Hurricane Preparedness

One of the first things many people ask us is "are you prepared for a Hurricane?" Our answer usually is "NO!". Why? Because we know next to nothing about Hurricanes, other than what we see happening to other people on the other side of the world  under shocking circumstances...from the comfort of our living room, on the Telly.

In our area here are lots of Preparedness warnings and leaflets sitting on counters etc. The flashing sign at the Kemah lights says "Are you Hurricane Prepared?".

West Marine offered a 2 hr Hurricane Preparedness lecture last night, and we went. They didnt seem that well prepared for the presentation, but we did glean some useful information about our dock lines (ropes), chaffing (how to stop it and what to do to prevent it), the right width of line and types of rope available.
We learned that we should only have nylon ropes, that for a boat our size, we should have at least 1inch lines, and preferably be three strand. This means the rope has the most 'give' in it. All ropes have different amounts of 'give' in them, and it is just a matter of knowing what you want the rope to do and where you are going to put it. For instance: Fender ropes dont need to be as thick, or have as much give.

We have two different types of fender on the boat..the big round one at the bow and the sausage at the stern.

 

 

Also, how to care for the ropes (salt water isnt kind to most things, and rope is included here) and just as you wash everything else, so you should regularly wash your ropes of the salt water.
Chaffing occurs usually when the ropes cross each other, rub up against docks, other boats, anything else, really. Chaffing will, of course, weaken the strength of the rope, so it pays to inspect these lines regularly. Any amount of weakness or signs of wear and tear means your boat is compromised in some way.
In a Hurricane or tropical storm, securing the boat with the right kind of rope and at the right kind of dock, is imperative. 
Removing anything and everything that could fly off, damage your boat or the boat next to you or three down, is also imperative. They recommend that we take all soft covers off everything...winches, sails (take those down and stow them somewhere safe), including the Bimini (that thing that gives you sunshade over the flybridge pilot station) and the rods that hold her in place. Those same rods can become missiles and or puncture windows, gel coat, etc on yours and other boats in a high wind.

We were also told to (being live-aboards) rent a car as soon as we know there is a hurricane headed for our neck of the woods, remove all our precious things from the boat, including all her and our papers, and head for the closest high ground...hopefully ahead of the crowd.
We need to tie the boat as securely as possible, in the manner instructed  by our insurance company and that the Marina deems acceptable under the conditions, and take photos for insurance purposes etc.
We also need to take a good look around us at the boats that could become missiles headed for our boat. In the absence of their owners, it is our civic duty to secure other boats if we have the time and energy to do so.

 We found it interesting that the Gulf States (including Texas) has more Hurricanes than Florida does.
Where do they come from???

Well, most hurricanes originate somewhere off the coast of the African Continent. They then pick up speed as they cross the ocean towards the Carribean Islands, and swoop around towards the panhandle (florida) and/or the Gulf Coast states. Sandy, the most recent one to hit the eastern seaboard was totally out of character.
For those living in the Carribean, it appears that Hurricanes are a way of life. Two men who talked to us during the lecture were born in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic....now living in Texas, of course...they apparently took these things for granted, and it was part of their way of life.

For some of us who have never experienced one of these dangerous situations, they are a little daunting, to say the least.
We have ascertained that the pilings that our FLOATING DOCK are attached to , are the same ones that saved the lives of 99.9% of the boats during Hurricane Ike, in 2008. The ONE boat that sustained any damage, did so because the boat owner did not secure it properly for the conditions.
I put Floating Dock in caps because you dont want to be attached to anything else, frankly.

The dock works like this:
The dock is not attached to the pilings, but rather goes up and down with the tide

(see above), guided by the pilings. There is a box around the piling with rollers on it, that roll up and down the piling as necessary. The gangway that you can see in the photo above  moves with the dock/tide. It joins the 'mainland' with the floating dock. Sometimes the tide reaches the grassy area and the grass suffers as a result.

The wooden dock sits atop these heavy plastic pontoons, which keep it afloat. The Shad (fish) which live in these waters clean the algae off the sides of the pontoons...we often wish we had a net to scoop them up...but when you see what they eat elsewhere, I dont think you would want to use the fish for more than bait!

 

At the end of each dock arm is a big plastic Dock Box. We were advised to keep extra lines in there (with a padlock, of course) for any eventuality. this works well if you keep you boat in a marina, and go home to your house! For those of us who are transients, this means we have to keep EVERYTHING onboard in the Lazarette (under the cockpit)

We were supposed to go to another hurricane preparedness lecture today at the Lakewood Boat Club, but  other things took precedence, today. I'm hoping they have another lecture next weekend. I will go and check that out.