Just wondered if you guys are preparing for Wilma or if you're just out of her way!

Stay safe folks, we want to see you all in December.

All the best,
Moon

So far so good,waves are picking up in height on the reef and the weather is looking a bit grey. The forecast has her turning north shortly so it will miss us if it sticks to projections (not that we're not watching it though.)

What a monster though, the lowest pressure recorded for an Atlantic hurricane record and 175mph winds. Very tight eye.

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT4+shtml/191158.shtml

Somehow BZ is at this time not in this. But it is all around. Please note the "record low pressure" recorded for an Atlantic storm with this mornings flyover. Wow.

Hey Chooch--Drop me a line with your email addy. Need to ask a favor. Headed down Friday (maybe?????????). elkdds@qwest.net Ed

No evactuation has been announced, I talked to Tropic and they are not stopping flights and the water is not coming up that high. Take that back the last wave in front of my place just came 15' up the beach.

The rumour mill has started obviously. Believe only what is posted by Jesse and you'll be fine.

Once the 09:00 local NEMO meeting has finished there will be an announcement on what plans there are for the residents of the island. The announcement will take place on Reef Radio.

Thanks!

Any similarities:

what are the conditions on the island now? (wind and waves)

Winds from the west 10-15K waves outside about 5 to 6 feet, 1 to 2 inside.

Wave heights picked up a bit so when high tide comes in at 10:45pm it should give us a better indicator of how things are out there.

Raining quite a bit right now.

Here's a good site to see the rain coming in, it's about 15 minutes behind true. You can zoom right in on the island and animate as well.

http://weather.msfc.nasa.gov/GOES/goeseastconusir.html

According to this it's on it's way to Florida

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7845030

See you Tuesday Simon

Let's hope it misses both of us. Gas lines and grocery store a mess here in SW FL. Kris

It looks like I left AC just about the right time... am now in San Ignacio, but am scheduled to fly out (through Charlotte) on Saturday morning. My fingers are crossed that my departure goes ok. Hope everyone I met on the island is ok!

Lil- Engine, Hopefully we will wave to you on the way down. We are flying from newark sat morning thru miami to bze.I guess the next day or so will tell. we will pray that everything comes out allright for everyone in belize) good luck on your flight!

Simon. how about an update. waves, rain, wind etc. you are our eyes....thanks!!

Rains have stopped (for a few minutes at least) and the wind is almost nil on the beach. The waves are crawling their way further up the beach and are now within about 30' of my front door (the beach is probably 60 to 70' wide where I live.) They're also consistently coming through the bottom of Hustler, Chuck and Robbie's and Legacy docks. High tides approaching and the waves seemed to be biggest about 2 to 3 hours prior this morning.

I remember when Hurricane Emily was off the coast a few months ago. The waves were the biggest I have ever seen there. I got to surf at Bayan Bay!

Waves are really picking up now and some are even throwing off rooster tails coming on to the beach. One hour to go to high tide so they should be peaking. The highest ones are only around 3' at the beach but most are only a foot or so. The wind is picking up but you have to get over to the backside to really feel it. The temp has also dropped and it's pretty cool out there.

Wet Willy's is running Ladies Night and a people were heading in around 9. There were a lot of tourists on the street in town tonight around 8pm while I was out for a drive and the beach is still crowded with locals and tourists while everyone checks out the waves.

Hi folks.
I`m writing from Argentina .I am traveling for flyfishing and snorkeling to Ambergris, San Pedro ,and was calling to Captain`s Morgan Retreat by phone with out answer this nigth, may be they already evacuated the lodge (?) . We are thinking about cancelling our tickets because we don`t know what is happening in Ambergris. Checking in Accuweather.com it seems the hurricane WILMA is going just close to the border between Mexico and Belize. The question is: Is it better to cancel our fligth to a new reservation after the hurricane. Do we have to wait a long time to have good fishing and snorkeling conditions. Thank you very much in advance for your help.

HI, i would not do anything at this point. No way Capt Morgans is closed. Don't cancel, things will be just fine. It appears that the storm will go by and bring us some higher water, but its way too soon to worry about cancelling anything....

Eli, What are your dates?

little update from up north (5 1/2 miles north of town) ...waves have picked up in the last hour... coming in over the height of our dock... losing a few pieces of it... anyone know when high tide is tonight??? Wind still from the W... no rain at the moment...

Hi Marty. Hi SimonB.
I am very worried because of the CNN news...you know...here in Argentina I am very far away from you.
My dates are from 22 of oct to the 10 of nov.
I am leaving BUenos Aires on the 21th. The fligth is going through San Salvador.
Thanks for answering me. If you know anything more...please let me know as soon as possible.
Eli

You'll be fine. By the 22nd all will have passed.

Thanks a lot about your answers.
Last month I was in panic when I saw all the images of the Katrina...that is why i`m so worried.
Does anybody speaks spanish??
Eli

Si!

SimonB...thanks!! So...tell me a panorama in spanish for me about the Wilma....please!!!!!!!!!

SimonB said :You'll be fine. By the 22nd all will have passed.
What do you think Marty?
Eli

oh yeah

midnite...

Belizeans hold their breath as Wilma slides north

At this hour it looks like we'll dodge the bullet, but Belizeans are still holding their breath tonight as the most powerful hurricane in history churns past our doorstep en route to a rendezvous with the Yucatan coast or Gulf of Mexico. There remains a small possibility for some major impact in Belize. We begin our coverage with News Five's Jacqueline Woods in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye...

Jacqueline Woods
"Hurricane Wilma is still projected to move to the north of us, but people on the island are taking no chances. We're not sure just how many people have voluntarily evacuated, but Tropic Air, Maya Island Air, and the island's water taxis have been busy taking residents and tourists to the mainland.

Area Resident #1
"Well we live here many years ago. We do mainly caretaker work up north side, so we don't trust and she does not want to stay, she is afraid too, you know."

Jacqueline Woods
"You are not feeling comfortable right now?"

Area Resident #2
"No, because whenever they say it's time to evacuate, the crowd that is out here, you cannot even get passage then, you have to maybe go back home."

This morning the San Pedro Emergency Committee became fully operational at a meeting at the Town Hall. There, members were briefed on the storm and prepared themselves in the event the hurricane does affect the island.

Jim Janmohamed, Operations Officer, S.P. Emergency Committee
"The slowness of it is really scaring me and I am—I think that the luckiest thing that we have is that reef that is out there, so it would give me a little more time before the boats will not be able to manoeuvre inside the reef to Belize City. Luckily, all we have to do is travel on the inside of the reef to Belize City. But even then that can become rough later on, so that's the only thing that is going for me right now, nothing else."

This morning the seas started getting rough and large swells were visible from outside the barrier reef. The Belize Defence Force Maritime Wing has been closely monitoring the situation and we accompanied the crew out to the reef... which was already being battered by the rising wall of water.

Cpl. Ortencio Pop, Belize Maritime Wing
"Those waves are about six to eight feet, that's over the reef."

Jacqueline Woods
"And you expect to get even larger?

Cpl. Ortencio Pop
"Maybe now and again it will come in with some big swells. As I said, it is six to eight feet, but now and again it comes up to that eight or over."

Jacqueline Woods
"So definitely no small crafts supposed to be out here?"

Cpl. Ortencio Pop
"Actually that should be no small crafts should be travelling outside right now."

Jacqueline Woods
"And inside the reef, what's the situation like?"

Cpl. Ortencio Pop
"Inside the reef right now, the waves are about three to four feet, with now and again the swells coming in."

While on the water, our attention was drawn to six Mexican navy vessels that were making it to safe harbour due to the rough seas. The boats, which were heading to the Rio Hondo, had to access one of the reef's channels to get to their destination. And while the Mexican Navy is headed for safe harbour, San Pedranos were making their own preparations.

Jim Janmohamed
"We've been on to this since the weekend. In fact, the committee was put on standby on Friday, so we've been watching it and every member of the committee knows their duties, they know what to do. We met again yesterday to make sure everybody's in the right frame of mind. And it's a proven fact that the committee that I have are really excellent people, so they do care about their community quite a lot, so we are well prepared."

