Hurricane Charley, Friday The 13th, 2004, Punta Gorda, FL Home Video - V1 

While you guys were going through all that madness, my family and I were riding it out inside our kitchen pantry. I've never prayed so much in my life!!

I'll never forget living in cape coral during this and I still talk about the 2004 hurricane season especially charley it was something else living through that I can still hear the sounds and the noise the storm made incredible for sure

I was a child when this happened, still in elementary school and lived on Port Charlotte. This hurricane is the literal reason I have panic attacks during horrible storms, the days after the storm was a blur - I bearly remember it but i was told by my therapist growing up that we block out bad times as children and I 100% believe this is what happened.

Hurricane Charley was this Irish boy’s first experience of the USA. We arrived mere hours before the storm swept through Orlando. Quite exciting for an 11 year old at the time.

Most terrifying thing I have ever been through! My family were all huddled together in the master bathroom listening to it tear the house apart. We went out to inspect damage when the eye came over. That was an amazing sight! Then had to hide again for the back half. Mom's house was unlivable for about 6-8 months until repaired. I don't ever want to do that again! Much respect to you guys for what you do!

Doug, you are one of the best storm chasers, and one of my favorite. Cheers

I live in Port Charlotte, FL. I was there during Hurricane Charley. It is strange looking at areas of Punta Gorda and seeing buildings that aren't there anymore now seventeen years later. Irma was a breeze by comparison to Charley. Thanks for the memories, gents!!!

I live in Punta Gorda, waiting for Hurricane Ian to hit, and watching this...what the hell's wrong with me? 🤦‍♀😄

Hid in the Hallway with my kids under a mattress during Charley. Still get goosebumps from it. Videos like yours, help to show my children who were all under 5 when it hit, what they went through. I have pictures but it still doesn't do justice.

I have lived in this town all my life and it has made such a come back after this storm . But it was definitely extremely intense during the inner bands moving in and blending everything

Amazing video! Even 16 years later, this is still some of the most incredible footage of a hurricane in the US

I was born and raised in Punta Gorda. I remember driving from Port Charlotte into Punta Gorda afterwards not being able to get ahold of my mom and thinking she was dead and her manufactured home was one of the few to survive. I lived in Port Charlotte and rode out the storm in North Port and even there it was terrifying and I still have PTSD Everytime a hurricane takes a similar path 😬

I bought the video off of you back in the day. I lived in Port Charlotte at the time. I still have it. Never will forget the day.

Punta Gorda native here. Thanks for the great video! My mom weathered Charlie like a trooper, and previously I was in hurricane Andrew in Miami and that was a category 5 with sustained winds at 145 and gusts at 174. It’s no wonder so many peeps are fascinated with storms, it feels like you’re on a different planet entirely! Or like you’re in the belly of an angry, charging T Rex!

I remember this so well. I was living in the Tampa Bay area in Palm Harbor on the Gulf Coast. We boarded everything up and prayed. Then the thing hit Punta Gorda south of us. I felt so bad for the people of that area. What a nightmare this was. Thank you for the video.

1:01:52 these guys just chilling with a drink in a super destructive hurricane is the most Florida thing I’ve seen all day 😂

5:08 lol no one noticing the car driving with it’s hood open

I moved to Punta Gorda four years later. Now I know why the whole town was still daily talking about this hurricane. Now it makes sense. Thanks for risking your lives for this footage. Beautiful job. Not easy.

I lived near Punta Gorda when this hit.. We got lucky, but the storm surge was insane in a few areas.. I'll never forget this one. My first hurricane..

I remembered this storm when i was little, we rode it out but almost fled to a shelter but me and my brothers wouldn't shut up about leaving our cat behind so we stayed for it's big turn that had it avoid us, we were lucky and being boarded up with no light with a strobe light was fun for 10 year olds

i live right there on the north side of the bridge, it’s 2021 and after the last one that went over me in 2019…. yep everything’s forsale this year going more inland and north ✌🏻

I remember being 9, sitting in my room playing halo during hurricane charlie. I saw a gutter fly down the street and went "haha wow" and kept playing halo lmao

I was in Orlando and won’t forget it. Also, we were in the only people to keep power on in our neighborhood

Great footage. I was in Winter Park that night at a friend's cinder block house. My 2nd story apartment in Altamonte Springs had the roof ripped off & so much rain poured in, that the floor collapsed the next day. That summer was awful. Three different hurricanes rolled through Orlando, knocking out power each time & causing tons of damage.

