We're a few miles from Gettysburg, PA here - smack dab in the projected path in central PA next to the MD border. We're at a higher elevation, so flooding is not a worry, but loss of electricity is. Generator is primed and working, gas cans & cars are full, firewood is at reach for our wood stove, flashlights/lamps/solar lights ready to go.
My daughter's soccer coach works for one of the electric companies out here and helps coordinate when there are massive outages. According to him, not a question of *if* power goes, just how long.
Ended up with lots of rain, lot of wind, but no damage thank goodness. It was strange when the eye of the storm went over about 12:30am. Lots of wind sounds, then nothing. Didn't even lose power for more than a few minutes at a time - way to go electric company!
Hi Patrice, Sandy has scooted past us now (Southeastern NC) and is heading north. Our area is right on the coast. There was quite a bit of wind and rain through the night but nothing major. I even went to the grocery store last evening! Although the governor declared a state of emergency (?!?!?) well before any breeze was felt, people here didn't expect much out of Sandy as it is such a low grade hurricane (right there on the verge of downgrade to tropical storm.) I think the weirdest thing for us is the time of year. While hurricane season runs into November, we don't get many storms past September. And the season's activity is on the high side with 18 named storms so far. Still praying for the safety of those that it is heading toward.
A. McSp, You can track ships at www.marinettaffic.com In real time. Warning you get hooked. Re storm. Gusts to 50 and rain Friday. Everything ok inc. power Florida east coast 100 mi north of Miami. Terry
Thank you for your prayers, I am in the Hudson Valley of NY in the county where last year Irene hit and took out whole hamlets/towns.....they are stating that Sandy will be worse than Irene I do pray they are wrong. Sara
Prepped as well as we can. No generator (its on the priority list when we get the $), but we have a camp stove and fuel, wood for the fireplace, and water. Lots of food in storage, so now worries about that. We are south of DC and expecting 4-8 inches of rain and 2 days of sustained winds. Of course we are originally from Florida, so hurricane preps are something we are used to. Just didn't expect it as much up here.
i have survived many really bad hurricanes and ice storms as well..best advise i can give anyone is not onlly be prepared with food, water etc..but also avoid rooms and parking spaces that have big trees overhead. if you hear that "cracking noise" get under a good piece of sturdy furniture.
I love your blog. To answer your question, we're in the Harrisburg, PA area and hubby just installed a wood stove for heat yesterday and our basement has a good weeks worth of wood. I have 5 gallons of water, and have never had so much food canned! I am supposed to be heading out of town to Erie, PA (a 5 hour drive) for a work trip Monday morning, and returning Wednesday evening and I'm 30 weeks pregnant. Hopefully the storm is a lot of hype - but in case, the hubby and 4-year-old have chili, chicken, vegetables and fruit canned for food.
Greetings Harrisburg, PA- I'm just north of you in Tower City (Schuylkill County). Looks like we might be right in the path. Hope you're on high ground- I love our beautiful Susquehanna, but glad we don't live too close this past year. Some of our local communities had devastating flooding last September, so I'm praying they're spared this time. Safe travels to you!
We're in the same area - just north of Harrisburg, PA. Nothing too bad yet (Monday afternoon) - just some wind and rain. Forecast is for the worst of it to hit this evening and/or overnight. We spent the day Saturday caulking and painting windows and reinforcing some areas of the barn. We have water ready since that's the most annoying part of no electricity - no well pump. Our generous neighbor has an extra generator for us to use to keep our freezer running. Friday evening we brought home the beef from a steer we had processed - it would be a big loss if it were to thaw. We waited until about noon today to bring our milk cow down out of the field. She was pretty well soaked but we rubbed her down with straw and feed sacks and now she's intalled in the barn with a thick bed of straw and some hay and grain. She's due to give birth November 10 - we're hoping she doesn't go early! We put a bar across the top part of a back stall so the goats can duck under but the pony stays in the front part of the barn (so he eats his own hay instead of stealing theirs). The chickens and peacocks, so far, have had the good sense to stay inside. If it gets too bad this afternoon we'll run back out and close everyone in so they don't have the option to come and go out of the barn. The dogs will spend the night in the basement. We're praying this whole thing blows over w/out much damage. We feel we are as prepared as we can be and we're so thankful for a sturdy, warm home and barn! Now just planning to shower, curl up with a book and a cup of hot cocoa and wait it out. Be safe everyone! Thanks for your prayers and God bless.
