How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

You can vote more than once. I was near (Lynnhaven) where the February 2, 2007 tornado hit the Villages and also was close to where a landslide created a mudslide after a bunch of rocks went into a mountain lake near Lake Tahoe (NV-CA) on Slide Mountain in 1983.

Been in some minor earthqaukes in CA, a blizzard in MN (Halloween storm of 1991), and a sandstorm in Phoenix, AZ. Thankfully for me, all the hurricanes that initially were heading towards Palm Harbor, FL turned even if we got the tail end of one of them. Brush and/or forest fires often ringed Reno while I lived there as well.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

Susquehanna River flood, Wyoming Valley, PA early seventies. F5 Tornado, Xenia, OH which passed over our little town before touching down....I was a medic in the military at the time and I searched for survivors (and non-surivors) all night. Blizzard of '78 in Ohio....worst storm I've ever been through....70mph winds....white-out conditions for two days.....I-75 was shut down for several days.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

In NY 1985..Hurricane Gloria..I lived on the water and it was very scarey!! 85-115 MPH winds...

I had 20 foot windows overlooking the ocean and we had them all taped up..

It blew shingles off the roof, washed away the sea wall..It was a horrible experience..

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightni
 

I was in my living room at 11:50 am on Sunday Nov 22, 1992, when a tornado struck and destroyed a path of 7 miles in Marietta and Kennesaw GA....My ears popped from the low pressure drop and I ran and hid in a closet (no basement in that house).....
Quite an experience. 30 + trees down on and around the house.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

Earthquake twice in Missouri; blizzards in MO and Rochester NY; tornados in MO; hurricane in Florida. As you can see, of the places I've lived Missouri seems to have the most interesting variety of weather/events. Another reason I'm ready to move to TV.

Ron

A Whole Lot Of Villagers Experienced The Tornado...
 

...earlier this year. We live in Mallory Square and the tornado tracked right across our nearest country club and our neighborhood rec center, pulverizing many, many homes along its track thru and out of TV. Then it hit Lady Lake and the big church on 441 just south of 466. The damage was awful. The response by our developer, contractors, volunteers and residents was amazing. Today, about six months after the storm, you'd have a hard time telling that a tornado ever hit here.

The track of the tornado missed our house by about 300 yards. We thank our lucky stars. But based on the response, love and helpfulness of Villagers, there is no place in the world we would rather live.

Re: A Whole Lot Of Villagers Experienced The Tornado...
 

The Villagers did handle the February 2, 2007 tornado very well. I could not even get myself up to visit where that tornado struck in the Villages until April of 2007 or so.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

Ancient history, perhaps, but still applicable:
Hurricane on Cape Cod September 1942 or thereabouts (no hurricane names, then). Spun a canoe Mother stashed against the house around and around "all night." Her convertible lost its top and was plastered all over with a sand and grass mixture that took days and days to remove!
Huge snow storm in Boston and New York, Christmas 1947. Something like 27" all up and down the coast. The whole winter following was so snowy that our street on Beacon Hill wasn't plowed out until April, and then it took a bulldozer!
Another huge snowstorm in St. Louis, MO, end of January 1982. Better than 20" in my back yard. Our private street wasn't plowed for weeks, and it became a nightmare of icy ruts to drive! Didn't go out of the house for almost 4 days, 'cause there was no way of getting anywhere!

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

swrinfla -
Ref the St Louis snowstorm. When I lived in Rochester NY that was called a flurry. I'm back in Missouri now (although here we now seem to get ice, not snow. I'd rather have the snow).

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightni
 

I had a new baby when hurricane CLEO hit south Florida in 1964. It was kind of exciting getting ready for it, but very scary when it hit. Then cleaning up all the debris afterward wasn't fun. We never did find our mailbox!

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

I was a kid when Hurricane Carol struck New England. I am pretty sure it was 1954.I thought it was fun because school was closed for a week or so. My parents didn't share my enthusiasm.
Blizzard of 1976 in Massachusetts put me on the other side of the disaster. As a parent being without heat, water and electricity was not the fun my kids thought it was. Cooking in the fireplace and living in 1 room for 2 weeks was not fun. Thank goodness we had a fireplace and lots of wood to burn.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

1954 is right. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Carol

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

I was in the 1985 earthquake in Mexico City. 8.1 magnitude - scary time, doesn't seem like so long ago. The worst thing was communications were down for 2 weeks, my family back home in USA couldn't find out if we had survived. That's a desperate feeling!

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

Must have been a frightening experience to say the least. I have been in some small earthquakes near San Francisco, but fortunately missed the 1989 big one but some of family were in this 1989 one.

Re: How many people have been in or near a natural disaster or struck by lightning?
 

San Francisco Earthquake in 1989. My husband just missed being killed on the Cypress Structure. He got off the last exit prior to this structure just before it collapsed. He had a CB radio and asked if anyone knew how the traffic was on the cypress structure. His handle was Speedy Blue. He heard a voice say "Speedy I see cement in the roadway. Best get off." He tried for weeks to find out who had answered him to thank him for saving his life. He found out from a highway patrolman he knew who was stationed at the Cypress Structure after the quake that the person who saved his life was killed. He was told the first person crushed by the structure was found with his CB radio turned on in the front seat. It just wasn't his time and God was really looking out for him.