Disney World- more than wet...

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It's not worth it. There's a reason we don't plan trips to the beach in the late summer and fall. This is peak hurricane season. We were ~80 miles inland when Katrina hit and ~30 miles East of the eye. It was a cat 1 by the time it reached us and we still had >$80,000 in damage including losing part of our roof. The power was out for 22 days. We were fortunate to have spring/well water since the city water lines were busted from flooding. Two tornadoes spun off from the storm near us, one of which reached F3 and hit our local town, ripping the roof off the high school, destroyed a church, and several houses, killing 3 people. That was a long couple of days riding that out and a long 3 weeks afterward without power. It took 2 weeks to open up our road to outside access. More than 40 trees had fallen across that 10 mile long road plus the downed power lines. My father was a diabetic and needed to keep his insulin cold. He took two milk jugs, tied a long rope around the handles with a his insulin in one of them with ice packs and weights. He sank it to the bottom of our pond where it would stay cool and used the other jug as a cork so he could pull it up. He'd canoe out there every morning, pull it up, load up his two syringes for the day, and sink it back down.

Trust me. You don't want to be down there when this thing hits. It is not a pleasant experience.
 
The 5 PM NOAA forecast today shows Dorian still being a hurricane on Tuesday with the map showing it sitting right on top of Orlando. The predictions at landfall are now showing it being a Category 4. That is scary dangerous.

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at5+shtml/204603.shtml?cone#contents

It is amusing how comments from folks in other parts of the country are "cone of uncertainty", "Disney World is less crowded when it rains", "buy a good rain parka". And the comments from those of us from Florida and those who have been through a hurricane are "stay away, far away!"
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Originally Posted by jhs914
The 5 PM NOAA forecast today shows Dorian still being a hurricane on Tuesday with the map showing it sitting right on top of Orlando. The predictions at landfall are now showing it being a Category 4. That is scary dangerous.

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at5+shtml/204603.shtml?cone#contents

It is amusing how comments from folks in other parts of the country are "cone of uncertainty", "Disney World is less crowded when it rains", "buy a good rain parka". And the comments from those of us from Florida and those who have been through a hurricane are "stay away, far away!"
crazy2.gif



Not necessarily true. My parents live an hour from Orlando and downplay every single storm that comes through. During some past hurricane, my dad sent me a picture of himself, sitting in the pool with all of the lawn furniture. Don't ask my why he didn't just bring it inside...

Not all Floridians are preppers. I wish my parents were. They think being inland (pffft) makes them invulnerable.
 
Originally Posted by gathermewool
We stayed in Allstar Music before the kids were born and decided, "never again". The resort was OK, but the room was nothing more than a dank, janky, low-end motel room. The next time we went with family and stayed at Port Orleans. I know not everyone can afford expensive rooms, but I wanted you to know to temper your expectations.

That was six years ago that we stayed at the All Star resort, so maybe they've updated the rooms since we were there.

//

Hurricane possible? Cancel


We stayed at Port Orleans during our one Disney trip in March 2000. It was very nice and also had a decent restaurant.
Since Disney would transport you wherever you wanted to go during your stay, we had dinner at a really neat Planet Hollywood one night and at the Beach Club seafood buffet another with the Port Orleans restaurant rounding out our stay.
We then did a four day Disney cruise, which the then young sons really enjoyed.
Wife planned the entire trip so I'm not sure exactly what it cost, but it wasn't cheap.
The whole thing proved to be a nice family vacation to be recommended if it works for a family financially.
 
If the Florida coast had a dead on hit by the time it got to Orlando it would be no more then a CAT 2 and most likely a CAT 1.

I would not be the least bit concerned for my safety, more people get injured in car accidents or falling down on a sidewalk then they EVER did (if anyone ever did) by a Hurricane in Orlando.
Orlando is NOT a coastal city. Its a safe zone where people from the coast would head to.

I would be more concerned about wasting my vacation if Disney closes for a few days.
All this speculation and this "hurricane is nothing more then a TINY blip a few miles wide of high winds as of right now. Yes, it is supposed to get larger and your in the best place possible if it did.
Again, if your going to be in Florida for a Hurricane, you cant do any better then Orlando. :eek:)
 
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Originally Posted by madRiver
Originally Posted by LoneRanger
Originally Posted by Railrust
I would think that is you're staying actually at Disney...you'll be safer than anyone on the planet.

That place has an entire underground world they could put you in if they had to. We're talking government level stuff (and probably better than that). The place is a fortress. Having said that, yeah you certainly don't want a hurricane on your vacation.


Underground in Florida? I thought the substrate wasn't ideal for subterranean infrastructure. Sink holes are a problem there, yes?


They built the "underground" at ground level and the park on top. It was required because Florida is generally wet below the ground surface.



Walt Disney based the Florida park designs off the faults of the California designs.

His ADD didn't like that someone in one part of the park in costume would get off work/go on shift and walk through another part to go home/get to their area of operations. (IE Frontierland dressed employee walking through Tomorrowland) he thought it took away from the aesthetic of the park and the authenticity of the different areas.

So theres an entire underground village in Orlando at the parks.

