Hermine

Florida has been in a hurricane dry spell since 2005.  And then, one August day, this tropical storm seemed to be headed our way.  Poorly organized, the meteorologists struggled to predict just where it might head.  The forecast map looked like a child's first drawing - squiggles on the page.

  

We opted to take a few precautions.  We dropped the oyster baskets to the lowest point on the riser poles, Stabilized the riser poles. And waited.  

As the Tropical storm got its name, Hermine, I was on the east coast of FL on Amelia Island for the FL Forestry Association annual meeting.  Weather there was blustery as another storm was headed along the east coast to NC.  I worried. I knew that wouldn't help, but still, I could not stop thinking about the farm and all the time and money invested and how this one storm could wipe the work clean.  

Thursday at 10:00 am, I and most of the other meeting attendees opted to check out of the wonderful Omni Resort and head home to make preparations.  

At home, Jack and I strapped the oyster baskets together into large bundles.  We moved all the patio furniture inside. All outdoor decor and plants inside.   Jim Cantore on the Weather channel was predicting heavy storm surges. Photos of Cedar Key's dock area ran constantly.  The big bend was being swamped. 

We lost power at our house about 10:00pm.  And at 1:30am I woke to a roaring wind.  

Hermine hit at St Marks National Wildlife Refuge just 10 miles east of Oyster Bay and the Aquaculture Use Zone.  She came in just before High Tide.  Winds of 65 mph.  Catagory 1 hurricane. 

Any mother would worry.  And being OysterMom, I was anxious to hear from my babies - and needed to know how they survived the storm.  

Friday was still windy - too windy to go out on the water and there was clean up in the yard and neighborhood.   Our next door neighbors had a huge loblolly pine snap off.  Power was out for 80% of Tallahassee.  Four ways stops at all street intersections.  Many had not prepared with food and water so there were mobs of folks at Publix - where shopping is a pleasure no matter what the weather.  

My Ginny Boat was dry docked at Rock Landing Marina, and the marina dock and gas pumps were gone.  Mad Anthony's and the boat storage buildings had both taken on a 3-4 foot storm surge. Debris was everywhere in the bay and parking lot. 

I contacted Tim Jordan and Walt Dickson and asked if I could head out with them Saturday morning to survey the farms.   We headed out in Matt Hodges oyster boat.  Gray skies, Choppy dark waters. 

And there, much to our delight, stood the farms.   My lease was unharmed.  A few had wobbly riser poles and only one had a line that had come loose and it and the baskets attached were tangled in it's neighbors poles.   We were all relieved.  Lucky. Happy. 

As a precaution, the Division of Aquaculture closed all the harvest areas in the Gulf on September 1. Slowly they began to open areas - first Apalachicola, then Alligator Harbor on September 8.  Water samples were collected from Oyster Bay on Sept 8, but the bay was not opened to harvest.   I went out to work the lease on Sept 10 and took a salinity reading.  10 days post hurricane, the salinity was at 15parts per thousand.   The weekend before the storm, salinity was 28 parts per thousand.  The oysters we harvested before the storm were some of the best we had ever tasted.  Those checked on Sept 10 lacked the salty brine flavor we love.   

So now -- 13 days post storm we wait for the go ahead to harvest and the return of the saltwater.  And I've orders to fill.