Spring Lake couple competes for 'Worst Wedding Weather'

Sat, Mar 1, 2008    to del.icio.us

Craig and Nancy Jacob said when a hurricane hit the Hawaiian Islands in September 1992, it made their wedding plans in paradise feel like an episode of "Survivor."

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But the Spring Lake couple had no idea their nightmare might one day be transformed into a dream vacation.

The Jacobs planned the perfect wedding — spending a week in the island of Kauai in Hawaii, and getting married in the tropical atmosphere with family and close friends. Little did they know that their wedding would be ruined when Hurricane Iniki changed its course.

"We found out that the hurricane would be heading for the island of Kauai on Friday, and our wedding was planned for Saturday," Nancy said. "We had no clue about how bad the actual hurricane would be."

On Friday afternoon, the hurricane struck with a vengeance that lasted six hours. The couple spent the afternoon and into the night with their 30 guests all crammed in a tiny condominium bathroom.

After the hurricane passed, the entire town was destroyed.

"There was no place for us to stay," Nancy said. "Windows were blow out, there was no furniture, cars were smashed and there was no power."

The couple and their guests spent a few nights sleeping in cars, showering in waterfalls and scavenging for open stores to buy food.

"By the time we finally got everyone off the island by the following week, Craig and I were exhausted," Nancy recalled.

The couple married in Honolulu, without friends or family, and just before their flight left for Michigan.

"We had a judge marry us," Craig said. "And we had a man standing there, waiting in line for a traffic violation who was our witness, and (he) took our wedding photos."

The Jacobs were recently chosen as finalists for the Farmers' Almanac Worst Wedding Weather Contest, competing with nine other couples for a romantic honeymoon cruise with Royal Caribbean International.

In order to win the prize, the Jacobs will need family, friends and the community to vote for their story on the Farmers' Almanac Web site — www.farmersalmanac.com. The voting period ends March 17. The winning couple will be announced March 31.

The seven-night cruise also includes the renewal of wedding vows, air fare for the winning couple and $1,000 onboard credit.