Hurricane!

A convention was held recently in Houston on the upcoming 2006 Hurricane season. The document is a PDF that goes over the highlights from that convention. It mainly talks about the plans for evacuating Houston, if needed, this year and any upcoming years.

One of the nice things about living in the northeast is that the only severe weather we usually have to deal with is snowstorms. Although I am sure a hurricane will creep its way up here sometime in the future, hopefully distant future, I was a bit surprised to read that the states hit hardest during last year’s hurricane season have taken the “you are on your own” approach in letting their citizens know what to do in the event of an emergency.

We've known for years that the Northeast could face a major hurricane at some point in the future. The further away we were from the last hurricane to hit, the closer we are to the next one. Yet, more people now live on vulnerable coastlines, and emergency preparedness is nowhere near as good as it should be both at the personal level or at the local, state, or federal levels.

$7 gazillion for a shot for the possible pandemmic of bird flu- is it worth it? I can’t even seem to manage to get a stinkin flu shot! At this point, Bush is damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t. Today, there was some bitching from the left that Bush didn’t do enough hurricane preparedness for the hurricane season. Of course my thought is to go ahead and let the NRA members start shooting the birdies one by one and call it a day!

CC from Everything and the Kitchen Sink has found something rather curious. The City of New Orleans official website has taken down the comprehensive hurricane preparedness guide that was formerly located here. Why would they do such a thing? The site says:

I have two lessons: Leave the area, make the damn hurricane preparedness kit with weeks of supplies, donate money to the Red Cross (links to donation form) or charity of your choice (you may need the same help some day!)

Hurricane Katrina may be the deadliest hurricane in the United States since the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, which killed around 8,000 (possibly up to 12,000) people. As of 7 PM CDT September 1, 2005, more than 20,000 are still reported missing. New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin stated on August 31 that the death toll of Katrina may be “in the thousands”, an estimate also provided through a statement by Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco on September 1. Accurate numbers are not known. Damage was reported in at least 12 states. Hurricane Katrina will be remembered for its vast devastation of the Gulf Coast regions of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The hurricane will also be remembered for the ineffective pre-planning for hurricane preparedness in New Orleans, as well as the slow response on the part of federal, state and local governments to provide effective search and rescue and safe refuge for the storm’s victims. It will not be remembered for the hundreds of thousands of Americans who pitched in with their own money to send water, food, diapers and other necessities to the region. It will not be remembered for the children who emptied their entire life’s savings in coins to help either. It will not be remembered for the brave military units called up from around the country during a time of war and an already stretched deployment schedule. They will also find that when there’s a REAL emergency (which doesn’t include talking to certain people camped outside his ranch), the President will end his vacation early and get back to work.

I’m starting to feel as though I’m being selfish with my blessings…I pray at nite to ask for strength to make it through my days, but sometimes I need to pray for others…give others my strength make sure they have the extra power “they” need to make their blessings grow. Katrina (a hurricane that has wiped out New Orleans and parts of Mississippi) has just gave America a reality check. I can honestly say…we [America] were ready for a terriorist attack, but we were not ready for a hurricane to come and level out a city so bad, that the government has declared a total evacuation. Which means that everyone who used to live in the area have to start over in different cities, because they estimate that New Orleans will not be fit to live in for another year or more.

And I have heard the statement made that we reacted much more quickly to the events of September 11th. It has been said that New York Mayor Giuliani guided his citizens through the disaster whereas New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has been ineffective. First of all, we knew Hurricane Katrina was coming. (Although there is certainly plenty of evidence to suggest that someone in the government knew about the impending events of September 11th as well.) But it is especially damning to think that hurricane preparedness drills were conducted by FEMA and then when the real thing happens, we are caught with our pants down. Secondly, in defense of Mayor Nagin, there is a difference between having a building or two fall down and having your city wiped out.

