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best way to weather hurricanes?

3K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  Daisy 
#1 ·
Hey all! I'm in Massachusetts stickin' way out in the ocean. Looks like there's a sporting chance that Hurricane Fabian may graze us or worse. I was wondering if anyone else had thoughts on how to secure the bees. I have two hives. I was thinking that I could put temporary screening over the entrances to keep them in, staple the hive bodies together, and stick them in the garage. How long can they stay in the hive like that? Any special considerations? (Assuming the garage roof stays put!)
 
#2 ·
Angela,

I just use a nylon ratchet type strap and strap the whole hive together; if the hive is on a stand you could run the strap around the stand as well. assuming the colony isn't too tall and light, it should be fine. I have always thought that if it gets bad enough to damage the hive after these preparations then there probably wouldn't have been anything I could have done to prevent it anyway.

Good luck.

------------------
Rob Koss
 
#3 ·
if it were me I would--go to the hardware store (if you don't have on hand) and buy 4 -7foot "T" post, and two straps with the ratchets on the ends. Drive the post in the ground on each side of my hives and put the straps around them (top-to-bottom and side to side--like you would wrap ribbon around a package) and secure to the post on each side. Use the hive stapes to secure them together,also.
 
#4 ·
I grew up in Corpus Christy and Galveston Texas. Both Hurrican magnets. Been through quite a few and done some serious clean-up after a couple. (getting your next door neighbors roof out of your bedroom, using your furniture and carpet to make a compost pile along the street out front, pumping gas using a gas powered lawn edger hooked up to the pump pulley for power)

With a hurricane you can have 100+ mile an hour wind generally mixed with sideways rain. You might want to tie things down a bit. Also, 100 mile an hour wind has a tendency to turn things into projectiles. Maybe put the hives in the garage or something.

Biggest problem, which you may be free of in your area is storm surge. Most deaths and damage come from the surge or wind driven water combined with tides that form a potentially danger storm surge of water. If you or you hives are in a low spot I'd look for a holiday inn that takes pets.

Now for the postive side. Surfing will be good, particularly if you get the eye directly over you, sunny weather, calm winds, great waves, all for about 15 minutes.

good luck!



[This message has been edited by wfarler (edited September 02, 2003).]
 
G
#5 ·
Have you ever thought about moving inland?
Putting them in the garage sounds good to me. I used to live in Charleston S.C. You should have plenty of warning if the storm is getting real close. I'd wait as long as I could to close them up and put them away, and only if the storm was going to be real close. If you thing the storm is just going to graze you I'd put the tie down straps on them like the others said.

BB
 
#6 ·
Well, I can't help but notice that all these responses are from Southerners! Thanks yall! Being a displaced Southerner myself, I am looking forward to the time my husband and I will be able to get the heck out of this state ('nuff said!) Though we're from Florida, I'd love to end up somewhere in the Eastern Tennessee/WNC area, safely away from hurricanes. I will watch the weather closely and strap those babies down. If it looks like it will be bad, I'll strap them together and move them into the garage. Thanks again!
 
#7 ·
No culture? Don't let the American Indians there hear that.

I was in New Mexico once. I knew they didn't get much rain when I saw a man faint from the heat and they threw a bucket of dust in his face.

I asked them if it ever rained and they said, "you remember that time that guy put the pairs of animals on the boat?" and I said "yea" and they said, "we got 1/4 of an inch."

I used to build houses and we always put basements in them here in Nebraska, so I asked why they didn't do that in New Mexico. They told me it was such a short distance to hell they were afraid they would fall through.

 
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