Posted August 13th, 2004 @ 07:05pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Question: Have you ever lived through a natural disaster?
My Answer: No. Since moving to FL we've seen very few hurricanes (and Charley is on the other coast), and where I live in PA sometimes sees huge snowfalls, but that's about it - no hurricanes, tornadoes, or earthquakes really. I'm pretty fortunate.
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Posted 13 Aug 2004 at 10:14pm #
Hurricane Andrew when I was 17. It cancelled the first two weeks of my senior year in high school. I was out of power of nearly two weeks, but I did manage to see television four days after the storm via a gas-powered generator and finally saw the extent of the damange. I was horrified. I didn't think it was that bad.
Posted 13 Aug 2004 at 11:09pm #
The Northridge Earthquake (Jan. 1994). I was living in Sherman Oaks, CA (about 5 miles from the epicenter) at the time. Getting shaken out of bed at 4AM was one of the most frightening experiences in my life. We were without electricity for about a day and without running water for 3 days. Thankfully my apartment building didn't have any serious damage, although some of the nearby buildings did.
I'd rather go through a hurricane - at least you have enough advance warning to prepare for it.
Posted 13 Aug 2004 at 11:52pm #
Blizzard of '69 (Feb. 1969 Boston)
I was 3 1/2 but I remember. My younger brother was born shortly before the storm. I was staying with my grandparents. Following the storm my parents brought us all home to a cold dark house buried in snow drifts with no power. Power was out for a number of days and I can remember quite literally camping out in the living room. I also remember that the whole neighborhood pulled together to make sure everyone was taken care of.
Blizzard of '78 (Feb. 1978 Boston)
I grew up in a coastal town. A public parking lot in the harbor was buried in huge thick slabs of ice that had been lifted out of the sea. I recall one street near the beach. Every house on the beach side of the street was gone, wiped out by the storm surge. The street itself was buried in sand and rocks.
Oh and no school for three weeks.
Northridge Earthquake (Jan. 1994 Los Angeles)
I was living in Redondo Beach. The epicenter was up in the valley. Close enough to give a good shock but far enough away that we didn't get much real damage. Except for the marina which was fill.
We helped out some friends who did live in the valley. This was several days after but there were still lots of aftershocks. I remember watching a stone wall quiver like Jello.
Luckily none of my experiences have been worthy of an Irwin Allen disaster film.
Posted 14 Aug 2004 at 6:41am #
Hurricane Isabel last year. I've been through several others but that's most recent. Isabel did the most damage though. A 90 foot pecan tree came down in my backyard missing my bedroom by about 6 inches. We were without power for about three weeks.
And still Hurricanes don't frighten me. I've lived through too many of them to be concerned. They're just big storms to me and everyone I know.
The cool thing about a hurricane, after a while, you learn how to smell them coming. You can smell a hurricane in the air about a week or two before it hits. That period before it hits is always quite pleasant.
Posted 15 Aug 2004 at 1:38am #
I been through a flood that was pretty bad. I remember looking outside and actually see peoples porches floating down the street. What was so scary about the flood was it happened so fast.
Posted 15 Aug 2004 at 1:40am #
No. Even though I was born and raised in Florida I have never actually been through a natural disaster. They seem to only come when I am out of state. My home town of Fort Myers was hit pretty hard though, and the phone lines are still out.
Posted 16 Aug 2004 at 11:21am #
It didn't matter which coast you were on during Charley... It ripped right through Orlando and on through Daytona. I'm fortunate not to live in Punta Gorda, but being inland didn't really make me safe. I still can't believe what it did at OIA and even to parts of the UCF campus. Thankfully all I had was three or four gallons of water pour through the ceiling throughout the night and the storm that followed on Saturday. It smells moldy but at least I have power back (and a roof!)