10.10.20
As a California resident for forty years I always said that I would prefer an earthquake over any other type of natural disaster, and the uncertainty of WHEN (or IF), they might happen is better than knowing a tornado or hurricane is heading your way. That opinion was borne out as we just experienced our first hurricane in Mexico, herein called, Hurricane Delta.
The good news was that the projected category IV (wind speeds of 130~156 MPH) never quite hit that and the rain was minimal. But the damage to trees and power poles was substantial.
The night before, my Lovely said, “This storm about to hit is now rated a category IV” which caused me to say something like “don’t overreact,” which did not go over very well. Granted, I have a tendency to not worry about hardly anything and put myself in the hands of the Universe to take care of us, but her concerns were justified after a very excited conversation about said hurricane. The next morning, the day it was expected, we had a list of items to get at the grocery store since you should be prepared with (1) water, (2) canned goods, lots of candles and food, and (3) portable power for a few days. Alcohol should be on that list, too. All great suggestions and we found out that half the town read the same recommendations and met us at the grocery store about 0900.
I have never stood in a grocery check out line for 90 minutes, and thought that horrible until we exited the store about 10:30 and saw the line to get IN was about three times that size, extending out to the street. Kudos to the staff as they dealt with what must have been a very stressful day.
Riding our bikes home from the store we saw another line, this one of cars, as they were all heading somewhere. Did they know something we didn’t? Truth is, we live on the second floor of a three story building made of concrete. I felt safe where we were, but still put tape on the windows in case of broken glass, since we had no boards, moved furniture away from the windows in case a 120 MPH projectile decided to come through, and stayed busy until 7:00 p.m., which is when power was due to be cut off. I was skeptical of that time since the storm was not expected until early the next morning, and my intuition was right as power stayed on, candles were lit just in case, and at 0245 the winds started, but with little rain, and it stayed that way until 0400 when the power finally did cut off.
The bathroom is the safest place during a hurricane: who knew?
Oh, one more thing. Kathleen did not feel safe in our normal bedroom, but wanted to sleep in what they say is the safest room in the house: your bathroom. And we did…with mattress pad draped over the shower basin and on to the floor, and I was amazed how soundly I DID sleep!
For the next hour we were up and down, with torrential winds accompanying bangs, noises and whistles coming from who knows where. It began as a tropical breeze through the window, minimal rain, and lightning bursting behind the clouds, but was very scary for much too long, though magical in its own threatening way.
Then…silence. For about 45 minutes, stillness, and what must have been the storm’s eye passing over. Then, the trailing side, with more wind than before. Or so I’m told since I slept through most of it. Finally about 0630, daybreak, and clouds blowing by overhead faster than I have ever seen them move, immersed in a pink hued sky. From our window we viewed the damage, which was severe, with downed trees and limbs, but not catastrophic, which is what was predicted. After a breakfast of cereal since we had no power (or refrigerator), we took a walk through our 500 or so unit complex. It looked worse close up, but compared to pictures I have seen of other hurricanes, this was minimal.
The warm wind was blowing, but still no rain, nor did we have any the entire day. Thank goodness for that because workers, neighbors, and friends all hit the streets and parking lots and went to work on the fallen trees.
I started off by saying why I miss California earthquakes, but that’s not really true. Over my four decades in So. Cal. I felt dozens of them, including a few that DID cause me to worry, but none that severely impacted my life. Earthquakes offer no warning. There are no CNN announcements. There are no runs on the stores or for gasoline, at least until it has passed. Their geographical impact is fairly small, though not always, and earthquakes do not MOVE. They hit, they do their damage, and they’re gone, likes thieves in the night.
The precursor to natural disasters can be as harrowing as the event itself: paranoia, fear, and panic, all contributing to the damage, even if its psychological. Sometimes those warnings are worse. This hurricane, which I hope and pray will be a one time experience, offered warnings and suggestions and caused a fair amount of fear before it ever arrived. It is what it is. Hundreds of years ago, before media, no one knew anything about impending trouble until they read the sky and acted. I guess the lesson I share here is, in the unfortunate event of being in the line of fire, learn as we did. Listen, don’t panic, take precautions, be prepared, and wait for it to pass. OH, and pray…
Some notes: Delta’s wind speed tripled in the span of about 30 hours, growing from a tropical depression with winds of 35 mph the day before, to a predicted Category IV, faster than any this year. As it turned out, it was downgraded to a Cat II and wind speeds hit right at triple digits. One of the worse damages we saw was a side street that got hit with a triple whammy, as two large trees on one side crossed over with a fallen tree on the other. It caused some structural damage, but the aftermath of this storm showed zero deaths or injuries here in Puerto Morelos.
What it DID show was the amazing sense of community and outpouring of support as work crews were out very early, helped by citizens with chain saws, and kids of all ages doing what they could.
#hurricane, #hurricanedelta
, #categoryfour, #mexicohurricane
