Florida resident here. Rode out more than one hurricane. Please take this storm seriously. Do not dismiss it with "eh, it's only a tropical storm." You have different problems:
One, You're about to get a very big storm in a very big DESERT where the water does not soak in; it just floods.
Two, most homes and buildings in Florida are built to a strict code where the framing is reinforced with metal clamps at the joints (I've seen this.) You Do Not Have This In California. That's why even "just a tropical storm," that Florida would hardly notice, can still do a lot of damage to YOU.
*If your Southern California home/apartment is up to earthquake code, with extra straps and clamps, you may be in luck. Might want to check to be sure.
Before the storm (like right now:) If no garage is available, park your car well out in the open and far away from trees. (My friend's car survived a Category 5 because he left it in the middle of a big parking lot.) Trees are deadly in these storms. Keep everything away from them as much as possible.
Your fridge is just a big insulated cooler box and food will stay good in there for a while with minimal door opening. Right now, fill up some water bottles 3/4 full and freeze them. They'll help to keep things cold in the fridge and you can drink the water if/when they melt.
Fill up your bathtub with clean water. You can use some for drinking if need be, but mostly it's so you can flush your toilet should the water be shut off. No electricity = no power to the pumps at the water main station.
As much light as you can get. Batteries, small solar-powered lamps, whatever. A generator is great but you can use those things if you don't have one.
Get work gloves because you'll be moving debris afterwards.
Have some books to read or something else to do to pass the time (board games, cards, etc.)
During the storm: First and foremost: STAY AWAY FROM THE BEACHES. DO NOT GO THERE TO WATCH THE STORM, EVEN FROM INSIDE A BUILDING. The storm surge is by far the most dangerous part of a hurricane/tropical storm. The water will recede, due to the force of the winds and the low barometric pressure, and then come rushing back all at once. Even a small surge will drag you far out to sea. A bigger one can wipe a whole town off the map.
This may be "just a tropical storm," but remember: It's hitting the desert areas and the desert floor is just like concrete. The water doesn't soak into the soil; it just collects and creates huge floods. That's why desert towns and cities maintain gigantic washes (gullies) that are dry 99% of the time but flood hugely whenever there is a big storm anywhere near. Flooding is a real danger with this "only a tropical storm."
Ride it out in the interior of your house/apartment. Stay well away from windows. These storms can spawn tornadoes and you will have no way of knowing if one is near or is forming up over your head.
After it's over:
Check on your neighbors and see who is still there and who might need help. I saw that there were a lot of single women and elderly people who did not evac ahead of the storm or immediately after. The men got themselves and their families out, while single women and the elderly had no one to help them and nowhere to go so they stayed put.
Set your phone to "text only" to save the battery. Communicate with people well outside the storm zone who can get you good info on what's going on. You will be in something of a blackout and the rumours will fly. Verify everything!
Clear out as much debris as you can from roads, parking lots, your front door, etc. The way needs to be clear for any emergency responders to get through.
Be careful of who's wandering around afterwards. Looters love to move in right after a storm and see what they can get.
I will ask the mods if we can have a dedicated Hurricane Hildawg thread to answer questions for anyone who is there and can get through. As I said, you will need information from those on the outside so you know what's really going on.
Good luck. Bring it, Hildawg! We're ready for you.
Very kind of you to get this info out to us in the storm's path. I will do what I can to prepare. Hoping for the best!
DITTO....thanks BIGLY Cuetardian for the VALUABLE INFO !!!👍👍👍
You are very welcome! Let's hope everyone gets thru it okay.
I am still waiting on FEMA to suggest that 3 most important hurricane preparations are to get your booster early, spay/nueter pets/kids, and contribute to the Ukraine/Hunter relief fund.
I really didn't want to upvote this due to a lack of useful info... That said I kekked too hard & the upvote happened.
u/#kek
Great advice.
As a former flood victim from Hurricane Flo (only a Cat 1) here in NC. I would recommend the following:
Secure all loose items outside. Cut down rotten limbs on trees BEFORE the wind.