Update from Harrisburg. We were blessed not to have a lot of damage, although my in-laws a county to the east were without power for about 18 hours, and a few people in the area lost their lives due to falling trees. We recently bought our house and were unsure how the basement/roof would hold up. My husband was out in the worst of it digging a trench to get water away from the exposed basement wall due to shoddy workmanship with a drain tile. We would have had a flooded basement, had he not drilled holes in the wall to let the water out. We never lost power, though it flickered a few times. We were prepared for about 3 days (water supply would have been low), but we did not need it. It's a good feeling to be ready!
Currently in Florida visiting my cousin. We're just getting the outskirts of it, mainly nice cooler weather and a bit of wind. Had to fly in from Texas on some of it on Friday. A little scary for a first time flyer!
We're in upstate NY, Rochester to be specific. Winds are high and we have rain, but so far not so bad. We're all stocked up with a full pantry, candles, flashlights and full freezer. Don't usually lose power where we live, though the towns around us often do. Our daughter was in Utica visiting her BF, so we made her come home early just in case. Didn't want her driving and risk hitting the worst of it. But that was just a precaution. Honestly not too worried.
A suggestion for those in place and ready. - When it blows through, help others to pick up the pieces.
A suggestion for those of us not in harms way. - Donate to organizations such as MercuryOne which has been focusing on disaster preparation and hunger.
A suggestion for all of us - Pray. Our family commenced "hurricane coverage" last night.
We are in Upstate NY (Saratoga/Albany area) and the storm was really no biggie here at all. We were prepared as usual. High winds, pelting rain. All animals did well. We had the power flickering on and off through the afternoon and evening and even into this morning. The roads were very clear, hardly a branch down here. No more leaves on the trees at all, they are all in yards now. We are in the "Irene area" from last go... and truly this isn't even a storm compared to Irene thus far.
We're a few miles from Gettysburg, PA here - smack dab in the projected path in central PA next to the MD border. We're at a higher elevation, so flooding is not a worry, but loss of electricity is. Generator is primed and working, gas cans & cars are full, firewood is at reach for our wood stove, flashlights/lamps/solar lights ready to go.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter's soccer coach works for one of the electric companies out here and helps coordinate when there are massive outages. According to him, not a question of *if* power goes, just how long.
Ended up with lots of rain, lot of wind, but no damage thank goodness. It was strange when the eye of the storm went over about 12:30am. Lots of wind sounds, then nothing. Didn't even lose power for more than a few minutes at a time - way to go electric company!
DeleteBeckybeq
Goodness gracious.
ReplyDeleteWe were relieved to get a call from the parents-in-law yesterday telling us they were on their way home.....
They'd been in the middle of a cruise to Nova Scotia, and we hadn't been able to make contact with them in some days.
Whew.
Prayers up for all in harm's way or are worried for loved ones.
I sure hope this isn't Our Father making a pre-election political statement! lol
A.McSp
Hi Patrice, Sandy has scooted past us now (Southeastern NC) and is heading north. Our area is right on the coast. There was quite a bit of wind and rain through the night but nothing major. I even went to the grocery store last evening! Although the governor declared a state of emergency (?!?!?) well before any breeze was felt, people here didn't expect much out of Sandy as it is such a low grade hurricane (right there on the verge of downgrade to tropical storm.) I think the weirdest thing for us is the time of year. While hurricane season runs into November, we don't get many storms past September. And the season's activity is on the high side with 18 named storms so far. Still praying for the safety of those that it is heading toward.
ReplyDeleteA. McSp,
ReplyDeleteYou can track ships at www.marinettaffic.com In real time.
Warning you get hooked.
Re storm. Gusts to 50 and rain Friday. Everything ok inc. power
Florida east coast 100 mi north of Miami.
Terry
Thanks, Terry!
DeleteGlad to hear things are are well with you all there.
Sounds like Haiti, Cuba and Jamaica took a pretty good swat.
A.McSp
Thank you for your prayers, I am in the Hudson Valley of NY in the county where last year Irene hit and took out whole hamlets/towns.....they are stating that Sandy will be worse than Irene I do pray they are wrong.
ReplyDeleteSara
Prepped as well as we can. No generator (its on the priority list when we get the $), but we have a camp stove and fuel, wood for the fireplace, and water. Lots of food in storage, so now worries about that. We are south of DC and expecting 4-8 inches of rain and 2 days of sustained winds. Of course we are originally from Florida, so hurricane preps are something we are used to. Just didn't expect it as much up here.
ReplyDeletei have survived many really bad hurricanes and ice storms as well..best advise i can give anyone is not onlly be prepared with food, water etc..but also avoid rooms and parking spaces that have big trees overhead. if you hear that "cracking noise" get under a good piece of sturdy furniture.
ReplyDeleteHi Patrice!
