Floyd v. Frances

[Island Notes]

Today is the 5th Anniversary of Hurricane Floyd, a storm that truly devastated Abaco both physically and it's residents, emotionally. This is certainly not the case with Frances which caused some limited damage but not the total despair that Floyd brought upon this island community.

Marsh Harbour suffered the brunt of the storm this time, due mainly to a huge rainfall total (19") which resulted in substantial flood damage. That said, the damage to Abaco as a whole has been mostly superficial (shingles, decks and paint) and sure plenty of places will remain closed for awhile but then they normally are in September and October anyway. With a very few limited exemptions I would expect restaurants and tourist orientated places to re-open on their normal schedule.

Abaco matured following Floyd and the lessons learned due to that storm stood us in good stead when Frances paid us a visit. It was very different this time.

I live here all the time and to me, all seems pretty normal here. The grocery stores are well stocked, the ferries and other transportation is operating as usual, we have phones, internet and power although there are some areas still without electricity but BEC has been working very hard to restore service to all areas as quickly as possible.

When I look at the Palm Beach Post (on-line) it seems like we are well ahead of our American cousins in terms of restoring normal service in all areas.

IMHO

[Watercolours]

I agree this storm is no camparison to Floyd, things here on Lubbers are getting back to normal much faster than after Floyd. I am already seeing new growth coming out on lots of native trees and exotics too! Also we must all be getting better at doing this!

[peterodgers]

the damage reports from Grand Cayman are astounding. Most USA newspapers are reporting little about it. But if one goes to the NY Times and searches for "Cayman hurricane damage" two very complete reports appear. check it out.

compared to this Abaco was very lucky, both times.

[peterodgers]

here are the above mentioned cayman hurricane damage links:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Surviving-the-Hurricane.html

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-weather-ivan-caymans.html

[Pattie and Bob Toler]

You make a very good point, and I think that it is so funny the way people are playing the "my hurricane was bigger than your hurricane" one-upsman game so diligently. Having been here through both Floyd and Frances and all the ones in between, and upcoming, I would agree wholeheartedly that we learned alot from Floyd which stood us in good stead for Frances. Also, Floyd removed whatever was weak from Abaco (including our attitudes), leaving Frances lean pickins indeed! Personally, I see no HUGE difference between the two in terms of damage, however in terms of dealing with that damage, I see a whole new, strong, and determined Abaco. We've seen it... "been there, done that"... and know what needs to be done now and in future to deal with these storms rationally. From individuals to government, from dune replenishment to reef awareness, we are soooo much better this trip We know now what to expect and that the watchwords for ALL non-sissies are autonomy and redundancy. Abaco has witnessed THOUSANDS of hurricanes and probably will see thousands more. It's a lesson. Learned. The expense of that lesson is a personal perception, frankly, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

[nancy mcdaniel]

however, the story of this hurricane season has to be Florida. Hit by Charley in her left hip (Cat 3), Frances in her right hip (Cat 2), and Ivan (Cat 4) in her left armpit. And remember that these locales are huge population bases. Wealthy and poor. Also, huge population bases that support Abaco.

Patti and Bob and the rest of the locals KNOW not to "put any mouth" (Bahamian saying) on these upciming storms as we have several out there right now brewing, smoldering, and making their decision where they want to go.

The big difference that I see, now from my new perspective living in South Florida, is that perhaps, Abaco, in Frances relief, or relief from these other storms brewing and boiling, may NOT covet the beautiful humanitarian response the Abacos received post-Floyd. So many people hurting over here. Floyd missed Florida entirely. The present condition is a very precarious in the Abaco Islands and in Florida.

We have a few more weeks to weather this storm of hurricanes. Best we can do is have empathy for each other in the line of fire. Thank you Patti and Bob for all you do and all good wishes to all of our friends in Abaco. Best, Bruce and Nancy McDaniel

[buddha cat]

Nancy is so right. No storm is a good storm. While damage may seem nominal to us, it can take years for our less fortunate neighbors to recover. I live part time in a non resort area. Most of my neighbors are small time commercial fishermen. Not only did Floyd bring flooding, it wiped out the crabbing industry for nearly three years. And last year little ole Isabel brought six a foot storm to the island, which wasn't a good thing, since we're basically just a couple of feet above sea level! A year later many of my neighbors are still recovering. These people are proud, and it's hard to get some of them to accept help. My next door neighbor (retired grandma) will not accept even groceries. However, she will accept my "yard sale"and "side of the road" finds, if I'm careful how I present them. I wish I could do more. So many have lost so much, and not just in my area. I try to keep this in mind every time I get worked up about the "next big one". After all, it is my choice to live in a coastal area. Wouldn't want to be anywhere else, 'cept maybe Abaco!

Mitzi

[Dawn]

there are over 700 photos and video taken during Ivans attack on Grand Cayman here
http://www.davidolson.com (http://www.davidolson.com/)

there are thousands viewing these so if the server is busy just click back to view..Grand cayman was and is truly devistated by Ivan..there is no power, water or sewer system at this time...i have heared the airport is open to relief efforts..the airport was under several feet of water and was closed for nearly a week...it took several days for the water to be calm enough or the British relief ships to be able to dock.

so many places are hard to recognize with all the leaves gone and trees stripped...it is truly a different place to the eye...so many places have been totally washed into the sea. there are piles that look like junk yard with cars standing on their front ends in the middle.

Pics from parts of the island are slow to come as roads are blocked by the distruction and police baracades...yet to come is the turtle farm and West Bay area...many resorts in that area we have heard are a total loss....water marks 4 feet high on the second floor in some units....the pictures on Davids site tell the sad story...East end it is told that all the homes on the sea side are gone and the ones across the road are gutted......more to come