Here at HealthEconomics.Com, we have had quite a week. Last week we watched as Hurricane Matthew decimated Haiti and many other islands, gained strength and headed to the U.S. coast towards Florida. We went about our days frequently checking the storm’s path and strength. As the hurricane got closer and closer it appeared increasingly possible that we were going to experience a direct landfall of a Category 3 or 4 strength, including winds up to 150 mph and storm surges of 10 feet. Our employees, all of whom live near the ocean, intracoastal waterway or St. Johns River, evacuated their homes, hunkered down and waited for the storm to pass.
Thankfully, Hurricane Matthew took a last minute wobble to the east, just missing a direct landfall here in Ponte Vedra Beach, Jacksonville Beach, and the city of Jacksonville. This move greatly decreased the amount of damage we had been expecting, however, many homes in our community were still completely devastated by wind, flooding, or both. Our employees were uncertain what damage would greet them as they returned home. As our bridges began to open, we all made it safely back to our homes on Sunday, and began the clean up.
Although some of us are still with out power or internet, we are now back to updating our website from the local coffee shop. We would like to thank you all for your understanding during this time!
Unfortunately, not everyone in Matthew’s path was able to get to safety, and our hearts go out to everyone else affected by this storm.
