It's a CYCLONE!!

February 7th, 2020

I'm starting this entry early because Elder Tate & I are having a bit of excitement. Santa came to town several weeks ago, but here's what's coming to town this weekend....a Cat 4 cyclone!! It's supposed to make a direct hit Saturday morning & hang out throughout the day. We've had calls from several wonderful members of the branch to ensure that we've battened down the hatches & have food/water/batteries & everything else we might need to ride out a few days of 'red' alert, meaning where you shouldn't be on the roads or out in the weather because of extreme wind/rain. Fortunately, all the electrical cables are underground, so the power seldom goes out, but that doesn't mean there won't be problems w/falling trees/lights, etc. Here's some pictures of what's coming our way...

Above is the projected path...satellite image...below, the pointy finger at the bottom is just above Karratha. 

Here's what it's supposed to look like as the cyclone makes landfall & passes by Karratha. 

We had planned on going to Tom Price Thursday (about 350 miles south) to stay w/one of our branch families for a couple days & look for inactive members there...then were turning back & heading up to Port Hedland for a couple more days to say hello to the new senior couple & visit w/branch members. But, as you can see, the cyclone is covering the area between Karratha & Port Hedland then later it goes right over Tom Price. So we won't be going anywhere for quite a few days because of flooding.

It's always a good thing to have a record for posterity so they can see how brave & fearless their grandparents & great-grandparents were in fighting nature's fury while serving a faithful mission. Of course, I'm not going to mention we did it in the comfort of our 5th floor apartment building w/all the modern conveniences & comforts like A/C, internet, plenty of food & clean water, a nice bed/hot shower, etc...don't want to ruin their little imaginations!

This is the neighborhood right below our apartment complex. It doesn't look bad now, but that may very well change over the next 6 hrs as the eye approaches then passes by. Winds are starting to pick up & rain is coming down very hard. 

I'm not making light of it...there's certain to be destruction & flooding problems. But these people are pretty tough & have dealt w/this kind of thing before. Even so, there hasn't been a Cat 4 cyclone for many years so, we just do the best we can to be prepared & then sit back & watch nature's power unfold & be grateful we're indoors & protected. 

Of course, many prayers will be going heavenward from those of us in the storm's path as well as from family/friends concerned for everyone's well-being. We do our part to be prepared & follow instructions...then we must have faith. We feel a little apprehension, but that is only normal, but we are not afraid. I believe this is because we know we are on the Lord's errand & He will protect us. 

Until tomorrow...from wet, windy city Karratha! Love to all...Elder & Sister Tate