Hurricanes

i used to live in florida..and been through tons of hurricanes..if they are any larger than cat 3..get the heck outta there

used to live in FL. if they say evacuate. do it. don't wait. just GO!!! and don't go north and east. either go north and west, or, once it's past southern FL, go that way. hurricanes hit land and go north and east almost every time........ oh and measure your windows now buy your wood and have it all set to go. do as much prep work before as you can. and have 72 hr bags in your car or ready to go with food,water, clothes, money, important documents, etc.

I'm in south Louisiana too. Born and raised. I've never left home for any hurricane and we lucked out by being in between the direct paths of Katrina and Rita and missed the brunt of the storms. You should prepare yourself mentally--large storms are scary, no doubt about it, especially at night. After Lily in 2002 I couldn't sleep through a thunderstorm for several years lol. Every storm is unique and can change at the drop of a hat. Watch your local weathermen--they are more likely to to give you information relevant to your specific location while national news won't necessarily give you that "personal touch". The good thing is that you will have plenty of warning before any storm and time to decide to leave or stay--plenty of time to stock up on supplies.

One last thing, I have always heard that hurricanes come in cycles of 7 years in the gulf and 7 years on the east coast, something to do with El Nino & La Nina I think. Based on my experience, I think there is something to it.

I've lived in Louisiana my whole life, lived in New Orleans until Katrina. All I can really say is take what people and the news say with a grain of salt. The media always loves playing up Hurricane Season like suddenly we all need to be in tubs, praying for our souls. However it's always wise to keep food that doesn't need cooking around as well as bottled water and flashlights with loads of batteries. You may never use 'em, but better to have them than not.

Most hurricanes just feel like bad thunderstorms. Like someone else mentioned, a CAT 3 is about when you want to be thinking of finding someplace else out of the storm's way because while they don't always do tons of damage, it's not safe. I've only evacuated for a handful of hurricanes in my life and I've survived them all, including Gustav which knocked part of a tree on the house.

I remember having this same talk with my boyfriend when he moved to Florida for a job. He'd never been through a hurricane and his coworkers were giving him horror stories.

We're not constantly bombarded by Mother Nature's PMS, I promise. Some seasons are a little wet, some we never see even a Tropical Depression float by us.

EDIT: I also wanted to add on, mild winters are nothing new in Louisiana. We get cold spells, but generally all winter we're going between cold and warm. I can't see what that would have to do with what goes on in the summer, but I guess everyone has their own beliefs about hurricanes.