Dee Light
Logs - 2004 - Fall - Hurricane Frances
Fort Myers Florida
NOTE .. for a larger version of the photos on this page .. just click on the photo .. NOTE
NOTE .. for a larger version of the photos on this page .. just click on the photo .. NOTE
Wednesday – September 01 2004 - Centennial Harbour Marina – Fort Myers, FL - (239) 461-0775 – Mile 136 … September 1st marks the start of ‘Hurricane Season’ in Florida .. and there is not a sole here that has to be reminded of that fact at all .. with Hurricane Charley hitting Southwest Florida just a couple of weeks ago and Hurricane Frances rapidly approaching all Eyes are watching the weather as never before .. the phone of our Harbourmaster ( Dave ) here at Centennial is ringing off the hook .. Boaters on the East side of Florida are looking at where they are going to go as Frances approaches ..
Frances Path Still Uncertain but US Landfall Likely
August 31, 2004 - By John Emmert
A menacing Hurricane Frances crept closer Wednesday to the southeastern United States, with 140 mph winds and forecasters saying Florida -- still cleaning up after Charley -- was at risk for another hurricane strike as soon as Friday ...
As Frances closed on the Bahamas, it was expected to fluctuate in intensity and could become a Category 5 storm with winds of 156 mph or higher, said Jamie Rhome, a meteorologist with the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The storm could hit anywhere from South Florida to South Carolina as early as late Friday ...
"This still is a huge threat to the southeast U.S. coast," Rhome said. "All indications for now is that Florida is the prime candidate."
At 8 a.m. EDT, Frances was centered about 130 miles east of Grand Turk Island southeast of the Bahamas and 1,260 miles east-southeast of Palm Beach ...
.. in the afternoon the National Hurricane Center reported that Frances has not started to head North as it was expected to do .. and it was also noted that this is a ‘BIG ONE’ .. the SIZE of Frances is much greater than Charley was .. at this time the Eye of Frances is five times the size that Charley’s Eye was when it hit Punta Gorda .. thus Frances will affect a much larger ‘land mass’ when it dose make it to the Shores of Florida .. all of the Stores in Fort Myers area are filled with people stocking up on Hurricane Supplies .. and the ‘Media’ in this Southwest part of Florida is on ‘Red Alert’ .. the Staff at our Marina is already moving some of the Boats to safer Slips within the Marina ..
.. also this afternoon Governor Jeb Bush address the people of Florida thru the Media .. Jeb did not go to the National Republican Convention in New York because of what his State is going thru at this time .. he encouraged people to get ready for Frances .. i.e. fill cars with gas, get supplies, etc. .. and he told everyone to have a ‘Plan’ and ‘DO NOT PANIC’ ..
Frances Path Still Uncertain but US Landfall Likely
August 31, 2004 - By John Emmert
A menacing Hurricane Frances crept closer Wednesday to the southeastern United States, with 140 mph winds and forecasters saying Florida -- still cleaning up after Charley -- was at risk for another hurricane strike as soon as Friday ...
As Frances closed on the Bahamas, it was expected to fluctuate in intensity and could become a Category 5 storm with winds of 156 mph or higher, said Jamie Rhome, a meteorologist with the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The storm could hit anywhere from South Florida to South Carolina as early as late Friday ...
"This still is a huge threat to the southeast U.S. coast," Rhome said. "All indications for now is that Florida is the prime candidate."
At 8 a.m. EDT, Frances was centered about 130 miles east of Grand Turk Island southeast of the Bahamas and 1,260 miles east-southeast of Palm Beach ...
.. in the afternoon the National Hurricane Center reported that Frances has not started to head North as it was expected to do .. and it was also noted that this is a ‘BIG ONE’ .. the SIZE of Frances is much greater than Charley was .. at this time the Eye of Frances is five times the size that Charley’s Eye was when it hit Punta Gorda .. thus Frances will affect a much larger ‘land mass’ when it dose make it to the Shores of Florida .. all of the Stores in Fort Myers area are filled with people stocking up on Hurricane Supplies .. and the ‘Media’ in this Southwest part of Florida is on ‘Red Alert’ .. the Staff at our Marina is already moving some of the Boats to safer Slips within the Marina ..
.. also this afternoon Governor Jeb Bush address the people of Florida thru the Media .. Jeb did not go to the National Republican Convention in New York because of what his State is going thru at this time .. he encouraged people to get ready for Frances .. i.e. fill cars with gas, get supplies, etc. .. and he told everyone to have a ‘Plan’ and ‘DO NOT PANIC’ ..
Thursday – September 02 2004 - Centennial Harbour Marina – Fort Myers, FL - (239) 461-0775 – Mile 136 … the Media states that ‘Hurricane is no Hurricane Charley’ .. it is MUCH greater in size and is forecasted to be much greater than Hurricane Andrew was .. we started to get our Hurricane Lines back out .. once our Lines are in place our Hurricane Frances Plan is much the same as our Hurricane Charley Plan was .. we do not feel that with the ‘direction – Track’ of Frances that we will not have a Surge to worry about with Frances .. thus our Hurricane Plan for Frances is as follows …
Plan A .. ride out the Hurricane on Dee Light ..
