Battening Down the Hatches

[Deleted]

Smart Ideas. Fun today when wind knocked out power at work. Sad when lights turned back on 10 minutes after. We wished to go home so much to worry about houses. Why it does not work this way if my home lose electricity?  That takes days.

[NastyWoman]

Dec 10, 2014 21:36:59 GMT -5 @workingshasta said:

I don't think I need to fill the bathtub for this storm. A quick bucket outside and it will be full in no time. It's pouring.

It's still dry in the south bay, but the eind sure has started blowing.

Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain  (says person who lives in a second floor condo) 

[NastyWoman]

Dec 10, 2014 23:06:01 GMT -5 alwaysbeoptimizing said:

"If an earthquake took down several overpasses, would I have the stuff I need in my car to walk 10-15 miles home?"

Abso-friggin'-lutely! I also have water supplies at home, at work, and in my car ( with a backpack so I can carry the water and some other necessities such as a smallish first aid kit)

[cronewitch]

Dec 10, 2014 23:06:01 GMT -5 alwaysbeoptimizing said:

Worst storm was the windstorm in Seattle in 2006 or so. I was out of power for 11 days!!! It was crazy how much things went primitive in a hurry. no power for stoplights or gas stations either.

Worst disaster was Mt. St. Helens as a kid.

Preparation for most any one thing will help you with many others.

Full propane tank (and why not keep 1-2 spares full? Handy during grilling parties, but also nice to have a couple ready in case disaster strikes).

We choose to have a generator that can run on gasoline, propane or natural gas. If there is a windstorm that knocks out power, natural gas is perfect because it's infinite out of the tap. If it's the "big one" earthquake, then gas will probably be out, and we'll need to rely on our limited stock of propane to cook with (side burner on outdoor grill) and run the generator sparingly to keep fridge/freezers going and charge batteries in electronics/etc.

When we redo the house, i'm going to add solar. WA incentives will make this about a 3 year ROI, and i'll design the system in a way that it has a battery bank and will power all household circuits (except oven and dryer) in case of outage.

For disasters, don't forget about work and car too! Not as important in a storm you know is coming, but if you're thinking earthquake, keep good hiking shoes (broken in!), water, space blanket, flashlight, and good hiking coat at work and same in car(s). Doesn't apply to Bonnie's situation today, but something to consider.

"If an earthquake took down several overpasses, would I have the stuff I need in my car to walk 10-15 miles home?"

Was that the Dec 14 windstorm? We enjoyed that one we cut up all the trees we could find and filled a woodshed, I bought a log splitter and he bought a bigger chain saw because one neighbor had a tree too big to cut with his saw and too heavy to lift to put in a truck. I don't remember my power being out but we have a wood stove and a camper with a generator so with lanterns it can be very nice in front of a fire.

[The Captain]

Shouting out for a check-in from our peeps!

Bonny, @workingshasta, t-dog, kent - how you folk doing?

Did I miss anyone?

[skubikky]

Here in Western NY where we live in the rural backwoods, many have wells and can hand pump if necessary.
All of us on our road have generators and have for as long as I remember.
All of us on our road heat using wood burning stoves and use propane for the kitchen stoves.
None of these require electricity which helps when we lose power....and here we lose power a few times a year.

[Bonny]

We're fine. Winds started up at 3:00am as originally predicted. Sustained winds are in the 30s. So far our biggest gust was 45mph so not so bad. We cleared EVERYTHING off our front porch and the wrap around decks.

Rain just started. We're expecting a lot of flooding in the low lying areas between the high surf and rain.

It's the North Bay/Sonoma Co that's really been pounded so far.

Really glad I don't have to drive in this stuff!

[skubikky]

Bonny....what town are you in?

[Bonny]

I'm in a small town outside of San Francisco on the Peninsula.

[Bonny]

LOL, my cell is going off with the flash flood warning. Thankfully we're 300' above sea level.

Good news is I bet the protesters won't be blocking the freeways in the East Bay tonight!

[973beachbum]

Good luck to all of you!  I think we got the most damage from a Nor Easter that hit us the year before Irene.  It took lots of trees down and generally messed us up personally but good.   The damage to Sandy though was so widespread that even though our little area was fine it is still causing problems.  There was so much wide spread damage that getting to everyone still hasn't happened.  There are still 2 bridges that are not fixed. 

The best thing I was told to do was if wind is the problem to put all valuables in the closets wrapped in blankets and shut the doors with duct tape diagnally across the outside of the doors.  I guess closets are more sturdy and it keeps water away from things if a window gets broken and water is blowing inside.  I did that with pictures and such that had been on the walls. 