San Pedro may be affected by tropical storm force winds that the committee believes will not cause extensive damage.

Jim Janmohamed
"We may be hit by fifty mile an hour winds, which will be tropical storm force winds. And problems with that, we can handle fifty mile an hour winds; we have done so in the past, most of our buildings are very good. This morning I went on the air to tell that locals that you have an abode that cannot withstand that, then it's time for you to move."

The Belize Weather Bureau has been on alert for some time, tracking the storm's movement. It's Wilma's slow forward progress that has forecasters feeling a bit nervous.

Carlos Fuller, Chief Meteorologist
"The level of uncertainty is increased. If it were a hurricane like Iris moving at twenty-five miles per hour, there was no way that we gonna change its direction. You have to slow down and then change. I would love to see Wilma pick up and go faster than ten miles per hour and then I'll be fairly confident, but at seven miles per hour there is still some uncertainty in that track."

Chief Meteorologist Carlos Fuller says despite the fact that hurricanes formed so late in the season generally do track north, contrary to what computer modules dictate, he believes this system will stay on the projected path.

Carlos Fuller
"The guiding pattern is an area of high pressure over the Gulf of Mexico and over the Bahamas. And there's a weakness in that high where this system seems to want to be going through. If however, one of these were to become stronger than the other, for example if the high over the Gulf of Mexico got stronger then it would take a more westward path. But that does not seem to be the consensus of the modules."

Belizeans will be relieved to know that the Met Office radar has been operational for two weeks. This will greatly assist the forecasters in keeping tabs on the hurricane once it is within two hundred miles.

Carlos Fuller
"Well certainly, with having gotten the radar working we can now detect the rainfall associated with Wilma. And that is certainly going to assist us to give us some ideas of if there is torrential rainfall occurring and what part of the country is experiencing the rainfall. If in fact Wilma does move due west and comes within a couple hundred miles of the country, then our radar will be able to pick it up because that is really the effective range of a weather radar."

Bottom line: all Belizeans are being advised to remain vigilant. Jacqueline Woods for News Five.

At news time a tropical storm warning remained in effect for costal areas from Belize City north to the Mexican border.

Very little rain overnight in town. The wind and waves continue to pick up. Best guess on the wind (I haven't been to the backside yet) is 18-20K. The waves inside are breaking fairly consistently now and the biggest appear to be 3-4'. Some of the waves at the reef are really impressive especially with the offshore breeze holding them up and blowing off rooster tails. Best guess is that they're 6-8' outside. High tide is at 12:16 and based upon the last few high tides the inside waves should peak in size 1 to 2 hours prior to high tide. Off to tour the town.

Thanks Simon, and Marty, for the updates....my prayers are with everyone....and with luck, Wilma will miss S FLA, but I doubt it.

Thanks Marty and Simon.
I `ll be on line to check your report.
Eli

The SW side of the storm is the best if you have to have any of it. New Orleans got socked shortly after my wife and I made our first visit there. If anything happens to AC, I take full responsibility and well come for my public flogging -- so long as I get to sip on One Barrel between blows.

Thanks guys! I 'll be checking the board often throughout the day. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Marty, isn't it you with the camera phone that showed is the sky pics recently?If so, can you post some photos of this one when you can? Be safe! and ke - you've been quiet, be safe through the storm!
~Gwen

Reef Radio reports no school today.

Prayers for everyone's safety.
Thanks for the updates as we hold our breath for y'all.

Schools open in Belize city

Good news is that there doesn't seem to be any damage around town.

Boca del Rio by the cut is pretty well flooded with a couple of inches of water, the level is almost up to the top of the ferry ramp. All of the benches at Boca del Rio park have been torn out by wave action and the basketball court is under water at times.

Tropic recorded a gust of 28K earlier this morning but most winds were 18-20K. Flights have been going out all morning and the radio reports that they will continue to do so until further notice. Water taxis are NOT running probably as it's too unsafe to load the boats and I imagine some of the seas are pretty bad to the city.

The back side canals are filling up with water and are starting to crest the road in some areas leading down to DFC.

No rain yet but the skies are darkening.

