Living through Frances was a very different experience than Charley, a more rapidly moving storm. Frances was quite slow, and took her sweet time moving across the state. It took more than 48 hours for the storm to entirely transverse the entire state. In Mt. Dora, the wind and rain started sometime Friday night. The power failed early Saturday morning and had not yet been restored when I left Mt. Dora on Monday afternoon. It was windy for nearly two full days, and during the first night many trees fell down. The yard outside was a wasteland of fallen trees Saturday morning. Rain seemed perpetual.

The aftermath was quite similar to Charley, in that there were many downed trees and power loss was wide spread. However, this time there was an abundance of fallen trees which seemed to signal the closeness of Frances’ effects. Last time, there were no fallen trees at all in my immediate area in Windermere. After this hurricane, there were many fallen trees in both Mt. Dora, which was essentially untouched by Charley, and in Windermere, which was only without power last time.

After living through two hurricanes in a rather short period of time, I can espouse the following.

• Flash lights, verified working, and extra batteries are a must
• Lanterns with additional fuel, are a bonus
• Candles are a must, along with plenty of waterproof matches
• A propane or similarly fueled cooking stove is nice for food, tea, whatever
• AM/FM radio, verified working, with extra batteries, for news and information
• Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) with cold start abilities can power AC devices
• A general DC to AC inverter for a vehicle is useful for charging or powering devices
• Bottled water for drinking is a must
• Fill tubs and sinks with water, along with several 5 gallon buckets, for dishes and toilets
• Bags of ice can assist in keeping some items cold in the freezer or cooler
• Fill up vehicles with gasoline as soon as possible before the storm, as it’s hard to find after!
• Keep nonperishable food on hand and a manual can opener
• Fresh fruit is your friend, for at least a few days