In real trouble now...

According to health experts today, the United States is still under-prepared for a major disaster such as a biological attack or a pandemic and the current economic crisis could make things worse. No real shocking news there, huh?
According to recent reports, Federal funding for state and local preparedness has been cut more than 25 percent compared to 2005 budgets, while at the same time state and local officials are being asked to do more.
What this is going to result in, I am afraid, is that we are going to see a Pre-September 11 preparedness level again very soon. While our present educational tours are booking well, funds are noticeably low to host these events and fewer human resources seem to available for promoting such events.
With another report out today about the inability of hospitals to respond as needed should a pandemic or bio-terrorism situation arise, one can see how this news only compounds the problem as lay-offs continue and budget cuts are experienced in agencies around the country including our hospitals and health care systems.

The report found that hospitals still lack so-called surge capacity — the ability to quickly expand space and staff to deal with an influx of ill or injured patients.
Many reports have found that most are already operating above capacity, with emergency room patients often waiting for hours in hallways to be seen on an average day.
The report I read found that 11 states and Washington, D.C., cut their public health budgets in the past year.
It said 16 states have bought less than half their share of antiviral drugs under a federal subsidy plan aimed at building stockpiles of the drugs in case of an influenza pandemic.
The food-safety system is antiquated and has not been upgraded in more than 100 years, the report found. The result has been a series of emergencies with little response until after the fact — such as an outbreak of Salmonella food poisoning this year that sickened at least 1,400 people in the United States before it was traced to peppers from Mexico.
The National Association of County and City Health Officials said the report fit in with its own survey of local health departments.
Nationally, according to the report, 27 percent of local health departments are working under a current budget that is less than the previous year and 44 percent expect to do the same next year.
Among the nation's largest local health departments, 84 percent experienced workforce reductions in 2008 and 45 expect layoffs during 2009.
With the first case of influenza now on record for this season…are you ready?

Busy for the holidays...

Since we spoke last we have passed though the Thanksgiving holiday and are pretty darn close to Christmas. The weather has been pretty mild, not much in the way of snow or storms around the homefront but we have seen some pretty active weather this past few days around the country. We have been watching the weather from the Great Lakes to the East Coast the last 48 hours, but eyes will turn to home again soon as we are expecting some serious weather here Monday night and into Tuesday.

So, where have we been? It's rebuilding time and the vehicles are being modified and updated, software is being tested, equipment is being tested and we are adding new equipment and even new vehicles to the team all in time for the 2009 season!

The Pro-Sport garage is humming with activity and the vehicles are looking more and more different every day...

We have a few pics up on the site, but plan on unveiling the new 2009 C4L StormChase Team right after new Years. Some of the faces have changed, some of the vehicles are different, and there's rumors floating around about even more changes!

The 2009 tour schedule is still filling rapidly and we are looking to new sponsors this year as well so this is going to a great year! We are excited about all of the changes and know you are going to love them as well!

On the road again...

Well, almost 2000 miles into the tour and we have met a ton of new friends! We are getting our fair share of weather from the snow following us out of South Dakota to the thunderstorms in Iowa to the freezing cold of DesMoines to the snow flurries in Winfield to the icy winds of Elkhart to the rains of Pontiac this afternoon.

The highlight of the trip was hanging out with Dacatur Illinois' Chief Meteorologist Lee Davis in his new STORMRUNNER! Lee was great and extremely friendly. His truck is something to be seen- the station has done a GREAT job on it and we look forward to sharing a highway with it very soon.

With over 70 presentations under our belt on this trip already, we are quite busy, so updates here will continue to come, but no promises as to how often...

Keep checking back.

OBAMA ELECTED PRESIDENT

We want to congratulate president Elect Barak Obama for his victory tonight.

It's SHOWTIME!

While Dorothy travels the highways of Illinois and Iowa this week, another Chasing4Life rig is sunning itself in the west. As showgoers approach the Las Vegas Convention Center to attend the 2008 SEMA show, they are greeted by Ben Parker's Jeep, strutting its stuff and taking the Chasing4Life name to the largest auto industry show in the world.

At the end of the week we'll make sure we post links to video interviews, magazine articles and news releases from the SEMA show featuring the Chasing4Life 4x4.