Most businesses are open as usual, I closed up the gym as no one had come in for the 6am rush and there's about 3 inches of water outside the front door.

Stay safe everyone and keep us posted. Good thougths are with you. Mo and Irm

from Azul....

just was outside/checking stuff...

no big change...

still really gusty...

not raining here at all the moment...

...wave still coming in but tide has gone down/out... we might
actually have more beach now.... certainly a cleaner one!!! Some
HUGE pices of driftwood laying around (like 1000 lbs water soaked
ones) ...will be lot's of hazzards in the water tomorrow am I'd
imagine.

Too true on the driftwood, anyone running a boat should be very aware as the water is very murky and there are some huge logs floating around.

Yikes! Please be safe all....thoughts and prayers to you.

Gwen, ke is not feeling very well, under the weather so to speak.

We're thinking about y'all! Hang in there as I am confident that it you all will be fine.

I have been told that the island had a mandatory evacuation just this morning can anyone tell me if this is correct?

WRONG!!! No evacuations

Pull Ferry closing at Noon today due to winds and current

So no more travel to the north end of the island I assume the roads are too wet to get out

My wife and I are coming down on the 30th of Oct for seven days. Can anyone tell us how the water visibility will be by then for snorkeling? Thanks

too soon to tell. depends on how all this goes...

from the capital...

It's cool now up here in Belmopan. Turned off the A.C.s and turned on
the fans - saving some of the money I donate to BEL every month.

It's 73 F with a 60% humidity. Little gusts now and then. No rain.
Spoke to someone in Honduras just now - report strong winds.

here's some pics of san pedro from Chris at Casa Picasso...

http://www.AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/


thanks Chris & Jennifer!

Thanks for the photos!

Is Costa Rica getting any of this?

Cool site.

http://stormcarib.com/

This lets you enter a location and it tells how close WIlma will come based on the current path forecast. AC seems to be OK despite Wilma's urge to head west.

Below are the results from the website. It creates a map too.

Bob

Results for Ambergris Caye (San Pedro), Belize (18.03N, 87.9W):

The approximate Closest Point of Approach (CPA) is located near 19.1N, 86.2W or about 133.6 miles (215.0 km) from your location. This is corresponding with the 12 hour position of the 5-day forecast.

This takes you right to them.
I wanted to show that its not as bad as it looks on TV, but then, my house is rocking with the wind as I type this.

Hey Chris, thanks for the great pics and update. Keep us posted. Miss you guys. Kisses, to Jen. Stay safe. Teehee. You said "losing wood". mo

thanks Jennifer. i put them up inside ac.com also at http://www.AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/

where i will be adding more as i get them...

In warm and sunny VA I keep reading and hearing about Wilma and thinking about San Pedro.
Thanks for the pictures and reports from down there.

Hehehe, yer funny, I also said swell several times...

Thanks for the pictures!
Do you know how DFC is holding up?

I will be coming into Caya Costa Reef Resort next Friday (Oct 28).. Good.It looks like I will actually have a place to stay with a roof!

Hope the water clears up. Class 5 Hurricane Allen murked up Jamaica when I was there but a week later it was diveable...though some of the coral was whitewashed.

Class 5 Hurricane David had the same effect in Dominica.. about a week later clear enough to dive but damage evident.

None of those locals, though had the back wind from a muddy area. Mangoves and Thalassia (turtle grass) definitely help with sediments. I may inquire again about water conditions in a week.

Ramon's lost the lower section of their dock that they just had rebuilt from Isador last year. The TMM dock has lifted at the front and Henry's dock just collapsed about 15 minutes ago, the palapa is floating. Some waves were reaching over the steps to the beach at BC's (a good crowd is starting to show up.) Seems to be some feeder bands coming through so we're seeing some showers but no significant rain. The waves seem to be picking up in height a little bit. Wind has picked up and is probably 30K on the back side. Only a few businesses have boarded up but quite a few are closed as no one seems to be out shopping, most are out driving around, socializing and hanging out at the beach watching the waves on the reef of which some are just spectacular. Ramons is taking waves well up into the deck and the kids are having a great time surfing there and in front of Casa Caracol.

