Sep 3, 2004 By Paul Sunyak 3 min read

One of the first things Masontown native Glenn A. Townsend did to prepare for Hurricane Frances was cut down the coconuts from the palm trees on the front lawn of his West Boca Raton home. Townsend, 45, a 1976 graduate of Albert Gallatin High School who’s lived in Palm Beach County since 1985, says hurricane force winds can make deadly projectiles of the Florida landscape staple.

“Theoretically, that coconut could become the equivalent of a five-pound cannon ball going through the air at 70 or 80 mph,” says Townsend, a high school anatomy and physiology teacher.

In preparation for the hurricane, whose eye is expected to hit 35 miles north of his residence, Townsend says he either moved unsecured items such as lawn furniture and potted plants indoors or threw them out with the garbage.

Having previously lived through Hurricane Andrew and Hurricane Irene, Townsend says he has stocked up on vital supplies in anticipation of living without electricity or regular telephone service for several days.

His preparations include making sure he has vital necessities and the means to protect himself and his property from would-be looters.

“I’ve got two cases of beer – one of them’s already cold – and plenty of ammo, 40 gallons of gas for the generator, fresh water, plenty of food, propane for the grill,” says Townsend. “(Vice President) Dick Cheney in a bunker ain’t got nothing on me.”

The current weather advisory for his area does not include evacuation, says Townsend, who doesn’t expect such a warning to come for his city of 125,000. “The (evacuation) advisory right now is only for the outlying coastal federal highway,” he says. “I’m about 10 or 11 miles inland. It’s my belief that they’re not going to issue any evacuation orders for anyone living that far inland. Where would they go?”

Townsend says he’s used to tropical storm advisories, but they don’t normally warrant the level of protection that citizens must take for a hurricane. He said Hurricane Frances is projected to hit his Palm Beach County area around 2 a.m. Saturday morning, with winds of 80 mph and possible wind gusts of up to 100 mph.

In that scenario, Townsend describes cell phones as an “absolute” for communicating with the outside world, as regular phone lines will likely get knocked out of commission. He says the public schools in his area and in two counties to his north are already shut down.

“This will be better than the TV series ‘Survivor,'” says Townsend. “We kind of have our own version down here.”