I hope you guys are all doing okay!!

[Bonny]

Dec 11, 2014 10:22:10 GMT -5 @anne81 said:

I read that some schools are cancelled for today because they anticipate the weather to be so bad.  Hope everyone gets through the storm alright and CA gets some of the rain it needs.

Yeah, most schools in Sonoma, Marin and a lot of SF have been closed. Looking at how hard it's raining makes me think they'll close the schools here too. I don't think the schools themselves are in danger but commuting to them has folks driving in low lying areas that are likely to flood.

I'm expecting Caltrans to shut down a portion of HWY 1.

[siralynn]

We're getting slammed in Marin right now. Definitely a great decision to work from home today.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Dec 10, 2014 22:57:37 GMT -5 weltschmerz said:

We're right in the middle of two back-to-back storms. What a mess! It only stops snowing when it sleets. Heavy, sticky snow. Lots of it

F***ing Winter Wonderland!

Worse storm I ever experienced? This one. Some people didn't have power for a month. In the middle of winter. In Canada.

Ice Storm 1998

Between January 4th and 10th, 1998, parts of Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec were hit by 3 successive storm fronts that have been called the greatest natural disaster in Canadian history.

----

The thickening ice downed power lines, forcing 100 000 people to seek refuge in hotels, private homes or hastily assembled shelters. Several thousand kilometres of power lines and telephone cables became useless. Personnel from 14 utility companies from 6 provinces and 8 American states worked to restore service. A state of emergency was declared. The Canadian Forces deployed nearly 16 000 troops in "Operation Recuperation," the largest-ever peacetime deployment.

www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ice-storm-1998/

www.google.ca/search?q=icestorm+quebec+1998&rlz=1T4ACAW_enCA440CA440&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=PBaJVKPXB8uwggS8_4KwBg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1093&bih=513

My folks were caught in this storm in upstate NY.  I caught the last flight that left out of Burlington before they shut the airport down.  My folks had no power for damn near a month and the devastation in the area was incredible even when I went back 6 months later.

A friend of mine lives near Syracuse and tried to get my folks out of the area and bring them down to stay with them, but they were turned around by the National Guard, as no one was being let into town.  There were a lot of problems with looting and theft.

[kent]

Dec 11, 2014 7:48:01 GMT -5 The Captain said:

Shouting out for a check-in from our peeps!

Bonny, @workingshasta, t-dog, kent - how you folk doing?

Did I miss anyone?

Thanks for asking Captain.  About 90 minutes ago we had high winds and a bit of rain.  About 30 minutes ago it started coming down in buckets (almost literally) and it continues.

For only the second time in 18 years we've lost out satellite signal so this is definitely one of the worst we've experienced in awhile.  If I had to guess (and I do have to "guess") I'd say were somewhere around  2-3 inches per hour coming down right now.  The skylights sound like there's somebody pouring garbage cans full of bb's on them.  Field drains (gutters tied into them) look like fire hoses or geysers.  Just got a thunder clap - WTH?  

[t-dog]

siralynn hope Marin isn't too badly hit. My dad lives on a hilltop in Marin. Here in Sac we have high winds and lots of rain. My pool is nearly full to the top already and the auto drain feature seems to have quit! My DS is hoping power goes out at school. His school did cancel Middle School orientation for tonight in anticipation of the weather.

[Bonny]

Dec 11, 2014 11:50:09 GMT -5 @anne81 said:

I'm expecting Caltrans to shut down a portion of HWY 1.

Winds, flooding, landslides or all three?

Flooding mostly.

The big landslide problem supposedly was corrected when they put in the Devil's Slide Tunnel almost two years ago. If they hadn't I would expect this type of storm and saturation (on the heels of the last storm less than a week ago) to cause the slide to slide. And when it does it's usually months before it re-opens.

From the house I can look at the main feeders to our little valley. I can see cautionary lights that have been set up. I assume that if the area was flooded that I'd see red and blue emergency lights closing the intersection. Caltrans is part way through a bridge replacement project over the main creek. I bet that area is a hot mess!

[Tiny]

Well, I'm not in San Fran - but our office there is without power (it's before business hours) - Haven't said the office will be closed yet, but I suspect that will happen.

Stay safe! if you are in the bad weather zone!

[Bonny]

Dec 11, 2014 12:15:50 GMT -5 Tiny said:

Well, I'm not in San Fran - but our office there is without power (it's before business hours) - Haven't said the office will be closed yet, but I suspect that will happen.

