Sunday, August 17, 2008

Tropical Storm Fay

Broward County Libraries Division, my employer, has decided to close tomorrow (Monday, August 18, 2008) to the public because of the tropical storm threat. As an employee of the Library, I will be going to work for half the day to tie up loose ends and cover all the library equipment to protect against potential water intrusion, etc.

Earlier today, my brother and I went to Walmart to get some last minute things for our trip to Jamaica this coming Wednesday. The store was extremely packed because people were stocking up on supplies to weather the upcoming storm. It took over an hour just to check out about ten items.

I remember living in Jamaica during the threats of a storm and also experiencing the hurricane there. The interesting thing for me there was supermarket shelves being completely bare because people literally bought everything. If you were a late starter with hurricane preparedness, you wouldn't find a thing to purchase for consumption or light (candles). Luckily, there are a lot more choices and places to purchase supplies in South Florida, and the US, which eliminates that worry.

I also remember placing two strips of tape across a glass window in the shape of an X. At the time, I thought that was to protect the window and prevent any problems with the hurricane. I later realized it was to ensure that if the window gets knocked out and smashed into a million pieces they would be all together.

One more thing, I was in Jamaica during Hurricane Gilbert which was in 1988. It was terrible, our neighbours roofs blew off and some other's homes got flooded. Everyone was okay and everyone helped everyone else. But since I was a child at the time, the worst thing for me was the corned beef sandwiches we ate all the time. Since the electricity didn't work, we were unable to cook. Plus, we didn't have any perishables either. Even now I can't eat one of those sandwiches without having bad hurricane flashbacks.

Anyway, that's all for now. I'll keep you all updated.

Banner AnH

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Good luck and tare care - I'll be watching the news.

barbara huffert said...

Be safe. Will you be able to get there Wednesday?

Anika Hamilton said...

Yes, I think so (Wednesday should be fine). However, my parents should be leaving Tuesday morning and so far the airports have not cancelled any flights nor closed for service. So I will be watching the news and scanning the internet for info for them.

Phoenix said...

You're in the line of the storm too? Oh crap. Stay safe hon, and please do keep us informed of what's happening.

Sedonia Guillone said...

Yeah - of course, the weather reports were wrong again! And we're in the path. The lake behin our house is rising - the highest it's been in years. Much more and we'll be able to swim in our backyard. I hope this thing dies out quickly!