Buy lots of bottled water. Have a go bag ready for all members of your family including pets. Park cars on high ground in case of flood.
Be sure to raise anything you own of importance off the ground floor in case of flood.
Keep insurance card and number handy.
If you plan on staying at home and there is a flood make sure you have a safe space above the first floor and even access to roof should the water go too high. If your home is built on a slab and only have one floor and are near a river. Pack your car(s) and LEAVE before the storm. Even though we flooded three days after the storm here we could not leave the area with so many downed trees and highways out of the area were blocked or flooded from other rivers!
Be sure to have a go bag and leave before the storm if you are ANYWHERE near one of those gutters in the desert.
Raleigh nc here, back in 96 Fran kicked out asses - 18 days without power, so fill freeze water ahead of time - fill jugs or bowls or whatever to fill your freezers with ice to use until support shows up. Also get your chainsaws in working order - we couldn’t get out of our neighborhood for two weeks
If you have kids/elderly or yourself cannot take the heat, your AC down low and run them leading up to the storm, wear sweatpants and sweatshirts if it’s too cold. You’ll want your home cool if the power kicks off. Important documents, phots, mementos use your dishwasher to store if not already in water proof storage tubs. 100% clear debris FIRST from around your home. You don’t want your own lawn chair breaking your window you could have put up. If you have a black & decker/ryobi/dewalt tool set with rechargeable batteries, they usually have a fan option. Extra batteries all charged up help.
Mississippi here! One thing nobody is talking about is the surge. It will destroy las poorest neighborhoods. When flooding comes those people will have nowhere else to go. So many of those neighborhoods are at sea level and just 1 ft of surge would destroy almost every home that is not in the mountains. It will be a disaster and they will blame climate change. Will this be the storm they use to enforce the climate lockdown? Can you imagine the calamity of a hood as big as la and the reaction that will come from the people? New Orleans was bad but la has millions more poor people that will be homeless overnight. Storm surge is the problem. Mud slides. They gonna find out just how great their Democrat president is.
How can this be? Didn’t Biden run on stopping climate change?
The surge, absolutely. That's why I put "Stay away from the beaches" in the headline. I did mention the storm surge about halfway down the post, but it was a long one.
The storm surge can and does wipe entire towns off the map. LIke this one in 2018, where thirty people died because they tried to ride out the storm there: https://www.wtvy.com/2021/04/18/hurricane-micahel-storm-surge-catastrophic-for-mexico-beach/
You don't have to have a Cat 5 to do this. Even a smaller surge can cause extreme damage. And if you're standing out there on the beach to watch the storm, there is no time to run. It will grab you and then you're gone.
So don't try to watch the storm from anywhere near the beach.
Minimal surge on the west coast; the continental shelf is too narrow to build up a significant surge. Perhaps a few feet at most, which wouldn't amount to much out there since the beaches there experience occasional winter storms with huge waves and some surge.
Most of LA is shielded from surges since there are 40-100 foot cliffs that line the beaches. Orange County and San Diego have some of this, but are mostly at sea level or even built on sandbars (like Newport Beach and Long Beach) or even built in marshes (like Huntington Beach and Seal Beach).
The bigger threat has and always will be... flash floods coursing down from the mountains and onto the drought cracked natural flood plains most towns and cities. One of the purposes of the Hoover Dam was to control the annual flooding on these plains. AND, mudslides. Mudslides continue to be devastating to communities in the hills and base of SoCal mountains, as well as roads.
During the El Nino of the 80s, for those that are old enough to recall that... basically 6 months of heavy rains and storms, SoCal survived the mudslides, surges, flash floods, flooded streets, and inconveniences. They will survive this... there will just be a lot more whining and finger pointing.
Sounds like some knowledge insight. Just wondering if there is some sauce you can point us towards to learn more about this conclusion you have drawn. My history with you give me reason to believe you are aware of such things, though I am hoping for some papers/data that can be looked over so we can become better educated on the physics/geography of it.
Thanks for your input.