I understand President Bush said something like, “No one could have predicted what happened in New Orleans.” Well, that’s certainly not true. The city has been trying to boost its hurricane preparedness for years, but the Bush administration has been cutting funds for that purpose since 2001. And, thanks to the National Guard’s strength being lowered because of the war on Iraq, things in the city are chaos and anarchy.

City of New Orlean's Hurricane Preparedness Guide (note animals are not allowed in the public shelters).

Yes, hurricane season is an exciting time to be in Florida. If you’re new to the area, you’re probably wondering what you need to do to prepare for the possibility that we’ll get hit by “the big one.” Based on our experiences, we recommend that you follow this simple three-step hurricane preparedness plan:

Home Depot has gotten with the Weather Channel and put together an online guide for Hurricane Preparedness.

Tropical Storm Irene is the opening act as the hurricane season prepares for a return tour of Florida. Since so many locals also have boats in Florida, we are developing a list of general marine related links for quick references on hurricane preparedness and storm centers.

Evenb thought weather.com does not show much in the way of precipitation for Sunday / Monday, I have bad feelings when reading about hurricane arlene. The rain is primarily located to the east of the hurricane, up to 12" in some spots. Have you looked at the apth of the hurricane? All path point to the west of North Carolina. I will be really really surpised if we don't see some significant rainfall from this storm. Weather.com is of course, reporting nothing. I hate weather.com!!!!

My vines are in pre to full bloom. Heavy rain during bloom is NOT a good thing.

Hurricane preparedness seems to be a growth industry this season. Even the state legislature has gotten into the act, approving a tax holiday on many hurricane supplies — batteries, small generators, candles and the like — from June 1 to June 12.

http://pcbaygis.com -- click on the map gallery and there is link called 'hurricane preparedness' to see the maps. Each map has been scaled to 8-1/2 X 11 paper.

Because of the population density, a successful evacuation of vulnerable low-lying areas in and around New York City and metropolitan New Jersey would actually have to start sooner than what is typically ordered in Florida and elsewhere, officials have determined based on studies by the Army Corps of Engineers.

But hurricanes move more quickly and become very difficult to predict when they head north of the Carolinas. In a likely scenario, experts say, there might only be hours of warning.

History reveals that New York and the Northeast have been hit hard before, and with little warning. Scientists say the next major hurricane to strike the city is a question of when, not if.

With the start of the 2005 hurricane season around the corner, Verizon Wireless’ team of “test men and women” are fine tuning the company’s network to maintain its reputation as provider of the nation’s most reliable wireless network when it really counts. The company’s national team of test men and women work to ensure coverage and call quality across the Verizon Wireless nationwide network, including areas which are often directly in the path of hurricanes, as well as other regions that can be affected by these storms.

Flashback: The day is is Friday, August 13th (ooh, Friday the 13th, scary!). Everyone is stocking up on water, beer, batteries, and other necessities for the rapidly approaching Hurricane Charley. One thing people seemed to forget to stock up on: condoms.

Hurricane Preparedness Week continues! While storm surges are the greatest source of damage when a hurricane strikes, it is inland flooding that poses the greatest threat to human life. The storm surge, combined with very intense rainfall means there's water, water everywhere without a place to go. The most deadly storm to strike our area was Hurricane Diane in 1955. Arriving just a few days after Hurricane Connie saturated the soil, Diane dumped 10-20 inches of rain inland. Flooding in New York, Pennsylvania, and New England contributed to...

Just a reminder, this week is hurricane preparedness week! Yesterday's topic was hurricane history, today it is the deadly storm surge (don't miss the nifty animation).

Emergency workers in Florida are kicking off Hurricane Preparedness Week today. A state division of emergency management spokesman says this year’s training includes the unique situation of dealing with two storms, simultaneously. Mike Stone says a storm that they’ll call “Hurricane Zack” will be coming ashore as emergency workers recover from “Hurricane Ursula.” Stone says the drill will give workers experience handling a recovery operation and an emergency response operation at the same time.

