FLORIDA top 10 reasons to evacuate when ordered - 10 images

[dhweather]

All but one of these pictures are NORTH of I-10 in Diamondhead.
2-3 miles inland from the Bay of St. Louis

If you are wondering if you should evacuate, review these, then
your decision should be pretty easy.



<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina1.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina3.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina4.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina5.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina6.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina7.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina8.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina9.jpg">
<img src="http://www.datasync.com/~magee/katrina/katrina10.jpg">

[dhweather]

Bump - I sourced the images in instead of an external link.

[LAwxrgal]

Thanks for the pics, DHweather!

The devastation in your area is heartbreaking. Glad to see you and your family made it safely.

[inotherwords]

Wow...it's amazing to see several homes there that look competely gutted but not a shingle is out of place on the roof.

[ericinmia]

This could also be a warning on building codes. Notice the concrete structrues remain.... allthough they didn't have shutters, or proper shutters... so the house was still gutted by winds.

I can't believe houses are allowed to be built anywhere in the coast with no shutters, or concrete block first and second stories.
-Eric

Its soo sad to see these pics, also knowing we had the means to do SOOoo much better.

[dhweather]

Eric-

The houses were gutted due to storm surge - the water was 8 to 10
feet deep NORTH of I-10. There is a lot of wind damage as well, I'd
say Katrina was a cat 4 wind-wise at Diamondhead, and a cat 5+
surge wise.

David

[Javlin]

As far as I know for the most part codes are tight here.When you have a 3'black tip shark 5 miles inland in a pond there is a problem.V. Creel one of the supervisors in Biloxi summed it up best"Camiile killed more people yesterday than she did in 1969" no one and I mean no one foresaw a 25'-30' surge in the rivers and bayous.Many people died along the waters Inland 14 days after the storm a mother and 3 children where pulled from some rubble in those areas.

[inotherwords]

I guess nothing much would be able to sustain a surge like that. It's sad to see this. I wonder if those gutted houses can be rebuilt?

I'm trying to learn from this experience. I live in a 1 story stucco house built in the 20s and am only 13 feet above sea level. I have toyed with the idea of building a second story to extreme hurricane standards in case we have a surge here, but these pictures give me pause. I'm not sure anything would be able to survive a storm like that.

I'll have to check the forum on Hurricane preparation to see if anyone else is discussing building options.

[dhweather]

I guess nothing much would be able to sustain a surge like that. It's sad to see this. I wonder if those gutted houses can be rebuilt?

I'm trying to learn from this experience. I live in a 1 story stucco house built in the 20s and am only 13 feet above sea level. I have toyed with the idea of building a second story to extreme hurricane standards in case we have a surge here, but these pictures give me pause. I'm not sure anything would be able to survive a storm like that.

I'll have to check the forum on Hurricane preparation to see if anyone else is discussing building options.

They are structurally unsafe and will be bulldozed.

To answer your question, do not attempt to build on your home
in anticipation of it surviving a major hurricane. I've seen
trailers and $1,000,000 homes equally leveled by Katrina.

[dhweather]

bump

[dhweather]

bump for Floridians.

[wxmann_91]

Amazing images dhweather. Thanks for posting them.

[artist]

eric - if you look close you will notice one of those houses WAS brick that is no longer!

[wxman57]

Eric-

The houses were gutted due to storm surge - the water was 8 to 10
feet deep NORTH of I-10. There is a lot of wind damage as well, I'd
say Katrina was a cat 4 wind-wise at Diamondhead, and a cat 5+
surge wise.

David

If the winds were 135 mph sustained (Cat 4), then how would you explain the fact that the shingles weren't peeled off all the roofs and the homes blown apart? Not to get into that argument about Katrina being a lower-end Cat 3 at landfall again, but the data do not support Cat 4 sustained 1-minute winds inland into your area. Data from the HRD post-storm analysis suggest 90-100 mph sustained in Diamondhead (Cat 2), with possible gusts to 120-130 mph. With 135 mph 1-minute winds, you would have had gusts about 25% above that figure, or close to 170 mph. Photos don't suggest such winds. Could have been a few gusts to Cat 4 strength, though. Keep in mind that it's very rare for such a large area to actually experience Cat 1-2 sustained 1-minute winds (not gusts) in any landfalling hurricane. That's probably stronger than you've seen in any hurricane since Camille, and it probably seemed like Cat 4 winds to you. But without anything to compare such winds to, it's hard to estimate such speeds.

http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/Storm_page ... ll_mph.pdf

I measure your distance inland at about 2.6 miles, with I-10 about 0.75 miles north of the Bay. That was some storm surge damage, which I'll get to see for myself in a few days. I'll be heading your way on Wednesday morning enroute my mother's storm-damaged home in Gautier. She had 50 sheets of drywall delivered yesterday, so I'll have my work cut out for me.

[beachbum_al]

Speechless. I have been along I-10 many of times going from Fairhope to New Orleans and can't even begin to imagine. A lot of people think that the storms (and not just Katrina) will not hit inland as hard as the coastal areas but they do. Just wondering...how many miles from the coast is Diamond Head. I know it is close but wondering how close.

Living south of I-10 in Alabama but pretty far inland I have always felt rather safe but now I am changing that thought. Those pics are scary!

[bevgo]

What is the saying about a picture being worth a thousand words. Well said. I too have seen the devastation well north of I 10 and I live south. We were blessed to come out undamaged. PLEASE remember these pics next time a storm is comming to YOUR area. Too many died this time.

[Recurve]

I guess nothing much would be able to sustain a surge like that. It's sad to see this. I wonder if those gutted houses can be rebuilt?

I'm trying to learn from this experience. I live in a 1 story stucco house built in the 20s and am only 13 feet above sea level. I have toyed with the idea of building a second story to extreme hurricane standards in case we have a surge here, but these pictures give me pause. I'm not sure anything would be able to survive a storm like that.

I'll have to check the forum on Hurricane preparation to see if anyone else is discussing building options.

I'm with you. I'm in a one-story masonry house that survived Betsy but is only about 8 feet above MSL. I want a second story but one architect told me the current walls won't meet the new 150 mph horizontal load requirement, so I'd basically have to build a house over the old one on all new concrete pilings. I'll be looking at this, PM me if you want to share information.

[ohiostorm]

my god.

[tornadochaser86]

wow thats some major damage there

[Recurve]

Sadly, it's actually about what I'd expect 2-3 miles inland from a landfalling 4 or 3 that had been a 5, hitting where surge gets funneled into bays and the coastal shelf is a ramp onto shore.

Water is such a b*tch. Terrible to see that damage. Thanks for posting them. Hope it helps anyone near shore realize they have to flee major hurricanes.