Hurricane Dorian

[WilliamS 12]

It looks like a worse hurricane they’ve had in a while. Sit tight everyone!

[Mace 1,964]

16 minutes ago, Jim Young said:

As far as I have seen, they die before getting there as the water is too cold.

This one is currently forecast to maintain hurricane status even in Nova Scotia.

It may be somewhat extratropical by then but the winds are supposed to be hurricane-force there.

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

3 hours ago, Mace said:

How bad were the hurricanes once they got to Nova Scotia?   Were they generally still packing hurricane-force winds?  Did they spawn tornadoes even up in Canada?

They can still be hurricane strength when they hit Nova Scotia or start to turn downgrade to a tropical storm. We have had 2 storms when I ived there that were winds at 170 to 180 km/h outside our house. My old neighborhood doesn't have tall trees as they can't grow tall enough the winds just blow them over. 

I live in Wellington, New Zealand now and our wind season is just getting started for the year, which means we can get winds up to 140 km/h pretty much weekly over the next few months, but that is considered normal and people still go to work. The city is sheltered well enough but winds are a part of life here. When North American cities get hit by a 140 km/h wind they would shut down and take considerable damage, we were designed to handle those types of winds as they are quite frequent.

I always said if you are going to live on an ocean you are going to get wind, learn to live with that fact. 

[qqwertz 800]

Hi Matthew,

I almost did the opposite as you: we lived in Australia for two years but are now based in Nova Scotia, pretty much right in the path of Dorian. It will be nowhere nearly as bad as in the Bahamas, but everyone prepares and expects prolonged power outages. In the forecasts, Dorian appears to be about as strong as Juan was in 2003. 

Peter

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

18 hours ago, qqwertzde said:

Hi Matthew,

I almost did the opposite as you: we lived in Australia for two years but are now based in Nova Scotia, pretty much right in the path of Dorian. It will be nowhere nearly as bad as in the Bahamas, but everyone prepares and expects prolonged power outages. In the forecasts, Dorian appears to be about as strong as Juan was in 2003. 

Peter

Yes I remember going to the Canadian Tire and Sobey's to get all the provisions, and then of course the NSLC for some beers to help pass the time for when the power goes out. The last hurricane all the power lines down my block started spinning like skipping ropes from the wind and the sound was really freaky. The storm at it worst sounded like a freight train running through that house. Be Prepared 

Edited September 7, 2019 by Matthew Kane

[Jim Young 2,356]

Although I had not heard of a hurricane hitting Nova Scotia, Dorian made it with 100 mph winds that toppled a crane in Halifax and lots of power outages. 

Still, back on topic, the crises in the Bahamas, especially on Abaco and the Grand Bahamas, is truly overwhelming. Hopefully all of the people who lived on those islands will be evacuated soon.

[188AHC 2,141]

A cruise ship delivered tons of supplies and brought 1100 refugees to West Palm yesterday. They will be making runs doing the same for days supposedly. 

[Paul Deluca 170]

I am watching the next storm working westward from Africa . Let's keep our fingers crossed, and hope for the best.

[qqwertz 800]

On 9/7/2019 at 4:18 PM, Matthew Kane said:

Yes I remember going to the Canadian Tire and Sobey's to get all the provisions, and then of course the NSLC for some beers to help pass the time for when the power goes out. The last hurricane all the power lines down my block started spinning like skipping ropes from the wind and the sound was really freaky. The storm at it worst sounded like a freight train running through that house. Be Prepared 

OK, it's behind us. Our kids live in Halifax and noticed with horror that candles and flashlights were sold out. The power outages were widespread; with 80% of the customers out of service, it was the worst outage in Nova Scotia history, but otherwise mostly damage to trees. We were lucky and only had 15 hours without power and 21 hours without internet. I really feel for the Bahamians who had to go through so much more.

Peter

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

2 hours ago, qqwertzde said:

OK, it's behind us. Our kids live in Halifax and noticed with horror that candles and flashlights were sold out. The power outages were widespread; with 80% of the customers out of service, it was the worst outage in Nova Scotia history, but otherwise mostly damage to trees. We were lucky and only had 15 hours without power and 21 hours without internet. I really feel for the Bahamians who had to go through so much more.

Peter

Good to hear you are on the other end of it now. Yes it sounds like the ones before with lots of uprooted trees and power outages. Not sure who left that crane out on Spring Garden Road that was probably not a good idea, lucky it just toppled over the construction site. I think last time candles and flashlights were sold out too, typical Nova Scotians not being proactive 😄

Bahamas is different looking at the pictures a few structures and houses held up fine but many did not, comes down to building codes. North America you need building permits and building inspections so the standards are quite high depending on your local building codes, the Bahamas you can build to a high standard by your choice and your budget, but you don't have to, therefore many homes wouldn't stand up to a storm like that. 

[n4gix 4,961]

17 hours ago, Matthew Kane said:

Bahamas is different looking at the pictures a few structures and houses held up fine but many did not, comes down to building codes. North America you need building permits and building inspections so the standards are quite high depending on your local building codes, the Bahamas you can build to a high standard by your choice and your budget, but you don't have to, therefore many homes wouldn't stand up to a storm like that. 

Actually the Bahamian government does have enforced building codes that required as of 2003 Cat 3 as the minimum standard. That is, winds of up to 129 mph. (See: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshws.php )

The code has since been updated to the IBC Cat 4 standard of up to 180 mph. Of course buildings and houses built to the 2003 standard still existed, and worse yet buildings remaining from prior to the 2003 code remained at high risk, and probably made up to 90% of all existing structures.

https://www.steelbahamas.com/bahamas-building-code-wind-speeds/

Quote

Currently, in order to meet the government requirements for building in the Bahamas, we design our buildings to IBC 2012 180mph. 

Sustained Cat 5 winds however far exceeded these standards, which of course is why the destruction was so horrific.