Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Back on Alerte Rouge
As of 6pm this evening we have been placed back on "alerte rouge." The storm is coming back our way. While they tell us we should be back at work/school on Thursday, my guess is no... Still OK, just a bit of cabin feaver. Bisous.
Gamede, (clang!) Round II
First, please do not panic. I am fine and I will be fine!
We have come through vigilence cyclonique (a cautionary advisory), alerte orange (danger imminent in 24 hours, schools close), alerte rouge (red alert-the worst will be here within 3 hours. this means get in your house and button up!), prudence cyclonique (post-red alert, getting better but stay put, schools closed, flooding, no water or power, etc.). After a day of prudence cyclonique, la Réunion has been put back on alerte orange; many (including myself) believe we shoud never have been taken from alerte rouge.
Cyclone Gamède is very big and very powerful, is causing a lot of destruction, and is not going anywhere very quickly.
It's strange, though, because from all the news footage of hurriccanes in the US I totally expected howling winds, trees blowing everywhere, houses shaking, etc. The winds up in Golden Gate Canyon in Colorado were much more intense than these winds! But then again, I am in a solid (albeit leaking) cement house up in the hills of Saint Denis, so I could be out of the worst of the winds, but still...
This is not to say that it is not windy or intense. I have never been in a storm quite like this- it has rained HARD for 5 days non-stop (not like in Oregon, much harder), it is constantly windy, there are leaves everywhere, our balconies are flooding, our ceiling is leaking this wierd pink water, we can't drink the water from the tap, we can see trees (tropical trees like banana trees with supple trunks, not baobabs or sequoias) leaning over or grounded, big highway bridges in the south are washed out, a dredging dock in St Denis was washed away by 10m high waves, and the Route Littoral is a mess.
We're still holding up well in the house. We're not at each others' throats, we're not cranky, and while we're not sleeping a ton, we're okay. It would be nice to get out to go to the grocery store... Our landlords have come over three times to make sure we're okay and that the house is holding up. They saved our power by untangling a branch that had downed our power line. We have closed the shutters but it gets so stale in here that we open a door or two for circulation. SEE?!?! It's bad but it's not THAT bad.
The images here are not intended to scare you- indeed they are to assure you that people are out taking these photos therefore everything is/will be okay. Think of it as a science lesson. Besides, it's always kind of melodramatic to see destruction footage.
As far as I know there have been a few injuries but no deaths. Here are a few websites that we use here to get information. It was pointed out to me that they are in French... sorry, that didn't really occur to me. If you don't want to brave the en français webpages, try googling it.
http://www.meteo.fr/temps/domtom/La_Reunion/TGPR/saison/saison_trajGP.html
http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/
http://www.orange.fr/
We have come through vigilence cyclonique (a cautionary advisory), alerte orange (danger imminent in 24 hours, schools close), alerte rouge (red alert-the worst will be here within 3 hours. this means get in your house and button up!), prudence cyclonique (post-red alert, getting better but stay put, schools closed, flooding, no water or power, etc.). After a day of prudence cyclonique, la Réunion has been put back on alerte orange; many (including myself) believe we shoud never have been taken from alerte rouge.
Cyclone Gamède is very big and very powerful, is causing a lot of destruction, and is not going anywhere very quickly.
It's strange, though, because from all the news footage of hurriccanes in the US I totally expected howling winds, trees blowing everywhere, houses shaking, etc. The winds up in Golden Gate Canyon in Colorado were much more intense than these winds! But then again, I am in a solid (albeit leaking) cement house up in the hills of Saint Denis, so I could be out of the worst of the winds, but still...
This is not to say that it is not windy or intense. I have never been in a storm quite like this- it has rained HARD for 5 days non-stop (not like in Oregon, much harder), it is constantly windy, there are leaves everywhere, our balconies are flooding, our ceiling is leaking this wierd pink water, we can't drink the water from the tap, we can see trees (tropical trees like banana trees with supple trunks, not baobabs or sequoias) leaning over or grounded, big highway bridges in the south are washed out, a dredging dock in St Denis was washed away by 10m high waves, and the Route Littoral is a mess.