ReplyDeleteI love your blog. To answer your question, we're in the Harrisburg, PA area and hubby just installed a wood stove for heat yesterday and our basement has a good weeks worth of wood. I have 5 gallons of water, and have never had so much food canned! I am supposed to be heading out of town to Erie, PA (a 5 hour drive) for a work trip Monday morning, and returning Wednesday evening and I'm 30 weeks pregnant. Hopefully the storm is a lot of hype - but in case, the hubby and 4-year-old have chili, chicken, vegetables and fruit canned for food.
Greetings Harrisburg, PA- I'm just north of you in Tower City (Schuylkill County). Looks like we might be right in the path. Hope you're on high ground- I love our beautiful Susquehanna, but glad we don't live too close this past year. Some of our local communities had devastating flooding last September, so I'm praying they're spared this time. Safe travels to you!
DeleteWe're in the same area - just north of Harrisburg, PA. Nothing too bad yet (Monday afternoon) - just some wind and rain. Forecast is for the worst of it to hit this evening and/or overnight.
DeleteWe spent the day Saturday caulking and painting windows and reinforcing some areas of the barn. We have water ready since that's the most annoying part of no electricity - no well pump.
Our generous neighbor has an extra generator for us to use to keep our freezer running. Friday evening we brought home the beef from a steer we had processed - it would be a big loss if it were to thaw.
We waited until about noon today to bring our milk cow down out of the field. She was pretty well soaked but we rubbed her down with straw and feed sacks and now she's intalled in the barn with a thick bed of straw and some hay and grain. She's due to give birth November 10 - we're hoping she doesn't go early!
We put a bar across the top part of a back stall so the goats can duck under but the pony stays in the front part of the barn (so he eats his own hay instead of stealing theirs). The chickens and peacocks, so far, have had the good sense to stay inside.
If it gets too bad this afternoon we'll run back out and close everyone in so they don't have the option to come and go out of the barn. The dogs will spend the night in the basement.
We're praying this whole thing blows over w/out much damage. We feel we are as prepared as we can be and we're so thankful for a sturdy, warm home and barn!
Now just planning to shower, curl up with a book and a cup of hot cocoa and wait it out.
Be safe everyone! Thanks for your prayers and God bless.
Update from Harrisburg. We were blessed not to have a lot of damage, although my in-laws a county to the east were without power for about 18 hours, and a few people in the area lost their lives due to falling trees. We recently bought our house and were unsure how the basement/roof would hold up. My husband was out in the worst of it digging a trench to get water away from the exposed basement wall due to shoddy workmanship with a drain tile. We would have had a flooded basement, had he not drilled holes in the wall to let the water out. We never lost power, though it flickered a few times. We were prepared for about 3 days (water supply would have been low), but we did not need it. It's a good feeling to be ready!
DeleteCurrently in Florida visiting my cousin. We're just getting the outskirts of it, mainly nice cooler weather and a bit of wind. Had to fly in from Texas on some of it on Friday. A little scary for a first time flyer!
ReplyDelete~Lily~
My husband's entire family is in the path of this storm. I have no idea how prepared they are.
ReplyDeletePraying that all of y'all come through alright! :)
Thanks, Patrice. My 24 year old daughter lives in Gaithersburg, MD, and as any mother would be, I'm very worried.
ReplyDeletePraying for the safety of all in the path of Sandy.
sidetracksusie
We're in upstate NY, Rochester to be specific. Winds are high and we have rain, but so far not so bad. We're all stocked up with a full pantry, candles, flashlights and full freezer. Don't usually lose power where we live, though the towns around us often do. Our daughter was in Utica visiting her BF, so we made her come home early just in case. Didn't want her driving and risk hitting the worst of it. But that was just a precaution. Honestly not too worried.
ReplyDeleteA suggestion for those in place and ready. - When it blows through, help others to pick up the pieces.
ReplyDeleteA suggestion for those of us not in harms way. - Donate to organizations such as MercuryOne which has been focusing on disaster preparation and hunger.
A suggestion for all of us - Pray. Our family commenced "hurricane coverage" last night.
We are in Upstate NY (Saratoga/Albany area) and the storm was really no biggie here at all. We were prepared as usual. High winds, pelting rain. All animals did well. We had the power flickering on and off through the afternoon and evening and even into this morning. The roads were very clear, hardly a branch down here. No more leaves on the trees at all, they are all in yards now. We are in the "Irene area" from last go... and truly this isn't even a storm compared to Irene thus far.
ReplyDeleteLearning in NY
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=285961898182108&set=a.228082003970098.41476.228080417303590&type=1&theater
ReplyDeleteI dont know if you can see this or not... but it made me think of you!