True about the larger population NOLA to LA.
I saw a comment on a Hurricane thread once about keeping your shoes on in case the storm breaks your windows. That's good advice for tornado threats too.
Absolutely. Sleep in your clothes, if you can sleep, and wear something that can take rain and wind. Work boots are even better if you have them.
Thank you for this wonderful, comprehensive and helpful post.
When was the last time a tropical storm hit Southern California?
The last time a tropical storm made landfall in California was 84 years ago — before there was a system of naming storms.
The 1939 storm, called El Cordonazo, became the first and only tropical storm to make landfall in the state in the 20th century, according to the National Weather Service. NWS says the storm, which was at one point a hurricane, originated off the southern coast of Central America before moving north and eventually coming ashore at San Pedro, California.
Resulting floods from the storm killed at least 45 people across the Southern California region and caused $2 million in damage to structures and crops, the weather service reports. Another 48 people were also killed at sea. Cities across the Southern California region experienced torrential rains because of the tropical storm — Los Angeles, for example, saw 5.24" in just 24 hours.
"Californians were generally unprepared and were alerted to their vulnerability to tropical storms," NWS said of the storm in its report about significant weather events in Southern California. The weather bureau established a forecast office in Southern California in 1940 after the disaster.
Other powerful storms have hit Southern California, including a hurricane in 1858 that hit San Diego with 75 mph winds, a Category 1. The hurricane, which caused extensive wind damage, is considered the only actual hurricane to hit the West Coast, according to National Weather Service.
In 1997, NWS says Hurricane Linda in the Pacific became the strongest storm recorded in the region, with 180 mph winds and 218 mph gusts. However, it didn't make landfall in California, but as a nearby tropical storm it did cause heavy rain and thunderstorms in the area. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricane-hilary-forecast-california-tropical-storm-nearly-unprecedented/
I believe the Elite Maggots are using HAARP.
If that’s true then Orange County (the conservative area in SoCal) better watch out. They are seaside.
I have personal experience there in recent years - everything inland from Laguna Beach is pretty safe from any sort of surge, if there was one.
To get inland from Laguna, you have to go up a few miles of significant inclined road before you get into Laguna Hills/Woods and closer to Irvine/other areas of Orange Co.
It's a beautiful place, honestly - and compared to LA, Orange Co. is an island of heaven, politically and geographically. Hope it fares well!
Long Beach might be a different story with something like a surge - but we didn't spend too much time up there.
South of Laguna are a few other areas, like Dana Point - that town has a fair bit down by the water - but in a lot of areas, there are giant cliffs (like 100ft?) that separate inland from the sandy beaches.
Correct!
I grew up in Newport-Mesa and went through the El Ninos of the 80s. I still have a lot of family that lives there.
The Newport peninsula will get flooded, the boats in Newport Harbor will get their docks busted up and mooring lines tested. The rental and vacation waterfront homes will get filled with 5 feet of sand and kelp (karma is a bitch). The dumb people who bought homes in the old Huntington Beach and Seal Beach marshes will get flooded to their rooflines or 2nd floor when the Santa Ana river canals overflow. There will be a lot of whining and finger pointing about this.
The bigger issue will be mudslides in the hills, flash floods undermining roadways, and water on the highways. It's very true that SoCal people don't handle driving in bad weather well. To this day, I hate driving in bad weather ;)
As a side note... do you know that the biggest underground river in the world flows under OC? When the "big one" does finally hit... the game will be called liquefaction. Its fed by the Colorado River and much of the California Aqueduct leverages it. There was a maintenance hatch near my home just outside of Palm Springs that my son and I used to stand on because we could hear the hum of the water rushing through. It sounded just like the huge pipes in the Hoover Dam (if you've ever taken the Damn Dam Tour)
absolutely not true
Thanks, Bones! That was some fascinating information (really.)
Welcome fren. 🚀 I didn't think about flooding vs soaking into the ground.
