TRIGGER WARNING I can’t believe some people aren’t evacuating in Florida

[Newsenmum]

I really don’t mean to be insensitive. This hurricane Milton is terrifying but I’m really struggling to understand this. I know there are some awful situations where people can’t drive/are disabled or elderly and feel helpless but what I CAN’T understand is people not trying. Like they’re completely putting their head in the sand.

I’m part of a few mum Facebook groups that are mostly American. I kid you not, people are staying in zones with their little babies where there is mandatory evacuation. Some reasons why they aren’t leaving:

• my dog is aggressive and won’t be allowed in the shelter, so I’m staying put with him and going to hope and pray. Why is the dog worth more than a kid?
• i have too many animals which don’t fit in the car, I’m worried about the chickens (!!) again.. wtf? Basically suicide for their kids because they don’t want to leave chickens!
• im from flORIda so I’ll be fine! Hopefully it’s not as bad as they think. I don’t want to disrupt us. wtf??
• my babies have a block safe room and that’s ‘normally fine’

There are other Americans trying to send them money, urging them to go storm shelters or at least a bit more inland!

These are people in areas that have 15ft storm surge, there is so much debris already around that is going to be trashing their houses. If they want a certain death for themselves then fine but can’t get over them not saving their babies 😭😭😭 all because they won’t leave the bloody chickens that are going to drown either way!!

My understanding is that in areas prone to natural disasters like this it is economically more viable to build homes from wood as they are easier/cheaper to replace than brick built buildings.

Dear Lord, is that why she put a TW? That’s absolutely horrible.

Shame on you @Newsenmum.

I always remember that poor little boy, several years ago, crying hysterically because he couldn’t get on the evacuation bus with his little dog, Snowball. I don’t think I’d ever get over that.

Yes, but surely that would work alongside evacuating if you need to? Spending a lot of resources building a house that can withstand hurricanes in place makes sense. Spending less resources on a wooden house that you can easily leave and then rebuild makes a lot of sense. Building a wooden, house that can't withstand hurricanes and then sitting in it as a hurricane approaches seems baffling to me but then maybe I am stupid. (Of course, if people can't afford to build safe houses/hurricane shelters within houses and can't afford to evacuate that's awful and not their fault. But its kind of awful that's the case in a first world country).

Any news @Soubriquet ?

The be kind thing is because people are so darn mean on here sometimes 😂like you can post about your whole life going to shit and some smart arse will chirp in and tell you its all your own fault etc
Sometimes people are just looking for a bit of empathy

Just saw this video of 3 children being rescued from a home by police. Fortunately, no-one was hurt. God bless First Responders.

My understanding is that in areas prone to natural disasters like this it is economically more viable to build homes from wood as they are easier/cheaper to replace than brick built buildings

When building a home in Manatee County Florida (Bradenton/Sarasota area) in 2012 the structure had to meet hurricanes guidelines (able to withstand a minimum of 120 mile per hour sustained winds). You are not allowed to just build any old cheap structure as it won't pass inspection.

No, that's just florid speculation. If you read the OP it is clear she is referring to the potential death of people's pets, and hence the trigger warning.

No not yet

I hope no one in Florida gets triggered by this story.

The trigger warning was to do with babies.
OP said
"I put it in last minute because it’s incredibly upsetting especially to people with new babies."

Seriously? 😳

@dinosaurandlonelyghost what have I done now? Personally I find the topic quite upsetting but whatever.

Anyway the damage hasn’t so far been as horrific as believed, so that’s something.

I can report that where my home is in the Sarasota/Bradenton area (approx 15 miles from Siesta Key where Milton made landfall) there was no significant damage. No flooding and minimal wind damage, mostly just lawn debris like broken branches, etc.

We never lost electricity. Very lucky indeed!

Glad to hear that.

So I'm presuming it was no where near as bad as predicted? Thank god for that.

That's just speculation and classic MN for making up and embellishing the OP.

I know for FACT that OP added the trigger warning because she was swept up in a hurricane as a child and landed in a strange area with only a lion, tin man and scarecrow to help. Well OP never said that that explicitly but I have a PhD in psychology so I could read between the lines.

It's as valid a guess as above. And I'd bet we're both wrong, presuming, not qualified to say why a TW was added and both full of shit statements peddled as facts with no basis.

I think the OP said why the TW. But what does the OP know about OPs post?!

MN is pure batshit logic. Hence the be kind ( ie don't be a cunt)

Yes (thankfully!). Tampa Bay didn't have a storm surge (though heavy rain has caused pockets of flooding).

The "catastrophic" damage is likely to be seen where tornadoes touched down.

Barrier island/beach communities such as Siesta Key and Anna Maria Island were already very heavily damaged by storm Helene. You haven't been allowed access to those communities since Helene (except for homeowners to assess damage).

The media doesn't appear to want to backtrack on their "OMG End of Days" coverage quite yet. You'll see pictures of a sports stadium in St. Pete with the roof torn to shreds. What they neglect to tell you is that it was made of fabric (basically a giant sun shade)🙄

There is unfortunately a ghoulish aspect to much of the news coverage.

The storm did plenty of damage and no doubt there will be some loss of life, but it wasn't as bad as predicted and every sane person will just be grateful for that!

HoppityBun

Snowball was found

www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/has-snowball-finally-been-found-flna1c9440911

That said it wasn't confirmed 😢

But it did lead to a new law where pets had to be rescued with their owners.

Funnily enough, I added a TW in case it upset some other people. I was actually trying to be nice. Weird!

It is all over the news
A thread here does not require a warning

There appears to be a significant number of Americans who rebel, on principle, against anything the government tells them to do, whether it’s Covid precautions or evacuation (don’t even start on vaccinations!).