Lived near the golf course close to downtown ft myers when Charley hit. Tampa was where they predicted it would come onshore and many people evacuated in that area. ( just like Ian) but then it turned 90 deg and the newscasts said it’s too late. “ Hunker Down!” Which became a popular saying .. possible 17 ft storm surge they said.. that’s what scares you . We lived a few blocks from huge river / intercostal waterway, separates ft myers from Cape Coral. We heard stories of Hurricane “ Donna” in 1960 that displaced a lot of that water. We gathered our “ important papers” and hoped the surge wouldn’t happen. Our home was solid concrete built in 1962 one level. Remember stepping outside during the eyewall, it was eerily still for alittle while. Punta Gorda , maybe 20 miles or so to the north took the direct hit as shown in the video. At that time a lot of that area was older and not up to code. I think some of the metal could have been from older mobile homes and older everything in that area at that time. I can’t imagine how it was for people riding it out in a mobile home! We expected to be out of power for some time , I think it was less then a week which was remarkable. Many crews from other states standing by. Florida was pretty good about that. It was mid august and horribly hot and humid so we were in our vehicles in the AC getting dry ice that was portioned out. We were fortunate no serious damage. I worked at Sanibel Harbor resort at Punta Rassa , right before the Sanibel causeway. A lot of water damage because all those glass sliders onto the balcony were not hurricane glass and they had to replace drywall & replace all those to be up to code. We were closed for 4 or 5 months while a major renovation happened but we were fortunate that they let us still come to work and do whatever we could ( mostly cleaning) as long as no one got hurt. The resort was owned by an insurance company at that time and they took good care of us. I moved up to black Mtn , close to Asheville NC early 2012. I have heard that about that time , Florida let a lot of previous restrictions fall to the wayside in order to allow more building on probable flood plains etc. they were struggling with the recession at that time still and more people moving in , investing has been key in Florida s economy. I couldn’t believe people didn’t evacuate , especially on Estero is( ft myers beach) it was literally a thin ribbon of sand with a lot of older homes . I heard some harrowing stories when the storm surge hit. There are some videos out there, some did not survive. I couldn’t believe their were tourists in Airbnb s which should never have been allowed by the owner. After 2004 , which was a hurricane every week for 4 weeks, they started to show a much larger “ cone of destruction “ to show areas that could possibly be impacted. What happened ? Were people in Lee county not properly warned? Usually it’s a good week out when you get initial warning. I realize that is too early to know but watching it up here I would have evacuated because it was a lot bigger and moving much slower then Charley meaning bad storm surge. I know a lot of people moved to Florida over the pandemic and before that. Unfortunately these kind of storms could be more prevalent. I was lucky being in SW Florida for 22 years beginning in 1990 but the west side of the state is “ on the wrong side of the storm “ more storm surge . I hope everyone takes heed and don’t just listen to some people saying “ I’m gone ride it out like I have before.” Even if you have new construction up to hurricane specs and elevated and everything holds up ok and you have generators and a lot of money, not everyone does. It seems coastal Florida will soon be only affordable to the rich. I saw things change on Captiva island, lost a lot of its quaint charm as multi million dollar homes took over. Well, a “ barrier island “ is just that , a barrier before the mainland. I really enjoyed it there for many years, boating every week almost year round. On a positive note, the area in this video , Punta Gorda came back better then ever with new construction after Charley. Not sure if everyone could afford to stay. I hear now that people’s homeowners insurance has tripled after Ian. Sorry I got alittle long winded! Lots of memories I guess. Thanks for the video and showing that being seriously injured or worse is always a risk because I see more young people doing this now.

You think you're 'in it' because of how bad it gets, but you're never in it until the 'white out' hits. And then it HIT!!!!

God love the folks at the Celtic Ray.. That place saved my sanity while living in PG with my retired parents over summers off from UF.

My dad lived in Punta Gorda at this time. I evacuated with him but the storm came right to where we had gone to ....Arcadia, FL. It was a very scary day! He had damage to his house!

Hurricane Ian brought me here

Here we are on the 17th anniversary (to the day), and I still have the DVD I bought from you, years ago..

Okay I can definitely say Charley's winds were more fierce than Ian's. I rode out both hurricanes here in Port Charlotte, I was just turning 13 when Charley hit. Needless to say it was absolutely terrifying for me at the time. I clearly remember it being sunny outside during the eye.

These guys were on the top of there game with Charley

One of the first modern bomb hurricanes. I remember it well from my childhood.

Good hurricane tip: Tape the seams, not the glass, of exposed sliding doors. If you must use the door to get off a balcony, tape that one from the inside. USE CLUMPING KITTY LITTER to keep wind-blown water from entering under the panels. Many neighbors were flooded, while the litter kept 100% of the water out of our fourth floor condo during Irma.

It was destiny...Friday the 13th and coming into Charlotte & Lee County Florida aptly named Charley.😯😯

Charley : I'm a real badass Katrina : Hold my beer

Those flying metal panels will slice you like a hot knife thru butter. Amazing footage of the power of CAT 4 Charley! 8/13/2004.

Charley one of the most Destructive Hurricanes to Hit Florida

Omfg!! Hands down best Hurricane video compilation!! Thank god you crazy MF’s survived to tell your stories!

Lived in N Ft Myers driving down middle of Bayshore Rd as it hit, watched trees up rooting roofs flying off and destruction it left behind took months for tree debris to be picked up and years for roofs to be repaired.

We lived in Key West at this time, when I was a baby. My dad tells me how we evacuated to right where it hit the worst, because they thought Florida was going to get wrecked.

What’s so funny about this is during one of the hurricane Ian livestreams on this channel was literally right next to the justice center lol

I was due West on the Gulf side of the cape watching it zero in on me, then take that little jog into the harbor, which it fit *into* like a large tornado with rings around it. That thing was wrapped up so tight there wasn't an amazing amount of damage more than ~5 miles from it. PG/PC took one for the team.