HOW TO WAKE UP A NORMIE: https://c.tenor.com/W7IWO4RCZuYAAAAd/mccoy-leonard-mccoy.gif 🛸
YEP....sure seems a LOT of folks are causing HARP-Y-WEATHER problems 🔥👿🔥
The west coast does not get hurricanes, we only get tropical storms. This thing is going to be a light breeze when it hits the US.
Don’t believe the news. They lie. Don’t believe the weather gods (NOAA, NASA, etc.) because they also lie by monkeying with the data.
Agreed. I love North of LA. I'll see you on the other side
Hi I live in northern LA county, bordering Ventura. Have you ever seen a really bad tropical storm here? I grew up in NY.
Just crazy rain once a decade. Nothing too serious. It's California.. you only stay for the weather
I'm in San Diego, on Mission Beach, about 80 feet from the boardwalk. Should be interesting.
Fellow San Diegan. I am not worried about most of central San Diego, but I am worried about Mission Beach and Mission Valley. My prayers are with you.
I was on crown point bbq today ! I’m around the catamaran often, love that part of the bay and a block to get on misson beach;) . Love living in the area . Glad to know a Fren is that close ;)
I moved from Crown Point to MB in April
Good for u , beautiful life in our area !
Keep eyes on your water level
Depends - anyplace there been targeted for a Smart City?
ACTUALLY.... in the Pacific they're called TYPHOONS...and in the Indian Ocean they're called WILLY-WILLIES (got this from a navy dude that's ancient).
Remember when crystal pier went down ,, pacific beach ? I’m thinking the rain won’t be worse than it was 5 months ago either , that was actually pretty bad, we’ve had lots of tropical storms like u said ,,
Great post! God bless you for providing all of this incredibly useful information to people on the leftist coast.
Please be safe, everybody!
And for those who don't live in affected areas, please pray for those who do.
Thank you very much — from SoCal!
Just the WOKE are allowed on the beaches during this storm. It is a private party so all you conservatives stay inland. Kek
Put up signs & sell invitations.
Wow... I didn't believe it was true - I'm so jaded now - stay safe people and keep your powder dry
Guess this isn't the place for Saturday night gifs.
u/#peperain
Prayers for y'all.
San Diegan with a question: the telephone poles in the older neighborhoods are in bad shape. I am pretty sure it won't take much wind to make them fall over. Is there anything that can be done ahead of time to prevent a telephone pole from falling/mitigate damage?
California utilities: (1) Take pix immediately and send to your utility, two ways, and a neighbor (someone else who can validate) (2) If said pole (poles) fall and damage your property, they are responsible for the damages. By law.
But you must alert them ahad of time.
It's probably too late now; I don't know how much wind they're designed to take. But in the FL hurricanes and tropical storms, seeing miles of fallen wooden telephone poles was very common.
All you can do now is get out of the way if they are nearby.
Also: You could try contacting Channel 8 and see if they can get an answer: https://www.cbs8.com/?fbclid=IwAR3Ay639ymLilndMr6S437I9wyUcv078tCD2VCRZ2D13JEIcfGDVZfjIJKs
I would make certain that your home is covered by the damage & determine what is not covered so you are aware & can act accordingly.
I have a buddy who has tried to get utilities here in Utah to fulfill promises & fix known issues, only to find "they are a government unto themselves" (as he calls them). Nothing I can think of to prevent them falling.
/me called a lineman to verify anything else I didn't think of.
Also speaking with a lineman, they told me even poles that are 50+ years old aren't likely to fall over due to storm winds (lineman in Utah). He said the problem is almost certainly to occur from trees hitting those lines/poles. Getting the community to clear away debris/trees that could hit those lines/poles is the best preventative measure right now.
Thank you Anon. I’ll sticky it up for our Mexico and US west-coast folks.
Thank you! I will be working from home all day today and tomorrow and will monitor. I will add any good info I can find.
Thanks again.
Lived here most of my life but rode out a few hurricanes when I lived in FL. Good advice. I hope it’s heeded.
Thank you for sharing.
I reposted on X but was not allowed to share your post address.
G/A must be banned over there.
