Hurricane Beryl

[Alikay]

Just saw on the weather that this hurricane swept through the Caribbean  without mercy. Anyone knows or heard about our brothers there?

[Ostria]

I havent heard anything yet, however Jamaica is right in it's path. They are being warned to be where they need to be tonight, they may have some time in the morning but not much. This is a really dangerous and deadly storm https://youtu.be/UQlHnULk9RA?si=Fx25KGUywMMG-RW-

[Qapla]

We have a local brother who is from Jamacia - I'm sure he will let us know anything he hears from family

 

[Qapla]

Beryl looks like a storm that just won't quit. After hitting the islands in the Carribean and Gulf, it made its way across the Yucatan and hit Texas as a CAT 1 and the storm system has left millions in Texas and Louisiana without power. They expect the rain system to make it all the way to the Great Lakes.

 

[Anakalia]

Reports vary (depending on source) but looks like Beryl came inland in Texas, near Matagorda (closer to Houston & Galveston than to Corpus Christi) and moved northeast with the eye of the storm going near the western edges of Houston. 

I have a lot a family there. I've been watching Beryl since it became a named storm system.

Many areas with family (and jw friends too) got winds from 60mph to (some say) as much as 110 mph and nonstop heavy rains for anywhere from 12 to over 24 hours. As the storm moved near various individuals power went out. As of 10PM Monday (central time) only a few remained without power - still that could account for many overall depending on specific location. Those in Houston got power back faster than those in smaller cities outside of Houston (like Lake Jackson, Rosenberg, Sugar Land, Katy, Woodlands and so on). One of my brothers had his employer (he works IT support from home) offer to pay all costs for him to move all his equipment and stay anywhere (even Austin or Dallas) that had power so he could still do his job. A nephew of mine works as manager of a major chain of pet stores & his boss is in California and was telling him he had to get to the store and open for business as usual --- from California (where they know nothing about hurricanes) --- he told him he'd get there when local authorities said it was safe to be in that area. LOL 

My mom & my sister and several other sisters (who all live in the same gated, 3-story apartment complex) in her building gathered to deal with the storm together. My sister is the youngest at 62 and mom is the oldest at 89, one of the other sisters has a cast on one leg, another had surgery a few days ago; but they stayed the night and all today together until power was restored (about 8pm). From their windows they could see many trees down, many roads & parking lots that flooded, and at times watched (carefully) as the winds blew things past their window! Their congregation has the MWM on Monday - it was canceled (can't even zoom it if there's no power). Tuesday will be a day to begin cleaning things up. 

A few friends had roof damage & broken windows from the winds or fallen trees.

I'm sure we'll hear more once the sun is up tomorrow.

Some reports are certain it came in as a Cat2 Hurricane; news channels (that are still on the air) were saying it was only a Tropical Storm. Not sure where it will officially be listed at yet, but it definitely packed a punch!

[Tia]

Prayers for all those ones affected in the area(s) sis - and for  your love ones!  How are they faring sis?

My husband family is throughout Texas, Dallas and Beaumont - if you can, please keep us updated!  

[Julsey]

I live in Texas and was one of over 2 million residents who lost power. Happened at 10 am on Monday, and didn’t come back on until this morning. Had to throw out almost everything in my fridge and freezer. The energy providers fell down on this one in a massive way. Even though we could see Beryl moving towards Houston for a few days, they apparently couldn’t, and left approximately 12,000 emergency workers in south Texas. 😡

 

And this was barely a category 1 storm. I have been through worse and gotten power back sooner. I actually googled “States with the best power grids” because I am not sure I can go through this again.

 

Anyone here from Nebraska??? 

[Julsey]

On 7/9/2024 at 12:05 AM, Anakalia said:

Those in Houston got power back faster than those in smaller cities outside of Houston (like Lake Jackson, Rosenberg, Sugar Land, Katy, Woodlands and so on).

Not the case, sis. As of this afternoon, there were over 1 million in Houston and surrounding areas who didn’t have power restored. 

[Friends just call me Ross]

On 7/8/2024 at 5:06 PM, Qapla said:

Beryl looks like a storm that just won't quit. After hitting the islands in the Carribean and Gulf, it made its way across the Yucatan and hit Texas as a CAT 1 and the storm system has left millions in Texas and Louisiana without power. They expect the rain system to make it all the way to the Great Lakes.

 

 

Yes.   Beryl hit Michigan yesterday.

 

 

That means Beryl barreled  across the USA from border to border.

