Florida is Ablaze!

Florida is under a fire-induced state of emergency with over 240 fires burning more than 50 thousand acres. On top of that, the 30 thousand acre fire in Georgia has crossed the Florida border as well. Winds have provided fuel to these fires due to the sub-tropical storm Andrea approaching Florida's East Coast. This storm is currently 200 miles northeast of Cape Canaveral and is expected to produce more wind for these fires and not enough rain.

While this year's drought isn't near as bad as the one in 1998, it is bad enough to be causing a lot of stress and anxiety in Florida. My son and I both have respiratory issues. This morning seemed to be the worst day of smoke yet. The symptoms I'm having are trouble breathing, coughing, burning in my eyes and throat. When I'm driving, I find it hard to focus on driving as I feel like closing my eyes and falling asleep. It's straining my eyes just to watch the road through all the smoke.

At work, most people were coughing all day long and complaining of headaches and shortness of breathe. I work in a huge building that has no windows and high security keeps the doors closed at all times. Still all day long we could smell the smoke inside the building. People are more tired and coughing so much more. We are all hoping that this storm will bring enough rain to help us put these wild fires out before they devastate the Sunshine State.

The daycare kept the kids inside today due to the smoke in the air. My son is three and has had respiratory issues since he was born. This doesn't make things any easier for him as he's already fighting fevers and struggling to breathe. I can only hope his little body is able to fight off any illnesses this smoke may cause.

About 200 hundred homes were evacuated in North Florida due to two fires totaling 130 thousand acres. Florida officials may soon be asking for help fighting these fires if they blaze out of control. The Florida Turnpike was closed down today due to brush fires causing smoke to reduce visibility too much. The official start of hurricane season is still three weeks away and we have our first named storm approaching. Most people in Florida are welcoming it with hopes it'll put out these wildfires.

The National Hurricane Center is saying that this first named storm of the year has top sustaining winds of 45 miles an hour. It's about 150 miles northeast of Daytona Beach right now. Our beaches are suffering already from severe beach erosion due to the high, forceful waves from this storm. A surfer died today from drowning after being knocked unconscious by his surf board. Most others are too afraid to go in the water at all as the rip currents and waves are strong and dangerous. Lifeguards are warning people to stay out of the water.

It's hard to decide which is better at this point and it's interesting that we're hoping for one natural disaster to fight off another. People all around are quiet in the recent days and there seems to be a high level of subtle fear in the air. Everybody is unsure of what to expect in the coming days. The National Hurricane Center has predicted at least 7 major hurricanes this year for the East Coast. What will be in the forecast for Florida this year?