Wilma

".............. and the surf washed away tiki huts on hotel beaches."
ObviouslyThis is a very serious storm.
Best wishes Florida!

The latest satellite picture of Wilma...

The irritating part is not knowing where is it really going to hit since its a wobbler AND a slow mover at this point in time. Makes it real difficult to plan and reschedule work projects since too much is a question mark.

Fellow ohana on the Florida Gulf & keys, we love ya. Hang in there. Please do let us know if there is something we can do to help.

Oh yeah, if it starts to go for Miami, is there anyone in the area willing to take in my mug collection till it passes?

welp, we were supposed to be in riviera maya next week for my wifes brothers wedding, this sucks, and you florida folks be safe!!

And a special big round of affection for those South Florida Ohana who so graciously hosted us during the Hukilau home bar tour...Kern and Elka and their sweet kids, Chip 'n Andy, Pia and Drew, Tiki Kiliki--be safe, you guys!!! Here's hoping Wilma passes you by...

XOXOX tikivixen

MAYBE Hanford should start a Hurricane Forum! eeks!!! :(

Best wishes everyone!

[ Edited by: mrsmiley 2005-10-24 12:17 ]

The quote today is: "officials said it was the most damaging hurricane to hit the Fort Lauderdale area since 1950."

So...the worrywart asks...how is the Mai Kai?

Hope all the Ohana got through Wilma okay. You're in our hearts, best wishes.

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-06-05 17:27 ]

Glad to hear you're physically safe, Chip and Andy! If you actually have power (thus your post) let us know when you hear from Christie and all the other ohana who just had us into their wonderful homes.

But with the headline "6M Without Power" I ain't holdin' my breath for anyone I know there having electricity!!

WHAT a f**king YEAR!!!!
F

Chip 'n Andy, I'm SO happy to hear both of you are okay! And needless to say, I'm glad your incredible home is safe too. It's so weird, being all the way out here now, thinking of people we'd just met and places we'd just seen now going through such terrible experiences!

It surely puts a human face on all this...not as if there wasn't already! but I think you know what I mean. When you've really been there suddenly there's a different sort of attachment--it's just all so much more REAL.

And to think I thought that tropical cloudburst at Pia's was intense...that was just a taste...ugh. :/

Thanks so much for posting, guys.

Alice...ain't that the truth. Good grief!

I spoke to family in the Lauderdale area and in Lake Worth. No one has electric or water. Windows have been blown out of houses and bldgs., roofs have been damaged, trees are destroyed and big branches are all over. Hope all TCer's are AOK. Sending good wishes out to all...

Sending out good wishes here too.

Chip & Andy. so sorry to see the damage in your beautiful backyard. hope the clean-up goes smoothly and you get power back again soon.

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-06-05 17:28 ]

WOW...gorgeous!!! what a trooper! maybe this orchid should meet SHECKY!

most of all, i'm glad you guys & Mrs. Peel are okay!

I spoke to my sister from Margate, 20 min. due west of the Mai Tai, earlier tonight. Her home phone is out and it's nearly impossible to get thru on her cell. It sounds like they had damage similar to Chip and Andy's (amazing pictures - glad you made it thru OK). She said that 98% of Broward County and 98% of Dade County have no electric. Lots have no water also. And....it could be weeks until the electric is restored. The good news is that most the damage involves fences, roofs, fallen trees, etc. and most homes are intact. There's all kinds of debris strewn everywhere and it's a long and arduous journey to get anywhere by car. All the schools are closed for the entire week - 1st time ever! My sister & her family went to Orlando today to stay with another sister. A normal 3 hr. drive took 6½ hrs. Everyone else had the same idea I guess - head north where there's electricity, water & gas. They saw cars stranded on the side of the Turnpike, out of gas. All I can say is....good luck to all. We're thinking of you and hoping your electric comes back much sooner than expected.

Have a drink on me...

[ Edited by: codelisa 2005-10-25 21:55 ]

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-06-05 17:28 ]

happy to see the orchid survived so well. Happy to hear most everyone is safe and sound but for exterior things. Really sorry to see the Mai Kai handled so roughly by Wilma, it was disgusting.
Sherry and I are OK. We lost 4 fence panels that Jimmy Mooney helped me repair yesterday (or should I say I helped him repair) THANKS Big time Jimmy.
We didn't really expect this much from Wilma and we slacked off a bit, one area being Sherry's orchids. They live on the west fence and Loved it there under a large Oak tree. We decided to just set them on the ground up next to their fence.
That was the fence that was blown down,, On the orchids. That was the worst of the bad.
We don't have electric like most of south Fla and are promised to have it back by Nov 15. We have a generator tho so that gives us half a home. Sherry just setup a dial up connection so we can surf the net Sloow style. Not as fast as cable but better than nothing.
Happy to be Back..