June 1st, only three weeks away, marks the beginning of hurricane season. To get ready next week is National Hurricane Preparedness Week. The National Hurricane Center is going to kick-off the week with hurricane history lessons. That will be followed by discussions of hurricane hazards, hurricane forecasting and how to prepare yourselves in the event of a hurricane.

Each year from June through November, Americans living on the Eastern seaboard and along the Gulf of Mexico face an increased threat of hurricanes. These powerful storms can create severe flooding, cause power outages, and damage homes and businesses with their high winds, tornadoes, storm surges, and heavy rainfall. The effects of these storms can be devastating to families and cause lasting economic distress. During National Hurricane Preparedness Week, we call attention to the importance of planning ahead and securing our homes and property in advance of storms.

A special Hurricane Hunter aircraft that's traveling along the East Coast to talk about hurricane preparedness made a special landing in Virginia.

The P-3 Orion landed yesterday at Richmond International Airport.

The aircraft flies through hurricanes and collects data to keep hurricane forecasters and the public up-to-date.

Also hitting store shelves are must have's like batteries and flashlights and coming soon - clinics. Reilly said Lowe's is teaming up with the Red Cross to make sure residents are well educated on hurricane preparedness.

Microchip IDs are a good way to safeguard pets during disasters, Fearing said. During Hurricane Charley, only four of the 322 animals at the Polk County shelter had microchips, and those animals were reunited with their families within 24 hours, according to the group.

Catastrophe Modeling has a larger audience than the authors initially anticipated, Kunreuther notes. It is relevant not just to insurers, reinsurers and actuaries, but also to "any business or policy maker who is concerned with catastrophes and is looking at ways to reduce risk and obtain financial protection against future losses," he says, adding that one possibility is the use of new capital market instruments such as catastrophe bonds (insurance-linked securities). And while Catastrophe Modeling focuses primarily on natural disasters, its approach can be applied to other areas -- for example to a business risk, environmental risk, or organizational enterprise risk. Indeed, the last chapter extends catastrophe modeling to terrorism, looking at the impact of 9/11 on the insurance industry, the nature of terrorism coverage, and recent developments in terrorism modeling.

The recommendation to authorize local officials to order evacuations is one of 18 Perry made Thursday in answer to a report on the state's hurricane preparedness. Perry ordered the review of Texas' plans following the deadly hurricanes that hit Florida one after another last summer.

The 18-page report by the governor's Office of Homeland Security was the result of Perry's call in September for an assessment of the state's hurricane preparedness. The assessment and report were led by Steve McCraw, Perry's homeland security director.

The recommendations were contained in the governor's "Texas Hurricane Preparedness" report, which Perry ordered after a series of hurricanes struck Florida last year.

Officials will be more prepared for the upcoming hurricane season because of what the 2004 season taught them about lane reversals, shelter needs and rapid response for evacuations when a storm suddenly turns, a state hurricane manager said Wednesday at the end of the 2005 S.C. Hurricane/Emergency Management Workshop.

"There were several firsts even though many consider this was not a significant season for us. It was a very significant season," said Jon Boettcher, hurricane program manager for the S.C. Emergency Management Division, which sponsored the workshop. "It was the busiest season in 110 years" for S.C. residents. Hurricane season begins June 1 and ends Nov. 30.

According to the The Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), "During each hurricane season, there always appear suggestions that one should simply use nuclear weapons to try and destroy the storms." This suggestion is apparently common enough to warrant a FAQ entry on their website, in which they offer a "rigorous" scientific explanation as to why this might be a bad idea.

You'll want to pay close attention to this if you live in an area affected by these massive storms.

The National Hurricane Center has created a set of RSS feeds to help you keep track of tropical storm/hurricane updates for the Atlantic and Pacific regions of the United States.

Personally, I think this is a great idea!

- Check your county evacuation map to see whether you are in an evacuation zone and which one. What you need to do depends greatly on how likely you are to evacuate.

