Texas
Interagency Interfaith Disaster Response
e-Buzz
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21 May 2007 |
Friend,
Today, Monday, May 21, 2007, you are
receiving the first installment of TIDR's public information
campaign for National
Hurricane Preparedness Week. Following
the devastation we all experienced in some way through
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
we know the importance of being prepared here in Central
Texas.
Today the focus will be on the hurricane
basics and the history
of hurricanes since 1900. As
you review the history, please know that you can
make a difference by understanding that hurricanes
are nature's most powerful storms, that hurricanes
can lead to flooding hundreds of miles inland, and
that the heaviest rainfall can occur 200 miles away
from the center of the storm. All of this to
say that hurricanes can and do affect us here at
home; and-we must be prepared to welcome, again,
those who may need sheltering in the midst of a storm.
If you need more information, contact us here
at TIDR.
- We can provide information to your faith-based
organization, your agency or business on disaster preparedness.
- If you would like to volunteer in emergency
situations, contact us so that we may put you in touch
with the American Red Cross, which is seeking volunteers
right NOW to manage and resource shelters.
- There are many other opportunities to
volunteer, to help re-build New Orleans or all along
the Gulf Coast. If you need more information, give
TIDR a call!
- If you have disaster preparedness resources
or volunteer opportunities that we can share, please
let TIDR know.
We have learned many lessons in the last long
months since the hurricane season of 2005; let's use what we
have learned so that we may be better prepared to respond more
efficiently should the need arise. Mitigating the effect now
will serve us all in the long run. Making a disaster
more bearable through compassionate and coordinated efforts
is our goal.
Peace,
Amy
Amy BeVille Elder, M.Div.
Executive Director, TIDR
amy@tidr.org
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Hurricane
Basics
"Preparation
through education is less costly than learning through
tragedy."
-Bill Proenza, Director
National Hurricane Center
What is a Hurricane?
A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone,
which is a generic term for a low pressure system that
generally forms in the tropics. The cyclone is accompanied
by thunderstorms and, in the Northern Hemisphere, a counterclockwise
circulation of winds near the earth's surface. Tropical
cyclones are classified as follows:
- Tropical
Depression: an organized system of clouds
and thunderstorms with a defined surface circulation
and maximum sustained winds of 38 mph
- Tropical
Storm: an organized system of strong thunderstorms
with a defined surface circulation and maximum sustained
winds of 39-73 mph
- Hurricane:
an intense tropical weather system of strong thunderstorms
with a well-defined surface circulation and maximum
sustained winds of 74 mph or higher
The
ingredients for a hurricane include a pre-existing weather
disturbance, warm tropical oceans, moisture, and relatively
light winds aloft. If the right conditions persist long enough,
they can combine to produce the violent winds, incredible
waves, torrential rains, and floods we associate with this
phenomenon.
Hurricanes are categorized according to the strength of their
winds using the Saffir-Simpson
Hurricane Scale. A Category 1 storm
has the lowest wind speeds, while a Category 5 hurricane has
the strongest. These
are relative terms, because lower category storms can sometimes
inflict greater damage than higher category storms, depending
on where they strike and the particular hazards they bring. In
fact, tropical storms can also produce significant damage and
loss of life, mainly due to
flooding.
Each year, an average of eleven tropical storms develop over
the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico. When
the the winds from these storms reach 39 mph, the cyclones are
given names. Many of these remain over
the ocean and never impact the U.S. coastline. About six of these
storms become hurricanes each year. In an average 3-year period,
roughly five hurricanes strike the US coastline, killing approximately
50 to 100 people anywhere from Texas to Maine. Of these, two
are typically "major" or "intense" hurricanes (a category 3 or
higher storm).
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Basic
Hurricane Safety Actions
- Know if you live in an evacuation
area. Know your home's vulnerability to storm
surge, flooding,
and wind. Have
a written plan based on this knowledge.
- At the beginning of hurricane season
(June 1), check the supplies for your disaster
supply kit, replace batteries,
and use food stocks on a rotating basis.
- During hurricane season, monitor the
tropics.
- Monitor NOAA
Weather Radio. It
is an excellent official source for real-time weather
information and warnings.
- If a storm threatens, heed the advice
from local authorities. Evacuate
if ordered.
- Execute your family plan.
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Watch
vs. Warning
Know the difference!
A Hurricane
Watch issued for your part of the coast indicates
the possibility that you could experience hurricane conditions
within 36 hours. This watch should trigger your
family's disaster plan, and protective measures should
be initiated, especially those actions that require extra
time, such as securing a boat, leaving a barrier island,
etc.
A Hurricane Warning issued
for your part of the coast indicates that sustained winds of
at least 74 mph are expected within 24 hours or less. Once
this warning has been issued, your family should be in the process
of completing protective actions and deciding the safest location
to be during the storm.
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A
Proclamation by the President of the United States
of America
National Hurricane Preparedness Week,
2007
Each year, millions of Americans
living in coastal areas are faced with the hazards of
hurricanes. As hurricane season approaches, National
Hurricane Preparedness Week provides an opportunity to
raise awareness of steps that can be taken to help protect
our citizens, and their communities and property.
Hurricanes can be devastatingly powerful and include storm surge,
high winds, tornadoes, and flooding. To reduce the potentially
deadly effects of these storms, it is imperative for people in
hurricane-prone areas to prepare for each type of hurricane hazard.