Plan B .. relocate to the Boaters Lounge at the Marina .. it is a concrete building but has a framed roof .. the area will take good winds ..
Plan C .. relocate to the Restrooms behind in the Marina Office .. all concrete walls and it has both a structural concrete elevated floor and roof ..
.. all day the Marina was buzzing with activity .. many Boats from the East Coast headed our way for a safe spot to spell out Frances .. also many of the Boats that harbor here moved to better locations within the Marina to weather out the Storm .. the Marina filled up and had to turn away many Boats .. about 02:00 pm the Lock and Dam System was jammed up with boats heading West due to Frances and any of the Boats that do not make it thru the Lock System will stuck for the duration of Frances ..
04:00 pm – Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency throughout Florida and activated the National Guard ... Port Everglades will close to incoming ships at 08:00 a.m., complicating life for Cruise Passengers …. Miami Beach lifeguards were ordered to abandon their stations ....
HEADLINES as we headed for bed ….
Massive Storm 'Is Going To happen'
Posted on Thu, Sep. 02, 2004 - BY MARTIN MERZER AND DAVID OVALLE
MIAMI FL - Forecasters issued a hurricane watch Wednesday night for South Florida as a monstrous Hurricane Frances prowled relentlessly closer. Emergency managers ordered mass evacuations upstate and pleaded with residents everywhere to make final preparations today.
No one could say with precision where the core might drill the East Coast, but Frances was a colossal Category 4 storm with 140-mph winds capable of sweeping destruction and deadly consequences -- regardless of where its center strikes.
Plan A .. ride out the Hurricane on Dee Light ..
Plan B .. relocate to the Boaters Lounge at the Marina .. it is a concrete building but has a framed roof .. the area will take good winds ..
Plan C .. relocate to the Restrooms behind in the Marina Office .. all concrete walls and it has both a structural concrete elevated floor and roof ..
.. all day the Marina was buzzing with activity .. many Boats from the East Coast headed our way for a safe spot to spell out Frances .. also many of the Boats that harbor here moved to better locations within the Marina to weather out the Storm .. the Marina filled up and had to turn away many Boats .. about 02:00 pm the Lock and Dam System was jammed up with boats heading West due to Frances and any of the Boats that do not make it thru the Lock System will stuck for the duration of Frances ..
04:00 pm – Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency throughout Florida and activated the National Guard ... Port Everglades will close to incoming ships at 08:00 a.m., complicating life for Cruise Passengers …. Miami Beach lifeguards were ordered to abandon their stations ....
HEADLINES as we headed for bed ….
Massive Storm 'Is Going To happen'
Posted on Thu, Sep. 02, 2004 - BY MARTIN MERZER AND DAVID OVALLE
MIAMI FL - Forecasters issued a hurricane watch Wednesday night for South Florida as a monstrous Hurricane Frances prowled relentlessly closer. Emergency managers ordered mass evacuations upstate and pleaded with residents everywhere to make final preparations today.
No one could say with precision where the core might drill the East Coast, but Frances was a colossal Category 4 storm with 140-mph winds capable of sweeping destruction and deadly consequences -- regardless of where its center strikes.
Friday – September 03 2004 - Centennial Harbour Marina – Fort Myers, FL - (239) 461-0775 – Mile 136 … GREAT NEWS .. Hurricane Frances has been down graded to a Category 3 Hurricane as the Sustaining Winds have reduced from 145 to 120 MPH .. the travel speed has also slowed down .. as of today all the area Schools are now closed until after Frances passes thru the area .. more Snow Days ..
HEADLINES -
Frances Becomes Strong Category 3 Overnight
2.5 million urged to seek safe havens as Frances approaches east coast
By ALISON KEPNER - Published by news-press.com on September 3, 2004
MIAMI FL - What many fear could be the strongest storm to hit Florida in a decade was downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane overnight as it continued to churn toward the east coast.
Hurricane Frances, which has caused the largest evacuation ever ordered in the state, is packing 120 mph winds and has the potential to push ashore waves up to 14 feet high, according to the 5 a.m. weather advisory ….
08:30 am .. all of our Hurricane Lines and Fenders are in place ..
09:00 am Florida’s Governor Jeb Bush had a Press Conference .. he stated that even with Frances now rated as a Category 3 Hurricane it should still be respected as a very dangerous Storm .. now that the Current Movement has slowed down we can expect about 10 to 15 to 20 inches of rain in our area with high winds .. the Surge on Lake Okeechobee could be 8 to 12 feet ..
