Hurricane Matthew October 2016

 

 

 

 

We moved from Brunswick, Georgia to Savannah about two weeks before the storm to go to the boatyard for bottom paint and standard maintenance. We were still out of the water in the yard when the storm started looking like it might head our way.

After much consideration, we made the decision to be re-launched and moved to the adjoining Marina.

Here we are nearly ready with extra lines and fenders, most of the canvas removed and sails secured.

 

 

 

 

In the marina, we managed to get a spot on the inside of the dock with a huge 90 plus foot yacht on the outside of us. This would provide a great wind block as we expected the strongest wind from this direction.

 

 

 

 

This shows the level of high tide the day before the storm. Walkways are about level and there is about six to seven feet of piling still showing on the posts on the right. Much higher tide was predicted for the next cycle, about 25 hours away.

 

 

 

 

Rain and wind started about one in the afternoon, just after high tide. For this cycle, there really was no low tide as rain came down in buckets and strong wind blew more water into the river.

 

 

 

 

This is the dock next to us and many mega-yachts in the boatyard in the background.

 

 

 

 

 

This was taken at about low tide with the pilings showing about what they would look like at high tide. This was about the time that the storm had slowed its forward movement and was now predicted to arrive at the same time as high tide. This was taken as we left to drive inland to spend the night with our friends at a house near downtown Savannah.

 

 

 

 

 

This was taken driving to our friend's house. This is Victory Drive, one of the main thorofares in Savannah. Other than a few law enforcement types, the usually jammed road was empty.

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning the car was covered in Spanish moss and live oak leaves, but happily no large tree parts.

 

 

 

This is Victory Drive heading back to the Marina. A bit of an obstacle course.

 

 

 

 

Nearly a foot of rain left some flooded portions of the highway.

 

 

 

 

What a welcome sight, still floating and no damage!

 

 

 

Not all boats were as lucky.

 

 

 

 

 

All of the flotsam from upstream ended up in the corner of the marina. The large rectangles are the floating dock sections from another marina upstream. An entire dock and the attached boats came loose from there.

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a boat from that marina, high and dry in the marsh. The white item behind it is a piece of the floating concrete dock still attached to the boat.

 

 

 

 

The dock next to us in our marina actually separated from the shore and was only still attached by water and electrical lines. Several of the pilings actually had broken off.

 

 

 

This part of the dock and the attached boat were only being held by the dock line from the sailboat to the right.

 

 

 

 

The line of marsh reeds on the left shows the highest water level, about a foot over the walkways. Had we waited much longer to leave we would have had to wade through this area to get to our car.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The roller line down the middle of the piling shows the highest level of the floating docks. Measured, it showed just over two feet left on the pilings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This large tree branch came down just where our car had been parked in the marina lot..

 

 

 

This counter adds one each time the bilge pump goes off. It takes approximately five gallons of water to set off our pump. The only place that leaks into the bilge is the mast itself and the fittings which hold the rigging on the main mast. This represents about 175 gallons of rain that leaked into some very small holes in the mast. That's a lot of water!