I'm from Florida, as mentioned above, themeparks are actually quite nice in the rain with no lightning. Rides still go (with no lightning) and the crowd isn't as thick as normal.

Been through many hurricanes as well. The main worry is the drunken native Floridians (the ones who have generations of family raised in florida) and the transplants (this includes those who were born in Florida but parents/grandparents are from out of state) freaking out.

Plus it isnt scorching hot.

On a unrelated note: Being a Native Florida Cracker, some of the best salt water fishing is when a tropical storm/hurricane is on it's way. Low tides + warm water = some pretty good fishing
 
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Good friends of ours went to Disney during Irma. They could have cancelled or rescheduled, but they figured it would cost them one day while the storm went by and then the park would be empty. No big deal, right? Disney confined them to their room and had a very limited menu for delivery only for two days - the only way you could get food. One of the other days nothing was open. Just like we warned them, dumb idea. They had to find out the hard way.
 
Actually putting lawn furniture in the pool is standard practice before a hurricane. It can't blow away and cause damage when it is submerged in the pool and doesn't take up space in the garage or inside.
 
Originally Posted by SevenBizzos
Good friends of ours went to Disney during Irma. They could have cancelled or rescheduled, but they figured it would cost them one day while the storm went by and then the park would be empty. No big deal, right? Disney confined them to their room and had a very limited menu for delivery only for two days - the only way you could get food. One of the other days nothing was open. Just like we warned them, dumb idea. They had to find out the hard way.



Exactly right ^^^^^^

Imagine being in Homestead after Hurricane Andrew.... Loads of fun to be had... . Not exactly.
 
Originally Posted by Fawteen
Originally Posted by alarmguy

Your 40 MILES inland


Marianna Florida is 55 MILES inland and Michael was a Cat 3 when it hit. Marianna was devastated. Parts of Georgia that are over 100 MILES inland were severely damaged when Michael hit. Photos are of Marianna.

There is also the issue with being in the way of the responders. Tourists trying to get dinner for their kids and trying to go to the park could very easily slow down the people who are trying to get the power back on and render first aid.

When hurricane Katrina made landfall at Buras-Triumph, Louisiana it was a Cat 3 storm.




and no one was hurt.
The town of Marianna, 55 miles inland, suffered a lot of damage, old town, old buildings, not a modern hotel like Orlando and you would be hard pressed to find an injury.lets not forget it was a different storm too.
Pointless to bring up Buras-Triumph Louisiana as it is a coastal town.

Like I said, the OP has nothing to fear about an hurricane in Orlando, no one has ever had to fear it, except for the fact that the park might close for a day or two.
Then again, as others have mentioned, lines will be shorter.

The danger from Hurricanes and deaths are the coast line, the ocean flooding the mainland. The OP is in a safe zone inland Orlando.

as of right now we are talking about a hurricane with hurricane force winds 25 miles wide at the most. Due to get stronger for sure but inland residents never have to worry staying in a hotel. If I owned a home, then of course I would be concerned, not for my safety but for the roof on my home and having to spend money fixing it IF it is damaged.
 
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Was down in Orlando when Hurricane Wilma hit in 2005. Was actually quite the experience! The strong wing gusts, rain, etc... Not to mention all the humidity being taken with the storm, so the day after was far more dry and cooler in temp.

We actually went to Disney the day after the storm along with Busch Gardens in Tampa the day after, great visits. Not busy...

Orlando I wouldn't be as worried about as I would being on the coast, personally.
 
Originally Posted by alarmguy
and no one was hurt.


You really need to get your facts straight and not make stuff up as you go. There were at least 3 deaths in the Marianna area, 55 miles inland. There was also significant damage, lots of injuries and at least one fatality all the way up in Georgia.

SE Alabama Med Center had at least 50 storm-related injuries from that area-one of the ER nurses is our neighbor and she was at the hospital for several days because of the influx of injuries from the area. The local hospitals in Marianna couldn't take them, and Dothan is the evacuation area for Marianna.

And all that after most of the residents of Marianna had evacuated. Two of my rental units still have former Marianna residents because their property was so severely damaged that it's been almost a year trying to get it rebuilt.
 
Florida resident here, who has never evacuated for any hurricane.

You're considering intentionally travelling to our state while Dorian is on the way? Get on the phone and cancel.

Yeah, you're going to be safe, but your vacation is well within the "cone of boring". Unless your family is all a bunch of storm chasers and weather buffs who all enjoy sitting around drunk, just go somewhere that's guaranteed to be fun. Sitting through a hurricane sucks, and there's no guarantee at all that normal operations will be resumed quickly.

Us residents stay here because......we're residents. Our homes and lives are here. If I lived somewhere else, I'd have been walking into an airplane with "The Bird" firmly flipped over my shoulder a week ago. I also don't blame anyone who would do the same.

Pick up the phone and let them know our state is too much to tolerate right now. I can assure you they've heard this before.
 
Originally Posted by Fawteen
Originally Posted by alarmguy
and no one was hurt.


You really need to get your facts straight and not make stuff up as you go. There were at least 3 deaths in the Marianna area, 55 miles inland. There was also significant damage, lots of injuries and at least one fatality all the way up in Georgia.

