Posted on 09/29/2005 4:40:58 PM PDT by ForGod'sSake
Some personal observations on Rita...
For starters, I'm on line now thanks to a newly purchased(since in a stroke of brilliance, I recently sold my 6 year old generator that I never used and only loaned out a few times) 5600W generator. I was also able to purchase the last 21,000 BTU "window" a/c from Sears in Lufkin Texas. For those unaquainted with "tropical" climates, with the temp and humidity competing for which one gets to 100 first, "uncomfortable" is an understatement. Especially for me because I would prefer to get out and work in 40 degree weather then even 70 degree plus. And yeah, I ask myself at times, WTH am I doing in east Texas? Well, it's home.
So, a couple of days before Rita is due, I check in with my daughter and son-in-law who live in mid-Jefferson county(Beamont/Port Arthur area) to get an idea of their plans(and suggest one if necessary ;^)). My daughter tells me she and the grandbabies are planning on coming to my place the next day. I "suggested" the sooner the better. They ended up leaving late that night(Thursday), heading in my direction. It took them three and a half hours to make what is normally an hour and a half trip. They arrived in downtown Chester Texas(home sweet home) in the northwest corner of Tyler county around 2:00 in the morning. BTW, son-in-law, who is an ER nurse, had to stick around; he works at Baptist hospital in Beaumont.
Since I've lived in hurricane country most of my adult life, normal and routine preparations were made(fact is, I stay "prepared" most of the time anyway). Fill jugs for drinking water(most go in the freezer), fill a bath tub(for flushing water), additional water in an outside tank(which also keeps it from going airborne), everything not tied down brought inside, etc. Send my daughter to the store for last minute non-perishables on Friday before the storm. By Friday evening, we're as ready as we can be with one exception which I'll get to later.
An aside; during this time the in-laws have not decided what they're going to do or where they're going to go. I suggested it didn't matter as long as they got out of Jefferson county. After some fits and starts, they made a last minute dash for the northwest Houston area instead of up here to the piney woods, which turned out to be a smart move since Houston was mostly spared.
So, by Friday evening it appears western Louisiana and east Texas will take the hit from this storm. I pass out the flashlights, set up a meeting area if things get really bad and we get separated. I make sure the grandkids understand what's going on and they need to get some sleep because we may need to get up early. I have set up a tent in their bedroom so it's sort of a camping thing for them.
By midnight winds begin to show some serious signs of aggression. At 1:00 A.M. we lose power. By 2:00, the moaning and whistling through the trees becomes continuous. Daughter in the Azores with other son-in-law calls to see how we're doing. We report we're doing fine under the circumstances, but it's going to get worse. Hurricane winds are hitting us by 4:00 and everything's holding together. By 6:00 we're getting wind gusts near 100 mph, and the "eye" is still approaching. At 6:30, daughter in the Azores calls again and before she hangs up my "tool shed" becomes airborne. This upsets her immensely because amongst other things, she was here during the construction phase of it. She also realizes I had it anchored down pretty well, but as it turns out, not well enough.
Daylight arrives, and actually seeing what we've been hearing all night is unsettling(but I don't let on). The gusts from this storm were just incredible. I've been through a couple other storms but they weren't like this one. Their winds were more consistent, that is, the difference between the sustained winds and the wind gusts were not as great. Rita was something to behold; at times the winds almost seemed to die down, only to be replaced by gusts stronger than the last ones. For the last few hours we've occasionally heard the cracking of limbs above the wind and the distinctive "thump" of a tree hitting the ground. And the "eye" has still not passed. These piney woods are being torn to shreds and we haven't seen the worst of it yet. I pray to God to watch over my humble abode and this small gathering.
By 10:00 or so, the eye has finally passed us; daughter in the Azores calls again, and we can report the worst is over. We're still here and no major damage to life, limb or property. She's ecstatic, and she's not the emotional one. My thoughts go to the people to the east of us. We were on the "clean" side of this storm and "news" reports notwithstanding, we received no more than three inches of rain from Rita. I can't say whether the weather station's rain gauges allow for sideways rain or not, but we got nowhere near the rain reported. The wind itself is another matter. As it turns out, we were no more than twenty miles from the center of Rita when she passed and for those that have been this close to a major storm, no explanation is needed. If you haven't been there, no explanation will suffice.
