Page 152 - Winterling's Chasing the Wind

Life Journal and at the urging of Harry Reagan, former president of the Jacksonville
Historical Society, hope to leave it with my “junk” at the Jacksonville Historical
Society.

CHAPTER 48 - End of a Career
After nearly 60 years of driving, my heart condition made it unsafe for me to be behind
the wheel on roadways. Fortunately, the love of my life, Virginia, was five years
younger than me and was still able to be my designated driver. We coordinated our
schedules so she was available to drive me to meetings, appointments, and stores. I had
enough interests and hobbies centered around our home, family and the computer that I
found it relatively easy to adjust to a more confining lifestyle.

Not being readily available to appear on TV during storm emergencies, Channel 4
came to my home for broadcasts, either by a remote broadcast or by telephone. By
using my computer and the internet, I tracked storms that threatened our area. With
WJXT’s News4Jax.com website Weather/Hurricane tab, the public was informed of
my analysis storm situations.

With only two years left on my part-time contract with WJXT, the 2012 hurricane
season turned out to be memorable for three reasons. The first was the premature
formation of two tropical systems off the southeast U.S. coast before the official
beginning of the hurricane season. The second one, tropical storm Beryl, passed
directly over Jacksonville on a track that resembled Jacksonville’s worst hurricane
Dora in 1964. Fortunately, Beryl’s winds were not so destructive gusting only to 65
mph at Jacksonville Beach on the evening of May 27.

The second significant storm was tropical storm Debby which stalled over the
northeastern Gulf of Mexico for more than two days. Upper-level westerly winds
sheared at least three rounds of torrential rains over northeast Florida causing severe
flooding along Black Creek, the St Marys, and Suwannee Rivers. The Suwannee rose
to its highest crest since hurricane Dora in 1964.
The third significant storm Sandy overshadowed Isaac which caused severe flooding
on the Louisiana-Mississippi coast. Hurricane Sandy headed north well east of
Jacksonville Beach only causing northeaster conditions. But it interacted with a
developing winter storm over the Great Lakes to send a devastating storm surge to the
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