it's raining. . .