Go away Tropical Storm Fay!

When Tuesday passed with no ill effects from Tropical Storm Fay yet, we thought we may have dodged a bullet. However, Fay decided to slow down dramatically, crossing the state and camping out just offshore. Meanwhile, East Central Florida was inundated with non-stop rain for two days, followed by a day of intermittent rain. When the wind really started picking up, it was hitting the front of our house almost horizontally. That's when the trouble started.

I had made an attempt to patch a "small" leak the prior week, thinking it was coming from our window, however, with the driving rain, the water starting streaming in. You can see the result below.



All told, we received 12 inches of rain in Oviedo. It could have been much worse as closer to the coast they received record rainfall of over 25 inches. At some point, the rain has no where to go, so the sewers and drainage ponds begin to fill and the roads flood. Here in Seminole County we were fortunate that the rain did not get severe enough to flood the roads. Ultimately we had to tear up our living room carpet and take down some of the drywall under the window. Yesterday we purchased a dehumidifier and already we are noticing that the wetness is gone. I found the main source of the leak in the flashing of our roof and we have someone coming next week to seal the leaking area. I will still have to repair the drywall, put the molding back on, and eventually replace the flooring, but by God's grace it was not as bad as it could have been.

We also lost two of our 12 foot Papaya trees and pulled over 20 large Papayas off. That was probably the saddest result of this storm.



This is a great reminder that God is in control. When the storms come, there is very little we can do to protect ourselves from the storms and we need to place our trust in Him.

We are grateful to be drying out once again.

Peace and blessings,
John