Hurricane Irma?

[Mika02]

I don't see that anyone's posted this yet, but WDW put up their notice to be closed Sun and Mon.

We pulled the trigger and cancelled. With only Sep 10 and Sep 11 being our days there, it was getting pointless to go. DVC promised to put the points back into 2018 in a few days so it doesn't even cost us points. Southwest cancelled, got those points back too. CRT will credit back, and will have to figure out how to refund the F&W events later. I'm sure they'll credit them back too.

I thought I read no refunds on F&W events did the policy change?

 

[Interpol]

If Disney thinks it'll be safe enough to walk around the parks until 9pm Saturday, MCO could've kept operations running until 8.

And you're qualified to make that assessment how...?

 

[KimBean]

How could we watch your live stream?

If you look at her sig it is in there. If you are on your phone like me turn it landscape to see signature line.

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

Weather is unpredictable. People have reasons and motivation that you do not know about. It's really not anyone's business to criticize another person's choice, or to make them seem inconsiderate or stupid for making the choice that they made. We're not talking about people traveling into a mandatory evacuation zone; we're talking about people deciding to travel into an area that may or may not experience extensive damage.

btw I and members of my family went through Sandy, too.

I guess I agree and disagree. Whatever Irma does from a wind damage perspective, it certainly isn't going to drop 50 inches of rain on Orlando like Harvey did on Houston. But it certainly could cause significant and deadly flooding. According to weather channel Irma could drop at least 12 inches of rain in the Orlando area. We received 20 inches (I know, a lot more than 12) when we lived in Atlanta in 2009 during the flooding there. 20 inches doesn't sound like that much but it devastated Atlanta. I came home from work the afternoon the rain started and there were literally sheets of water running down the inside living room walls of our house because the upstairs windows were filling with water (yeah, we needed better windows). http://www.weather.gov/ffc/atlanta_floods_anniv

Maybe a month ago or so, we got THREE inches of rain where I live. There were half a dozen water rescues; and news footage of water up to the windshields on cars. Even a few inches can cause flooding.

From the standpoint of someone married to essential hospital personnel: I'm personally critical of those intentionally traveling into the storm. What happens if they have a medical emergency, even unrelated to the hurricane? Every additional person ups the chances that EMTs, doctors, etc, will need to provide emergency services to people. (And I do know a couple physicians who HAVE to stay in Tampa right now.) Those already in FL (residents and tourists) may not have a choice about leaving (because of work, travel conditions, what have you). But others do have a choice about going into FL.

 

[winniepoohthe]

While no one can say what will happen in Orlando following Irma the one thing you can say is it will not be flooded from rain like Harvey flooded Houston. People simply must stop comparing those 2 storms. That will not happen here. Not the stall/flood situation.

Yes, I guess people should quit comparing the two storms...when Harvey hit Houston, it wasn't even a hurricane any longer; only a tropical storm, yet it dumped 50 inches of rain. Irma is going to rip through Orlando as category 2 or 3 hurricane.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

What is the point of going to WDW if you're going to just be stuck in a room? Cast members are going to be worried about their own safety and that of their families, and are not going to be able to provide the level of Disney magic that we expect. The eye of Irma is going to be ripping through the center of Florida on a collision course for Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake. There is a good chance electricity and fresh water supplies will be limited or non-existent. As magical as we want to believe Disney is, it is run by humans, and they are not immune to natural disasters.

As someone who arrived on 9/4 and left on 9/7, I can tell you that many people have no option but to stay.

When it started looking like Irma could hit FL head on, we rented a car with 2 car seats. Thank goodness we did. Roads are bad and our drive is 21 hours with NO traffic, but we wanted to leave and thankful we had that option, as our flight for this weekend was cancelled.

Not everyone there is traveling into the storm. Many people arrived while the path was still murky and the storm very far away. Without a car or a flight, there's no where to go and they're safest at Disney.

People can't get rental cars. They can't move their flights. Their flights got cancelled.

So, posting tips for families confined to their resorts is relevant not just for people who are choosing to still travel despite the storm, but for the many many folks who can't get home.

 

[fla4fun]

I imagine a lot of people trying to get their homes ready and get out of town are not in any hurry for Irma to get there. They probably appreciate all the lead time they can get.

I am done with prep, and very anxious to put this behind me. It feels like I am waiting for surgery that keeps getting put off. Potentially deadly, potentially life changing, and guaranteed to be unpleasant at best. The fact that the track is supposedly going almost right over us now is just increasing the anxiety. Perhaps I will feel better when my evacuees get settled in so there are more of us facing it together.

I keep thinking about how I hope this time next week to be enjoying WDW. . .

 

[HarperLeigh]

I still think MCO was to quick to say they'll close at 5pm. Storm won't be over Central Florida until 9am Sunday. They could've kept it open until 8pm Saturday. Using rough math that's nearly 150 more flights they could've gotten out of Orlando.

If Disney thinks it'll be safe enough to walk around the parks until 9pm Saturday, MCO could've kept operations running until 8.