As for Dorothy? Ahhh...we'll continue on our way, dragging the colder and wetter weather behind us as we tour eastward over the next three weeks...

We'll keep you updated.

Changes Coming!

2009 is right around the corner. Hard to believe isn't it? It is this time of year that we spend our time doing two things: our multi-hazard educational tours, and working on the chase vehicles so they are ready to go when the new year arrives. You'll have to keep an eye on the website as two new vehicles are being added to the Chasing4Life fleet! What are they? Who's driving them? We're not telling you yet, but we WILL tell you that there are no NEW driver's on the team and we have NOT removed a truck from the roster...

Stay tuned.

Dodge City

Dodge City was a blast and we wished we could have stayed longer. The folks at both Comanche and Soule Intermediate Centers really made our day enjoyable! Its been a while since Dorothy was surrounded by over 300 kids at one time!

New Tour Leg

Hello again, everyone! Bloggin has been a little sparse lately as we have been getting ready for the new tour leg, and we are now on the road again! This tour will include dates in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois and Las Vegas! While Brennan and I are heading east, Ben's heading west. The team will be back on November 23 for a one week break and then we're off again, so we'll be updating you from the road.

If you would like to see where we are at, check out the calendar on the website, and if you are trying to grab a date, you had better catch us now at tour@chasing4life.org because we now have dates scheduled as far in advance as June, 2011!

We're in Dodge City, Kansas right now enjoying MUCH warmer weather than we've experienced in Nebraska lately, but we'll be in Chicago soon...brrr!

We'll keep you updated as best we can. Keep checking back!

Anne Pressly 1982-2008

Little Rock anchorwoman Anne Pressly, who was found viciously beaten in her home, has passed away due to her injuries. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire KATV crew and staff as well as with Anne’s friends and families as they cope with this horrible loss.

We'll be okay

In an effort to educate you in all things weather, here is a temperature indication chart we have devised...

60 above zero: Floridians turn on the heat. Nebraskans start planting.

50 above zero: Californians shiver uncontrollably. People are sunbathing in Scottsbluff.

40 above zero: Most imported cars won’t start. Nebraska motorcyclists are on a Poker Run to Ainsworth.

32 above zero: Distilled water freezes. The water in the Platte gets thicker.

20 above zero: People in New Mexico don long johns, parkas and wool hats & mittens. Nebraskans throw on a flannel shirt.

15 above zero: New York landlords finally turn on the heat. People in Nebraska have one last outdoor Husker-themed BBQ before it gets cold.

Zero: People in Miami all die. Nebraskans start to close the windows.

10 below zero: Californians fly away to Mexico. Nebraskans start to dig out the cool insulated Pioneer Seeds jacket they won last year in the Husker Harvest Days drawing.

25 below zero: Hollywood disintegrates. Girl Scouts in Nebraska are now selling cookies door to door in North Platte.

40 below zero: Washington, D.C. finally runs out of hot air. People in Scottsbluff let their dogs sleep indoors.

100 below zero: Santa Claus abandons the North Pole. Nebraskans get upset because the Pick-up won’t start.

460 below zero: ALL atomic motion stops (absolute zero on the Kelvin scale). People in Nebraska can be heard to say, “Cold ’nuff for ya?”

500 below zero: Hell freezes over. Nebraska public schools open 2 hours late.

COOL STUFF

Well, I have not blogged for a few days, but due to the lack of emails lately compared to what I usually get, I am assuming everyone has been busy watching the political and economic fronts and so the blog was not getting much attention. We have some cool things happening, literally and figuratively, so its time to update you all again.

It is the season for hay rack rides and pumpkins, the time of year when you are supposed to rake your leaves and let the little ones play in the pile (by the way, do NOT burn your leaves while the kids are still in them!). Unfortunately, any dream you might have had about a romantic walk in the park or playing with the kids in the leaves is about to be blown to smithereens!

We have a really strong low pressure system that is organizing with an eye on Nebraska for the middle of the week, and if you have not heard, this system is not only going to bring the chilly rain we are experiencing today, but is about to bring 40 to 50 MPH winds and the chance of 4 to 6 (or 8?) inches of snow!

