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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to get us all out of Florida?

108 replies

MascaraGirl · 10/09/2017 20:36

We were in Orlando - me, DP, DP's sister plus all 3 children. The news warnings about the hurricane were terrifying, we heard the airports were all about to close, and there were rumours about all the parks all closing too.

So we managed to get one of the last flights home (7 days early) on Friday. DP seemed on board with this at the time, but now that it looks like Orlando is no longer going to take a direct hit, he's a bit grumpy with me. But all the parks have closed, and it seems Orlando is now on lock-down, so god knows what we'd all be doing now if we were still there? Stuck in a hotel rooom praying the hurricane misses us? Probably big power cuts too?

OP posts:
Bringmewineandcake · 10/09/2017 21:01

I know it's a serious issue, but is anyone else amused by the thought of Fort Laundryman?
I think you did the right thing though, OP. My DH is the king of bloody shoulda/woulda/coulda and he'd be doing exactly what your DH is doing now. Surely it's better to have come home unnecessarily, than not come home at all?

MrTrebus · 10/09/2017 21:01

YANBU at all! Not one bit!! You did the right thing. And you're getting a lot of your money back so you can book to go back another time so yay! Just make sure you go outside of hurricane season next time and you'll be fine Flowers

plantsitter · 10/09/2017 21:02

If you can claim on insurance you can be reassured you made the right decision! They don't pay out unless they have to...

QuiteLikely5 · 10/09/2017 21:06

If you are getting your money back then what is the problem?

Your husband agreed at the time but is now angry that you couldn't predict the path of a hurricane?

Wow only on MN!

Ttbb · 10/09/2017 21:15

Sorry but fuck me. Has your DP had a lobotomy or sonething? It would have been idiotic to stay.

Original poster
MascaraGirl · 10/09/2017 21:30

I think it's just that we're all so damn disappointed - can't work out if I'm suffering from guilt or 'spoilt holiday misery' ..... And the willingness of the insurance company to allow a claim, does rather vindicate the decision. As someone said upthread, they don't pay out unless they've got to

OP posts:
BeALert · 10/09/2017 21:34

We were in a timber framed villa, looked impressive, but no concrete structure

My friends who have lived in Orlando for decades in a similar structure house had also planned to leave.

But I can imagine you must be disappointed. Will you rearrange for another time?

CardsforKittens · 10/09/2017 21:35

YANBU. I have friends in Florida. They've been evacuated and are sleeping in a shelter. The worst is still to come, I think. I don't think you'd have had much of a holiday if you'd stayed.

misssmilla1 · 10/09/2017 21:37

You might be disappointed but at least you can fly home, get your costs covered and not have to deal with the devastation that many locals have to.

Unless you've been on the receiving end of something like this before, I don't think you can fully appreciate the chaos and damage it causes

if everything is basically shut, I don't understand why you think you could have stayed and had a nice time?

RedGrapeCornSnake · 10/09/2017 21:46

Better to over react than under react in this situation OP (not that I think you over reacted at all)

KrytensNanobots · 10/09/2017 21:50

I get that you're disappointed, but you absolutely did the right thing.
Look at it this way - be grateful you had the chance to get out of there and fly off to safety.
All those people living in the path of it don't have such a choice or luxury. Sad

expatinscotland · 10/09/2017 21:59

Dear god, how can anyone be so ignorant as to be grumpy they got out in time from a major storm? Hurricanes are awful! I grew up in Houston and went through several. They are dire - flooding, no power, no water, mozzies everywhere (and no a/c because no power), fire ants and snakes in flood water, people homes ruined, lives lost, awful, awful, awful. Anyone who strops over missing that needs the stuffing knocked out of them. Oh, and they spawn tornadoes, which are utterly terrifying and destructive.

ourkidmolly · 10/09/2017 21:59

Your husband sounds a dick.

hackmum · 10/09/2017 22:03

You did the right thing. Realistically, it was the only feasible option.

misssmilla1 · 10/09/2017 22:03

OP - so far this is just a slice of what is happening:

"Tornadoes have sliced through sections of eastern south Florida and winds across the state have toppled trees, live power lines, street signs, and billboards.