Hey Simon, have you been by Mata Rocks? The room we stayed in last August was the ocean front junior suite with private balcony. The balcony is really really really close to the water (10-15 ft I am guessing) right in front of their pier. And the Squirrel's Nest is pretty close to the shore line too. I am just a little concerned for the wonderful staff and beautiful property. Stay safe and have a rum and soda at BC's for me. mo

Sorry, no I only went down to Mar de Tumbo at 6 and not much was happening. Will cruise around some more after lunch to see what I can see. Will be back at BC's later.

Thanks for keeping us up to the minute with news/pics of Wilma and best of luck to everyone on AC and in Belize during the storm. There are many of us in the States hoping AC makes it thru with no deaths and very little damage!

Scott

Thanks Simon. Enjoy your lunch. mo

I had a message from friends saying the beach and pier at Royal Palms are gone and the water is at the steps of the condos.
Down South the lagoon is taking over the roads, however its not that deep yet.
Crossing our fingers for all.

Yikes. That is not good. mo

DFC sub-division is under water.

The river is swollen and waves are lapping up from the lagoon onto the backside of the island.

The sea has reclaimed most of the beach road in the Boca Del Rio area, temporarily.

Big waves from the East and strong winds from the West.

SIN

Thanks for the update, Simon. Hopefully Ramon's Bar is getting some business today then !

Good news. Based on the current track the went a bit east of earlier predictions. The closest point now is 141 miles or 19.5N, 86.4W in about 12 hours. That's 10 miles further than predicted a few hours ago. Ten miles isn't much to this storm but it helps.

Cozumel remains in the direct path but the shift in the direction has moved it a bit. Hopefully the storm remains weebling NE and the closest point of approach gets further from AC and Mexico.

SIN
You mentioned that
"The sea has reclaimed most of the beach road in the Boca Del Rio area, temporarily".
We have a ground floor beach front condo at Oasis Del Caribe (next to Seven Seas). How bad is the sea on the beach road at Boca del Rio?
Thanks for any information you can give me

Colin

The water surges up to the rock wall at Oasis, just barely, at least earlier. Your unit is high enough to stay dry. It would take a lot to get water into those units.

SIN

SIN
Thanks very much, I really appreciate your help

Colin

here's some pics from caye caulker, courtesy of Heather Martin

http://AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapicscayecaulker/

Anyone seen or heard anything about how Victoria House is holding up? Coming down in two weeks for a wedding on the beach there. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Keeping good thoughts and hope everyone is safe.

I'm sure they will get a little beach errosion or maybe even some added beach.

They should be fine.

SIN

Thank you, Chris, from Casa Picasso for the great pictures. I live in the big white four plex behind Casey's place and the roads are definately underwater. Hope Wilma continues her tendency north and east. Hang in there, San Pedro!!

Thanks for the updates, but please stay safe. If this thing decides to stall before it heads north and east you guys could get clobbered. Our prayers are with you.

Thanks for the updates everyone. My heart remains in AC. I trust it will pass with minimal impact.

ok, here we go again here in Florida. so if everyone there on AC would start blowing toward the east perhaps this thing will go straight thru between the keys and Cuba and miss us all. Luckily looks like will go south of Tampa area(where I am) but please pray for all thoses near Ft Myers, Naples, Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda that are still in FEMA trailers and have blue tarps on their roofs from hurricane charley (over 1 year ago)---looks like its headed straight for them. So again, everyone please take a deep breathe and blow eastward and keep us in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks!

praying and blowing and praying...

We had some pretty heavy rains around 4, which flooded much of the roads (there's one pot hole in front of Island Academy that came very close to eating my golf cart.)

The waves are really up right now at the beach and are getting close to the highest I've seen all day. There are fewer breaks between big sets as well. The biggest ones are pushing the water within 10 or so feet of my place which, next to Wally's house is one of the highest points up to the cut. As SIN said Boca Del Rio is now pretty much under water with 1 to 3" of water. Boca del Rio park goes fully underwater at times.

Winds are probably 20-30K offshore right now. Wave heights in shore seem to be pushing up close to 4' at times.

