Hurricane Sandy Hits GTMO

Last week was the first time in at least 14 years (according to someone who has lived here that long) that a hurricane as made a direct hit in GTMO.  Unbelievable? Yes, I'd say so considering where we are located in the Caribbean.  However, most storms that come our way during hurricane season either miss the base completely or are weakened by surrounding islands before they get here.  Hurricane Sandy was a Category 2 when it hit on Thursday October 25th.  We didn't have to go to a "shelter" since our home is designed to withstand up to a CAT 3 storm.  It was hard to stay informed about the details of the storm.  My least favorite weather man on One Caribbean News spent several minutes Wednesday night talking about the weather everywhere else in the world, and when the subject of Sandy came up he said "that's all the weather for tonight, and that tropical storm Sandy...we'll update you on that tomorrow as it evolves."  What?!

We were without power for almost 12 hours.  Wind and rain were very loud overnight.  There was no serious damage to our neighborhood and our house didn't flood. Praise the Lord!  Overall, the GTMO community as a whole were blessed that no lives were lost and no catastrophic damage occurred.  That doesn't mean that clean up has been a breeze.  The following pictures show that our beaches suffered the most.  Thoughts and prayers are with those in the U.S. who are now staring down this "Frankenstorm."  
(Photos by Andrew Voshell)

View from our house before the storm

Fallen trees at the end of our cul de sac

Waves at Windmill Beach the morning after

This used to be a sand volleyball court

The site of many a cookout.  The new construction in the background remained intact.

The Marina

Big mess at Ferry Landing

We had lunch here the previous Sunday with friends. There used to be a picnic table in there.

Another view of Windmill Beach