Stay safe! if you are in the bad weather zone!

Yeah, the news says there's 38,000 without power in SF. Not sure how they do that count. There's only 750,000 people who live in SF but I think there's something like 1.5M who work in SF.

Our favorite TV station is running on their back-up generator.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Half of Bellingham was without power yesterday.  I was on campus submitting my last work, and got home before it hit so didn't have any problems.  We didnt lose power, for once.

Several years ago, we did have a tree fall on the house.  We got natural skylights in both the master BR and bath.   Last year, during a snowstorm that was very wet, a tree fell on one of the cars.

We have taken down a couple trees that looked less than healthy one year, to prevent another falling on the house.

[Deleted]

It is very, very windy and rainy here.

I always say it is bad when there are puddles on my sandy soil. We don't get those much, but today the water is puddling and forming rivers where my property slopes.

Good time to live on top of a hill!   Wind is actually the worst for us, but I can't look at the roof well until the storm passes.

There is flooding in other parts of the county, and they are really worried about some of the fire areas from this summer's fires.

[t-dog]

Our office ceiling is leaking but we still have power.

[Bonny]

Got another emergency alert. Earlier ones were in effect until 10:15. Liars!

Now it's been extended until 11:45. Sooooo grateful I don't have to commute in this mess!

[t-dog]

The rain is coming in horizontally its being driven against my window with such force. The trees are bending mightily. Not looking forward to having to go out for the school pick up if it is still like this at 2 pm.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Anyone heard from Dark?  Is he in this area too? 

[weltschmerz]

Dec 11, 2014 11:30:38 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

Dec 10, 2014 22:57:37 GMT -5 weltschmerz said:

We're right in the middle of two back-to-back storms. What a mess! It only stops snowing when it sleets. Heavy, sticky snow. Lots of it

F***ing Winter Wonderland!

Worse storm I ever experienced? This one. Some people didn't have power for a month. In the middle of winter. In Canada.

Ice Storm 1998

Between January 4th and 10th, 1998, parts of Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec were hit by 3 successive storm fronts that have been called the greatest natural disaster in Canadian history.

----

The thickening ice downed power lines, forcing 100 000 people to seek refuge in hotels, private homes or hastily assembled shelters. Several thousand kilometres of power lines and telephone cables became useless. Personnel from 14 utility companies from 6 provinces and 8 American states worked to restore service. A state of emergency was declared. The Canadian Forces deployed nearly 16 000 troops in "Operation Recuperation," the largest-ever peacetime deployment.

www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ice-storm-1998/

www.google.ca/search?q=icestorm+quebec+1998&rlz=1T4ACAW_enCA440CA440&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=PBaJVKPXB8uwggS8_4KwBg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1093&bih=513

My folks were caught in this storm in upstate NY.  I caught the last flight that left out of Burlington before they shut the airport down.  My folks had no power for damn near a month and the devastation in the area was incredible even when I went back 6 months later.

A friend of mine lives near Syracuse and tried to get my folks out of the area and bring them down to stay with them, but they were turned around by the National Guard, as no one was being let into town.  There were a lot of problems with looting and theft.

I wanted to go to my parents' place out in the country, as they had a wood stove and a fireplace, but the roads were impassable with downed power lines and fallen trees.

[t-dog]

Dark is closer to Bonny than he is to my area. Haven't seen him posting today.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Dec 11, 2014 12:43:52 GMT -5 @anne81 said:

You can't imagine how cold it got in the house. I had no fireplace, no wood-burning stove, no generator, nothing. No source of heat whatsoever.

I like having a woodstove in the house for that reason.  When we were kids and lost power that's how we had heat.  We were way too poor to buy a generator.

We lost power for 3 days last winter.  By the second day, the house got freaking cold.  Despite having gas heat and a fireplace, both have electric blowers to disperse the heat.

 I think a generator is in our future.

[Bonny]

Dec 11, 2014 13:48:45 GMT -5 t-dog said:

Dark is closer to Bonny than he is to my area. Haven't seen him posting today.

He's about 20-30 miles south of San Jose. They should be getting walloped by now.

Sum Dum Gai's store could be in a low-lying shopping center. If so, he may have been spending a lot of time sandbagging.

I'm curious how NastyWoman and @audreyalice and dancinmama are doing. Also Ombud and I think @murphpath may also be SF Bay Area folks.

[t-dog]

When I was in Athens (1992) the heat went out and it was cold. Hostel owners solution was to get out lots of Uzo - we all got drunk and slept soundly despite the lack of heat.

Office is ordering lunch so no one has to go out in the rain today.