By mid afternoon the winds have died down to the point where we can venture out. We don't get far. Most, if not all the roads around here are impassable. Big trees lose to big wind every time, and they litter the roads. However, the locals, being the industrious sort, crank up the John Deere's and begin pulling trees out of the roads and pig trails in these parts. I grab my chain saw, throw it in the back of the truck and take off. Along with a few others, we're able to clear most of the debris in our little neck of the woods. Question is, where are we gonna go?
Last I heard, six counties in southeast Texas are still without power and some of us are not likely to have electricity for several more weeks. Which brings me to another point. That is, my generator, since I'm also running a window a/c on it, is using about 10 gallons of gas a day. At $3.00/gal; do the math. That's not the worst of it however. The nearest gas we've been able to find is about 25 miles away, and rationed by the station owners(the lines move faster). Most have a limit of $25 - $30 per person. That's barely enough to keep the generator going, not to mention getting there and back. Enter, pay-at-the-pump stations.......after hours. My brother and I went to Diboll Texas last night and pumped almost $200 of gas in various containers, including a 50 gallon drum left over from my Y2K stash. We're set for about three days. Some good news, a "cool" front has passed through the area and I was able to turn off the a/c. From the looks of things I shouldn't need to turn it on again til maybe day after tomorrow.
I've actually run on longer than I had anticipated, but whatever.....
I've got some pics that I'll post as soon as I get 'em sized and formatted. Daughter also took some video of the storm that might be of interest, but will not likely be uploaded on a computer any time soon since they're not even able to go home. Interesting times.....
Oh, and the one exception I mentioned earlier. My "tool shed" had an open side on it. The thought never occurred to me to seal it off with something, like plywood(which we had just laying around). If I had sealed the open side, the wind may have not been able to get in and "lift" it, and flip it over after traveling about six feet. Oh well; next time.
FGS
We're cut from the same cloth- I must have learned it from my Mom & Dad, because as far back as I can remember, if there was work to be done, they'd get down on the ground, up in a tree, whatever, and pitch in.
I can hear 'em now, "Don't stand there like a bump on a log!"
My current Golden tells humblegunner that he hasn't eaten for months and days. And humblegunner falls for it every time.
It's good to hear you were so lucky as to share your life with a Golden. The bond between a man a his dog is something special.
And it's probably true, he's so starving. Poor dog needs some meat products.
Flyer has never brought an adequately fed dog over here.
Well, I rode out the storm here in Nederland. My first generator konked out on me, but a neighbor lent me his, so I'm at least able to get onto the internet again, and find out what's going on in the outside world.
I'm so exhausted. Spent the first 3 days after the hurricane on the roof, nailing up bits and pieces of fallen shingles. Brutally hot. Now I'm sawing up the two trees that surrendered to Rita. My hands are swollen from all the many little cuts and fire-ant bites (16 fire-ant bites on my hand!). Luckily, my sister drove my grandmother to her apartment in Houston a day after the storm, as the intense heat would have been too much for her.
Well, I guess we have to expect these calamities from time to time, courtesy of Mother Nature. I don't really have any complaints. True, it's been rough sledding at times (trying to sleep at night while sweltering in humid heat, for example). But, oh well. Looking forward to the time we get get electricity back, and I can sit back in cool comfort, with a chilled drink, and watch some dvd's.
Something about the breed, I think. They really like their chow and can't be trusted when it comes to food. Mine preferred his meat a little spicier than most. He was especially fond of old fish guts unless he could drag home some really rancid elk remains to roll in. As bad as the three day old fish guts smelled, you just wouldn't believe the case of the wind that boy would get after eating them. Never smelled anything like it.
Yes, this is a fond memory.
PNG rules!
heh,heh
I haven't, but was/am sortof out of the loop. Haven't had a lot of time to check on particulars on the storm. I was keeping track during the storm on a weather radio which reported the hurricane warning for Tyler county and forecasting gusts of around 100 mph. It's my unprofessional guess the winds lived up to their billing, and then some maybe.
