Landfall

11: 04 a.m.  Irene has made land fall.  Here in Quinton, VA, between Richmond and Williamsburg, the beginning stirrings of wind began at 5 a.m.  We made final preparations for items on the deck.  I headed in during one of the gusts...no need to get beaned by an oak branch tumbling down (see pic below).  Thank goodness this is coming in as at Cat 1 and not something stronger.  Nevertheless, the dangers are great. Tornado warnings are coming across for areas north and just east of the storm.

I do see that shelters and transits are allowing folks to bring their safely secured pets (leashes/crates).  If live in an area where storm threats are common and you do not have a sturdy leash(es) or a crate(s) for your animals, consider purchasing them after the storm, so that you can shepherd all of your loved ones to safety.  Also, ensure that your animals have secure tags.  I'll update this post as I can throughout.

2 p.m. Power out...cable out. Thanks to generator and Verizon Wireless, I can connect via my Blackberry. Limbs coming down left and right. SIL reports a downed oak already..and we've not received the worst of it yet. These trees can kill...and if you live in a rural area, a falling tree on your car, or descending branches can make for a deadly intersection with your body/property. I see already a child in Newport News killed when a tree fell on an apartment building.

11:03....Winds still howling. Top of a red oak snapped out earlier. Something fell on the roof. Black outside, so hard to know what. All will be revealed in the morning. Generator will likely shut off soon from gas. No need to run it overnight. I tire of hearing the wind blow and trees rustle loudly. Just a few more hours. News now too is that it could be 1-2 weeks for power to be restored.