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NOV 5Th 1999.....

Yesterday Nov 5th a small twister caused havoc at Calshot, selectively flattening and moving beach huts, turning over a caravan (poor people were inside eating lunch!) smashing all the windows on one side of a coach, whilst the coach driver waited for some kids (in the coach), smashing car windows and damaging the roof of the roof of the Calshot activity center. One mature tree was up rooted. Here are some pictures.

A VIEW OF THE UNDAMAGED HUTS WITH ONE OF THOSE HUGE CAR TRANSPORTER SHIPS IN THE BACKGROUND

ONE OF THE MATURE PINE TREES AT THE REAR OF THE CAFE UP ROUTED

THIS POOR HUT WAS RIPPED FROM ITS BASE LEAVING ITS FLOOR BEHIND

THESE TWO HUTS WERE FLATTENED, THESE PHOTOS WERE TAKEN THE NEXT MORNING,. IT IS STRANGE HOW NICE A DAY IT WAS...

A BIG JIGSAW

JUST A BIT SQUISHED UP

PEOPLE & REPORTERS LOOK ON

THESE ARE A WAY OF LIFE DURING THE SUMMER FOR MANY PEOPLE. THEY BRING THEIR PETS AND FAMILY DOWN THROUGH THE FOREST, HAVE A WALK A CUP OF TEA ,PICNIC ... EVEN GO FOR A SWIM

Eclipse

ON AUGUST 11th 1999 WE WENT DOWN TO CALSHOT BEACH AT THE ENTRANCE TO SOUTHAMPTON WATER TO VIEW THE ECLIPSE. WE GOT THERE AT ABOUT 9:40 AM JUST BEFORE THE MOON STARTED TO OBSCURE THE SUN, WE TOOK BREAKFAST & COFFEE AND SAT ON THE STEPS, THE BEACH WAS ALMOST DESERTED.. APART FROM THE FILM CREW ( MORE ABOUT THEM LATER ) .

HERE ARE A FEW PHOTOS ....

THE FILM CREW WERE ON THE BEACH FILMING A DAZ COMMERCIAL, THEY HAD FOUR TRUCKS OF LIGHTS CAMERAS, A COUPLE OF COACHES A FLEET OF ABOUT TEN VANS, NOT TO MENTION ABOUT ONE HUNDRED PEOPLE. THEY HAD GOT FIVE BEACH HUT OWNERS TO OPEN UP FOR THE DAY. THE SCALE OF THE OPERATION FOR A 30 SECOND COMMERCIAL WAS HUGE!

SLOWLY THE BEACH FILLED UP, MUM ARRIVED WITH THE KEY TO THE BEACH HUT,THE SUN SHOWED ITSELF WITH IT CHUNK MISSING AT THE TWO O'CLOCK POSITION, THERE WAS A GENERAL BUZZ OF EXCITEMENT EACH TIME THE SUN BROKE THROUGH THE CLOUDS, THE LIGHT SLOWLY FADED AND THE FILM CREW COVERED UP THEIR GEAR FOR AN HOUR OR SO

THIS IS A LATE SHOT OF THE ECLIPSE, ONLY POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE CLOUD, I HAVE GOT A BASIC DIGITAL CAMERA FROM NOVATEC (DCE400)

WITH THE GLASSES YOU WOULD SEE THE SUN ONLY WITH A HUGE CHUNK MISSING AND MAYBE THE EDGE OF A CLOUD. IT WAS QUITE SPECTACULAR, WE SAW VERY LITTLE WILD LIFE OTHER THAN GULLS WHICH WERE FLYING AROUND NORMALLY. AS 11.20 APPROACHED THE SKY NOTICEABLY DARKENED, THE STREET LIGHTS ON THE ISLE OF WIGHT LIT UP, IT GOT QUITE COLD, THERE SADLY WAS HEAVIER CLOUD COVER, CALSHOT WAS ON THE BAND OF ABOUT 98.5% TOTALITY SO WE WERE NEVER GOING TO SEE THE SPECIAL EFFECTS,

SLOWLY THE PEOPLE DISAPPEARED THE FILMING RESUMED, THE LIGHTING CREW DECIDED TO LIGHT UP THE WHOLE ROW OF BEACH HUTS, WE HAD LUNCH AS LIFE RETURNED TO NORMAL.

ONE BY ONE THE HUTS WERE LOCKED UP, PEACE & QUIET RETURNED (APART FROM THE FILM CREW.... STILL TRYING TO GET THEIR 30 SECONDS OF FILM .....)

TONY SEATON 12.8.99