MCO needs to get planes out of there. That takes time. They also need to secure everything outside once all the planes are gone. Then I am sure there are security procedures/precautions that need to be done. That is why they are being smart and closing down operations at 5pm.

 

[Lynne G]

Yes, that is why I am asking the question. As someone who had the choice of either leaving early and abandoning my 21 year old daughter to deal with this on her own or staying here with her and trying to quell both her fears and my own, I'd appreciate a constructive answer rather than a statement of the obvious.

As I said above, her car in the BC lot should be fine. Don't park under a tree, find a spot that seems high, and make sure windows are up. While I saw some branches in the walkways, my car was fine sitting in FQ's lot during Matthew. I did move my car from the spot it was in, next to a tree, to one in the middle, away from other cars. I hope you and you DD are also good during this time together. I was alone, as it was my DH's birthday gift, a trip. I was fine, watched TV, played on my iPad, went to the lobby to talk and enjoy some adult drinks. When DS was open, went there, but so crowded, I just walked around, and ate back at my hotel. There was a long, very long line to get food the night the parks shut down at 5pm. If I had to do it again, I would have made sure to eat at the parks before and bring snacks for later in the evening. The next morning, they had breakfast, so there was no need to stockpile food. Take care. The best parts of hurricanes are, they tend to move fast, and after, the weather is beautiful.

 

[Denise W]

So we were just told by a CL CM that the parking garages at Disney Springs will be closed and not available for resort guests to park their cars for the storm.

How about at AKL in the parking area under the resort (Kidani)?
Denise

 

[KimBean]

I am done with prep, and very anxious to put this behind me. It feels like I am waiting for surgery that keeps getting put off. Potentially deadly, potentially life changing, and guaranteed to be unpleasant at best. The fact that the track is supposedly going almost right over us now is just increasing the anxiety. Perhaps I will feel better when my evacuees get settled in so there are more of us facing it together.

I keep thinking about how I hope this time next week to be enjoying WDW. . .

Where are you?

 

[winniepoohthe]

Maybe, maybe not.

From a legal/liability standpoint, though, it makes sense. Disney would still have some responsibility to keep your car safe if you park in one of their garages. Also, accessibility would be a problem - what if you need to get to your car after you've parked it? Assuming you're not sheltering at DS, why should Disney bear the responsibility of transporting you from your resort back to DS so you can retrieve your car? Same thing would apply to parking your car in a closed theme park lot. Parking your car is easy, transportation from the lot to your shelter is not.

The legal question is, would a reasonable person act in this manner (the "guests").

 

[BattyKoda]

I still think MCO was to quick to say they'll close at 5pm. Storm won't be over Central Florida until 9am Sunday. They could've kept it open until 8pm Saturday. Using rough math that's nearly 150 more flights they could've gotten out of Orlando.

If Disney thinks it'll be safe enough to walk around the parks until 9pm Saturday, MCO could've kept operations running until 8.

To be fair to them, the wind will be there before the actual storm will be... as such they have to take earlier measures.

 

[mom2rtk]

I am done with prep, and very anxious to put this behind me. It feels like I am waiting for surgery that keeps getting put off. Potentially deadly, potentially life changing, and guaranteed to be unpleasant at best. The fact that the track is supposedly going almost right over us now is just increasing the anxiety. Perhaps I will feel better when my evacuees get settled in so there are more of us facing it together.

I keep thinking about how I hope this time next week to be enjoying WDW. . .

No doubt, I'd probably feel the same way if I was ready. But I imagine there are others still using this time to finish their own preparations and get out of town.

Best of luck weathering the storm.

 

[winniepoohthe]

As someone who arrived on 9/4 and left on 9/7, I can tell you that many people have no option but to stay.

When it started looking like Irma could hit FL head on, we rented a car with 2 car seats. Thank goodness we did. Roads are bad and our drive is 21 hours with NO traffic, but we wanted to leave and thankful we had that option, as our flight for this weekend was cancelled.

Not everyone there is traveling into the storm. Many people arrived while the path was still murky and the storm very far away. Without a car or a flight, there's no where to go and they're safest at Disney.

People can't get rental cars. They can't move their flights. Their flights got cancelled.

So, posting tips for families confined to their resorts is relevant not just for people who are choosing to still travel despite the storm, but for the many many folks who can't get home.

Many people are still traveling in to Orlando. As for arriving the 4th, the storm was already present, and the writing on the wall.

 

[HopperFan]

Again for a few hours to run errands and come back to skim through and catch up. Wow people, you'd think on a Disney forum people would be nicer to each other. Nasty is the theme here. Last year we had a Matthew thread that was such a big help, so much positive energy, people really supporting each other. My have things changed. My opinion is better than your opinion ... it's like children fighting. This thread is totally pointless, zero value, because most with the strongest opinions do not seem to be in Florida, are not going to Florida and have no interests in Florida so .......

... to those are are in Florida whether living or visiting, and those like myself who are not in Florida but left a home and family in harms way ... positive thoughts, good luck, take no risks and avoid negativity.