Now, we are Nebraskans, so snow is not all that frightening, but we have games to bring the kids to, students that are new to the driving scene, and of course, many of us have not even winterized our cars. Folks, take a few moments and get ready for this. Leave earlier, check tire pressure, and get some warm clothes and a blanket and get them in the trunk of the jalopy BEFORE you wish you had. This is severe winter weather, even though its early, and now is not the time to procrastinate.

We’re going to see high winds following the drop in temps from the 50’s we have now to the lower 40’s, and the nights will be COLD.

This storm system is expected to organize late in the day today, and by Wednesday we’ll start to see that snow right through much of Thursday. Traveling will be difficult with the high winds (gusts to 50 MPH), so watch yourself in those high profile vehicles.

Now, since we are talking about “cool” weather, here’s another cool thing:

In about two weeks we will be releasing a new website. The Chasing4Life fan Club website is about finished, and if you would like to be one of the first to be in the guestbook, email me at info@chasing4life.org and we’ll give you the “hidden link” so you can get a sneak peak.

The new website is being managed by an old friend and fan and hosts a calendar, contest information, a Chasing4Life store, photo gallery and more! Plans are to release the new video about Chasing4Life’s founder entitled “How I Got Here” on the fan club website!

The fan club has been created because so many of you have asked for one and requested special events just for fans, so the site will keep you updated about fan events, special opportunities, releases and trips! We’ll have contests, like the old “Chase the Chaser” contest we had a few years ago, and we’ll be adding more and more merchandise to the Chasing4Life Fan Club Store every month.

So let’s review. Cool weather and cool new site. Be prepared for both.

California Heat and Nebraska Cold

Wildfires continued to burn through Southern California today after burning up nearly 27,000 acres statewide, claiming two lives and forcing thousands of people to flee their homes.

The worst of the three major blazes is a heavy brush fire speeding along the steep, dry terrain at Browns Canyon, about 30 miles northwest of Los Angeles. The Sesnon fire, which started Monday, nearly doubled overnight to 10,000 acres, forcing the evacuations of more than 2,000 homes.

Firefighters seem to be gaining on the second San Fernando Valley area fire. The Marek fire in Little Tujunga and Kagal canyons was 70 percent contained after charring nearly 5,000 acres and 44 buildings and driving 1,800 people from their homes.

Along with heat and low humidity, the sporadic Santa Ana winds -- blowing for the first time this fall -- have fueled the fires, gusting at times up to 60 mph. The winds let up a little today, but we expect that the winds will pick up again and tomorrow will be another rough day.

In other news…Omar is strengthening and pounding Columbia, Northern Venezuela, Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao. Omar is beginning to form an eyewall, and could be a hurricane by morning. The storm is expected to turn northeastward tonight as an upper-level trough of low pressure digs far enough south to pull the storm towards the Virgin Islands and northern Lesser Antilles Islands.

Conditions are favorable for TD 16 to intensify into a tropical storm. The system is expected to track very coast to the coast of Honduras, and this proximity to land should limit intensification potential. A west-southwesterly motion into the northern coast of Honduras is not expected, since the latest set of model runs keeps TD 16 just offshore. However, it would not take much of a deviation in track for TD 16 to make landfall in northern Honduras.

Tropical Depression Nana has been torn apart by wind shear of 30-40 knots. Regeneration is unlikely due to the continued high wind shear expected along its path. The small area of disturbed weather south-southeast of Nana has also been disrupted by high wind shear, although latest satellite loops show a small amount of heavy thunderstorm activity still clinging to the east side. The shear should prevent either system from redeveloping.

As for here at home in KHAS Land, tonight is rain again, mostly central and east while clear in the west with lows in the 40’s to the east, possibly 35 degrees overnight in central Nebraska.

Brrrr!

Wednesday I am going to call for a partly cloudy and not too cheerful morning, but I expect the sun will come out in the afternoon with highs in the mid-50’s. We’ll see temps back down in the 30’s overnight again with some chance of rain on Thursday to the north and east, but Friday may be a good sunny day to mow that lawn one last time with highs in the 60’s.

*COUGH* *GASP* FLU?

