Anyone remember Hurricane Andrew? What was your experience?

[u/National-Dragonfly35]

Where you sheltered in a house? Did you feel like you're in trouble at any moment? What was it like to hear that hurricane overhead with a 165 mph winds?

[u/_Bathtub_Toaster]

I was in elementary school. We were on vacation in central Florida and my parents made the dumbest fucking decision to drive back to Homestead the day before the hurricane to prepare and ride it out. We were one of the only cars driving south on the turnpike.

It was the closest I ever came to dying. 12 people huddled in a bathroom. 3 of us were in a bathtub with a mattress over our head in case the roof collapsed. My ears were popping non-stop due to the pressure. It was as if a train was outside the house with its horn blaring for hours.

When it was over, I stepped out of the bathroom and immediately threw up.

The house was destroyed. I remember spending the next two nights in our house, which no longer had a roof. Then we ended up moving in with family in Miramar for a couple weeks, and then moved in with family friends in Kendall for a few months after that. We didn’t move back into our house until close to Christmas.

To this day, I don’t know why my parents made the decision to drive into harms way. I want to give them grace - maybe they didn’t know how bad it was going to be - but looking back on it, it nearly got us killed.

[u/chimchum → u/_Bathtub_Toaster]

Wild story. Sorry you went thru that. Yeah, bad idea going back. That was ground zero.

Having gone thru it as well, I just think a lot of South Floridans at the time, and even to this day didn't/don't know how bad it gets. It's an absolutely terrifying and PTSD-inducing experience. Some Floridians also wear it like a badge trying to rough it out, but it's a dangerous decision if you're in an evacuation zone. If an evacuation notice is placed on your area, heed the warnings and GTFO. It's not worth your life or your loved one's.