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JUPITER COURIER

IN THE PATH of the storm

Lori Griffith
SPECIAL TO THE COURIER NEWSWEEKLY
Rob Rogerson and Michelle McConville, pictured, along with the entire island, began hurricane preparations once word of an impending landfall from Hurricane Irma was issued.

They left their jobs, families, friends, and home behind to chase a dream of living on St. John, the smallest of the three U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea.

Rob Rogerson and Michelle McConville planned to spend their days taking tourists sailing and snorkeling aboard Pepper, their newly acquired sailboat, and enjoying sunset sails among crystal clear waters teeming with dolphin, hawksbill and green turtles.

The couple arrived in St. John on August 15, and the following three weeks were spent making new friends, acclimating themselves to island living and preparing to compete in a yearly aquathon/triathlon held on the island.

Michelle’s brother Ed was visiting and planned on competing in the aquathon (swim/run) with his sister, while Rob entered the triathlon. Preparations were also being made to take possession of their sailboat.

Michelle McConville and two others sit in bathroom shower, with cushions on top of them, in preparation for the hurricane's hit.

The threat of hurricanes ...

Pepper, a 24-foot hand built replica of an island sloop made on St. John first caught Rob’s eye several years earlier while vacationing there. When the opportunity to purchase her presented itself, Rob and Michelle jumped at the chance. They did a sea trial the first week on St. John and were waiting for the insurance to come through before learning to sail her as a team. Once the paperwork was approved, the couple purchased Pepper on Friday, Sept. 1, and sunk her five days later on Sept. 6.

Living in the tropics, and particularly on an island in the middle of the sea, the threat of hurricanes are somewhat a common occurrence. And so, Rob and Michelle, along with the entire island began hurricane preparations once word of an impending landfall from Hurricane Irma was issued. What they didn’t anticipate was the strengthening to a Category 5 and being in a direct path of the massive storm.

This is what was left of Rob Rogerson's and Michelle McConville's house after Hurricane Irma.

In Rob and Michelle’s own words ...

Rogerson:

"Being from Florida we are used to storms taking turns and strengthening and weakening. We also knew we were in a place with people who were veterans of tropical storms like us. We knew our house was safe and the house next door was even safer (owned by a retired airline pilot, Frank, who built his house out of concrete into the side of a hill). We knew that if we needed to take shelter in a worst case scenario we could go to his house. Everyone down there is used to hurricane season and are really skilled at weathering storms. We kind of felt the same way being from south Florida. It never really occurred to us to get out.

A scene of the hurricane's massive destruction

"Prior to the storm we did our due diligence with storm shutters and plywood over windows that weren’t shuttered, securing all furniture and had our emergency supplies. We latched on the Weather Channel because it was the softest one showing only 100-110 mph winds.

"We had the first hurricane force winds at 1 p.m. on the day of the storm (September 6) so we had plenty of time to wake up, finish preparation and anticipate the storm, hoping to see if it would take that wobble. We saw it wasn’t doing that and we were looking at a direct impact from a beyond category 5 storm. There is no category 6 rating or this would have been classified as such. We knew we were in for a wallop. We take care of two homes on the island and were in the wood home which had survived many storms and was built up the side of a mountain with hurricane glass. We were on the upper level and our plan was to watch the winds increase and take shelter in either our lower level apartment or our neighbors as soon as the winds reached a dangerous velocity. We were overlooking the bay and one by one the boats were coming off their moorings and being slammed into the rocks or sunk, but we could still see Peppers mast.

"Soon the winds increased and big branches from the Royal Poincianas were blowing by. It was up to me to make the call of when to move Michelle, Ed and I to a safer place. Winds started reaching 100 mph and above and the house started making groaning sounds and gusts were coming in shorter lulls. We got our evacuation bags together and made a 300 yard dash to the neighbors house, staying low to the ground while branches, trees, awnings and all sorts of debris were flying all around us. We burst through the door and went to the upper level of the neighbors house where there were three other people seeking shelter: the neighbors son, a sailor who’d been living on his boat, a carpenter rebuilding one of our homes, a cat and a female beagle named Bruce.

"The noise was just incredible and our ears were popping, water is coming in from the ceiling and there’s an inch or two of water in the house (pictured)," Michelle McConville said.

