IAN (THE HURRICANE, NOT JANIS) HITS FLORIDA HI-FI
Jim Austin
Hurricane Ian left those of us in the New York City area snug and relatively dry: just a little rain. I wondered, though, how other members of our industry and community fared, especially in the area hardest hit by Ian, on Florida’s southwest coast, especially in and around Fort Myers.
The first company I thought of was Valve Amplification Company, aka VAC, run by Kevin Hayes in Sarasota, Florida. I contacted Hayes by email a few days after the storm.
“All our people are safe, damage to homes generally minor,” Hayes replied. “VAC is completely intact and undamaged. Power and telephone service were restored over the weekend, and we’re starting back to work today. Overall, we have a lot for which to thank God.”
Sarasota dealer Suncoast Audio was also spared, Hayes told me: “All’s well there.”
Turning my attention farther south, I contacted Albert Zucchiatti of Excite Sound & Vision, which has a showroom on Venice Island, closer to the storm’s epicenter. “We came through pretty well,” Zucchiatti told me. “Most notably, we are down a few parking spaces, as the entire flat roof from the adjacent business is now in our lot. … Zero issues that I have heard of with looters and the like. We had the showroom open today with all systems operational. … It was a pretty engaging time we spent in the wall of Ian; astounded we didn’t have much worse!”
Even farther south—south of the epicenter, in Naples—Pamela Futch reported that House of High Fidelity was up and running when I contacted her three days after the storm hit.
Ian affected many people, around Fort Myers and farther north along its track. Doubtless some in our community were seriously affected, heard from was spared.
