Ian

If there's one thing you can count on in Florida during the warmer months of the year, it's storms. We are no stranger to perturbed tourists doling out abusive rants about our daily downpours ruining their vacations. God bless our theme park workers who get to stand there explaining to these people that the rides are closed for their safety while there is lightning popping all around, but I suppose that is a small price to pay to live in what many would describe as paradise.

Outside of our wild daily weather, Floridians are well-versed in dealing with hurricanes. While we have had quite a few transplants during recent years, natives try to start stocking up on water and supplies in the early summer months, just in case. Mind you, not all storm veterans are able to afford this due to the cost of living to wage ratio, which has gotten much worse, but typically we gather what we can as we can afford to. Even the most prepared households, however, often can't escape the inevitable food and supply shortage that is always present once the storm clears.

Our most recent storm was Hurricane Ian. Coverage was all over the news and social media, as was the aftermath. With said coverage came the unapologetically vocal court of public opinion. The opinions and inappropriate questions of onlookers are things that never seem to be in short supply after any major weather event. One thing I have found this time is that most of the people opining in the comment sections have no idea what facing a storm of this magnitude entails, so I'm going to do my best to shed some light as a nearly 40-year storm veteran.

Stop making jokes. You should be taking this seriously!

I'm sorry, what? It is possible to make the best of a stressful situation and implement whatever coping mechanisms we need to make it through relatively unscathed. A big part of weathering a hurricane is psychological. As Floridians, we are painfully aware that every summer we run the risk of losing everything we have spent our lives building. This is an assessed risk and one of the reasons we pay out the nose to insure our properties.

What is the harm in us making light by cracking a few jokes and hunkering down at a friend or loved one's house for a little hurricane party? Honestly, it's the only time we can all clear our work schedules at the same time. Are you really that offended by the Publix cakes that provide a bit of comic relief? That's fine. You weren't invited to our party anyway. That's just more Pub Subs and hurricane snacks for the rest of us to emotionally eat our way through!

How is this or that area? I have a vacation coming up!

Honestly, the audacity of this one is just shocking to me. I have no response for it outside of pointing out that some people lost everything, even their lives. Your vacation can wait.

The storm wasn't real. Look at all those news anchors acting.

While it is true, there are some storm reporters that play it up for the camera, I can assure you that the power of these storms is very real for all of us sitting in our homes hearing the roof pop and debris smashing against the house. I live in the more inland portion of the state so both Irma and Ian had weakened a bit before directly hitting our area. Despite this, both storms left us as a declared disaster area... as did the Charley, Frances, and Jeanne triple threat of 2004. You can't fathom how surreal it is to hear the storm calm and walk outside to survey the damage after hours of being hammered only to see your yard strewn with shingles from your neighbor’s roof or a giant oak tree blocking an entire intersection. We personally got very lucky, but this wasn’t the case for everyone in the area.

Why didn't everyone evacuate? They must me thrill-seekers!

Actually, no… most of us are boring average citizens just doing the best we can to survive. While I have been to a few hurricane parties that did wonders to ease the nerves, most of the storms I've weathered have been at home with my family. With Irma a few years ago, I spent it in a run-down apartment... alone with my cats. There are a lot of words I can use to describe the experience of taking a direct hit from a hurricane and thrilling isn't one of them. There are many reasons why people can't or won't evacuate. Here are but a few:

• Their employers do not give them adequate time off work to pack and make accommodations. Florida is a right-to-work state and thusly many attendance policies border on abusive with very little protection for the employee against arbitrary attendance points policies, which is a very popular system in the hospitality industry in particular.

• They are elderly or disabled and unable to move around easily. While it's true that many communities will offer services to help those in need arrange transportation to a shelter, there is only so far the limited resources can be stretched. Additionally, if they have things like O2 concentrators and tanks or similar medical equipment, those items can be difficult to travel with or accommodate in a shelter. This, sadly, will make it easier for people in this position to stay home and hope for the best.

• They have pets that they cannot leave. While most shelters will allow for cats and dogs, it can be quite difficult to find a safe place for exotic pets, livestock, or horses. Most who have animals of this type will be deterred from leaving them behind.

• They are impoverished or homeless. Despite the headlines, many Floridians are not affluent... particularly in the years post-pandemic where over-crowding has become an issue. You've seen the prices of housing and gas lately, right? I don't think I need to elaborate further on this point. The only option in these instances is to head to a shelter and there is only so much room.

• They live inland in a well-structured home. I fall into this specific category. The thing that most people who don't live here fail to realize is that Florida is a peninsula and that means there is only and one way out. Now imagine if the entire state decided to bail out every time we had a hurricane bearing down on us. As it stands the interstates and highways are already crowded during an evacuation to the point that people are driving along the shoulder trying to beat the storm. The reality is that you are far safer in a well-prepared home than to be stranded on the road because you ran out of gas in heavy traffic. The priority needs to be in evacuating people who live in coastal areas, in mobile or manufactured homes, or in a flood zone. Period. The rest of us stand a better chance hunkering down.

I have learned that one thing Floridians do best after a massive storm like this is come together to help one another through. The morning after the storm passed, you begin to observe the sense of community building amongst neighbors as everyone steps outside to survey the damage and begin clean-up. Amidst the sounds of chainsaws and leaf-blowers you hear friendly voices offering help over fences. Social media is saturated with posts of people who were lucky enough to keep power offering refrigerator space, hot showers, or use of generators to those who were not quite as fortunate. Texts begin pouring in from friends and loved ones to check on one another and offer help where needed. Inquiries of where to donate food, clothing, or financial assistance are immediate. While others sit in their comfortable homes spouting judgements, Floridians old and new begin to heal and find ways to love their fellow man whose situations we may know very little about.

I can only scratch the surface in a short essay on the topic, but a lifetime of storm seasons has taught me that there are many nuances to storm preparation and survival that may not be understood by outsiders looking on from afar. I hope that this has provided some insight into the realities that the rest of the country may not be privy to. During the time after the storm when people are coping with great losses, if you cannot help, please… just be kind.