HURRICANE RITA-- archive of links
I'm looking now in another open tab...
Whoops! It's not missing its roof; it's upside down! Rita flipped my tool shed. All the spare lumber, etc has now been cleaned out and the building is awaiting a brilliant plan to bring it upright again. Any ideas???
Ideally, two boom trucks or cranes- one to lift, one to turn. Failing that? Winch it over on the strongest side first. If you have the luxury of two winches, place at opposite ends, and use one to pull and the other to control the pull so it does not slam down hard.
In other words, the primary winch pulls it over, the opposite lets out cable under power to keep the load from getting away.
It wouldn't hurt to rig a few temporary "X" braces of lumber to stiffen the structure, especially the opening, which looks like the weakest side.
The building probably weighs no more than say, 500 pounds. The beam across the front is a 2 X 10 and the whole building was put together with 3" deck screws for the most part(probably helped hold it together?). Anyway, I was thinking about tying onto the beam(maybe in a couple places) and lift the whole building while several able bodied helpers guide the lift. If I can clear the overhang, I can maybe pull this off without buckling the tin at the edge; that is no worse than it already is. A little hammer putty can straighten it out now. Amazing to me still, how the building survived pretty much intact, albeit inverted.
Anyway, any additional thoughts would be appreciated.
FGS
Sound like a good plan-- screwed joints are much more secure than nailed, and the shed probably won't come apart because of that.
If you can locate a nylon towing strap, it is less likely to damage the shed by pinching than a chain or rope.
If you have to use a rope or chain, "crib" it-- place a couple of wood blocks between the chain and shed at each corner to spread out the load and reduce damage.
Thank you! No, it's my brother who lives in Lumberton, not me. (I live "further out in the sticks somewhere in SouthEast Texas" and we'll just leave it at that. :-)
I'm working on some photos but it's taking a while. I didn't realize there was so much 'busy-work' when you don't have electricity. Hang out the clothes, find the matches for the lanterns, find the flashlight, recharge the batteries in the solar charger, find the radio, change the batteries in the radio, etc., etc...
How are things with you?
Dog Gone, this story involves looters. You'll enjoy it!
Never mind on that. He woke up but he's off doing something else. I convinced him to wait until tonight or tomorrow to work on that marine battery, so I have more time to dig up some info.
Anxiously awaiting this story!
1.
12 Volt/10 amp
6 Volt/125 amp start
2.
12 Volt, 50 amp
3.
12 Volt, 225 amp start
4.
6 Volt, 50 amp
5.
12 volt, 2 amp
Nita!
We were wondering how you were faring.
I bolded the correct setting-- when you have the option of allowing more time to charge, the lowest "amps" setting is better- it's what's called "trickle" charging, for a day or two, and will bring the battery up to full charge.
The 10 amp option charges faster, but it is a less thorough charge.
The even higher amp settings are for emergency starting of a gas engine- they aren't really for charging the battery, but rather for supplying starting power for the starter motor on an engine.
Let me review charger & battery basics:
Always, plus ( positive + ) to plus... minus ( negative - ) to minus. Use a crayon or china marker to make the symbols on the battery easier to see.
On the charger, plus is red ( the hot lead ) minus is black ( ground, or Earth as the Brits call it ).
It is good practice to connect the battery leads first, then plug the charger into AC power-- minimizes sparking.
Clean the battery terminals ( lead posts ) with a wire brush 'till they are shiny. Smear with vaselene ( or spray with WD-40 ) to slow corrosion.
Check electrolyte levels- charging heats, and can evaporate the water-- the acid does not evaporate, which is why you add only distilled water.
How do you tell the battery's voltage?
This is easy-- count the cells ( holes )-- three is a six volt, six is a twelve volt. The charger voltage setting must match the battery's voltage.
Each lead-acid cell produces 2.1 volts at full charge ( that is why vacuum tubes were listed with 6.3 or 12.6 volt heaters-- the oldtimers were very literal and precise ) so you count cells, and multiply.
When you can, get a hydrometer-- a specific gravity reader-- you use a squeeze-bulb to draw the electrolyte into the instrument, and read the density of the electrolyte-- a scale is provided on it which will tell you how much the cell you are reading is charged.
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