02:00 pm – HEADLINES - 'Looks Like Rush Hour' Across State
Traffic snarled and tempers flared as millions fled and Hurricane Frances approached. Highways may be turned into one-way evacuation routes today.
MIAMI FL - Widespread traffic jams covered the state Thursday as millions of residents made last-minute dashes to lumberyards and grocery stores and started fleeing the coastal zones in anticipation of Hurricane Frances.
''It's not one particular spot . . . it's heavy all over,'' said Lt. Julio Pajon of the Florida Highway Patrol. ``It looks like rush hour out there. It has all day.''
South Florida emergency officials urged evacuees to head west, to inland locales, not north, considering the wide swath that Frances is expected to cut. They said several major highways across the state could be turned into one-way, westbound-only thoroughfares by early today to help accelerate last-minute evacuation efforts.
Miami-Dade officials said public bus service will cease today about two hours before tropical storm-force winds arrive, marking the effective end of the evacuation. On Thursday evening, forecasters expected those winds to arrive about 2 p.m. today.
''I've been a cop for 26 years, and I thought I had seen everything,'' Orange County sheriff's Chief Steve Jones, who broke up the fist fight, told The Orlando Sentinel. ``Now I can say I have seen everything.''
HEADLINES -
Frances Becomes Strong Category 3 Overnight
2.5 million urged to seek safe havens as Frances approaches east coast
By ALISON KEPNER - Published by news-press.com on September 3, 2004
MIAMI FL - What many fear could be the strongest storm to hit Florida in a decade was downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane overnight as it continued to churn toward the east coast.
Hurricane Frances, which has caused the largest evacuation ever ordered in the state, is packing 120 mph winds and has the potential to push ashore waves up to 14 feet high, according to the 5 a.m. weather advisory ….
08:30 am .. all of our Hurricane Lines and Fenders are in place ..
09:00 am Florida’s Governor Jeb Bush had a Press Conference .. he stated that even with Frances now rated as a Category 3 Hurricane it should still be respected as a very dangerous Storm .. now that the Current Movement has slowed down we can expect about 10 to 15 to 20 inches of rain in our area with high winds .. the Surge on Lake Okeechobee could be 8 to 12 feet ..
02:00 pm – HEADLINES - 'Looks Like Rush Hour' Across State
Traffic snarled and tempers flared as millions fled and Hurricane Frances approached. Highways may be turned into one-way evacuation routes today.
MIAMI FL - Widespread traffic jams covered the state Thursday as millions of residents made last-minute dashes to lumberyards and grocery stores and started fleeing the coastal zones in anticipation of Hurricane Frances.
''It's not one particular spot . . . it's heavy all over,'' said Lt. Julio Pajon of the Florida Highway Patrol. ``It looks like rush hour out there. It has all day.''
South Florida emergency officials urged evacuees to head west, to inland locales, not north, considering the wide swath that Frances is expected to cut. They said several major highways across the state could be turned into one-way, westbound-only thoroughfares by early today to help accelerate last-minute evacuation efforts.
Miami-Dade officials said public bus service will cease today about two hours before tropical storm-force winds arrive, marking the effective end of the evacuation. On Thursday evening, forecasters expected those winds to arrive about 2 p.m. today.
''I've been a cop for 26 years, and I thought I had seen everything,'' Orange County sheriff's Chief Steve Jones, who broke up the fist fight, told The Orlando Sentinel. ``Now I can say I have seen everything.''
Saturday – September 04 2004 - Centennial Harbour Marina – Fort Myers, FL - (239) 461-0775 – Mile 136 … right after a quick breakfast we took a walk to the Fort Myers Yacht Basin and checked out the Boats in the Marina .. both our Marina and the Fort Myers Yacht Basin are filled with boats from the East Coast .. we also saw a few Boats that were on the Hook in the River .. apparently there is ‘no more room at the Inn’ ..
HEADLINES –
Weaker But Wet and Windy
Slow-moving Frances could dump 'feet' of rain
By JOAN D. LaGUARDIA
September 4, 2004
Hurricane Frances almost came to a standstill Friday night as it chugged closer to the Florida coastline packing plenty of water but losing some of its powerful winds.
FORT MYERS FL - The Category 2 storm lumbered along at 6 miles per hour with 105 mph winds late Friday night off the Florida coast, and National Weather Service forecasters feared the slow-moving storm could drop as much as 20 inches of rain along its path.
HEADLINES –
Weaker But Wet and Windy
Slow-moving Frances could dump 'feet' of rain
By JOAN D. LaGUARDIA
September 4, 2004
Hurricane Frances almost came to a standstill Friday night as it chugged closer to the Florida coastline packing plenty of water but losing some of its powerful winds.
FORT MYERS FL - The Category 2 storm lumbered along at 6 miles per hour with 105 mph winds late Friday night off the Florida coast, and National Weather Service forecasters feared the slow-moving storm could drop as much as 20 inches of rain along its path.