Well, it seems that that wonderful time of the year has arrived when we need to talk about the flu. Despite the fact that it is a common, annual ordeal here in America, few people are reall aware of what the flu is. The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses and can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting a flu vaccination each year.

Each year in the United States 5% to 20% of the population actually get the flu! That’s a lot of people! More than 200,000 people are hospitalized because of flu complications, and about 36,000 people die from the flu each and every year!

Older people, younger childen and people with certain health conditions such as asthma, diabetes and heart disease are at a high risk for flu complications. According to my own research, storm chasers are also highly susceptible since I seem to get it EVERY YEAR!

Wonder if you have the flu? The flu is generally accompanied by fever, headache, extreme tiredness, dry cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose and muscle aches. When you have the flu you can also experience nausea, vomiting and diarrhea which is more common in adults.
Complications of flu can include bacterial pneumonia, ear infections, sinus infections, dehydration, and worsening of chronic medical conditions, such as congestive heart failure, asthma, or diabetes.

Flu viruses spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing of people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose. Most healthy adults may be able to infect others beginning 1 day before symptoms develop and up to 5 days after becoming sick.

As the snow starts to fly in the western states this weekend and the kids are running around with the sniffles, make sure you increase your handwashing, look into the flu shot this year, and if you think that you have the flu, consult your physician and don’t head into the office or send your sick kid to school.While you are enjoying your weekend, we’ll be here as always, watching the weather, and maybe we’ll have a tropical update for you by Monday as the Atlantic is starting to percolate again. If nothing else, we’ll discuss the snow forecast…

Same Old Same Old

John woke up early this morning. It was cold, the temp was barely 40 degrees, but there was work that had to be done; after all, nobody was going to fix that combine for him. A phone call at 6:00 a.m. to his wife and a quick cup of hot chocolate was the only interruption so far today.

The welding done, John needs to fill the fuel tank on the utility truck and then go move that last pivot so he can start to winterize it.

He’s got a list nobody can see- it’s in his head, the same place the daily “to do” list is always kept, and he’ll work until long after sunset tonight to get it all done. Since yesterday was no different, I doubt tomorrow will be either.

He won’t visit with anyone today and won’t make it up to the café for lunch either. He’ll pass his brothers on a gravel road once or twice as they have fields ready as well, but there’s no time for talking…there’s work to be done.

We talk about disaster resilience a lot in this blog, and perhaps this is one of the best examples of “resilient”. While Wall Street and Washington both seem shocked after the results (or lack of results) from the bail-out bill, it is not really effecting John, nor is it effecting his banker- a long time friend and farmer himself.

Why is it that the effect is not felt here on John’s farm or at his bank? Because of conservatism. John has invested in his life, in the work of his hands and in family. The local bank has invested in folks like John.

It’s what makes Nebraska great.

In a KHAS interview yesterday with Five Points Bank President Terry Anstine, Anstine said: "Nebraska is a little bit boring. We missed out maybe on the boom, but we can smile that we are not missing out on the bust.”

Sometimes boring is good.

I was confused...

For those of you following the election, you might find some humor in how confusing it all has become over the last several days. You might have read the story of how Vice-Presidential hopeful Sarah Palin accused Barak Obama as being friendly with terrorists.

Imagine my shock when I found out that she was referring to Obama’s connection to Weather Underground!

It took a minute or two of reading the whole story before I was laughing.

Where did all this come from? That is where I find the humor…

In 1969, a small group of college student left radicals announced their intentions to overthrow the U.S. government in opposition to the Vietnam War. Mr Obama once served on a charity board with an ex-member of this US-based militant group called Weather Underground, Bill Ayers, now a University of Illinois professor.

The group was intitially known as “The Weathermen” and later the “Weather Underground Organization”. The group was an American radical left organization founded in 1969 by leaders and members who split from the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). The group organized a riot in Chicago in 1969 and bombed buildings in the 1970s.

They took their name from the lyric "You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows," from the Bob Dylan song "Subterranean Homesick Blues". They also used this lyric as the title of a position paper they distributed at an SDS convention in Chicago on June 18, 1969, as part of a special edition of New Left Notes.

