Hurricane Matthew Part 2
Day Two of hurricane preparation is underway. It rained all day and night and we're just getting started. So far we've had 3 inches of rain. The winds have picked up but the worst is still yet to come. School was canceled for the next two days so families have time to evacuate or prepare their homes for the storm. The most recent reports say that the storm will be a Category Four hurricane when it reaches us. The beaches and the nearby islands have been evacuated.
Jacksonville is split up into several different zones, labeled alphabetically with "A" being the most prone to flooding. Our house is zoned as Zone A due to our proximity to Caney Branch Creek and Dunn Creek. The next street over however, is a Zone C. We've secured the house and prepped the pantry and fridge in the event of a power outage.
A majority of the surrounding gas stations are out of fuel. The three closest grocery stores are selling out of bread, milk, water and many of the necessities. Luckily people have been giving shelving updates via Facebook so we were able to see when both Winn Dixie and Publix restocked their shelves. Unfortunately, these items fly off the shelves quicker than they can restock them.
We've started bagging ice and I've made a couple of batches of coffee so that Ashley can stay caffeinated in the event of a power outage.
Ashley got off of work early enough to not only shop and search for gas but to start securing the backyard as well. Tomorrow I will finish securing our property and put all of our essential items in a centralized location; flashlights, lighters, candles, a first aid kit, an emergency "go bag", etc. The bath tubs will be scrubbed with bleach and filled with water.
We're preparing ourselves as best as we can at this time of uncertainty. It's been years since Florida has had a major hurricane. We're so used to laughing them off that we're a little out of practice in making sure we're well-prepared.
Our fridge is stocked with liquids, breads and fruit. Our freezer is full of ice and frozen bottles of water. The pantry is stocked with canned goods and other foods that we can easily consume in the event that we lose electricity.
Right now our biggest concern is a dead tree along our fence line, but we're optimistic that it will either stay standing of will fall in the opposite direction.
My parents are about 3 miles away so we have a safe place to go to in the event the tree does fall.
We'll keep you posted on our progress. Ashley's philosophy is: If the people on the Walking Dead can survive the Walkers than we can survive Hurricane Matthew.