"There was a weather station connected with a readout to the inside of the house so we could see wind direction and barometric pressure. At first we were cheering when it got to 100, then 120 and then our ears started popping as it went down and you could hear stuff starting to hit the roof of the house…big things which later we learned was our house coming apart. The air conditioner in the upstairs bedroom fell out and now the storm was in the house and all hell broke loose. The weather station stopped reading at 127 mph and it broke at 2:30 pm and we weren't even near the eye yet. 

"We secured that side of the house and moved to the other side. Shortly after, two windows that contained vent fans blew in and now we had debris coming through and the storm was in the living room, with water, rain, and howling winds inside the house. We were getting really nervous about our safety and how to evacuate from there. The smoke alarm began screeching a 110 decible while bits of the ceiling were peeling off and stuff was flying in through the vent windows. Our only choice was to make a run through that room which was coming apart and out the front door. Michelle and two others were sitting in bathroom shower with cushions on top of them and we all needed to get downstairs where the gentleman who owned the house was. 

"The next morning was spent looking for survivors. There was no way to communicate, and everyone came out and went door to door doing head counts," Rob Rogerson said.

"The pressure was dropping and our ears were popping and we could feel the house moving and it was a concrete house. It was horrible. We hoped we would all survive but thought there was a very real possibility that when the storm stops blowing we would be buried under debris. We made the decision to go out the front door but it was jammed and blocked with hurricane debris. This was the moment we thought we were trapped. The carpenter with us knew how to remove the hurricane window so he did that and we all were to make a run down the outside staircase to the owners house below. We put the cat in a pillowcase which all hell broke loose from that, and everyone grabbed bags, got low, and climbed out the window. Once they were out you could no longer see them."

McConville:

"There was so much debris that you had to climb over to get down the steps so everyone was on their own. I remember falling and landing on an upside down piece of furniture and you had to be walking over metal and stuff is flying through the air and it was so loud. You couldn’t see any steps, it was all a mass of corrugated aluminum, wood with nails sticking out, and trees. You half climbed, half slipped to get down.

Rogerson:

"I had the dog Bruce outside the window and Joel had a hard time getting out the window with the cat in the pillow case so he heaved the cat out in the pillowcase to me and I had the cat and dog and then Joel climbed out onto what was left of staircase. He'd get over the first staircase and I’d heave the cat to him and then I’d grab the dog and pull the dog over the first obstacle. Then Bruces leash got stuck on something and I was like holy cow and Bruce the dog is looking at me with wide beagle eyes and stuff is flying through the air, so I just unclipped her and I was like stay by my side and she did. Then I’d heave Bruce over an obstacle and then the cat and then me and that’s how we made it down those steps. 

"You could hear stuff taking bits of concrete off the side of the house and it felt like what it must be like to be under fire. You could hear huge things hitting the house and we didn’t think we’d all make it down in one piece. I was thinking what do I do if someone needs medical care. The owner of the house has a heart condition and was supposed to fly out two days before the storm to get a pacemaker, we had a guy who is a diabetic with one hand, and I only had a basic first aid kit. I couldn’t see how we would get out of this without someone having life threatening injuries, but we all got down to the lower level and Frank, the 87 year old homeowner let us in and the room was covered wall to wall with blood. One of the windows had started to come open and he went to jam something and nicked an artery and bled all over the lower level. 

Pepper, a 24-foot hand built replica of an island sloop made on St. John, first caught Rob Rogerson’s eye several years earlier while he was vacationing there.

McConville:

"The noise was just incredible and our ears were popping, water is coming in from the ceiling and there’s an inch or two of water in the house. We made sure Frank was alright, checked his bandages and being an airline pilot he was one of the calmest and started giving directions to scoop water. The window was bowing and we were thinking this is our last stand, if we lose this window its all over. The wind took on a screech like it was a living thing and the house was getting barraged by things and everybody had this look on their faces of this is our last place to be and wondered when it all would end. We weren’t panicked, but we were all just petrified with fear. I would flinch every time the house would shake or the window would bow."

Rogerson:

"We were mopping water and bailing so we could stay busy doing something but we were soaking wet, and shivering. 87 year old Frank said I have a package of tee shirts and underwear that are dry and somehow this gave comfort to change into something dry. 

"Probably the only funny moment came when Michelle and I tried to lie down for awhile. I’m thinking this is so weird…. I’m lying here with my girlfriend in a wet bed, with a bunch of people in the room trying to get comfortable while a hurricane is raging outside and I’m wearing an 87 year old mans underwear and comforting a female beagle named Bruce. You can’t make this stuff up.

