Hurricane Irene may be spinning away from making a South Florida landfall, but that wasn’t stopping residents from preparing for the worst on Tuesday.
Carole Delmore stocked up with four cases of water even after she heard that Hurricane Irene was likely not going to severely affect South Florida.
“Because I am Canadian, I’m more used to snow than I am hurricanes,” she told NBC Miami. “Hurricanes scare me. I’d rather be ready and not need it than need it and not be ready.”
Jose Dominguez bought nuts and bolts for his hurricane shutters at Home Depot in Miramar, where it was far calmer than over the weekend, where people rushed to buy supplies.
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“I’m not getting crazy about it, but I just want to be prepared,” he said.
The latest forecast track has Irene skirting South Florida about 200 miles east of the shore, but presently the hurricane’s tropical storm force winds extend outward five miles beyond that. It will be closest to South Florida on Thursday.
Psychologist Cheryl Gotthelf, with Memorial Hospital Pembroke, said people may be going all out to feel like they are in control of the situation.
“They feel as though if they buy water, if they buy the boards, if they get their stuff together, freeze water, that they will have some sense of control after a storm,” she said.
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