But, we're all in good shape and everyone is in good spirits. I'll be in even better spirits when my Pepperoni's Pizza arrives (thanks for being open guys) accompanied by a frosty Belikin of course.

The pictures posted of Caye Caulker give a good idea of the beach from Wet Willy's North.

Caye Caulker here reporting in...the split is split againwe can call it anisland now. the reef is wild and my restaurant is under water up to the middle of the bar and reaches the front street...docks are still there but we aren't sure for how long. Otherwise we will survive and I am living proof. Reminds me of Mitch damage but we know to rebuild...Just pray mysonRobbie's new dock (the built themselves) does not go down cause it will be a heartbreaker but like we say they keep knocking us down but we keep getting up. Pray it keeps going north... nuff love Maralyn

Hi Maralyn, Robbie's dock is doing fine. The only damage is right at the beach and even then it's only twisted a bit. The guys did a good job of putting it together.

S....

I would greatly appreciate it if anyone could get some pictures of the waves on the reef.

Thanks for all the photos Chris! Keeping my fingers crossed hoping everyone is safe.

photos of waves on reef at http://SanPedroSun.net/05-411.html

and
http://AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/

I can't get your lower link to work Marty.
fixed that
Thanks Chris, Sir Issac and all.. for the info!

Hi Maralyn... sure hope the waters goes down quick and RP will be up and cookin soon!

Bill... I'm sure you saw the pix of Casey's place... I hope Laguna Punta is fairing well!

Doggone it!! I still can't find these pictures you are talking about on the Sun site. May I have a little more direction please? Thanks.

click on the first story

the associated press is reporting that all tourists have been ordered to evacuate the cayes. is that true?

No evacuations, it's all over. Waves are all gone only the cleanup remains. By Monday or Tuesday you'll probably be hard pressed to know anything happened.

Looks like there was some damage to docks last night. The Legacy dock next to Hustler is broken up a bit.

Robbie's dock is still fine M.

No RC School, no High School today

Thank goodness everything is okay. How is the beach / dock at Banyan Bay? Any new pics?

Has anybody seen how Patojo's dock is at The Tides?

How about the road north of town?

Just got back from a quick tour. Clean up has begun and everyone is out removing the debris from the beach.

No major damage anywhere north of Ramon's with the exception of Henry's dock in front of BC's, which is gone and Ramon's who lost the lower section of the dock at the end. Patojo's dock took some damage at both ends but is structurally fine. Legacy dock took a beating at the outer end but appears sound. The rest of the damage is fairly minor and is mainly to small residential docks in the North of town.

The beach has moved around quite a bit in some areas, some areas lost sand, some gained but nothing really major.

I was told that Lazy Lizard on Caye Caulker is now on it's own island. Not sure how much there is to that rumour.

P.S. I want to revise my estimate on clean up to Saturday or Sunday. The only exception may be the huge piles of Sea Grass that may be on the beach. It'll take a while to clean up the mess from Hustler to the cut.

photos of waves on reef at http://SanPedroSun.net/05-411.html

and
http://AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/

Hi all, everything normal in Belize City, some
gusts, overcasts, but if you did not know a storm
had been around, you'd never know...Feels like a
regular cold front, lots of people in long
sleeves, a few sweatshirts.
Everyone breathing sigh of relief but concerned
for people in Cozumel.

There is no such thing as a "mandatory" evacuation of Ambergris Caye. To require that people leave, you need to be sure there is transportation - and simply put, there is not enough of it (nor money to try to provide it).
Evacuation can be recommended - but that's all.

I live 5 miles north - people are riding their bikes past our place now - they were passing by yeterday also, even though it was pretty difficult slogging along the beaches.
The pull-ferry is in operation.
I saw only one boat go by today - being off the water is still a really good idea.
VERY brisk winds now, not much wave action at all. Yesterday was the opposite - high water, mild wind.

here's some pics Diane sent me:
http://AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/cayevillas.html

thanks Diane...

Yipee Skippy. I'm happy to see our pier and palapa still standing at Los Encantos. (Diane's picture).