We're still holding up well in the house. We're not at each others' throats, we're not cranky, and while we're not sleeping a ton, we're okay. It would be nice to get out to go to the grocery store... Our landlords have come over three times to make sure we're okay and that the house is holding up. They saved our power by untangling a branch that had downed our power line. We have closed the shutters but it gets so stale in here that we open a door or two for circulation. SEE?!?! It's bad but it's not THAT bad.
The images here are not intended to scare you- indeed they are to assure you that people are out taking these photos therefore everything is/will be okay. Think of it as a science lesson. Besides, it's always kind of melodramatic to see destruction footage.
As far as I know there have been a few injuries but no deaths. Here are a few websites that we use here to get information. It was pointed out to me that they are in French... sorry, that didn't really occur to me. If you don't want to brave the en français webpages, try googling it.
http://www.meteo.fr/temps/domtom/La_Reunion/TGPR/saison/saison_trajGP.html
http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/
http://www.orange.fr/
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Cyclone Gamede
As of this morning l'île de la Réunion is on official "orange" cyclone warning, next step to come is the "rouge (red)". Cyclone Gamède is HUGE! It's like 1000 miles across or something. It is only (right now) a category 2, but it is expected to get up to a 4. The house has been boarded up (we have those wonderful French shutters that seal you in tight), we've cleared the veranda of table and chairs, the garden of loose branches and mangoes, we've stocked up on water, matches, food, etc., and now we're physically (but perhaps not mentally) prepared for spending the next 48-72 hours safe in the house. It's hot and stale in here. But, we all like to play cards, watch movies, read and cook so I'm sure we'll figure out something to do with our time.
Apparetnly cyclones in the southern hemisphere spin the other direction... unlike the toilets. My question now is, what happens if the storm starts above the equator and heads south: does it change spinning direction?
Here is a weather link if you are interested in Gamède's progression: http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/
Apparetnly cyclones in the southern hemisphere spin the other direction... unlike the toilets. My question now is, what happens if the storm starts above the equator and heads south: does it change spinning direction?
Here is a weather link if you are interested in Gamède's progression: http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/
Friday, February 16, 2007
VIGILENCE CYCLONIQUE!!
The first official cyclone warning of the year has been issued. The cyclone is called Favio and is slowly moving toward the southern coast of the island. It is far enough away (currently 400 km and will not hit us directly but will indeed get closer) that we are not really worried, but we have stocked up on water and stuff just in case because after cyclones the water is either cut off or is un-drinkable. The housemates and I are secretly (or not-so-secretly) excited for this (being cooped up in the house, using candles, playing games) though we realize it is a bit selfish. We live in a nice, solid house that will not be destroyed by a cyclone and there are thousands of Réunionnais here who are not as lucky as we are... A cyclone (cyclone = Indian Ocean, hurriccane = Atlantic, typhoon = Pacific) will be a new natural disaster for me (already got earthquake and fire), and while I am excited for it, I also hope it is mild and no one injured and no major damage done.
Z'oreilles
"Les oreilles," or z'oreilles in Creole, means ears in French. The non-Creole (aka white metropolitan French) population are referred to as "z'oreilles." This is slightly dorogatory but mostly just kind of funny... until you learn the true meaning behind the word.
Most people refer to z'oreilles because the white folks from France all have red ears, i.e. a sunburn. This is the cute meaning for z'oreilles. What the original meaning signifies is when the English and French colonizers held the natives in slavery, the slaves (Marrons) often ran away and hid in the mountains. If they were found their ears were cut off as an indication that they had runaway... hence the "zoreilles."
Most people refer to z'oreilles because the white folks from France all have red ears, i.e. a sunburn. This is the cute meaning for z'oreilles. What the original meaning signifies is when the English and French colonizers held the natives in slavery, the slaves (Marrons) often ran away and hid in the mountains. If they were found their ears were cut off as an indication that they had runaway... hence the "zoreilles."
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