My Take on Matthew

Matthew is likely not a name you will want to hear for a long time. This was one of the most unusual storms that I have seen in all my years of tracking. It all began on September 25 when Invest 97 was born in the Atlantic. From that day forward, the models kept showing Matthew passing very close to the state of Florida. On September 28, Matthew became a named storm. On September 30, Matthew became a category 5 hurricane taking aim at Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti.

 

On October 4, Matthew made landfall in Haiti as a category 4 hurricane.  After interaction with land, Matthew lost just a bit of steam and went down to a category 3 hurricane.  That gave us some hope here along the East Coast of Florida.  That weakening was just a tease as Matthew quickly went into rapid intensification and took aim at the Sunshine State. At this point, the forecast was bringing the storm very near if not directly on the coast of East Central Florida. People began aggressive preparations to protect life and property.  On October 6, the NW Bahamas was slammed with a major hurricane.  As the system moved towards Florida, it took an unexpected jog to the east. Nobody knew if that jog would stick or if it was just a temporary shift.  It was that 20 mile or so shift that saved us from total destruction. It was almost like Matthew decided to spare us. To me, it was more like a miracle had occurred.

 

Before Matthew, it had been 11 years since a major hurricane hit the Treasure Coast and any part of Florida for that matter. Since Matthew did not actually make landfall in Florida, it is unknown if they will count it as the end of our hurricane draught.

In 11 years, a lot has changed in the communities lining the East Coast of Florida. Many new residents have moved in that have never seen the likes of a full force hurricane. In addition, even some of us seasoned rookies were a bit rusty. This was a real-time test for many of us to see how well we can handle a disaster. Most of us passed the test but way too many folks refuse to get ready on June 1st and wait till a storm threatens before getting ready. This causes a horrible strain on stores to try and get the goods that you need to many folks. Many people were boarding up with sub standard materials just to try and cover their windows.  If the system hit direct, that would of spelled certain disaster for the folks involved. We also saw way too many people staying behind in mandatory evacuation areas. If you are asked to evacuate, please do so. This is the only way we will get storm death counts down to 0.

 

This time we were lucky. This does not mean to ignore the warnings the next time a hurricane threatens. Matthew was actually a well behaved system. He went almost exactly where he was predicted to go. Many will still call the NHC out because they did all their work for nothing. To them, I say this. If the system did make landfall, you would not of had a building to go home to.

 

I can only hope that we have all learned a few things with this experience. I can say with extreme clarity that if you are within a few miles of a Category 4 storm, your house is likely not going to be standing.  In extreme cases such as this, evacuation is the best answer.

 

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Your Source for Treasure Coast, Florida Forecasts and Radar!Treasure Coast Forecast