Over on the east coast of S FL, we only had 35 mph winds, but our turn came next, as Francis, Jean(?) and Wilma came in quick succession. Stuart Airport, SUA - tornado damage from two in a row, then my next post, Boca Raton Airport, BCT, another tornado wrecked the hangars. Wilma left us at BCT without power for two weeks, as we were at the end of the line, with several poles broken. Wilma brought down a cold front, with a glorious view of the stars and 50sF temps. I cooked many neighbors’ thawing food on my grill, kerosene (Jet-A) heater and Coleman stove. Made good money that season, shuttering many condos, to boot.

My mothers cousin was there. Fortunately for her she evacuated and her condo was okay.

Friday 13 2021 17th anniversary of hurricane charley that hurricane was my first one and had to go into a hotel

Did you guys win a pulitzer prize or national recognition? You darn well deserve it. Steel balls.

It was 2020 and Hurricane Charlie was still trending

My wife and I were living in Naples FL. At this time with two of our boys. The boys still live in Florida and survived hurricane micheal in a parking garage in Panama city where they lived at the time. Our first year in Florida we survived all them in Naples that year.

3 hours! That will be a little after 3sm MST. A tease but something to wake up to. Cheers!

Wow.. This must be one, if not the best hurricane chasing video I've ever seen. Thank you for sharing this with us!

44:28 LMAO!! Sorry.. but that made me laugh 😂

I was born around the time the hurricane hit the US. We lived in the exact town listed on the title and i was like 7 months old. I dont remember much cuz i was a baby. But my family talks about it alot. So i did some research. It was truly a devastating hurrican

🏆🏆🏆😊🙏 Thank you for sharing

I was on the beach this day bc I’m not scared of anything. Went swimming too

I agree it should have been a cat 5!!!! I was there!!!!!

Love Hurricane Charlie. Such an angry little storm!!

I think that I missed 1/one of my callings in life; that would be to be a professional storm chaser !!!!!

I lost my home in Punta Gorda to Charlie. Now live in the mountains of North Georgia..........

I remember this like was yesterday my parents live in Cape Coral I was back in Pikeville, Ky at the time it hit I was visting them prior to the hurricane.

My sister had just moved from Maryland to Deland, 175 miles away, two months earlier with her five children, just divorced. She was in for a wild couple of months!

Good God! 11:45 You guys RULE! DAAAAAMN BRUH! They're absolutely GIDDY WITH EXCITEMENT! FFFFUUU[censored by DGB]CK! LOOK AT THE STONES ON THOSE GUYS!! -Sorry, I got super excited at the prelude to action.

extreme, is an understatement of vast proportions

I have never heard of this one.

41:30 the noise of the wind was so strong that it destroyed the audio quality of the camera

i’ve never heard of this hurricane

Unreal

Liked it very much.

Great video!

I lived on the road the eye of this went through, I lost everything,

Happy 17th Anniversary Charlie

Cool.

I was in that hurricane I was vacationing in Florida in 2004 it nearly almost wrecked my vacation

I love seeing all that stuff flying by in the wind! It begs the question, where exactly does it start piling up and how cool would it be to look through that big giant pile of stuff!

for such a strong hurricane, the only REAL damage to homes were mobile homes and homes without strong roofs, i.e. hurricane straps. i saw many homes with shingle roofs still intact. glad to know this as a new home owner whos roof was rebuilt after charley

My 4 Children were born in a Dr's Office in Punta Gorda 1980's

10 Stars

I like to chase tacos.........

It is never a "real" storm until all your trees are one sided.

wow. That is intense!

5:09 any explanation on why that car is driving like that?

How are the winds THAT strong but the vehicle you see in the parking lot doesn’t get flipped? 🤔

I were in Winter Haven Fl at the time and yeah it got ugly 👍👍🌫️🌀🌧️☔🌪️

How to tell you got great landscaping Your plants are still where they where planted after a hurricane

3:08 for the longest time i thought that was footage of hurricane andrew

Now I wasn't even born yet lol

I was in that hurrcaine

yeah now 2022 on its way to port charlotte lol i lived in auburndale // lakeland area in 80s // 90s // finally had enough // i unloaded my burdens // left // common sense pays

Is V2 just another version of this?

Breathtaking‼️😱

jim sounds like kermin and he doesnt even need to try lol

It was EXTREME 😬

The year 4 hurricanes hit Florida Charley was the worst one

Seria bom se tivesse uma legenda! 29/08/2021 19:30hs São Paulo/Capital Brazil

Way too much footage of each other and themselves. The video of Michael is much better because it establishes shots and locations and holds to them, so you can see the storm and its effects develop. This one of Charley is more a vanity film than a storm documentation

Only one I remember was Florance flooding my neighborhood

Jesus no, not Doug Kiesling! This looked like it might be good too.

Is it me or are they filming their self more than the storm.

are there enough ads in this? might could use like 50 more ads… maybe one every 3 seconds

What is that for a place? Is this the Justice Center? If yes, i was there too! Greetings from Germany!