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Emptynest · 09-10-2018, 11:49

For sure remove your sails & boom so you reduce the windage!!!

**a64pilot** · 09-10-2018, 11:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMO Tashina

I and my boat Tashina, on which I live, are at Massalina Marina in Panama City. All the boats that were here two days ago continue to be here and most of the owners have been securing lines and removing dinghies, bikes, and anything else that can take wing and fly away. Two days ago I thought about sailing west but then felt Michael could still wobble itself more to the west and I'd be out there in hurricane winds with a boat I only just learned how to sail this summer. Made more sense to stay here in what is said to be something of a hurricane hole. I wish our docks were floating ones but they are not. So, fellow cruisers, hold good thoughts for me. I love reading all the helpful ideas and recommendations on this forum and hope to be able to contribute at some future time. Christa

Massilina Bayou is pretty well protected for PC, much between than the city Marina.
I’m assuming by now haul out is not available.
Your enemy I think will be surge, and other boats.
I’d try tying lines between the pole around my boat to make a fence to keep other boats off, and tie some lines high on the poles.
Are you evacuating?

Lihuedooley77 · 10-10-2018, 07:19

Yep, the dangerous semi circle of a hurricane is the north and easterly side of the center.

Since they will add in the speed of the wind due to the movement of the hurricane over he surface. Reduces on the west side in wind speed. They actually used to call that the "safe" semicircle. Whew ! Those muthers scare the dickens out of me.

Hurricane holes, well, they did not work so well in the BVI, thousands of boats lost , destroyed and damaged. Fleets of them were in Paraketa Bay, a relied upon hurricane hole, all tied up within a few feet of each other. That was not a good plan. 180 to 210 mph winds hitting dead on.

Problem with a popular hurricane hole is boats dragging down on other boats, and the added weight of a boat or two on a single boat will cause the single boat to drag, and then it all multiplies. Horrible situation.

From what we have read recently, one thought is to spider web many anchor lines lines off out toward the water and the same from the opposite end of the boat secure many lines to the mangroves. All that should have been done days ago.

Question, about those who do not care about their boats. Are they super rich and don't do much sailing or boating, and do not care about anyone else, or are the vessels un seaworthy near wrecks and no big loss to the owners who also do not care. Or maybe a combination of both ?.

Those are really unfortunate circumstances for those who absolutely do love their boats and will be doing everything that they can to save them.

Also, we would not be riding out a hurricane on board the boat , or on land.

Erica and I have talked this situation over, and would flat get out of the entire area well clear of the cone of uncertainty , and keep ourselves safe after doing all we could to protect and prepare our vessel.

We would be far off, high and dry, at a nice hotel or friends home, and just illuminate the party light. No way would we take on a hurricane, and the flooding, and the surge, and the rain and the wind and flying debris.

Ample and early and appropriate action seems like the common sense policy . Do what you can and then keep yourselves safe.

What is also not thought of is the tornados spawned from the hurricane with a few hundred MPH twister winds.

Good fortune to all of those who are subjected to this hurricane, may you, your families and selves be safe as well as your boats surviving. Wish there was something that we mere mortals could do, but sadly , the power of mother nature is going to wreak havock.

dwlangham · 10-10-2018, 07:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by swordds

Living on Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans I like to play this “save my boat hurricane plan” sailing game: Suppose you owned a boat in a slip near Panama City, FL, which way would you move your boat, to the east or the west of the predicted path? It is already too late. If you left Panama City this morning and headed east you would have a dead run in 18 - 22 knot winds, not a pleasant sail. I suspect you would be lucky to make it to Mobile, AL, not necessarily a better place to be. Forget going west, as far as you could make it is Port St Joe, FL because once you round Cape San Blas you would be sailing directly into head winds. I guess the only place to go is as far up Deer Point Lake as possible. I have no idea how far you can go with a 5 ft draft. I believe that if I had a boat in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina there is nothing I could have done to save it.

I've explored this question in an even more hypothetical way because I don't have a boat to protect (but I hope to one day).

I think you might be mistaken about sailing west. If you left PC Sunday afternoon you would have a hard easterly wind blowing you to Pensacola. (I sailed Pensacola Bay in a borrowed boat Sunday afternoon and can attest to the strength of the easterly wind.) I don't know whether it would be better to jump out into the Gulf for the passage. My guess is that it would be faster to do so, but last thing I would want is for something to go wrong that would prevent me from getting back into the GICW at Destin or Pensacola.

boatman1 · 10-10-2018, 08:00

Christa/cmo tashina: Best of luck. If you stay on the boat you'll likely have quite a few more grey hairs tomorrow morning. Let us know how you fare.

gunkylump · 10-10-2018, 08:25

Oh man, Michael is a Cat 4....will hit around 3 p.m. today....best of luck to anyone staying on your boat....the very thought scares the hell out of me.

cyan · 10-10-2018, 08:29

Some guy named Jeff, riding it out on his boat, forgot to remove his main sail?
"We're Cruisers."
"I'm a sailor. I'm not the village idiot".

gunkylump · 10-10-2018, 09:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by gunkylump

Oh man, Michael is a Cat 4....will hit around 3 p.m. today....best of luck to anyone staying on your boat....the very thought scares the hell out of me.

And now a Cat 5.....Update 11:30 am EDT/10:30 am EDT: Major Hurricane Michael continues to strengthen and is now approaching Category 5 intensity as winds have increased to 150 mph.
This WILL be a CATASTROPHIC, UNPRECEDENTED Hurricane Hit on the Florida Panhandle and Florida Big Bend, Especially For The Central & Eastern Florida Panhandle & Florida Big Bend.
=====Forecast Impacts=====...
See More

belizesailor · 10-10-2018, 09:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by cyan

Some guy named Jeff, riding it out on his boat, forgot to remove his main sail?
"We're Cruisers."
"I'm a sailor. I'm not the village idiot".

No worries...a Cat 5 will do that for him.

Village idiot likely had enough sense to leave town.

gunkylump · 10-10-2018, 09:32

Chris Parker is predicting a 20 foot storm surge.....not good with those winds and that surge for the folks who stayed on their boats....especially in a marina

gunkylump · 10-10-2018, 09:50

https://www.pscp.tv/w/1YpJkLweZjPxj?t=6s

Live coverage

gunkylump · 10-10-2018, 09:52

https://www.pscp.tv/w/1mnxeopjyNWGX?t=14m44s

More live coverage

zeehag · 10-10-2018, 12:51

wholly sheets mon just watched as psj was flooded and took the stormchasers car with it...he is safe indoors brick building behind brick wall.. but psj aint gonna look same tomorrow as it did yesterday, nor will panama city that, too was impressive, and appalach,no one filmed from there, and i bet itis a big mess.
i bet lake wimiko has water in it... was very shallow when i went thru in 2009-2010.
and someone asked in the bay outside psj marina if he should add a second anchor.... ohmy... hope he didnt lose all. that is no place to anchor in a cane, esp a cat 4 cane. second half is producing more dismay than first half which caused a friend to write about fake news..hahaha the fun doesnot begin until second half, just like all football baseball and soccer games..and hockey.
accuweather has the extreme meteorologist being blown away in mexico beach/.panama city... and another site had the destruction of brent adairs car by surge and inundation in port st joe. truck was floating away as the fone camera was recording. interesting aspect of a storm.