Here is a link to my share of your post. Feel free to pop over and id yourself.
I referred to you as a great patriot.
https://twitter.com/GrdnVarietyAnon/status/1692948657060860286
Aw, thanks, patriot! What matters is helping people get through this. I posted because I kept remembering this is California being affected and most people there have no experience with something like this.
I haven't read all the comments so someone may have mentioned these. I have lived through a bunch of hurricanes, Nor'Easters and blizzards and want to add:
About the freezer - Along with bottles of water, fill it with frozen food and open it ONLY when needed. The more you have in it, the longer the food will stay frozen/cold. Get a small cooler for drinks or snacks because the more you open the fridge/freezer the quicker the contents will get to room temp.
Beware of the eye of the storm. You think it's over, only to have it start all over again.
Make sure you have at least one radio and batteries so you can get updates.
Cook as much food as possible before the storm. You never know if you will be able to cook afterwards. Or, get a propane grill so you can cook.
Bottom line: prior planning prevents piss poor performance.
PREPARE, PREPARE, PREPARE CONSERVE, CONSERVE, CONSERVE
Edited to add: You can live without food for 3 weeks but you will die without water after 3 days.
VERY SOUND ADVICE AND UP TO NOTCH...To the Californians WHO WILL BE EXPERIENCING THIS STORM: PLEASE, PLEASE DO NOT GO NEAR ANY WINDOWS WHILE THE STORM IS COMING THROUGH...You MIGHT want to see it BUT it will be to your detriment and anyone else who is with you. IF there is ANY DEBRIS in the flow path and it hits the windows WHILE YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE STORM...You might be considered a casualty...
Stay CALM AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE THAT WILL HELP IF YOU HAVE LITTLE ONES with you...keep them safe and yourself safe...
REMEMBER: THE LIL' ONES ARE RELYING ON YOU AND THEY WILL NEED YOU WHEN THE TIME COMES...
Floridian here.
True 'dat.
The storm may not be very strong when it lands, but it can still generate tornadoes and heavy flooding. Be prepared to be without power for at least a week or even a month worst case.
absolutely. Tornadoes are definitely a thing when it comes to tropical storms. And if your house got wet on the inside, as in water coming down through the walls, the electricity cannot be turned on inside even if the main power has been restored.
The storm has moved west, so it's not hitting much land in Mexico.
Where the the beach is facing is a key issue.... Pressure is coming up from the south pushing water in front of it.
South and Southeast facing beaches will get hit the worst.
In superstorm Sandy the east side of lower Manhattan got pummeled while the west side of Brooklyn just got puddles. Pressure and water was moving east to west.
Am I just confused or did hurricanes on the west coast used to be called typhoons? I feel like I’m having a Mandela effect here…
They are called typhoons when they are west of the international date line. So, they have always been called hurricanes in the East Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
Speaking of dates.
Q. What's a dung beetles favorite pick up line?
A. Pardon me, is this stool taken.
Thanks for the giggles!
The mountain ranges on the west coast are a barrier to true hurricane force winds traveling far inland.
But they still have other serious issues to be concerned with, like mud slides and flooding in certain areas
Tornado Alley here- survived an EF5. Alcohol. Buy plent of alcohol. 😂
I kid, sorta. This list is spot on. We regularly lose power from storms for days at a time. If you or you’re a caregiver, make sure there are battery backup systems and ways to recharge (full tank of gas in car and power inverter) to run your medical equipment. If you are located super close to the beach, consider moving your loved one or yourself to a little unscheduled vacation inland, near where you can get medical assistance.
Having a disabled child you plan a few things differently.
I grew up in FL, lived in MS and NC. I've been through many hurricanes. Any hurricane hitting CA is going to be, at most, category 2 (the water temperature wouldn't be able to fuel anything stronger, and I doubt it can even maintain a category 1 hurricane). As such, going to the beach isn't going to be much different than anywhere else; it's the rains that will be the threat. Just imagine a storm with at least 4 inches of rain within a 12-hr period! All those arroyos and any other drainage will be flooded and hazardous. So the real warning is, don't go out anywhere when the storm is around, and have at least a week of food, water, and a way to cook.
