If you lived in Tampa, would you leave?

[FireForEffect]

I have family in Tampa(that live right on the water in a third floor apartment) and they are debating if they should leave or not. Advice anyone? Heading south doesnt seem to smart so I would think to go North if anything.

[charleston_hugo_veteran]

I would!

[nystate]

I have family in Tampa(that live right on the water in a third floor apartment) and they are debating if they should leave or not. Advice anyone? Heading south doesnt seem to smart so I would think to go North if anything.

Now??? The hurricane is still days away, and plus, no one is sure exactly where it will go. My advice is to wait until they can be reasonably sure that it will or won't head in their direction...

[stormchazer]

If the forecast holds, they should very definately leave. In Andrew, they found a substational increase in winds as you rose higher up in buildings. I do not know if the thrid floor would increase winds, but I were on the water, I would be leaving.

[Josephine96]

Yes.. but only if It was less than 72 hours away

[calidoug]

Don't wait too long to leave. Imagine the state the roads will be in heading north....

I'd go Friday night if it still looks like it will be close to Tampa.

Sat/Sun the roads will be jammed.

[TPACane04]

I live in East Tampa area, about 10 miles from the bay.

During Charley, evacs from Hillsborough and Pinellas seemed orderly enough...which was good..except that many went to Orlando area, where Charley ended up..DOH!

I am taking a long hard look at Ivan and trying to decide if I should ssend my wife and child North (Georgia??) if it takes dead aim here.

I figure by Sunday morning, enough info will be in hand that will give area residents 36-48 hours to make a call...keep in mind that we had tremendous flooding this past weekend from the bay...from a 60 mph Frances...you can imagine the devastation a hit by Ivan, should he make landfall just north of st pete beach/clearwater area

[charleston_hugo_veteran]

Don't wait too long to leave. Imagine the state the roads will be in heading north....

I'd go Friday night if it still looks like it will be close to Tampa.

Sat/Sun the roads will be jammed.

yes don't wait to long...

[adelphi_sky]

I'd leave Friday after work. Hey, it's the weekend. A little road trip never hurt anybody. It just may save you some headache. If the cane is there by Monday, you have an excuse not to come in. If the cane doesn't come in teh area, you had a nice road trip and can come back home.

[Brent]

I live in East Tampa area, about 10 miles from the bay.

During Charley, evacs from Hillsborough and Pinellas seemed orderly enough...which was good..except that many went to Orlando area, where Charley ended up..DOH!

I am taking a long hard look at Ivan and trying to decide if I should ssend my wife and child North (Georgia??) if it takes dead aim here.

I figure by Sunday morning, enough info will be in hand that will give area residents 36-48 hours to make a call...keep in mind that we had tremendous flooding this past weekend from the bay...from a 60 mph Frances...you can imagine the devastation a hit by Ivan, should he make landfall just north of st pete beach/clearwater area

You may not be able to get out of the state in time if you wait til Sunday... this is expecting to be bearing down on the Keys by Early Monday.

[FireForEffect]

Yeah they are talking about leaving but not quite yet. My mom just bought a brand new mini, I would leave just to protect it from getting destroyed! I am in the Raleigh area, who knows if we'll see Ivan up here. Maybe so.

[Josephine96]

Early Monday and tomorrow is already Friday.. Could be a long interesting weekend

[Bellarose]

I live in East Tampa area, about 10 miles from the bay.

During Charley, evacs from Hillsborough and Pinellas seemed orderly enough...which was good..except that many went to Orlando area, where Charley ended up..DOH!

I am taking a long hard look at Ivan and trying to decide if I should ssend my wife and child North (Georgia??) if it takes dead aim here.

I figure by Sunday morning, enough info will be in hand that will give area residents 36-48 hours to make a call...keep in mind that we had tremendous flooding this past weekend from the bay...from a 60 mph Frances...you can imagine the devastation a hit by Ivan, should he make landfall just north of st pete beach/clearwater area

Hey neighbor! You must be very close to me in Tampa. I'm exactly with you as far as looking into getting out of here. I know people are saying to leave early, but frankly I can't afford to spend any extra money on hotels, gas, food, etc. than I have to. Timing will be everything with this.

By the way, what a fantastic board this is!!!

Bella

[Lebowsky]

I am so out of here. If it stays in the gulf I'll head to orlando, but if it is going to pass over on land, I have tickets to baltimore and a hotel there.

I'm not fooling with this one.

[crazycajuncane]

If this storm does in fact go right through Flordia.... Do you all believe this will effect the economy in Flordia for years to come?

Not only will insurance rates increase, but I for one would be terrified everytime summer came.

I can just imagine peoples lives have disrupted twice in the last month and they're already thinking about another Hurricane.

As far as leaving goes, I agree with some posters above. Friday after work.... Sunday seems too late.... the next 24 hours will tell a story on this storm.

[Lebowsky]

I'm leaving Sunday morning at 5am. The storm won't be here till tuesday. If things look crowded I'll leave at 3:00 am instead.

[aisleycat]

I live about 1.5 miles east of the bay in Tampa and we're not leaving. GULP!!!

Factors, 2 large dogs and a cat, newer home concrete block, and we want to be there to "defend" our home and belongings.

[Possum Trot]

I'm not sure there is a good answer to this question. After millions jammed the highways to evacuate due to Floyd (1999?) creating chaos, the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council did an evacuation study. What they found was it would take 100 hours to evacuate the bay area for a CAT4-5. However, four days out, no one really knows where a damn hurricane is going or how strong it will be.

State officials remain unclear as to whether the state will ever make all lanes of I-75 northbound in an emergency. That authority is ultimately with the governor.

During Charley, less than 8,000 people went to the shelters in Pinellas, which means they were all waiting until the last minute. Not a good idea as there are not enough shelters to go around.

If it were me, I'd make sure I had access to a steel reinforced concrete building in a non-evacuation zone (20 feet above sea level), or I'd get the hell out Friday and get out of state. No shelters for me. Uncomfortable, and I don't trust they won't fail like the one did in Charley.

The nightmare scenarios are being at a standstill in a traffic jam on I-75 when a CAT4-5 hits. Or, out trying to find a shelter at the last minute, but they are full and battened down.

I don't have to make these decisions. Such concerns are a big reason I no longer live in Tampa Bay. My advice is to take lots of deep breaths to help keep your head clear, as this will be an emotional time which can impair judgement. Be careful and safe, and my prayers are with you.

[sfwx]

The people who waited to leave for Frances on the east coast until Thursday, waited too long. It took 10-18 hours to get to Georgia and many ran out of gas. Tomorrow or Saturday is my advice........

Eric

[Pasco]

if the track stays the same and the intensity is cat 3 or above i will be taking my family north from Pasco County and not looking back until we hit Ohio where we have family. As DT put it so eloquently in his forecast today, "If I could pass along one piece of information to those located in southwest Florida it would be to flee. RUN... sprint. GET OUT..." I don't live in sw fla but i will heed that advice when/if the time comes.