[swrinfla]

graciegirl:

My friends up north thought I was crazy to move to Florida, then they knew I was crazy when I bought here a couple/three days after Hurricane Frances came through the state in September 2004!

Here are some observations ("my humble opinions" perhaps) that may ease your mind.

Our inland location does serve to reduce the wind power. Once a hurricane hits land, its destructive force decreases substantially almost at once. In Frances, there were some homes in TV with a few shingles blown away, nothing major. There were a number of trees blown down, too, but I'd have to say that the majority of them were newly planted palms. There was some damage in the grove of live oaks just north of Lake Miona Rec Center on Buena Vista Blvd, but no more than one might have expected.

I built a block house, mostly because I knew about the potential for wind damage. But, I also felt it would be be quieter and safer, in general. That said, I suspect that only those who were really in the path of our Ground Hog Day tornado suffered damage nearly as bad as the frame homes. If you can swing it, I'd certainly go with CBS, but you must realize that the roof is going to be pretty much the same no matter what the house is built of.

My brother lives nearby on an airpark in southern Marion County. After Frances, he was without power for a whole week. I was staying that week in a courtyard villa in Mulberry Grove and never had even a flicker of power loss. The absence of above ground power lines in TV is a huge plus, as far as I'm concerned. True, power can sometimes be lost because some power station or other facility is hit, but it's rare. In my three plus years here, I think the power's been lost maybe ten minutes total!

Some of my neighbors have installed a device that helps prevent the garage door from blowing in or out. But, no one, so far as I know has bothered with hurricane shutters or other such protection.

Bottom line, from my point of view: don't fret the small stuuf! ;D

SWR