SE Alabama Med Center had at least 50 storm-related injuries from that area-one of the ER nurses is our neighbor and she was at the hospital for several days because of the influx of injuries from the area. The local hospitals in Marianna couldn't take them, and Dothan is the evacuation area for Marianna.

And all that after most of the residents of Marianna had evacuated. Two of my rental units still have former Marianna residents because their property was so severely damaged that it's been almost a year trying to get it rebuilt.


Well ok, I believe you.
Didnt know about the deaths but again, staying in a hotel in Orlando is not dangerous during a hurricane.

Deaths, well, yes, sad but true what I am about to say. there are even deaths during a thunderstorm. Storm related injuries, deaths, are subjected to the "news media" looking for headlines. Tragic for sure as even 577 people die every week in automobile accidents in the USA. If one of those are during a storm, its storm related.
Not making lite of anything you are saying, not even sure how far off track this is EXCEPT to repeat again =

The OP does not need to be concerned about a hurricane while he stays in a hotel in ORLANDO. Heck, many would consider it fun.
Furthermore, the next thing is, the OP need not pay attention in this case until the hurricane is 48 hours or so away, as the track of this storm is not predictable yet.
Though the media will make it sound like the end of the world they cant even be sure it is going to make landline fall in Florida.
 
Originally Posted by fdcg27
Originally Posted by gathermewool
We stayed in Allstar Music before the kids were born and decided, "never again". The resort was OK, but the room was nothing more than a dank, janky, low-end motel room. The next time we went with family and stayed at Port Orleans. I know not everyone can afford expensive rooms, but I wanted you to know to temper your expectations.

That was six years ago that we stayed at the All Star resort, so maybe they've updated the rooms since we were there.

//

Hurricane possible? Cancel


We stayed at Port Orleans during our one Disney trip in March 2000. It was very nice and also had a decent restaurant.
Since Disney would transport you wherever you wanted to go during your stay, we had dinner at a really neat Planet Hollywood one night and at the Beach Club seafood buffet another with the Port Orleans restaurant rounding out our stay.
We then did a four day Disney cruise, which the then young sons really enjoyed.
Wife planned the entire trip so I'm not sure exactly what it cost, but it wasn't cheap.
The whole thing proved to be a nice family vacation to be recommended if it works for a family financially.


Our thoughts during our second Disney visit were:

1. We rarely go on vacations

2. We're already spending a lot of money for the Disney experience to begin with

3. I don't want to have a great day at Disney and come "home" to a crappy "motel" room

//

It's looking like Dorian is going to track more north, which is great news for Floridians!
 
What hurricane?
Ha the hurricane was never to hit Florida, mass news media, social media sends common people into a feeding frenzy to keep them "tuned in" while those companies make buckets of money on advertising revenue and ratings. Kind of scary and if you think for a minute that you were believing forecasts on a storm, up to 1000 miles away, well, send your money my way, Ill be glad to take it.

Bottom line, the storm didnt "turn away" from Florida, it never was heading to Florida, mass media told you it was.

The real information, free of hype and fake news is right in front of everyones face but no one goes there. Funny, because every time you collect your paycheck, money is taken out to pay for this agency. Maybe give them a try, not as exciting, no fake news.


www.nhc.noaa.gov/

https://www.noaa.gov/


....
 
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Originally Posted by alarmguy
Bottom line, the storm didnt "turn away" from Florida, it never was heading to Florida, mass media told you it was.

www.nhc.noaa.gov/

https://www.noaa.gov/


....

You saw the NOAA projections a few days ago - they were showing Dorian heading to Florida, just like everyone else.

The thing that irks me is that despite all the latest technology we have, we still can't seem to be able to predict weather accurately, even one day in advance, much less several days in advance. This goes for basic stuff like temperature and rain, forget more complex stuff like a hurricane.
 
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by alarmguy
Bottom line, the storm didnt "turn away" from Florida, it never was heading to Florida, mass media told you it was.

www.nhc.noaa.gov/

https://www.noaa.gov/


....

You saw the NOAA projections a few days ago - they were showing Dorian heading to Florida, just like everyone else.

The thing that irks me is that despite all the latest technology we have, we still can't seem to be able to predict weather accurately, even one day in advance, much less several days in advance. This goes for basic stuff like temperature and rain, forget more complex stuff like a hurricane.


Wrong. If one took the time to read the NHC FULL forecast, they would have known how unreliable they were telling the public this information was and the reason for it.
Incorrect again (just discussing here) if one paid attention to the CONE of possibilities they would have seen a variation of close to 1000 miles of possibilities from CUBA to Hilton Head SC.

But people see what they want to see and focused on the line up the middle of those possibilities into Florida, the thing is, for people to read the information available to them through NOAA/NHC they would have known that these variation as fully existed. If they watched mass media/fake news they were never told or told in a way that they didnt pick up on it/wanted to hear what they want.

Even as of today,. there is a chance the hurricane can end up hundreds of miles off the US coast and also a chance it could still if Florida, Georgia, South Carolina or North Carolina.
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