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Before apps, how did your family monitor storms?

Do you have one of these lying around? Shawn Gorman says his grandparents' gadget, which includes a barometer, is still working after surviving Hurricane Dora. (WJXT 2020)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Chances are you have a thermometer at home, but do you own a barometer?

As Tropical Storm Eta sped across Florida early Thursday, Insider Shawn Gorman shared a StormPin showing a decades-old barometer that once belonged to his grandparents. And, as it turns out, Eta isn’t the first storm the family heirloom has survived. He said the barometer went down as the storm neared Jacksonville.

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“This old thing still works! It doesn’t have batteries/electricity,” Gorman said. “It’s got [gauges for] humidity, temperature and barometer. It belonged to my grandparents and went through 1964 Hurricane Dora in Arlington! My grandparents said when they lost radio/power, so they used this to monitor the storm.”

RELATED: Share your Pins! Users capture interesting scenes across Jacksonville

Do you have any nifty gadgets or keepsakes lying around? Or any other ways your families have kept tabs on storms over the years? Let us know by uploading a picture and caption to StormPins.

Whether it’s a photo or video clip, you can drop a pin at News4Jax.com/Pins or with your Weather Authority app. You can also upload them through your Insider profile page. If your photo is selected, you might see it featured in a forecast or in the Weather Insider newsletter.


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