Hurricane Charley
Punta Gorda, FL
First off let me say you have to get the DVD our 6
member group put together after this rare event.
A daytime CAT IV filmed by some of the best in the business is a must
have. The other Florida
Hurricanes hit at night and weren't as strong so if you are going to get one . .
. Charley is the way to
go. Three of the videographers are contracted stringers for The Weather
Channel and shoot footage
for them on a daily/weekly basis, one shoots for MTV's "Wild Boyz",
and the others captured some of
the craziest cane footage ever. Our footage of Charley was featured on
ABC's Good Morning America,
Inside Edition, and Discovery Science Channel. Click
here to order the DVD or VHS.
My website is going to get a
makeover soon and will be caught up with all the latest in this year's wild
Florida Hurricane season. Ever since Charley it has been nonstop for me
and I've finally gotten a
breather. I captured Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne.
During Frances, I had a film crew from
Germany with me. During Ivan I was shooting for Network TV. I
was back to my normal hunting mode
with Hurricane Jeanne or as I call it Hurricane "deja vu" all over
again.
I was on foot on Hwy 41 taking
shelter behind a building at the beginning of the storm. As the winds
shifted, I only had about 4-5 feet of protection from the incredible wind tunnel
in front of me. I filmed
a roof peel off a building and debris blowing by like you've never
seen. I didn't have a car to
hide in and the building was locked like most everything in Punta Gorda. I
was going to have to ride it
out and hope for the eye before I could move. If anyone tells you they
weren't scared during Charley,
they just weren't in the right spot! Have a look for yourself:
Keep in mind all that debris is
right in front of me. At one point the plywood shutters were popping off
the windows from the building I was using as protection. What a confidence
builder!
I'll be posting some more photo's of Charley and all the other Florida
Hurricanes in the days to come.