[LeolaRootStew]

On 7/10/2024 at 9:13 PM, Julsey said:

I live in Texas and was one of over 2 million residents who lost power. Happened at 10 am on Monday, and didn’t come back on until this morning. Had to throw out almost everything in my fridge and freezer. The energy providers fell down on this one in a massive way. Even though we could see Beryl moving towards Houston for a few days, they apparently couldn’t, and left approximately 12,000 emergency workers in south Texas. 😡

 

And this was barely a category 1 storm. I have been through worse and gotten power back sooner. I actually googled “States with the best power grids” because I am not sure I can go through this again.

 

Anyone here from Nebraska??? 

Can you buy a generator for emergencies? Might be cheaper than moving.

[Lee49]

On 7/10/2024 at 9:13 PM, Julsey said:

The energy providers fell down on this one in a massive way

Why Thousands in Houston Are Still Without Power

 Under sometimes sharp questioning Wednesday from Houston city councilmembers about the utility's handling of the storm, Brad Tutunjian, vice president for regulatory policy for CenterPoint Energy, said it wouldn't have been safe to pre-position outside crews to “ride out” the storm.

 He said the extensive damage to trees and power poles has hampered the ability to restore power quickly.

 

Me - It doesn't take a powerful hurricane force to blow down trees and powerlines, I remember years ago in Michigan a powerful storm took down trees in a wide spread storm, it wasn't a tornado or hurricane, we lost power for a couple of days, fortunately the weather was not hot.

[Lee49]

⬆️  https://time.com/6997915/thousands-still-without-power-in-houston/

[Qapla]

https://www.jw.org/en/news/region/global/Hurricane-Beryl-Impacts-Millions/

[Julsey]

3 hours ago, LeolaRootStew said:

Can you buy a generator for emergencies? Might be cheaper than moving.

I can afford a portable generator, but my problem is that I have become very intolerant to the heat, for whatever reason, and those are only good for running the refrigerator and a few other small items. I’d love a whole home generator, but that would cost several thousand dollars.

[Julsey]

2 hours ago, Lee49 said:

Why Thousands in Houston Are Still Without Power

 Under sometimes sharp questioning Wednesday from Houston city councilmembers about the utility's handling of the storm, Brad Tutunjian, vice president for regulatory policy for CenterPoint Energy, said it wouldn't have been safe to pre-position outside crews to “ride out” the storm.

That’s an odd thing for him to say, as what we have heard is that the workers were staged in south Texas…where the storm was initially predicted to hit. 

[Anakalia]

Sorry it's been so long for me to come back with any updates.

My mom & sister still have power. But so many others are without power and have been without all week since Beryl came thru.

Of the friends and family I have scattered all around that area, there are a lot still without power. Everybody I've talked to lost power at some point - restoring power varied from 12 hours or so to a day, 2 days, 3 days, etc. it's scattered, some places got their power back but neighbors are still waiting. In general it's a mess and the heat & humidity are just making it worse. Most of those I know aren't able to afford generators of even the most basic kind. Some of the friends with power are able to share their homes with others still waiting for power to be restored. But my heart aches for those without such options. Many are comparing this to bigger hurricanes of the past; but it seems the real trouble exists because forecasts were predicting Beryl to come inland much more west than it did - Beryl took a surprise last-minute turn to the north and east that Houston & surrounding areas were not prepared for. 

As the week went on I was able to reach more people and hear more tell of how hard this storm hit them. A few will need to repair damages from fallen trees; one had a boat (not theirs) crashed into their house which also flooded about 2 feet (they had already left & came back to this 2 days later) so no doubt others will have similar damages to repair too. 

Where my mom lives is a large apartment community for those 55 & older or disabled. The sisters that live there are all sharing whatever they have so no one needs to get out for groceries or medicines and such. Some of the elders are coming by daily with various supplies too. Roads in their area still have a lot of debris but are drivable at slower speeds with much caution. Still many businesses closed. I will find out later today if they were able to have their weekend meeting (it's usually on Saturday) & if it was zoom only or a hybrid. Sis says they plan on zooming as do the other sisters in their building, but wasn't sure yet.

My heart breaks for the all those suffering. They are in my prayers daily.

It can be hard to be fully prepared for a direct hit from a hurricane.

This was one of my reasons for wanting to move away. There were others but even today, as much as I LOVE living near the coast, be it Gulf coast or Pacific coast, I don't like the weather conditions of the Gulf coast. I do miss the beaches and the feeling of the waves come & go (If I could only find a way to copy that here in my current landlocked environment...)