Hurricane Ian Aftermath

I have been through blizzards, ice storms and a microburst, but this was my first major hurricane.  We had pretty much a direct hit of Ian’s category 4 force.   We were told that a storm surge covered the entire Island at Shell Point.  We could not see this from the shelter.

One of my first concerns was my car.  It is in a parking deck below our building.  My assigned spot is only a few feet from the Caloosahatchee River and only about 5 feet above the typical surface of the water.  It is clear that the garage was inundated with water as there is debris around all of the cars…and not just branches.  The garage is full of stones which washed in from around the plantings which are on the river side of the garage.  Gratefully, the car started.  It must be watertight, as there was no standing water in cup holders in the doors.  The interior seemed damp, but the kind of damp from humidity.  I opened the windows and left it running for about 15 minutes.  When the service garage here reopens, I will have it checked out.

After my first night back in my apartment ( without water or power), I went out for a walk around the Island.  There is debris everywhere.  There are two boats up in the mangroves to the north of the Island.  The osprey platforms are gone.  The orchid house is crushed.  Most of the gardens are washed away and the bins which are normally at the end of each garden are who-knows-where…just gone.  A boat lashed to its floating dock is up in a parking lot against a building.  Many places along the sidewalk, there are entire schools of small fish that were washed up and left behind when the water retreated. 

The palm trees are missing their tops, and some are snapped right off halfway up the trunk.  Many of the banyan trees are totally uprooted.  Most of the buildings are missing shingles…there are shingles littering the ground everywhere.  The siding on the mansard roof of the church is mostly missing.  Amazingly, most of the building have windows still intact.  My windows are fine, although one in Bill’s den/second bedroom must have leaked as the windowsill is dirty and looks like it was wet.

Shell Point is directly east of Sanibel Island.  We are on the right/north side of the road just before the causeway begins.  The media reports that 200 people did not evacuate Sanibel as directed.  Now the causeway is destroyed, so they are isolated.  Helicopters have been overhead going to and from Sanibel ever since the storm stopped.  There have been deaths and serious injuries and people just anxious to get off.

 

The above was written while I was still at Shell Point, but unable to post it because there was no internet available.  My kids were not happy with the notion of me being in a place with no power or water, so they arranged for me to leave.  The airport in Fort Myers is not yet open, so my son-in-law flew into Fort Lauderdale, rented a car and drove to Fort Myers to get me.  We then flew back to Jacksonville out of Fort Lauderdale.  The destruction was obvious even driving in the dark.  Debris had been pushed off the highway just as snow is plowed in the north.  My son-in-law said in daylight, he saw boats in the highway median as far as two miles from the coast.  We did not see any electricity, not even working traffic lights, for about 15 miles from Shell Point.  There were a few gas stations with lights, apparently from generators.

I am not sure how many units there are in our community of 2500 residents, but 200 of the units have been deemed unlivable.  I’m sure the administration is scrambling trying to figure out where these people are going to live.  Meantime, they are also sustaining those who have been able to return to their apartments by providing three meals a day.  Without power, no one has the ability to cook, and only non-refrigerated items can be kept safe for eating.  Sanitation is a big problem as there is limited water.  People on the first floor of my building do have some water, but there is not enough pressure for those on higher floors to get water.  It is, of course, not safe to drink…there is a boil-water advisory, but without power, no way to boil it.  We have all been drinking bottled water.

 

So…I am now safe with my daughter’s family in Fernandina Beach, but my heart is with my friends still in this terribly challenging situation.