Waffle House Index

I'm looking forward to the next week of perfect fall weather in Seattle-- bright sunny skies and high temperatures in the 60's to really show off the turning leaves. But I feel a little guilty, as yet another dreadful hurricane hits the south. This one seemed to come out of nowhere.

A few years ago, we went to a lovely October beach wedding in Destin, Florida, on the panhandle, close to ground zero for this storm. I'd never been in that part of Florida, and was amazed at the solid wall of fancy new houses and condominiums just a few steps from the surf.  They say Hurricane Michael is the strongest storm to hit that area in a century, and you can bet there weren't any McMansions there 100 years ago.

On the boring drive back to the airport in Pensacola (the Panhandle is not particularly scenic, to put it mildly) we passed the time by counting Waffle Houses. The familiar yellow sign popped up every few miles.  If you're not familiar with Waffle House, it's a southern breakfast chain opened 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We have nothing even remotely like that in the Northwest, unfortunately. You are out of luck here if you want cup of coffee and a simple cooked breakfast at 3 am.

Anyway, Waffle House restaurants are known for staying open in storms so FEMA coined the term "Waffle House Index" to measure the effect of a natural disaster on an area. If a Waffle House shuts down or limits its menu after such hazards, federal officials conclude the community took a major hit.

Not a good sign: a Panama City beach Waffle House just pulled out the storm shutters and locked the doors.