The couple had arrived in St. John on Aug. 15, and the following three weeks were spent making new friends, acclimating themselves to island living and preparing to compete in a yearly aquathon/triathlon held on the island.

"I was watching Silver Cloud, a beautiful boat built in 1800 in Canada out of timber that was so solid. I could see this boats masts everyone once and awhile through the window. Silver Cloud is a three-masted schooner over 300 feet and the crew spent days securing this boat. One by one those three tall masts snapped but the boat didn’t sink and I kept thinking if that boat sinks were all done, and every time I got a glance through the rain I’d look for Silver Cloud and it was still there. I kind of drew strength from that boat. I thought, if that boat is gone then the entire Coral Bay is gone. Silver Cloud survived and so did we."

McConville:

"Around 5 p.m., the storm started backing down and the lulls became longer; and by nightfall winds were down to about 60 mph but I was still terrified. You could still hear it howling through the night and I’d flinch with every gust of wind for days. 

"Just before sunset, we went out and could see wreckage. The wooden home we were taking care of was leveled. The only thing standing was the sistern and utility room. Our apartment was completely gone and everything we owned except for things we stored in utility room. I looked up the hill and there was my suitcase. i knew water would come in so I packed all our stuff in a suitcase and it was so great to find that. 

"There was a massive spiral staircase about 100 yards away and the entire yard was littered with debris, trees, homes, and you could see the valley outside the window and about 70% was a debris field. We knew we were lucky to be alive and very thankful for that."

Rogerson:

"The next morning was spent looking for survivors. There was no way to communicate and everyone came out and went door to door doing head counts. Neighbors looked after neighbors. We had dear friends who lived way up the hill on the other side of the valley and we couldn’t stop thinking about them. It was a complete debris field in their direction and we were terrified for them and set out to check on them. We had to climb over trees and broken bits of homes and the roads were impassable, littered with telephone poles. Surviving the aftermath would be our next big concern. Thankfully after a long hard trek we reached our friends and were thrilled to find them alive.

"Looting started toward the end of first day and that started a feeling of unease about the security on the island. There were no police or firefighters. On day two the neighbors were out with chainsaws, loppers, machetes and everyone was clearing and cutting through telephone poles to clear a path so cars could get out and supplies in." 

McConville: 

"Members of Coral Bay Community Council got word out they had a satellite phone and would be encouraging people to sign up to make one minute calls. It was so emotional. I called my daughter and remember when I first got her on the phone she was like OMG and she kept asking me questions and I only had a minute and it was so emotional. Rob called sister who is the communicator of their family and could hear her but didn’t know if she could hear him and knew that he was okay. When the main road was cleared into Cruz Bay we would go there every day to try and make a phone call (one spot had a little bit of cell). Then we heard the ferries might be running again and supplies would start coming in. We got word that Hurricane Jose was making a similar track as Irma and people were desperate to get off the island. Two days later helicopters started landing to take the seriously wounded and they brought supplies and soldiers for policing."

Michelle McConville surveys the damage done by Hurricane Irma.

Rogerson:

"A few days after the storm, we went to check on Pepper and could see her mast at an angle sticking out of the water. There was carnage of 95 out of 100 boats completely destroyed so to see her mast sticking up out of the water in the exact place where we secured her in 10 feet of water was one of the best pieces of news we could have. She was just sunk where we moored her and possibly salvageable." 

When ferries began evacuations, Rob and Michelle made their way back to Florida with the few remaining belongings they owned. They were shaken and emotionally battered, but thankful to have survived. 

"It’s been so hard on us," he said."Stress affects everyone different, and we’ve been in recovery mode since returning and are going to take our time to emotionally recover. It’s been a massive test of our relationship and us as people. Emotions are magnified…everything is magnified."

McConville:

"We’ve stuck together through this and are both experiencing thAs e same emotions. When they weigh on you, you need to be careful to realize the other person also just went through the same things you did.

Asked if they plan to return, Rogerson said he feels invested in that community and said he can’t wait to go back. “I feel a sense of responsibility to go back and aid in the recovery.”

As for McConville, she believes St. John will get back to where it was before the hurricane and maybe even be a better place.

“I'm starting to feel less nervous about going back, although I can tell you, I won’t stay there during hurricane season.” 

St. John before the storm