I sure can verify the high winds here in the Midwest! Went out to the farm today and as I opened the stormdoor to go into the house a gust of wind pulled it out of my hands, pulled the closer out of the frame and put a nasty little dent in the steel siding on the house from the handle hitting it, not to speak of what the swinging door did to the frame itself. Going to have to pull the door off and try and repair the frame before trying to spring the door frame back into position too. If I can't get it to work, I guess I'll have to purchase a new storm door and hopefully not a new frame to go with it!
My experience was nothing compared to that up in Land O Lakes but the winds were a whole lot stronger than I've ever experienced except for the tornado I went through here in Omaha back in '75 and the straightline winds we experienced at the Central Plains Rally last July!
I feel sorry for those that lost their homes to the fires but glad yours is OK, Dave! This is not the time of year to actually start to try and figure out what to do on building a new home especially up there in northern Wisconsin! One advantage though Dave, you won't need to go out and cut firewood for a while!
Hope all is going OK for you, Betsy and Beau! Take care and keep us informed on the homeplace and your travels!