Good luck Linda J! I heard from a friend of mine that needed one battery for just normal everyday stuff - found the shelves to wiped out already. During hurricane season I had a hard time finding diapers. Leave some for the rest of us will ya people? My hot air is already at work trying to convince the storm to go North to the great blue and fizzle. I swear it worked before...

Teresa

It's all a major if, if, if and if. 99% of the systems on this trajectory either shear off north or dissipate before reaching the Virgin Islands. Cheers!

Here's hoping your weather forecasts are as good as your cooking, STTResident!

Same problems here with the shelves bien wiped out
If you all need something just let me know and ill express ship it down (Im in FLA)
Good luck
This figures since i will be down very soon - The weather better behave!!!

gobucs

Sunny and breezy here today. The stores still have lots of stuff. I was mainly interested in soup, pasta etc. Stuff that can do without the fridge for 24-48 hours.

But STT Resident is right, it's all a guessing game until later in the week.

What's the path of this one? I haven't been following it. Where is it now?

hi Blu

Here are some excellent links...seems it's a bit uncertain what will happen. Wunderground esp. has an interesting discussion.

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at4+shtml/143523.shtml?5day#contents

http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html

http://www.stormcarib.com/adv4.htm

I hope your right about 99% of them. Coming down on sat for my honneymoon staying all week so Ill be watching the weather any info from the island would be greatfull

STTRes,
Knowing that you have a restaurant, when you know a storm of hurricane strength is eminent, what
are some of the things you have to do with all of your food there, and the business itself??
Also, looting is always a potential problem anywhere after a storm like that. Do you stay at your
own house or, at your business, or what??
It would be interesting to know what it's like for someone like you when a big one hits.

DreamConch: First, we haven't experienced a "big one" since 1995 and I mostly forget the names of those few minor ones since as they were pretty unforgettable!

As far as the restaurant is concerned, the building is masonry, as is the roof. All I have to do is move anything loose outside and secure it, secure the gas tanks with chains, close up the shutters and hunker down. Oh, almost forgot, have to take down the satellite dish from the roof but that's easy to do. Food in the fridges and freezers can stay good for a few days unless you keep opening and closing the doors but once the storm has passed over (a couple of hours) WAPA puts the grid back on, power is restored and life goes back to normal. If there were a power outage for more than a few hours I have a small generator which will keep the fridges, freezers and water pump going. The majority of resorts, condo complexes, stores, several larger homes, etc. have mega-generators which run everything with no problem.

Stories of looting are vastly exaggerated and the only looting I ever heard of was on STX after Hugo and on STT after Marilyn and the latter took place at basically one big supermarket (the old Grand Union) which crashed down. Could hardly even call it looting - the food was all over the place and people just went in and helped themselves. The VIPD and the VING were there but pretty much let people walk around and forage. It was all very peaceful!

These blows come through for the most part with little to no major disruption of everyday life and WAPA only shuts off the power if the approaching storm has reached hurricane status. In that case, a curfew is imposed from when the sun sets until it rises and only emergency vehicles are allowed on the road, all businesses have to be closed and you just sit it out.

If and when we come under an official hurricane watch or warning I'll be ready. Until then it's just business as usual. Not trying to minimize peoples' concerns but no point getting all paranoid about what MIGHT happen. Would I ever want to go through anything like Marilyn again? HECK NO! Cheers!

Was through a hurricane in Florida. But, was only concerned about my own house, and
never really never thought about what is was like for a restaurant.
We lost power for days, all of our food in the fridge was pretty much toast. I cooked as much
of it up as possible but, had to stop when I ran out of the extra cooler space, and there was
no ice around for miles.
Would I like to repeat that? HECK NO EITHER!! Ha!

Wasn't asking out of paranoia, been through all types of storms, on islands, in the mountains etc.. What
is, is.

Watching and waiting.......
Then Frenzy if we have to!

STT, Do you remain in the restaurant during the storm?

Blu - of course! Safest place I can imagine and when that silly Lenny breezed through on a whimper a few years ago I even took pity on a couple of scared newbies and let them hunker down. Not that there was much to hunker over. BUT, it's like going on vacation with people you don't really know - these two young guys drove me totally nuts and I was glad to shoo them out the following morning. Cheers!
Oh, by the way, sherri, you feel free to frenzy if you want to but I'm not joining in on that one!

Just pray it also does not come to fla because they will cancell our flight to come down and that wont be good

Looks better!!! But still have to wait and see.

STT, preparing 2 villas and a wood shack (cottage) should prove to be a frenzy for sure! RockWork's will be easy, 1/2 hour tops as shutters are already in place, just have to drop them and screw them in place! Stone Cottage on the other hand, means carrying down plywood and getting it in place, taking down the satellite as well as getting everything inside. The shack? Get everything out that has any value and take it over under neath the villa! I'M EXHAUSTED ALREADY!!! LOL!

Sherr,
I have been thinking of you. I wish we lived closer. I'd stop by to help. IL is a LONNNGG way from St. Thomas. Take care. You are in my thoughts. (As well as everyone else on STT). KK

Thanx for having in your thoughts! Lookin' better and better, but not out of the woods totally! These things CAN have a mind of their own once they get rolling!
Went to Home Depot yesterday to get just a few more sheets of plywood, THEY WERE ALMOST OUT!! Come on Home Depot, How can WE be prepared if YOU aren't prepared to service your area?! That would be pretty scary if we were really gonna get this thing and they don't have what us Islanders need!!! Oh, the joys of living here! We figured it would be better to get what we need, just in case!
Keep your fingers crossed! 🙂

Not surprised about the plywood, sherri. Remember a few weeks ago when WAPA blew a gasket and we were without power for about eight hours or whatever it was? The following day I had a trip scheduled to Home Depot to pick up a few odds and ends that had been on my list for a while. On that list was batteries. Believe it or not, HD had not ONE battery in stock- emptied out completely! According to the salsperson I questioned, the store had been inundated during the power outage by battery-buyers who'd purchased every last one. Yikes!

Another reason to remember that "when you see it buy it" and in fact buy TWO of it. Cheers!