I'm about an hour inland. If you look at the weather maps we're going to get hit by much more rain than the coast. I cleaned out my gutters today and essentially dug a moat in my back yard as I have had drainage issues in the past. =D Fun times. My hands aren't use to physical labor. Ouch. Blisters. According to the wind threat maps here in the inland empire we can see wind speeds of 39-57 mph. I think dangerous wind starts at around 58 mph. Heheheh. I get it. Same difference. Anyway, blessings to all.
Thank u so much for caring about us Cali frens . I’m a single girl in San Diego so I’ll be checking in , this is the only place I get my news . Its 2am sat night Sunday am the rain has started .
Good morning! Please let us know how it's going for you, and we can share whatever news we have. It can be difficult to get good info when you're right in the middle of it. Especially be careful in the aftermath if you're there alone. I saw looters prowling after the storms I rode out in Florida, even in "nice" neighborhoods.
Thank you so much , I just woke , was up reading till late . Throughout the night the rain was light but steady. I just tied up a couple of young trees that I planted on the side of my house where I built an addition I have them outside the sliding doors I built a downstairs bedroom and when I walked out there they were all folded kind of in half , but everything seems fine here , people running around with their kids on razors, people are walking their dogs it’s more of a drizzle right now !!I’m heading to church soon will see what happens throughout the day and I most definitely will keep in touch , thank you so much Fren
Unless you’re #marxist. Then by all means watch the fun from the comfort of the beach
Go to the beach, comrades, and document the climate change!!
Kek
Used to have hurricane parties in FL, but we were prepared
Channel 8 in San Diego has good information: https://www.cbs8.com/?fbclid=IwAR3Ay639ymLilndMr6S437I9wyUcv078tCD2VCRZ2D13JEIcfGDVZfjIJKs
Things that will protect you from hurricanes for California residents:
If you are 3x vaccinated/ boosted for COVID
If you voted for Biden and will vote for him again.
If you Believe free markets are evil.
If you support communism.
If you think CNN is the best place to get unbiased news.
If you think gender is a social construct.
If you support drag queen story time for children.
If you believe guns should be outlawed and confiscated.
If you are against free speech.
If you believe in one or more of these things then you are automatically safe from the hurricane and you can safely view it on the beach.
Also to help fight climate change please don't use any plywood over any of your windows as cutting down trees and using wood is bad for the environment.
Lmao👌Hugely underrated comment🐸
Nola here - please listen to Florida above. If it ends up being a nothing storm, you're out a few bucks. If it does hit like a tropical storm, with hurricane force winds driving storm surge, you will be sitting in a much prettier place than those who didn't do anything. We had a very late (Oct) hurricane hit - Zeta I think - weatherman all calling it was gonna decrease in strength when it hit the cooler waters in the gulf by the coast. Well, it was a bitch - and lo and behold - they learned that that combo (hot mixing with cold) did the opposite they expected. Zeta got upgraded later from a cat 2 to a cat 3. Just be safe
LANDSLIDES!
Update from Channel 8: Hilary has accelerated in her movement, meaning the time of arrival is expected to happen sooner than expected. While landfall is now expected to come between 3 and 5 p.m. on Sunday, the strongest impacts will be felt ahead of landfall from Sunday morning through Sunday evening. Rain totals will likely reach between 2 and 3 inches along the coast and inland, with localized heavier spots.
Channel 8 in San Diego will air special storm coverage on Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. as Hurricane Hilary is expected to reach landfall in San Diego. https://www.cbs8.com/article/weather/tracking-hilary-latest-cone-of-uncertainty-spaghetti-model-alerts/509-39910516-de38-4904-b3e3-ea6538daf2c5
Newscum declared a State of Emergency for much of Southern California
Local residents got a Tropical Storm Warning for high winds and heavy rain at about 8:20 p.m. PDT. This EAS warning came via cell phone and TV stations.