- Gather deeds, titles, stock certificates, wills, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, military and adoption records, credit card and bank account numbers, insurance policies, other important documents and anything else difficult to replace. Keep in a sturdy, waterproof container you can grab to take along or leave in a safe place. Consider a safe deposit box.

- Photograph, videotape or write down a list of your valuables and keep this with your other documents. This is for insurance.

Florida has been hit four times, and many small island countries have been devastated by the recent hurricanes. Solar can be a safe alternative to dangerous gas generators for many who have power outages, and other forms of solar devices can help during the reconstruction period of these hard hit areas.

I have been particularly moved by the terrible situation in Haiti. These people need solar! They need it in a most desperate way. My time is short today, and I dont' have time to put all of my thoughts in this post, but please scan down this blog to the entry on Haiti when floods killed 2,000 Haitians. There are some real important thoughts on using solar cooking to help Haiti grow back their trees! This has to happen. Haiti is at the point of complete failure. We can help! Paul Munson of Sun Ovens International is doing all that he can to help these people. He is working with organizations and churches to get solar to the people.

We're entering the heart of hurricane season. Any day now, you're going to turn on the TV and see a weatherperson pointing to some radar blob out in the Atlantic and making two basic meteorological points:

1. There is no need to panic.

2. We could all be killed.

Yes, hurricane season is an exciting time to be in South Florida. If you're new to the area, you're probably wondering what you need to do to prepare for the possibility that we'll get hit by "the big one." The best way to get information on this topic is to ask people who were here during Hurricane Andrew (we're easy to recognize, because we still smell faintly of b.o. mixed with gasoline). Based on our experiences, we recommend that you follow this simple three-step hurricane preparedness plan:

STEP 1. Buy enough food and bottled water to last your family for at least three days.

STEP 2. Put these supplies into your car.

STEP 3. Drive to Nebraska and remain there until Halloween.

Unfortunately, statistics show that most people will not follow this sensible plan. Most people will foolishly stay here in South Florida. If you're one of those people, you'll want to clip out the following useful hurricane information and tuck it away in a safe place so that later on, when a storm is brewing, you will not be able to locate it.

Here's an inside look at the steps Disney World takes to prepare for a hurricane. This list might help other businesses prepare in the future.

Phase 5
(Monitoring Storm Possible)
Review current plan, checklists and business recovery plans. Review personnel and resource availability for the ride-out crew. Verify contact numbers and emergency data. Prepare WDW Emergency Operations Center for activation.

Phase 4
(Storm likely within 24–36 hrs)
General readiness imposed. Brief personnel. Review checklists. Consider possible shut down of long lead operations and not starting extended operations. Limited activation and staffing of WDW Emergency Operations Center.

Phase 3
(Storm probable within 12–24 hrs)
Intensify clean up and tie down. Prepare for phase 2 activity. Selected ride-out crew personnel given the opportunity to secure their personal property. Turn in excess radios and vehicles. WDW Emergency Operations Center opens and is fully staffed. Note: Generally this is when the WDW Emergency Operations Center, command centers, and command posts will be fully activated. However, this is an Executive Policy Team decision.

Phase 2
(Storm impending)
Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney MGM Studios, Animal Kingdom and Downtown Disney close. Guest campground trailers removed and secured by the guests. Scheduled hotel and campground guests notified of conditions. Complete all clean up and tie down short of shutdown. Authorized ride-out families move to pre-designated shelters. Ride-out crew fully staffed at start of phase 1 or as directed by the WDW Emergency Operations Center. Personnel not in ride-out crew released as soon as possible.

Phase 1
(Storm imminent, take shelter)
Shutdown all activities and immediately take shelter. Fulfill ride-out requirement plans.

Post Storm Phase
Command Centers submit situation reports to WDW Emergency Operations Center. Establish business resumption / recovery schedule. Notify employees through media and cast Member emergency lines of call back as directed by WDW Emergency Operations Center.