Greeting All,
Thanks to all that sent well wishes in reference to "I'm having A BAD week".
The electric power came on only a couple of hours ago, first order of business
is a hot shower, then wait to see if the power stays on. Let me tell you how
the last few days went.
I tied all that I thought would take flight the best I could and waited for
Lili, you know the lady from the south, the hurricane. In the morning the
winds started to build. First a good strong breeze. I looked at the clouds
and cooked the last good hot meal I would have for the next few days. The
wind was coming from the east which gave us a protected spot on the patio to
stand outside and watch as the winds continued to build. As the wind
increased with each passing moment pieces of roofing material and limbs from
trees would fly past. A friend down the road about a mile clocked the steady
winds at 121 mph and the gust were well above that. When he checked those
winds the eye of the storm was about an hour away. The pine trees in my yard
would make a loud crack and fall, a small building in my neighbors yard would
raise and drop. With each gust it would raise a little higher until it
finally let go and began to roll and break apart. My daughter said it was
like being in a movie, only it is really happening.
The wind was so strong the water, (I say water because I am not sure if it was
falling down of going up) was like a white fog. We could hardly see a hundred
yards. As the wind continued to increase the parts and pieces got bigger and
much more aggressive. More trees are beginning to break with loud cracks,
only now they do not fall, they fly across the yard then roll like big tumble
weeds. They finally turn in a way where the wind can't push them. (Total
loss of trees in my yard was one, My dwarf apple tree, most were all tops off
the trees that broke out. I will probably have to cut them later.) The small
limbs of the pine trees were like missiles that would travel though the air
with the needles first. They would fly past us with a whistle, then they were
gone. As the storm began to reach it's peak, on the horizon to the south and
west we could see a line of light growing and moving to the north. It was the
eye of the storm. As it move quickly past us the wind started to come out of
the south and we knew the eye had passed.
With the wind now from the south our protected vantage point was lost. We
went inside just in time to see the window in the dinning room collapse. The
curtains were sucked out and the rain blew in. With each gust a few more
pieces of glass broke and fell in or out as the wind chose to send it. The
winds began to give way and we went out side to see the damages. By now it
was afternoon and only a couple more hours of daylight left. The electricity
was off, the water pressure was still good and the phones were still working.
We spent that first night in a hot stuffy house with no air-conditioner. In
south Louisiana the ole A/C is of high importance. The next night we were in
our camper with a generator running the A/C and a few lights. The cell phone
did not come back on till yesterday and the electricity about six hours ago.
I had a question in my last posting, Will 100 mph winds move a Spitfire?. The
answer is, yes. The one we had the engine out of was pushed across the
carport about five feet until the cover got caught under the front tire and
stopped it. The engine was mounted on a stand which was pushed across the
carport into the wall and stopped. We have not looked too close to see if
there is other damage to the cars but they look OK. The MG has a broken
windscreen, probably something hit it. (We left it out in the rain, it is an
MG after all). My GT6 project car has no new dents in it, so I guess it is
OK.
For the passed four days we have been living on generator power, water and
sandwiches. With all that has happened, yesterday I knew everything was going
to be alright. As we drove to town looking for provisions, a white TR4 drove
passed us. My wife ask if we should turn around follow it and I told her "no,
if he can take his car out and drive it after that storm, we have nothing to
worry about". The triumph of the heart and a little Triumph auto, sure makes
your worries seem to fade away. I don't know who he was but he sure made my
day.
Jeff Howard
Rayne LA
USA
'69 GT6+
'80 Spit
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