Taking the time to develop a family disaster plan, create a disaster
supply kit, and stay aware of current weather situations can
improve preparedness and help save lives.
My Administration is committed to strengthening our Nation's
ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from these types
of disasters. I've asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) to find ways to provide better assistance to those affected
by catastrophe. FEMA has enhanced coordination between all levels
of government during times of crisis and, along with the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is helping raise awareness
about the dangers of hurricanes. In addition, the Department
of Homeland Security and FEMA provide Americans with important
emergency preparation checklists and valuable resources about
what to do after a disaster at ready.gov and fema.gov. By working
together, citizens and Federal, State, local, and tribal officials
can help safeguard lives and protect property.
Throughout the hurricane season, we are also grateful for the
compassion, courage, and generosity of the volunteers and first
responders who stand ready to help their neighbors in need. Their
good hearts reflect the character of our Nation.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States
of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution
and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 20 through
May 26, 2007, as National Hurricane Preparedness Week. I call
upon government agencies, private organizations, schools, and
the media to share information about hurricane preparedness.
I also urge all Americans living in vulnerable coastal areas
of our Nation to take appropriate measures and precautions to
protect themselves against the effects of hurricanes.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth
day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred
and thirty-first.
GEORGE W. BUSH
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Hurricane
History
For more information about these and other hurricanes,
please visit Hurricane
History.
Galveston
Hurricane, 1900
This hurricane was the deadliest weather disaster
in United States history. Storm
tides of 8 to 15 feet inundated
the whole of Galveston Island, as well as other portions
of the nearby Texas coast. These
tides were largely responsible for the 8,000 deaths (estimates
range from 6,000 to 12,000) attributed to the storm. The
damage to property was estimated at $30 million.
Great Miami Hurricane,
1926
Many casualties resulted as people ventured outdoors
during the half-hour lull in the storm as the eye passed
overhead. Most
residents, having not experienced a hurricane, believed
that the storm had passed. They were suddenly
trapped and exposed to the eastern half of the hurricane
shortly thereafter. Every building in the downtown
district of Miami was damaged or destroyed. The
town of Moore Haven, on the south side of Lake Okeechobee,
was completely flooded by lake surge from the hurricane. Hundreds
of people in Moore Haven alone were killed by this surge,
which left behind floodwaters in the town for weeks afterward.
Nearly every pier, warehouse, and vessel on Pensacola Bay was
destroyed. The great hurricane of 1926 ended the economic
boom in South Florida and would be a $90 billion disaster had
it occurred in recent times. With
a highly transient population across southeastern Florida during
the 1920s, the death toll is uncertain since more than 800 people
were missing in the aftermath of the cyclone. A Red Cross
report lists 373 deaths and 6,381 injuries as a result of the
hurricane.
Hurricane
Audrey, 1957
Storm
surges were responsible for the vast majority of the 390 deaths
from Audrey. Damage in the United States was estimated
at $150 million.
Hurricane Mitch, 1998
Mitch ravaged the
offshore islands of Honduras with high winds, seas, and storm
surge. However, the greatest impacts were widespread heavy rains
and severe floods in Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and El Salvador. Mitch
caused an estimated 9,000 deaths in Central America with another
9,000 missing. Thirty-one people died when the schooner Fantome sank
as it encountered the high winds and seas associated with the
hurricane. Two people died in the Florida Keys when a fishing
boat capsized. Mitch caused tremendous property, infrastructure,
and crop damage in Central America, and an additional $40 million
in damage in Florida.
Hurricane Katrina, 2005
Katrina is responsible
for approximately 1200 reported deaths, including about 1000
in Louisiana and 200 in Mississippi. Seven additional deaths
occurred in southern Florida. Katrina caused catastrophic
damage in southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi. Storm
surge along the Mississippi coast caused total destruction of
many structures, with the surge damage extending several miles
inland. Similar damage occurred in portions of southeastern Louisiana
and southeast of New Orleans. The surge overtopped and breached
levees in the New Orleans metropolitan area, resulting in the
inundation of much of the city and its eastern suburbs. Wind
damage from Katrina extended well inland into northern Mississippi
and Alabama. The hurricane also caused wind and water damage
in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Hurricane Rita, 2005
Rita, the third Category 5 hurricane of the 2005 season,
was a destructive and deadly hurricane that devastated portions
of southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana and significantly
impacted the Florida Keys.
Rita produced rainfalls of 5 to 9 inches over large portions
of Louisiana, Mississippi, and eastern Texas, with isolated amounts
of 10 to 15 inches. The cyclone spawned an estimated 90 tornadoes
over the southern United States.
Devastating storm surge flooding and wind damage in occurred
southwestern Louisiana and extreme southeastern Texas, with some
surge damage occurring in the Florida Keys. Rita
was responsible for seven deaths, and it caused damage estimated
at $10 billion in the United States.
Hurricane Wilma, 2005
Twenty-two deaths
have been directly attributed to Wilma: 12 in Haiti, 1 in Jamaica,
4 in Mexico, and 5 in Florida. The hurricane caused severe
damage in northeastern Yucatan, including Cancun and Cozumel,
and widespread damage estimated at $16.8 billion in southern
Florida. Wilma also produced major floods in western Cuba.
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