Hurricane Marilyn ... Hurricane Marilyn ...
We are all up at 5:30 am after a restless night. The dinghy begins its daily workout ferrying crew and supplies back and forth between anchored Northern Cross and shore. Sue has lots of laundry to do. Ryan has water tanks to fill - many dinghy tri ps with jerry jugs. Sue walks to the bakery, stocking up on ice cream, bread, and juice. Then it is Chuck's turn to walk the mile and a half into the little town of Salinas to do last minute chores.
Ryan takes his watch station and raises the anchor around noon and we motor to our well worn spot in the mangroves. We put out our trusty 66 pound Bruce anchor with 150 feet of chain and start tying lines to the mangrove roots. Hurricane Marilyn at 6pm is just southeast of the Virgin Islands with sustained winds of 75 knots gusting to 85. Hurricane warnings are now announced for the USVI and Puerto Rico. If it follows its current course it should pass over Puerto Rico early Saturday morning.
As darkness falls, nine boats have settled in. Among the boats are our Puerto Rican friends, Tony and MaryBeth on Llegamos and our North Carolina friends, John and Shirley on Puffin. Each of us in our own little cove or notch in the trees. And each of us somewhat alone but knowing there are helping hands nearby.
We spend the morning setting the remaining anchors and climbing into the mangroves to finish spinning the spider web of nylon line that hopefully will provide enough protection. Ryan will again be sleeping in the main salon. His forward cabin berth lost under a mass of sails, cockpit cushions, fenders, deck canvas, barbeque grill, and spare line. Our mainsail is still on but is covered with canvas. It has been heavily wrapped with line. Much of our time is spent with the radio and computer getting National Weather Service updates and listening to WOSO Puerto Rico and their continuous coverage of the hurricane's progress. It is amazing how important the weather is to us now. It sometimes seems like it is the only thing we talk about! We count the minutes until the next position of Marilyn is broadcast and hope it will show a turn to the north. Each of us have our own thoughts and fears of what the next 24 hours will bring. The probability of a close encounter with Marilyn is now much greater than it was with Luis.
By Friday evening it seems like our prayers will be answered. The forecasters are now predicting that Marilyn will pass northeast of us and we will not receive the brunt of the storm. But this means that it could go almost directly over the USVI - right over our friends Karl and Joan on Kala-D! This will be the second hurricane they will face in 9 days. We go to bed late, not knowing what the dawn will bring.
Saturday morning we wake to winds of only 20 knots and heavy rain. We receive a weather satellite picture and radio teletype reports. Hurricane Marilyn has indeed passed us by. Word over the radio is the eye has gone directly over St. Croix and very cl ose to St.Thomas. Culebra was said to have been hit very hard and is without communication. By mid morning we hear reports of heavy damage on St. Thomas and St. John.
It is not until late morning that we hear a report on Charlotte Amalie. Word is th at up to 80% of the homes have been destroyed and many boats are lost, sunk, or on the beach. Throughout the day we hear more and more about the damage and destruction caused by Marilyn. Communications are all but cut off due to downed phone lines and p ower poles. Ham radio provides the only contact with those in the heavily damaged areas. The airport is closed due to damage and debris on the runway. And debris in the harbors makes approach by boat hazardous. It will be many days before even a part ial accounting is made of those boats lost or destroyed.
Now, we guiltily admit that in addition to having feelings of relief and thankfulness that we are safe and have been spared the horrors of a hurricane, we also feel some disappointment that we didn't even get a good wind or some adventure after all the work we did preparing for it. (After all, this was the third hurricane we had prepared for in three weeks.) By evening we were humbled and indeed very grateful that we were spared.
Saturday afternoon we are able to reach Karl and Joan on ham radio. They are safe after riding out Marilyn on their boat in Lienster Bay on the north side of St. John. Of the 27 boats anchored with them, only about seven are left floating. Their d escription of the many hours in the dark, getting thrown around as the boat pitched, and the awful noise that accompanied the storm sounded terrifying. They reported that winds of over 100 mph were experienced. Saturday evening we hooked up our onboard TV and watched the news of the damage on Culebra and St. Thomas. It was shocking to see boats washed up on t he road near the legislature building in Charlotte Amalie where we had anchored with Kala-D several weeks before. Some boats broken in half, some with only the top of a mast sticking up above the water. Several of the buildings we had been in were completely destroyed, others were heavily damaged. It looked like a war zone.
Sunday, we continue to closely monitor weather and listen to post hurricane coverage. Chuck is on the ham radio often and we are tuned continuously to the amateur radio nets that are in contact with the affected areas. Many hams are able to make contacts between hurricane victims and their families in other locations, by relaying messages or setting up phone patches. By afternoon, we f eel safe untying from the mangroves. We move to the outer islands to reflect on what has happened and to give thanks for being spared. Our hearts are with those people in the affected areas.
On board the average cruising boat, however, this is not quite the case. If a sailor is spared a direct hit by the storm he/she still has electricity (batteries charged by engine alternators, wind generators, and/or solar panels). The sailor has his nor mal communications (VHF radio, amateur radio, and/or high seas single sideband radio). Many sailors have their own refrigeration system running off ships power. And water is still caught on deck or carried from shore in jerry cans. It then flows via on board pumps to the galley and head sinks. And for transportation away from the boat, there is always the trusty dinghy. And school (as Ryan can vouch for) continues!!
Hurricane Marilyn on the Move