The Weathermen were initially part of the Revolutionary Youth Movement (RYM) within the SDS, splitting from the RYM's Maoists by claiming there was no time to build a vanguard party and that revolutionary war against the United States government and the capitalist system should begin immediately. Their founding document called for the establishment of a "white fighting force" to be allied with the "Black Liberation Movement" and other "anti-colonial" movements to achieve "the destruction of US imperialism and achieve a classless world: world communism."

Now, I am not political, but could not resist posting a blog about this and making sure that we had our facts straight…

Since 1995, “Weather Underground” has meant a completely different thing. Weather Underground is a commercial weather service that provides real-time weather information via the Internet. Weather Underground provides weather reports for most major cities across the world on its Web site, as well as local weather reports for newspapers and Web sites. Most of its United States information comes from the National Weather Service (NWS), as information from that agency is within the public domain by federal law. The Web site is available in many languages, and an ad-free version of the site with additional features is available for an annual fee.

Here’s some more of the humor… Weather Underground is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and was founded in 1995 as an offshoot of the University of Michigan's Internet weather database.

The name is indeed a tongue-in-cheek reference to the 1960s militant radical leftist student group the Weather Underground, which also originated at the same university.

Jeff Masters, a PhD candidate in meteorology at the University of Michigan, working under the direction of Professor Perry Samson, wrote a menu-based telnet interface in 1991 that displayed real-time weather information around the world. By 1992, the two servers they used were the most popular service on the Internet. In 1993 they initiated a project to bring Internet weather into K-12 classrooms around the country.

In 1995 the Weather Underground, Inc. evolved as a commercial entity separate from the university. It has grown to provide weather for print sources, in addition to its online presence.

Today, the KHAS Chasing4Life Chase Team still recommends Weather Underground to attendees at events as the very best source for weather and utilizes the service as a part of our tracking center, educational events and in monitoring weather on a daily basis.

Around our Tracking Center, the name Jeff Masters is spoken almost everyday, considered by our team to be one of the most accurate sources for weather forecasts.

Well, all that to say... I am very relieved to find out that one of our favorite weather monitoring sources has not been compromised by terrorists...for a minute there, I was worried...

Recuperating and Preparing

It has been an interesting week. Recuperating from a serious surgery gave me a lot of time to think; translation: I WAS SO BORED.

On top of being only able to sit around, the weather offered nothing to get excited about.

My boredom was eliminated Wednesday as the team ventured out with their recuperating (and crabby) leader and headed out to Cozad, Nebraska where we hooked up with sister station KNOP before presenting on stormchasing and home disaster kits to the folks of Cozad at an awesome event hosted by the Cozad Church of Christ. The church has chosen to host a series of disaster resilience training events and workshops throughout 2009, and we are looking forward to working with these folks who have great vision and energy.

Thursday morning brought the team to Ravenna where we presented to the folks at the Ravenna Senior Citizen’s Center. While the presentation went well, we had more fun discussing old weather history from the area with the folks at the center and discussing the possibilities the winter holds for us all.

Next Thursday we will be back at the center to show our new Chasing4Life documentary film “The Oconto Project”, the first public showing of the documentary since its creation earlier this summer.

At both events we talked to great lengths about the trends of this year’s severe weather and the consensus was that we are going to watch the month of October closely. Most people still relate tornado season with the spring, yet historically, October has almost always proven to be an active month for severe weather, and we have 4 weeks ahead of changing weather.

Now, onto hurricanes…

Usually October is also the peak of hurricane season, the busiest being the season we would like to forget: 2005 when we had 7 named storms, three hurricanes and one large hurricane…WILMA the strongest hurricane on record.

A lot of folks see the plummeting temps here as a reason for less severe weather, but actually, the drastic changes in temps are what can encourage such weather, and the hurricanes in October could be no different with water temps declining a little, but warm waters still prevalent enough, especially throughout the Caribbean to sustain or grow a major hurricane or two before we enter November.

Here’s today’s weather tidbit:

There is an oscillation in the atmosphere called the Madden-Julian Oscillation, or MJO. The MJO is a pattern of enhanced rainfall that travels along the equator and can boost hurricane activity when it heads into the Atlantic. The MJO has a period of about 30 to 60 days and is currently in its active phase over the Atlantic. According to the latest models, the MJO should stay active at least through the middle of the month.