Is it seriously THAT hard not to judge people? Oh my goodness. I'm about to towel the towel on this thread.
If people decide to come it not is their personal choice. The cm will have to be at the parks and resorts regardless.

I have decided to leave the moderation of this thread to others.
I want to remind posters that the "ignore" option is available for those troll posters that don't contribute at all to this thread
Also the report option is available and another moderator or webmasters will take care of it
As for me, I'll be checking into AoA tomorrow with my family, live streaming from dhs and mk tomorrow then from the resort on Sunday and Monday as long as is safe to do so.
MTFBWY

Obviously it is very hard for people to mind their own business, not judge or be insulting and stay focused on helping folks navigate their DISNEY reservations, what to expect in hotels etc. I don't blame you.

Take care of you and the kids, be safe.

Maybe we should start making suggestions for things/activities families can do with their kids while confined to rooms waiting out the storm. Lots of games you can play with a deck of cards or no cards at all.
I have also seen some of those travel games an drew drawing sets with markers in the gift shops.

This was what our Matthew thread was ALL about. Positive advice, what to expect, where there was food, what was happening on the ground. Clearly this thread is a dumpster fire created by folks not there or going there. Maybe start a new thread with a clear title and explanation of what kind of info to post. Drama not needed.

I am guessing by a lot of posts here that no one was watching the news in Houston after Harvey went through. Things are still far from "back to normal"

Central FL is not immune to damage from Hurricanes. It has happened before and it took time to get things back in order. This is going to impact Orlando and vicinity for more than a few days, sorry to say. I'd be very leery of going to WDW for much of September into October and that is if the impacts are minimal.

I am a meteorologist and practicing for almost 20 years, so I do have a bit of a clue

How do you know it will not play out like Harvey and why not compare? Can central FL handle feet of rain w/out impact if the forecast does play out? The precipitation projections are showing 10-18 inches of rain. We may not see the storm stall out, but it will bring a LOT of rain with it. Swamps do flood, and Orlando is a big swamp ! Famous last words "it will not happen here"

WOW ......... sorry but Irma and Harvey are completely different, FL and Houston are completely different and preparation by States are completely different. They absolutely can not be compared. Over 50" of rain in a place that had no where to drain compared to 10-18" (your numbers) of rain where there are places for it to drain are completely different.

Folks reading, get your info from the professionals on the ground, the Governor, the local authorities ...

Atlanta here. Remembered I never gave my update on my own preps. I reluctantly went out thinking I was being more safe than sorry and maybe a little silly. Everything here is picked over. Got some of the last packs of water. Got a flashlight but not a great one. I was shocked. No one here is taking this lightly. I am 700 miles from Miami.

ATL too. Just went for big grocery shop because my kitchen has been torn up a month and finally getting cooking hooked up tomorrow. I was shocked at the crowds, the empty water shelves and every register open. We were inquiring what in the world is wrong with people as our water should be fine. They said most were saying they had evacuated up to ATL to stay with people and were stocking up with as much water as they could carry for when they went back. They were also filling their gas tanks and extra gas containers to take back. Our stations have lines and some types of gas are gone.

 

[Nohal]

Due to come in on ME today but cancelled my reservation. After 4 calls and hours on hold my reservation is no longer showing on MDE. Was my ME cancelled or do I need to call someone else to cancel. The first CM I talked to told me once the reservation is cancelled so are FP and ME. Well, my FP are still showing so I am going to cancel as I have them scheduled till next Friday and I'm sure others would like them. I already cancelled my "free" dining reservations.

 

[danikoski]

I still think MCO was to quick to say they'll close at 5pm. Storm won't be over Central Florida until 9am Sunday. They could've kept it open until 8pm Saturday. Using rough math that's nearly 150 more flights they could've gotten out of Orlando.

If Disney thinks it'll be safe enough to walk around the parks until 9pm Saturday, MCO could've kept operations running until 8.

Planes landing and taking off are way different than walking around a theme park. There is going to be wind as the storm moves in and they are going to want to give themselves as much time as reasonably possible to get planes off the ground and secure anything on the ground.

 

[DLM1980]

Due to come in on ME today but cancelled my reservation. After 4 calls and hours on hold my reservation is no longer showing on MDE. Was my ME cancelled or do I need to call someone else to cancel. The first CM I talked to told me once the reservation is cancelled so are FP and ME. Well, my FP are still showing so I am going to cancel as I have them scheduled till next Friday and I'm sure others would like them. I already cancelled my "free" dining reservations.

Disney's Website is flakey on its good days. If your ressie has been canceled and you have no active tickets in your MDE then your FP's will just fall off. Don't waste your time calling no matter how good your intensions are to free up the FPs for other people. The system will take care of itself.

Your dining, I'm not sure how long your stay was but Disney did waive their cancellation policy for some dates...I think @AngiTN can give you the exact date, but if you don't show for the ones inside the window you won't be charged for them, the ones outside the window you'll want to cancel for sure

 

[winniepoohthe]

Day 1 account, nice.

Yes, Day 1 account. I've been following this thread since 9/5/17, and felt compelled to respond; everyone starts as a Day 1 account.