Holy Saffir-Simpson Scale, Batman, this sucked AND blew both physically and figuratively.
They called this wind Maria and after this bitch they’ll retire the name from the rotation and good riddance. The mother first wrecked Dominica even blowing away the PM’s house then headed for us.
By Tuesday it was impossible to buy a ticket out and the airline ticket pricing algorithms went nuts.
As of elevenish in the morning everyone in the family seemed to be doing OK then the eyewall went over our hometown and along with a score other small towns they are cut off by every means except first responder radios. The cel network has gone down in most of the island and even here in SJ it’s iffy. The radio news stations succumbed to different calamities from building damage to network failures to the point there is a grand total of ONE news station conventionally on the air. Which is a problem because with no power and a failing network you can’t rely on the webcast. So a major part of the island is de facto in Schrodinger’s box. You may imagine how that has on people’s nerves.
What IS in reach is a hot wet wreck – lots of property damage, severe flooding, thousands of displacees. Deluxe condos and hotels clobbered just as much as working class prefabs. Airport terminal a mess. Economic losses sure to be crippling. It will be tomorrow afternoon at the soonest that anyone takes a look at the big picture, but we are talking that whole chunks of the power grid are going to have to just be installed afresh. Of course I’m in the dark again and now with the bonus that because of the flooding the water is cut off too. For the first time dince maybe WW2 there’s a general curfew dusk-to-dawn. Fully expect the NG in the streets by the weekend.
May I say these are in contention for the worst 24 hours I’ve had to deal with ever. Home damages seem minimal at least structurally but of course I do not yet know all places water may have got into and how much, and I need to wait for tomorrow daylight to examine wiring, AC units, etc. I gotta say, there were some times I was worried, though this house is built like a damn Maginot Line unit (*), that there would be a failure at a door or window or where an extension joins the old construction, one could just feel the strain.
Irma and Maria will be felt for a long time in the NE Caribbean.
Here it’s looking to be one huge rebuild project. Just at the time we can least afford one, but we will get to it.
That is, we will after I chop up this tree blocking my driveway. That’s tomorrow’s project if the rain allows it.
(*That part does differentiate us from the Leewards/Virgins - our housing stock is on average a lot sturdier. I have whole walls of poured reinforced concrete and I could kiss them. But many of our rural poor can be just as screwed as theirs when the winds blow.)