2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season Running Thread

Hey, I get it. Based on who starts the annual hurricane thread, I'm obviously the storm geek. I've ridden out more than many can name. Heck, I just looked, and I've got 9 weather/storm/tide apps on my phone that I check multiple times daily.

 

I only have four. And three YouTube channels. You magnificent bastard!

 

This is one of the more extreme examples of clean versus dirty side I can remember.

Roughly speaking, landfall is expected around Carrabelle, a bit southwest of Tallahassee. If you go a little more than 100 miles west of there as the crow flies to Destin, there isn’t even a tropical storm warning.

Who does have tropical storm warnings? Atlanta, Asheville and Charlotte. Not to mention the entire Atlantic coast from Myrtle Beach clear down to Key West. For that matter there are hurricane warnings posted as far inland as Macon.

 

I really want one of those fancy personal weather stations, but I have nowhere to put it that it won't be partially blocked in some way or another. It wouldn't give me any more data than I get off my apps, but it would be pinpoint for my location and something cool to play with.
I've also told my wife I want an old school brass barometer for Christmas.

 

Also of note but no danger, Tropical Storm Isaac has formed in the middle of the Atlantic and could become a hurricane in a couple of days.

 

Yesterday's cold front, which resulted in a day-long thunderstorm, coupled with whatever we're getting this morning before we even get any effects of Helene, is disconcerting at best. We had close to two inches of rain yesterday, looking at another two by evening, and then it gets nasty. I really need to check the gutters at some point because we've already had some of the leaves turning -- and I'm certain they're clogging the drain.

It's been a very dry August and September up until now, so the pine trees and their very shallow root system are primed to topple all over the place once the wind shows up in the middle of the night. WUnderground has us getting steady 25-30 mph but I've seen forecasts much greater than that. All depends on how much Helene runs out of energy once it hits land. It's a big and fast storm that's expected to carry a punch quite a ways inland.

We have everything charged but just about 100 percent guaranteed to lose power sometime early Friday morning. And when it'll come back on? No idea. Our water is connected to an electric pumping station, so we'll fill the bathtubs before we go to bed.

 

Wishing you and everyone in the path of the storm good luck.

 

I really do need to get an emergency generator to run some essentials if need be. I can live without one to power the whole house, and I don't have room to store a huge one. Harbor Freight have some a reasonable prices that are about 2K watt Honda knockoffs. I've been checking out reviews on YouTube.

 

This is such a piddly nothing complaint when I live somewhere that might barely get any rain out of this storm. But the drop in barometric pressure is absolutely killing my sinuses today. I fantasize about putting a maple syrup tap in my right temple for relief.

 

Just be careful if you go with a portable one. When I was still in news, I wrote about multiple carbon monoxide poisoning deaths over the years where people running a portable generator after a storm did not have the exhaust going into a safe place - including one where the generator was under a carport but there was some kind of hvac exhaust vent nearby that wasn't preventing backflow into the house.

My mom uses an oxygen concentrator at home, a.k.a. she needs electricty 24/7. We keep a supply of tanks at her house, but she's on such a high flow rate that we can only safely keep about 8 hours worth.

My dad wanted to get a portable for emergencies and I was like "Hell no, we're going for a properly installed permanent one." I've seen that man try to put a boat in the water enough times to know I can't trust him to have common sense when setting it up and firing it up.

 

Fifteen to twenty foot storm surge? There are insurance companies packing up and preparing to flee Florida with the rest of the refugees.

Good luck to all in the affected areas. Be smart, stay safe.

 

As of 10 a.m. ET, Helene still hasn't produced a definitive eye wall and forecasts have delayed its landfall. However, the pressure continues to drop and all indications are that the storm will gain in intensity over the next 12 hours before reaching the Big Bend area of Florida. The NHC has moved the forecast track a little more east, which I'm not sure does me any favors. Right now, the more west of this storm, the much more likely you're going to avoid the really nasty parts.

We're about 375 miles north of Wakulla Beach, Fla., and now the brunt of the storm is expected to reach us about 5-6 a.m. tomorrow. That still means tropical force winds with gusts exceeding that, but there's still a lot of uncertainty about how much punch Helene will carry this far inland. One good thing about our location -- we are protected by a ridgeline to the southwest, so we're not completely exposed, unlike some of the cabins with mountain views. Plus, everything slopes away on the southeast side. Still, there are enough tall trees that could pose a problem if we get a straight-line gust or three before this is over.

I'm at almost 1,500 feet and quite a bit above the Chattahoochee -- unlike the folks a mile up the road -- so flooding shouldn't be an issue (as long as the sump pump keeps operating until the electricity goes out!). It's the wind that's going to be a factor.

I'll keep you updated.