florida check in

[rsmith]

Sad news Mike and Korrie Odonalds 53 sunk over in St James city. They are safe but with no power and cut off from the mainland.Prayers for them and the others over there. A friend posted video of boats large and small sunk at the causeway marina in FtPierce. It blew hard here 50+ knots for a long time out of the south that marina is exposed from that direction

 

[Pascal]

Sad sight. I noticed that boat last time we went there to visit friends who live down the road.

 

[zigzag930]

Not sure how, but our 58LRC survived Ian here at our dock behind our home in Punta Gorda.

The storm hit us hard Wed about 2pm. Winds were out of the East which puts them directly on our stern. East winds blew all the water out of the canals so Katerina was sitting on the bottom in soft mud. I actually felt that was a good thing because at lease I knew she wasn't going anywhere at that point.

They eye came across about 4:30 for about 1 hour. Still sitting on the bottom, but I went on board to check on things - all was good.

We though the worst part (NE quadrant right?) of the storm was over, but the backside was even worse. It lasted until about 9:30pm and absolutely hammered us. Boat reflected about 6pm as the waters rushed back into the canals. We were concerned at this point about the pilings holding and the 16' storm surge the weather people predicted.

Fortunately, no storm surge whatsoever. As usual the weather channels were incorrect about the surge information the were claiming.

Anyway, Katerina appears to have very minor damage (two antennas - my fault for not dropping them) and one cracked wooden trim on a wing door frame when the wing door came loose and slammed into it.

FYI, We had two large storm anchors out in the canal. Also two weeks ago I installed a 6' helical ground anchor which in my opinion is what saved our girl when the winds reversed on the back side of the storm placing full force on our bow. Pilings were pulling over (and still are) leaning, but none snapped. That helical anchor didn't budge. I also have two concrete blocks at the seawall that were once used for davits. I wrapped 1/2 high strength chain around them and attached that to the storm lines running to the stern.

All in all I consider ourselves beyond fortunate. I will have a diver check the bottom when he can get here. Hopefully the stabilizers didn't get damaged when sitting on the bottom.

Ian was the worst hurricane I've been though so far and I've been through quite a few, including two on a sailboat, once in the ocean north of Bermuda.

I really hope all other Same members are ok and have made it through this hellacious storm with little or no losses.

J

 

[northshoreone]

I'm in contact with people in Cape Coral where my house is on the river near the yacht club. No power, no water and nothing open. When you can find fuel its a 4 hr plus wait in line. My house had over two ft of water in the lower level. I have three boats wedged between my house and the neighbor's house, one of them my 32 Intrepid. All of the docks are gone, including the lifts. Legacy Harbor is across the river from me and a total loss. You can't get around much as so many trees are blocking roads etc. I want to head down but don't think I could accomplish much without water and electric! People on the ground there say its hell and don't come unless you can bring everything you need with you! I am sure that the mold in the house is already started to grow! I have a friend with a home on Sanibel Island and god knows how long it will be before he can get there! Fort Myers beach area is mostly gone! Epic disaster!! I am so glad I sold my 70 Hatt down there after Irma, which I stayed for after getting everything ready as best I could. I had it at the Weston Marina and most of the boats in there sunk this time and the floating docks I was on are all broken up!!!

 

[Pascal]

You may want to get there asap to open the doors and windows and get air flowing. You want to prevent mold asap. Get a portable generator and some carpet blowers to move air and dry whatever needs drying. Time is critical

 

[Pascal]

Saw this on line …

 

[northshoreone]

I have a friend going in Sunday who's brother lives in St Pete that he will stay with. They still have electric and water. He is going to open up the house for me. With issues finding gas it will be hard to keep the generator going. But I know what your saying!! Its only going to get worse the longer its closed up and not dried out! Had to clean up the mess without water though......

 

[Pascal]

Where is that?

 

[jim rosenthal]

At least one other HOF member has lost their Hatteras, from what I can tell on one of the Hatteras yachts FB pages. Really sad.

 

[rsmith]

You may want to get there asap to open the doors and windows and get air flowing. You want to prevent mold asap. Get a portable generator and some carpet blowers to move air and dry whatever needs drying. Time is critical

I did all that after Frances backfed the house off the boat generators. Didn’t help. The drywall grows black mold almost instantly. Fortunately we had enough structural damage that we demo’d the house and rebuilt. Took 4 years but it was worth it. I have neighbors that went through remediation and 18 years late they still have black mold growing under their baseboards.