More than two million people have lost power, more than 70,000 are in shelters, and police and emergency personnel have taken to shelters. Several cities ordered residents to boil all their tap water, for fear of contamination in the public supply."

JadeT2 · 10/09/2017 22:07

missmilla Orlando conditions won't be anywhere near that bad though which I'm assuming is why the OP has rethought the decision now. However, those conditions certainly could have hit Orlando so you definitely made the right decision for you.

BuzzKillington · 10/09/2017 22:11

I think you did the right thing.

We have a place in Naples and so far, things don't look too bad from what I hear from our property managers - but you never know.

PickAChew · 10/09/2017 22:11

Your DH is being somewhat churlish. Does he really believe you could have continued with fun, happy, holiday as usual, even if the area you were staying in hadn't taken a direct hit?

You made the right call. You got away, with everyone safe and didn't put yourself at risk of adding yourselves to the vast numbers of people with serious problems to sort out.

mrbob · 10/09/2017 22:16

I think it is actually a fairly unselfish thing to do. Get out the way and leave the resources for those who live there and can't just get a plane and leave. There are likely to be staff with families affected and shortages of power etc so one less family to worry about has got to be a good thing

MrsPinkCock · 10/09/2017 22:17

In a timber framed villa you have no real choice but to GTFO. The only other option would be booking into a hotel, but they've been booked up since Irma was announced to be hitting central Florida. And it's not like you can get in your car and evacuate north!

Leaving was your only real option. How many days of your holiday did you lose?

We just left Florida too, just in the nick of time, on our scheduled flight so didn't lose any holiday time. The parks are all closed for 24-48 hours and there's a mandatory 23 hour curfew where everyone has to stay in their hotel rooms so staying would still make no sense even if the storm wasn't as bad as anticipated at one stage.

Scrambling for lunch boxes during a one hour designated window and sitting in a hotel room watching the news isn't much of a holiday for anyone!

Hoolit · 10/09/2017 22:18

My aunt lives 1 mile from the parks and they are on curfew you can be arrested if you are found on the streets so I think you made the right choice in the circumstances.
I also heard there are 2 more heading that way and you won't know til it's too late if you are in the eye.

misssmilla1 · 10/09/2017 22:24

Hurricane sandy in NYC in 2012 was a category 2 storm that caused a shit ton of damage. Even tho most properties weren't in the eye, one of the major electricity substations in Manhattan flooded and exploded cutting off power

The bottom of the city was without power for ages (for a major city anyway) meaning no electric, no lifts, water, heating, air con etc in apartment buildings and hotels. The local hospitals (including A&E) only had generators for a certain amount of time, meaning they had to be evacuated. Most people living or staying here impacted left the city

Even when power came back, buildings were ruined and spent a good 2+ months cleaning up. Our office building was flooded 3 floors underground plus the lobby an two floors up - it affected the lifts, ventilation etc as all of this was in the basement.

Geekmama · 10/09/2017 22:24

Honestly I would've stayed if i was on site, disney is a disaster resource Centre and is one of the safest places to be when a disaster happens in Orlando. but if i was off site i would have probably gone home.

expatinscotland · 10/09/2017 22:34

I'll never forget one of the most terrifying things I saw in childhood. Hurricane Alicia landed on us as a Cat 3. All was going okay. We were hunkered down in one of the bedrooms which had just narrow windows relatively high up. The storm ripped the wood off one of them so we sat looking through it. A piece of corrugated metal flew out of nowhere and sliced the power line right outside. That fucker went sparking and flying everywhere, sparking whatever it struck on the way down, the piece of metal was flung into the window and broke it. We didn't move until the wind died down hours later. If it had struck one of us it could have killed us. These storms are shit! A lost holiday is nothing compared to being stuck in one of those things.

Original poster
MascaraGirl · 10/09/2017 22:36

You're all making me feel a bit better .....,

OP posts: