HURRICANE INFORMATION (AUGUST 15, 2004): All parks except TL are OPEN

I spoke to someone in our Orlando office (downtown) around 10:00am, she said they were allowed to go home at noon. She said the news said to try to do everything they needed to do by 2:00pm and then stay inside. She said the grocery stores were wiped out last night, not much on the shelves.
 
They say so far, the sun is shining and the trees are blowing around a bit. It is now 11:45 am. I hope the powers that be do the right thing and send them home before the storm hits. Is it supposed to hit Boca badly?
 
Boca Raton is not in Charley's present projected path. They may be getting some nasty rain and relatively high wind, but they should not need to really batten down unless the storm changes direction.
 
We're leaving nashville in a couple of hours, driving, but we'll be spending overnight in Atlanta. The Weather Channel needs to take its Ritalin, they are in breathless hyper-emergency mode! They make me nervous!

Anyway, somebody mentioned a minute ago that the govenor hasn't yet decided whether to close I-75 both ways at the GA border. I didn't even know it was an option!

Since we're actually arriving Saturday, do you native Floridians think things will be semi-back-to-normal by then? Will Orlando be under water? Does power get restored at WDW pretty quickly?
 

I just spoke to a friend in Naples, FL and he said he could see the heavy rain about a mile in the distance. His office had shut down too except for the essential personnel. (radio station, on air folks gotta keep going).
 
I was very glad to hear AK wasnt open and that they have suitable shelters for their animals. Some of us from the northeast have never been through a serious hurricane before. It is hard to relate to what is going on down there, without ever experiencing it first hand.
 
The storm has taken a slight turn more towards the Orlando metro area. I am sure tomorrow there are still going to be rains and problems in the area.
 
We were staying at OKW when Floyd narrowly missed Orlando. And I can say I thought that they did an excellent job. We were on one of the last flights into Orlando before they closed the airport down. They went around to all of the rooms and dropped of a safety sheet and a flashlight. They sunk all of the pool chair in the pool to help keep them from blowing around (something I wouldn't think of being from Ohio) Taped up all large windows to help keep them from blowing out. They did not tape the hotel windows though. My sister was at DTD and they were moving all of the expensive items away from the windows and taping them. All I can say is that the closest I want to be to a Hurricane. I was sleeping on the sleeper sofa in a 2br villa and didn't get much sleep that night. We were all safe and enjoyed the rest of our vacation without incident.

Jeremy
 
Well, we are saying lots of prayers for everyone in Charley's path. We are in NC and are suppose to get some wind but mostly rain from the hurricane. We moved here from FL and know all too well what it is like "waiting" for the storm.

It is sad that this will cause hardship during some people's vacation, but they definately won't forget their trip.

I am sure WDW is doing everything possible to keep things safe for their guests and staff.
 
We're getting ready to chase the storm, I'm SO glad we didn't book today because the flight we thought we'd be on has been canceled. Best wishes and prayers to all who are weathering it out. So far, it looks like things will pop back to normal tomorrow afternoon as far as the major storm. The real concern tomorrow is what if any damage has been done.

I got my poncho's ready!
:D
 
my girlfriend works at the magic kingdom and i just spoke to her DD on line the parks are closing at 1:00
malls and other businesses are to close also they want everyone off the streets before 3:00 pm
 
Try to grab a picture (safely of course) if they pull the monorails in and close the storm doors if you can.

The monorails should be nose-to-nose with either 2 or three on each beam.
 
I am down here in Miami and we are getting rain off and on and huge wind gusts even though it is mostly a beautiful day so far. We are supposed to really get the "feeder" bands of rain later today. Last night was when the wind and rain started. The lighting was amazing; the whole sky turned green. I am so glad that we are not even getting the full force here. We are not even in the radar path at all and we are getting this. Everyone please stay safe!
 
I never even thought of the monorails. That would be something to see.
 
Looking at the radar over the past hour, it looks like Charley is turning more towards the northeast and looks to be headed more towards Fort Myers now. This would certainly be good news for Orlando, because the storm would have been inland for a longer period of time before it reaches them.

There would still be a big threat for tornadoes though.

But I'm no meteorologist, I just play one on the DISBoards! :jester:
 
They would need to leave 12 - 18" between trains. I think that 2 complete trains can fit inside the Contemporary on each beam.

I would love to be down there with my camera gear. There would be some fantastic shots to take.

And before anyone starts to flame me, I do not wish bad things upon people. I know that some familes vacations are being impacted by the storm. But, when given lemons, make lemonaid!
 
The current track of the storm takes it closer to Orlando so there will be hurricane force winds in the area.

This is the first storm since the 60's to follow this path.

I don't want to make lemonaid I just want my house to be safe.
 
just in from the hurricane center...

...THE CENTER OF THE HURRICANE SHOULD
REACH THE COAST IN THE VICINITY OF CHARLOTTE HARBOR LATER THIS
AFTERNOON.

RECENT REPORTS FROM A RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT THE
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS HAVE INCREASED TO NEAR 125 MPH...WITH
HIGHER GUSTS...
 
"Will Orlando be under water? Does power get restored at WDW pretty quickly?"

That will depend entirely on how bad the winds are when the storm actually strikes (presuming it doesn't veer at the last minute, of course.) If it is still at cat 3 when it reaches Orlando, you could have lake surge in several places, which would cause some quite nasty flooding; remember that Orlando is dotted all over w/ lakes.

As to power outages, that also depends on the severity of the storm. When Andrew hit Homestead there were some areas that were out for weeks because the power *stations* were flattened and had to be rebuilt. Andrew was a cat 5. A cat 2-3 shouldn't do that much damage, but it's possible that some transformers will be knocked out. That tends to take a few days to repair.

Make it a point to check the web pages of Orlando-area television stations and the Sentinel late tonight and tomorrow morning. They should have an idea then of what kind of time it will take to recover basic services, if they get knocked out. Oh, and try to keep your gas tank topped as you get further South; gasoline stations often get tank leaks in hurricanes, which means that gas shortages are inevitable.

As Safetymom pointed out, no hurricane has tracked right across the Orlando area since Donna, a cat 4 that hit in Sept. of 1960. Disneyworld has never had to deal with a direct hit, so if one happens, it's pretty impossible to predict how long it will take to get everything in working order again.
 












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