Kathy

Yipee

Heres more pics from Chris & Jennifer:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/49449219@N00/

thanks ya'll...

heres a few more...

http://www.pixagogo.com/3922844184

Thanks, thanks, thanks for all the pics everybody. Very reassuring. mo

Yes, looks good, all considered. People seemed pretty concerned when I left on Wednesday morning.

Here are some photos from Cozumel. They got hit bad. Looks like I picked a good time to return to Belize for my dive trip. I wish the best for the folks in Cozumel especially Caribe Blue and Blue Angel Diving.

http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/jpgpS8KGNnXeE.jpg

http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/jpgvnuoSbU1Dd.jpg

http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/jpg5pUuC3sWyR.jpg

http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/jpgri3lhlpVH4.jpg

http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/jpgri3lhlpVH4.jpg

Here;s some pics from south of Casa Manana...
http://www.78746.com/Wilma/

Gotta admure the Cubans. Totally organized with over 1000 shelters all
stocked with supplies and manned with cooks etc. They order mass
evacuations and EVERYBODY goes. No looting, no problems. Great
management. Lucinda Neuman is reporting from Havana on CNN. Very
interesting!

very up to minute photos from cancun at
http://stormcarib.com/reports/2005/mexico.shtml

Our electricity from MX? I've got my flashlight handy.

In a way I do admire the Cubans... I think they handle things properly... First everyone knows each other, and second... if you loot, you get shot period... and no one asks any questions later.

Everyone knows each other because spying is required. And, if you turn in your mother or bother to the government you get extra rations in the bread line and elevated in status from peasant to comrade. No, thanks.

Betcha rhe people trapped in New Orleans would have preferred the Cuba Emergency Services system...

Good point. They can move to Cuba Seriously, you and Denny make good points, I just don't know if orderly and efficient hurricane evacuations are worth all the totalitarian loss of liberty that comes with it -- just my opinion.

Or the US could take some lessons on disaster management...

True.

I think here in florida we have learned quite a bit on disaster management and evacuations over the past 2 years and we are doing a pretty good job. if anyone needs tips , feel free to contact emergency management just about anywherein florida!

the Cubans have security down too. in habana centro, there is a cop in the middle of every single street corner. watching and rotating in place. locals and discreet visitors wait til his back is turned and then do their business in 20 second bursts.

seeing all, watching all. cuts down on crime.

its a great place. too bad the subject sparks argument like abortion. their system ain;t the best. either is ours. ain't seen the best one yet.

too much partisanship in our system. its broke, in Cuba, the people are all broke. what good is political freedom, which they don't have, if you have no money?

wonderful people in Cuba. our governments get in the way.

more people should go there. land in cancun and just go. you will never regret it.

(and i barely got out the first time. their security held me for 30 minutes cause my pa was born in puerto padre cuba and i told them so. they did this eye stare thing where they stared into my eyes and i had to stare into their eyes and if i blinked or looked down we started over. lasted 5 minutes or so. tweaky. strange. freaky. but over soon enuf and off i went on my merry way.)

http://AmbergrisCaye.com/havana/

from a friend...
The first thing that shocked my brain when I first landed in Cuba is how
wickedly FINE everyone in Cuba looked. I mean, the Cuban folks are built
sooooo fine, like a thoroughbred race of people. One would have to really
look around to spot anyone with a beer belly or any nano-centimeter of fat
anywhere. And the features of the people are absolutely beautiful. Unlike
in Belize where the Mestizos have a blend of Mayan blood, the Cuban mixture
is of pure European (Spaniard) and pure Black. It is incredible to look
at - smooth faces, great skin, etc. This, on so varied a range of skin
tones. Racism as far as I can tell is pretty much non-existent.

Why are the Cuban people so fine looking? These are my theories: first of
all, everyone and his brother in Cuba is a medical professional of one kind
or another. The health centers are everywhere. Anyone feeling the
slightest affliction (major or minor) of any kind can pop into one of these
health centers as quickly as we pop into a fast food joint to have the
health issue addressed immediately, free of cost. I observed pedestrians
stopping into hospitals on their way to work, etc. to have their blood
pressure, etc. checked. This is so second nature to all Cubans. There is
no reason why any Cuban should suffer from any medical problem at all. In
fact, this is probably why Castro has lived so long (78 years and counting).
The amount of medical professionals in the country are so plentiful all his
valves and aeortas are probably checked daily. Then there is the issue of
transportation. Most of it is done by foot ensuring that any body fat will
remain trimmed. Couple this with a healthy diet and viola! I fell in love
at least a thousand times a day!!