Ben, sorry to hear of your loss.
Orchids are very dear to some of us, and I know you and Sherry hated to see yours treated so roughly. BUT- orchids are also tough little sum'bitches too! I'd bet most, if not all of yours will bounce back if repotted and largely IGNORED. Hope so, anyway. Best wishes from Michéle and I with your plants and property.

GAWD! I just don't know how much more of this the people of the gulf coast states can take! Tikilicious still hasn't checked in to let us know if she's ok :(

I sincerely hope everyone in the path of Wilma is OK. I have spoken to family and friends in the area, and other than no electricity, they are fine, no major damage. I am worried about the Mai Kai too; any news there?

All better now, hurricanes are gone.

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-06-05 16:55 ]

On 2005-10-27 09:23, Chip and Andy wrote:
Tikilicious is OK, her place is OK, Steve is OK. Her parents live in Aventura to our south and they still have hot water so she was headed that way for a hot shower.

Thanks Chip and Andy for the news on Tikilicious :)

The orchids were just recovering from last year and were mashed pretty well. We gave them to our neighbors and to Jimmy Mooney with instructions to just repot them and hang them in partial shade and to ignore them and they will come back good as ever.
As for us? By next hurricane season we hope to be well enough inland where they don't even know how to spell hurricane!
Hope every one else is coping well with the aftermath.

That sounds like a plan, Ben. Just don't take it to extremes- I'm sure Montana is pretty safe, but a LONG way from a Hukilau! :wink:

I figured it was time to check in since I have literally spoken to nobody since Wilma hit. If you've seen the path she took you'll notice it apparently crosses directly over my home in NW Broward County. We got lucky, I know this from seeing the damage within a stone's throw from the house. Know that ALL of the SoFla Ohana have been in my thoughts the entire time.

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-06-05 17:29 ]

Keeping fingers crossed for your electric to be back on real soon Chip and Andy. Reports I've been getting concur with yours. Every day more and more lights are popping back on. Some grocery stores are even getting perishable items back on the shelves. The schools are scheduled to reopen on Thurs. Hang in there things are getting closer and closer to normal.

Glad to hear from more of the ohana!
Today is the first day that I've had access to land line phone service since Wilma hit. Phone service has been more scarce than power in some places.

Very lucky on all fronts on my end. No power at work or where I'm staying in Boca Raton, but my place in Miami is unscathed (yes, no power but that's 42 miles from me). Got a great attitude and willing to help anyone that needs it.

Many of us have been very lucky. While no power may be uncomfortable, it is by no means what lack of water is. Tikilicious was without any running water until just before the weekend, as well as many folks to the north. I'm grateful to have kept the luxury of water, boil ordinance & all.

Best wishes to rest of the ohana. We know not everyone has checked in, but we are thinking of you all the same.

I am hoping everyone is getting back together OK.
My Power just came on,,,Huraaay!
Now we leave tomorrow for an Alabama wedding and we'll be back Sunday to finish getting everything back in order.

best wishes to Ben and everyone else who suffered through
the 'canes...I was a bit surprised to hear that Ben is just
getting power back now....up here we just get tons and tons
of snow and cold weather...nothing that really shuts us down.
good luck!

Yeah, lots of people expected this one to not be that bad. Thus, that under preparedness let to severe shopaholicism due to desperation. Add that to lack of patience and its a mess.

Power really was that wrecked. They turned on power to those they could after essential repairs to substations and are working to fix the bigger difficulties, like the mass amount of downed power lines and traffic signals. BUT this is actually very fast if taken in historical context and the extent of the damage. Compared to Hurricane Andrew, wicked fast.

Just got back online. So "officially" Wilma was only a Category One - I don't believe that. I only lost a little bit of my wood fence and had my car scratched by flying debris. Being without power caused alot of problems - no gas, no phones and no internet. Older buildings got damaged and there are no trees that didn't have some sort of damage.

I have been through alot of hurricanes and can not remember having a better time than this one. Here's my timeline: Sunday spent putting up shutters. Monday morning riding out the storm with my family playing games and cards. Monday afternoon cleaning up. monday night sitting out in front of the house looking up at the most stars ever seen in South Florida (it was like being out in the middle of nowhere). Tues - Wed was beautiful, cool weather for cleaning up and feasting like a king (had to empty the fridge/freeze). Wednesday night the wife had enough of my positive attitude so she decided we would go visit my family in the Panhandle till the power came on. We made it as far as Orlando where we spent 2 days at Disney (it was either Disney or a generator and ther were no generators to be found). Friday night we were ready to move on when we got word the power was back on in my nieghborhood. Saturday and Sunday spent surfing and drinking. monday was Halloween. Tuesday back to work and now I have get ready for the Ft Lauderdale Boat Show. The worst thing that happened was that I ran out of rum on Saturday - the same day the liquor store down the street re-opened.

My condolances for all those in bad shape or without power but I'll take this past week over any of my other hurricane experiences.