Here’s a small sample of what it was like here in extreme Northeast Florida on the morning of  September 11, 2017 as TS Irma (downgraded from hurricane at that time) made its way northward across the north central part of the state well west of Amelia Island. 

The winds were east-southeasterly at about 40 mph sustained with gusts into the 60-70 mph range when this video was taken at 8 AM. The oak in the video is about 60 feet tall and nearly 80 feet across. It held up nicely in the relentless winds. Check out the 20 foot tall flagpole – it did well too.

The flooding in the street was from the heavy rainfall and blocked storm drains and not from storm surge. Once the drains were cleared the water was gone.

A big shout out goes to the fearless linemen from Illinois that worked to restore our power… which was out for only 61 hours! Considering how much damage there was that was a remarkably short period of time. At one point in the repair work near our neighborhood, dozens of linemen were using five power company bucket trucks to string new wires and set new poles. Thank you!!!

Chris