Hurricane Charley
Strikes Florida
PK Reschedules Orlando
UPRISING for Nov 5-6, 2004
Orlando, FL, Oct 14 - We had the best of
intentions, but God decided on a hurricane for Florida for Friday the
13th! Fortunately, and with the cooperation of PK friends in Seattle, we
were able to reschedule both events in Orlando and Seattle. Meanwhile,
most of the PK staff was already at Florida when this event was cancelled... in
plenty of time for our men and their families - but the PK staff was caught in
the Category 4 storm packing 145 mph winds just before landfall and still with
gusts of 105 as it hit Orlando. Praise God, we made it okay and most of
our staff plan to return to their homes Sunday.
After packing everything back in the trucks
Thursday night and sending them out of Florida, the staff found themselves
unable to book flights to get out of Orlando... so stayed to experience
Charley. Here are a few thoughts and pictures of Friday - the day Charley
showed up!
Pictures of the happenings shown here were
taken by Pete Acceturro, Steve Hutton, and Ted Padwe.
By 4:00 pm Friday, we knew Charley had turned towards Orlando and
had strengthened to Category 4. Fred Ramirez, National Events Manger leads
a PK staff meeting at the hotel to prepare volunteers and staff for the
evening.
Many of the staff waited out the storm in the room
provided by the hotel. Here you see the storm on the TV while plans are
coordinated. The mood remain guardedly optimistic and light-hearted; but
the reports of a very strong storm approaching were not something to
ignore! Time: 8:00 pm.
Around 10:00 pm, the full fury of the storm hit
Orlando. The storm built from a calm and overcast sky to strong winds and
torrential winds within about 30 minutes. Charley had arrived.
Then everyone was called down to the emergency rooms. Get there NOW!
So, we came down and danced the HAKA dance. We were
notified by the fine hotel staff that part of the building had blown off - and
that's why they called us down from our rooms!
In about 90 minutes, the storm had completely
passed. We began getting the northerly flow of subsiding winds as Charley
headed out to sea on the east coast of Florida. Some
brave souls ventured outside. John Carly - our top security guy on the
scene worked with the local authorities to see that the hotel was safe.
Behind John you can see that metal studs, drywall, and windows had been torn
from the side of the hotel. The Orlando fire department had three trucks
on scene responding to the situation including people stuck in an
elevator.
Everyone involved with PK, the hotel staff, and the
emergency people handled themselves well and we waited out the night to see what
really had happened around us.
By morning, it was clear. While Charley
continued up the coast, strengthened, and hit the Carolinas, we looked at the
damage just in our own hotel parking lot. Wind gusts at the airport, just
10 miles away were clocked at 105 mph, a record for the airport.
Below you can see the reason for the evacuation down to the
lower hotel levels Friday night. Parts of the building blew out and an
inside stairwell was exposed to the high winds and rain. Turns out the
building was sound and we remained in the hotel for a much needed night of
sleep. After a sunny and beautiful Saturday morning, a round of early
afternoon thunderstorms came through and made us think Charley had somehow
returned!
Here is a view from the top of the hotel.
Pete "Ace" was intent on getting up on the roof. Here's what the scene
looked like from the "15th floor".
About six vehicles were really messed up by being parked in
this vicinity. However, the regular parking lot; filled with good-sized
trees was not a safe place either.
The next photos show several unlucky cars,
including a van rented for the event by PK.
For the staff and volunteers, it was an
adventure... scary at times. For some vehicles, they've driven their last
days. For Florida - several days of warnings helped lessen the loss of
life. Thank God for that!
PK intends to be back November 5-6 and encourages
everyone to pray about what our Lord had in mind when He brought this storm to
Florida.
We want to serve our God in Florida... and it
looks like our big chance will be in November. We hope those who are
registered will be able to make the date switch. And we hope that the
extra time will give opportunity to bring a friend. At this time we have
over 11,000 registered for what promises to be a very special
event.
Thanks volunteers, friends, and PK staff for being a part of
Orlando 2004 UPRISING, part #1. We'll do it again. Take heart -
hurricane season is almost over in November!
Learn more about our
2004 conferences! Registration is available online and through a 24/7 toll-free phone number:
1-800-888-7595.
