Dan Robinson
Simone's posts reminded me that the USA's hurricane season is fast approaching (technically here already, but nothing happening yet) and many of us will be switching our focus to the coasts for a hurricane chase or two. I am planning on one or two hurricane trips this summer/fall.
I went on my first hurricane intercept last year with Bill Coyle for Isabel in North Carolina, and although it was an excellent trip, we learned a few lessons about a hurricane expedition. I'm not a hurricane chasing veteran, but here are a few helpful tips I can offer, maybe others can add to this list:
- Bring a BIG cooler with LARGE supply of food and drink. You many not be able to find food or water for days due to loss of power and blocked roads. Bill and I were nearly stranded in rural NE NC due to hundreds of large trees blocking the roads. We did find our way out, but not after a long detour that included an overnight stay in the vehicle at a truck stop without power. I went 16 hours without food or drink (after only a light meal for the whole day), and it was not fun.
- Bring a chainsaw to clear small trees from the road. Some trees were far too big for one person with a chainsaw to safely clear, but there were many smaller ones that kept us from passing that a chainsaw would have been able to handle.
- As with Plains chasing, watch your fuel. Many gas stations will board up and close long before the hurricane hits, and all will likely be out of commission afterward when the power goes out. The isolated ones running on generators will have cars lined up for miles waiting to get gas!
- Curfews will be in place after dark, and expect to get stopped constantly by police during the night if you are out - you may even be forced to stay at a shelter (we almost were). We didn't intend to be out after dark, but the blocked roads kept us on detours well into the night. In retrospect the shelter may not have been too bad, they would have had food and water - but I didn't envision it being a very comfortable place to stay (makeshift cots lined up side-by-side in a gym, no AC, with droves of upset people and crying kids)
- Your video camera will need extra protection when filming outside due to blowing rain, salt spray, and sand. A Portabrace or similar rain-slicker won't cut it, you will need a rigid waterproof housing. I built a custom waterproof housing out of PVC pipe and plexiglass for under $20 that worked great, although I ended up doing most of the filming from inside the vehicle without it:
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing1.jpg
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing2.jpg
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing3.jpg
The camera is stabilized on the inside with socks or rags stuffed around it, and it is controlled with the remote (which is in a ziplock bag itself). Focus must be on infinity.
- As with most Plains areas, radio stations have excellent coverage of hurricanes. We used the radio to position ourselves as they described a play-by-play location of Isabel's eye.
Some points of discussion:
- Isabel was a potent hurricane, but very weak as hurricanes go. Our chase consisted of driving around about 20 miles inland and filming at various locations - safer than the dangers of the coast. In a stronger hurricane I'm not sure I would do this again, as flying debris and falling trees would be a great danger to a vehicle even that far inland. We first planned on finding a parking garage or other strong building in the eye's path and riding out the storm, but could find none in the small towns of coastal NC - so we just stayed mobile. Isabel's marginal strength at landfall made this a better choice, though falling trees were still a threat.
- I'm curious to hear some strategies and preparations used on coastal intercepts. In addition to avoiding dangers such as storm surge and stronger winds, there are mandatory evacuations in most coastal locations. Salt water is bad for your vehicle also. While I would love to experience a hurricane from the coast, the dangers and potential costs (saltwater-flooded vehicle, etc) so far keep me away.
Dan
I went on my first hurricane intercept last year with Bill Coyle for Isabel in North Carolina, and although it was an excellent trip, we learned a few lessons about a hurricane expedition. I'm not a hurricane chasing veteran, but here are a few helpful tips I can offer, maybe others can add to this list:
- Bring a BIG cooler with LARGE supply of food and drink. You many not be able to find food or water for days due to loss of power and blocked roads. Bill and I were nearly stranded in rural NE NC due to hundreds of large trees blocking the roads. We did find our way out, but not after a long detour that included an overnight stay in the vehicle at a truck stop without power. I went 16 hours without food or drink (after only a light meal for the whole day), and it was not fun.
- Bring a chainsaw to clear small trees from the road. Some trees were far too big for one person with a chainsaw to safely clear, but there were many smaller ones that kept us from passing that a chainsaw would have been able to handle.
- As with Plains chasing, watch your fuel. Many gas stations will board up and close long before the hurricane hits, and all will likely be out of commission afterward when the power goes out. The isolated ones running on generators will have cars lined up for miles waiting to get gas!
- Curfews will be in place after dark, and expect to get stopped constantly by police during the night if you are out - you may even be forced to stay at a shelter (we almost were). We didn't intend to be out after dark, but the blocked roads kept us on detours well into the night. In retrospect the shelter may not have been too bad, they would have had food and water - but I didn't envision it being a very comfortable place to stay (makeshift cots lined up side-by-side in a gym, no AC, with droves of upset people and crying kids)
- Your video camera will need extra protection when filming outside due to blowing rain, salt spray, and sand. A Portabrace or similar rain-slicker won't cut it, you will need a rigid waterproof housing. I built a custom waterproof housing out of PVC pipe and plexiglass for under $20 that worked great, although I ended up doing most of the filming from inside the vehicle without it:
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing1.jpg
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing2.jpg
http://wvlightning.com/isabel/housing3.jpg
The camera is stabilized on the inside with socks or rags stuffed around it, and it is controlled with the remote (which is in a ziplock bag itself). Focus must be on infinity.
- As with most Plains areas, radio stations have excellent coverage of hurricanes. We used the radio to position ourselves as they described a play-by-play location of Isabel's eye.
Some points of discussion:
- Isabel was a potent hurricane, but very weak as hurricanes go. Our chase consisted of driving around about 20 miles inland and filming at various locations - safer than the dangers of the coast. In a stronger hurricane I'm not sure I would do this again, as flying debris and falling trees would be a great danger to a vehicle even that far inland. We first planned on finding a parking garage or other strong building in the eye's path and riding out the storm, but could find none in the small towns of coastal NC - so we just stayed mobile. Isabel's marginal strength at landfall made this a better choice, though falling trees were still a threat.
- I'm curious to hear some strategies and preparations used on coastal intercepts. In addition to avoiding dangers such as storm surge and stronger winds, there are mandatory evacuations in most coastal locations. Salt water is bad for your vehicle also. While I would love to experience a hurricane from the coast, the dangers and potential costs (saltwater-flooded vehicle, etc) so far keep me away.
Dan
I only hope he is sincere about fixing our constant flooding problems that plague us here. The former mayor (Out of Town Brown) left him a big mess to clean. 