Some great Cubans live here in San Pedro, many of our doctors are Cuban.

half my family is Cuban. they built a huge percentage of Wichita Kansas. My uncle was the mayor for years. lots and lots of good Cuban folks all over this globe.

does anyone have any pics from Victoria House south?

The resolution and composition of Diane Campbell’s pictures is awesome. THANKS.

Thanks for your help Marty. I dunno what my problem was.

Marty, great pics of Cuba, thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the compliments Scuba Lady.
I'll download more later today and send.
Gotta love the new camera with 4.0 mega-pixels.
:-)

Rainfall amounts in Mexico from Wilma have been extreme. Isla Mujeres, just offshore from Cancun, has reported almost 35" of rain over the past 1 1/2 days, and at one point reported 4" of rain in one hour between 2 and 3 am EDT today.

Hi guys, dont know if youll remeber me - phil brown - left after Keith. Just wanted to say I have been thinking of you all in the past few years and huricane seasons.. glad to see youre all doing well... and not too much damage from Wilma.. Good luck

Hi Diane, got three pics, direcway says your email over quota, my responses bouncing back

Pics added from Diane Saturday morning:
http://AmbergrisCaye.com/hurricane/wilmapics/cayevillas.html

Hurricane Wilma came within 150 miles of Caye Caulker, Belize on Oct 20, 2005. We are 3/4 mile from the barrier reef where 20 ft + waves were crashing and splashing up to at least 40 feet! We only received 2-4 ft on shore. Some clean up, then back to: Go Slow in paradise!

NOW its Our Turn...Humour Helps and lots of Prayers for Florida,,here we go again! :rolleyes:

our vacation may be cancelled due to the Play del Carmen area. Our tickets are for Cancun and back out the same way. We allowed 5 days in AM. Caye and 5 in Playa. From what weather station has been keeping us up to date, it's nearly destroyed in many parts. There won't be much to see. We'll see what the next several days bring? We're very sad not only for ourselves but for all the people in the Cancun/Playa area - very sad. Perhaps our 30th wasn't to be celebrated this year. In 19 days, it won't be back running in that area will it?

not from what info I've seen....why not consider going a lil futher south? I hear there's a GREAT warm friendly beautiful island awaiting you!

Thank you all for the information. We (my fiancee and I) have 18 people meeting us down there in Nov 10 for our wedding/ honeymoon. We have been very concerned as to how "La Isla Bonita" fared through all of Wilma. Your messages and pictures have renewed our excitement for our upcoming trip. See you then.

PS. You better Belize it!!!!

http://AmbergrisCaye.com/castles/

NICE sassnfun!!!!!

Recovery underway in San Pedro Belize following Wilma
Fecha de publicación : 2005-10-24

San Pedranos are sighing in relief as they continue the cleanup of their community following the passage of Hurricane Wilma through the Caribbean last week. No loss of life or major damage to buildings have been reported in San Pedro, located off the coast of Belize.

NEMO officials, in conjunction with the Ministry of Public Works, have assisted in the cleanup of the community. Priority has been given to areas such as major streets that facilitate the movement of persons, goods and services. NEMO officials have also been conducting an assessment of the damages to property and special needs, if any, of the population.

"I estimate that at least twenty-five of our private docks were damaged as a result of the waves that came crashing ashore,” said the NEMO District Emergency Coordinator for San Pedro, Mr. James Janmohammed. He also noted that there was a considerable amount of beach erosion following the storm that brought strong winds, rain and some tidal surges to Belize.

The restoration of the beachfront, along with the repair of private docks, has already commenced. Equipment from the mainland is to be dispatched. NEMO’s aim is to return the island to normalcy as quickly as possible.

The major utility companies on the island have not reported any significant damages to their networks as a result of Wilma. Meanwhile, businesses have opened their doors and are operating as normal. Schools are also open and school children have returned to their classes.