Post Hurricane Ian Update

It has been six days since Hurricane Ian slammed into the southwest coast of Florida and then traversed our way. I am sitting here at the house, still without power and some minor roof damage due to a missing chimney cap. I have been through a lot of hurricanes over the years, but I have never seen one with such an intense back eyewall or what that dropped so much rain. My family was very blessed, especially compared to thousands of others that have lost everything, Our biggest issue was the water.

Hurricane Ian dropped rain like I have never witnessed. Hard, never ending, and in the infamous words of Forrest Gump, "Big fat raindrops". Once the front of the storm passed, we thought we were good. The backside was falling apart and it didn't appear that we were going to have any issues. Then she reached the Atlantic, where she decided to regain strength with fury. The back eyewall began forming and it was stronger and kept gaining strength as the day progress. At one point, we heard our chimney cap leave the roof and land in the yard. The storm was still dumping tons of rain, so I had to get up on it and secure the gaping hole leading into our house. a steep metal roof, hurricane rain, and 80 MPH wind gusts made tarping that quite sporty. After what seemed to be the longest 12 hours ever, the storm finally moved away.

We spent two days at the house, unable to go anywhere, as our street had turned into a flowing river. Every morning I got up with my coffee, walked outside to check for snakes, before letting the dogs out, and discovered new wildlife living in the street, Largemouth bass, gar, bowfin, crawfish, bream, and some rare amphibians were calling our road home now. It was like going to an aquarium and it was a nice way to enjoy the morning. We used those two days to rake up the yard and get the main debris cleaned up.

Things are slowly returning to normal. Water levels have receded in most areas. There are still a lot of us without power. The linemen are working hard, but they are constrained by a broken system that shouldn't be; a conversation for another time, over a drink. Thank God for good generators though, as we can still power most things in the house and the weather has been cool enough that AC isn't a requirement.

I'm not sure what is going to go on with the fishing. The St John's River is flooded and it appears it will be for quite some time. Entire highways are covered by it and they are asking people not to take boats on it, as the wake can flood houses that are on the verge of losing everything. So, for at least the next few weeks, that system will be a no go.

The saltwater side should recover a little faster. I haven't been able to get the skiff out, as there has just been too much to do. But, soon I will venture out and see what changes have taken place. The water levels are super high, but they weren't as dirty as I expected when I went down and looked at the river. Time will tell, but nature is pretty good at taking care of itself and she will recover. I am excited to get back out there, as I have a ton of new stuff from Z-Man Fishing to try out! I got the stuff in the day before Ian arrived and I really need to get out there and see how awesome the stuff is!