 

[rsmith]

I can’t imagine what this is going to do to boat insurance and homeowners in Florida. That and when these insurance companies start liquidating holdings to pay claims it’s going to hammer financial markets. Have to wonder also these homes and property’s are mostly waterfront with crazy inflated values in the last couple years. How many people have kept their policy value up with the market and will even be able to rebuild?

 

[Pascal]

Premiums are going to jump up and companies are going to leave the market making it nearly impossible to get coverage. What is frustrating is that many of these losses could have been avoided but simply moving these boats east thru the OWW. The COE extended the lock hours to 10PM in the couple of days before the storm to make it easier for boats to reach safe harbor

I know that in some case it s difficult decision as you have to juggle preparing your house or a business but when threatened by a major hurricane, the only safe strategy is to move the boat away. Some storms make this harder depending on how it s approaching land, but in this case it was pretty clear cut. East thru the OWW

Same with car insurance, be ready for huge hikes because of the number of flooded cars. Again, if the NHC forecast a 10’ surge and your house and garage sits on canal, you are going to get flooded. I m sure you be all seen the video of the $1M McLaren P1 and the new Rolls floating out of a garage in Naples. What was the owner thinking? I guess… oh well they re insured. We have a friend who lost a new BMW (literally as the car is gone) and had two pick up trucks flooded while there are some multistory parking garages right in Naples. Or move the cars inland to high ground.

Now we re all going to pay the price for this negligence… all easily avoided. Insurance companies need to be tougher, both boats and cars, with real hurricane plans (not just adding a couple of lines and fenders that won’t do any good) and declining coverage for vehicles left in forecasted high surge areas

 

[Hat52MY]

Hearts and prayers go out to the folks in Ft. Myers area. I have been through 40+ years of Hurricanes in Florida and this was in the top 5.

Thankfully, we are good in Daytona…. Vast amounts of rain, causing significant flooding and strong winds on the backside of Ian. Marina has no power, along with the rest of the immediate area. The Marina just topped off with Fuel but no way to pump it at the fuel dock.

I suspect the Ft. Meyer Hatteras was done intentionally to save life and limb. It made international news. See the pic where it ultimately landed… That model Hatt draws 5.2’ at a minimum…. that’s a long way from deep water and provides a good hint at the amount of surge experienced.

God speed to all of those in peril with Ian.

 

[JuiceClark]

Checking in from Ground Zero, sorry im late! My AT&T service has been the worst performer in this.My house is about .5 mile from that Port Sanibel Marina with pics posted. Surge was about 10'. Gusts were 120 for 5 hours as the East wall stalled right there.My home was washed through about a foot deep. Muddy and needs total renovation. $450k early estimate. Wife's car in the garage was full up to the steering wheel. Pool is full of mud and neighbor's pool cage. Lawns are littered with lift boats.Lastly, my 52C is just floating next to my floating dock like nothing happened. The canvas on the bridge and tower is torn away, that's all. Not one drop around the hatches, window or cockpit door...not one drop. What an amazing boat. My 8" spotlight on the tower looks spun around and broken, but that's it. I ran the engines and genny yesterday and they pure as sweetly as always.Geico should visit my boat, take notes and give me a refund for for knowing how to protect a boat.My heartfelt condolences to Richard and the Pau Hana down at the Legacy Marina....downtown Ft Myers. His 54 was crushed after he worked so hard on her.

 

[Captain Ralph]

Checking in from Ground Zero.

Glad to read your good. Sorry about the house.
Happy for your Hatt.

 

[johnjen50]

Great to hear your ok! Really glad the boat made it too. Very depressing to see all the boats that didn’t. Hope you have good luck with the insurance company and the rebuild goes easily.

 

[Eddieclemons]

Great to hear from you Juice!! You were missed.

 

[jim rosenthal]

Glad to hear you are okay and that your boat came through without any major damage. It's a shame about your house and cars. But at least you and your family are okay.

 

[jim rosenthal]

I can’t imagine what this is going to do to boat insurance and homeowners in Florida. That and when these insurance companies start liquidating holdings to pay claims it’s going to hammer financial markets. Have to wonder also these homes and property’s are mostly waterfront with crazy inflated values in the last couple years. How many people have kept their policy value up with the market and will even be able to rebuild?

Insurance companies don't stay in areas where they can't make money, so more than likely they'll pull out, or raise the rates astronomically. For all of us, not just FL.

BoatUS usually sends out a bunch of emails about how great they're doing taking care of everyone's boats. They've been rather quiet recently, though. Radio silence, basically.

 

[rsmith]

Glad you made it through. Are you able to stay on the boat? Having been through it in 04 I don’t envy what your about to go through with insurance companies contractors and permits. Took us 4 years before we were back in the house.