What does this mean?

Well, with a month of activity in the gulf region, a lot could change for us here as well…with the team heading to Iowa and Dodge City, Kansas next, a few hurricanes and a few tornadoes? It could be a fun month.

Hurricane Ride

We do not do this often in our blog, but this is worth reading...

http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou080928_mp_ike_survivors.bf6f5d35.html

Tropical Storm Kyle

Tropical Storm Kyle is showing a little more promise than yesterday, but not much. I think it is possible that Kyle could become a Category 1 hurricane which a couple of the models are predicting however with water temperatures dropping and shear increasing, he will have to fight to stay so alive.

Storm surge should not be a major issue with Kyle. If it makes landfall in the Maine/New Brunswick region as a Category 1 hurricane, it would likely generate a storm surge in the 3-5 foot range, according to NOAA's SLOSH model. Given that the range between low tide and high tide is at least 12 feet in the region, Kyle would have to hit very close to high tide to cause any storm surge flooding. Kyle's likely impact as a tropical storm makes surge flooding problems improbable.Kyle's cone of uncertainty covers the eastern coast of Maine and the western half of the coast of Nova Scotia. I would put the good money on Nova Scotia who will experience most of Kyle’s worst winds and rain.

A disturbance around the Yucatan mixed with warm waters near Naples could be of interest of the western side of Florida over the next few days. We will keep you informed.

Don’t forget that The KHASTV Chasing4Life Team will be in Cozad, Nebraska on Wednesday, October 1st with a special presentation, free food and a vehicle demonstration.

Updates...Galveston-Houston-Louisiana

Well, folks will be returning to Galveston tomorrow, being allowed to re-enter after 6 am tomorrow morning. While the island is being re-opened, there is still a long expected wait to restore power to the homes on the island.

The process for having your power turned back on is not a simple one. Because electrical components were submerged, homeowners must have their homes inspected by an electrician. Once the inspection is done, the homeowner must obtain a permit from the city inspector before CenterPoint Energy is allowed to turn the power back on.

FEMA is currently operating two points of distribution on the island, but it’s not clear how long they’ll remain open. So FEMA is advising residents to make sure they have food and water when they come back.

As for Houston, CenterPoint Energy officials today said most customers would have their power restored by Sunday. The company said it has restored power to 75 percent of its customer base, but as of this morning, 600,000 customers remained without power, especially in eastern areas of service.

Officials said they underestimated the outages Ike would cause. They predicted about 1 million people would lose power, but Ike more than doubled those figures. As a result the company says it did not have enough manpower originally to make the mass repairs.

Now for Louisiana news...

Fearing that federal recovery dollars for Hurricanes Gustav and Ike won't fully cover residents' crucial home repair needs, Louisiana officials are devising a new state strategy for housing relief.
Their fundamental concern: making sure that billions of dollars already spent on homes damaged by Katrina and Rita in 2005 won't go to waste.

Nothing like the state's massive Road Home recovery program for Katrina and Rita exists for Gustav and Ike. Victims of this month's storms have their private insurance, but named storm deductibles of 2 percent to 5 percent are sure to leave gaps for those facing major repairs.

On Monday, Gov. Bobby Jindal sent a letter to Congress estimating that Louisianians could face a total of $3 billion in uninsured housing losses and asking for full funding of federal programs the state can tap to plug that gap.

"The state will need to design programs in concert with local communities to rebuild and recoup these losses, " Jindal wrote. I still like the way this guy operates!

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has now offered more extensive home repair aid than it offered after Katrina and Rita, but it's capped at $28,800 for each household and is designed only to make houses or apartments livable again.

The FEMA process will, however, assist property owners in applying for low-interest Small Business Administration loans, which are designed to restore homes to pre-storm conditions.

FEMA officials say applicants can expect to wait 10 to 14 days for an inspection of damaged property and another 10 days for a decision on a repair grant. It's unclear how long it would take for money to be made available after the decision.

Visit to Cambridge

The last few nights have brought some severe weather, and this evening we are watching Kansas and Eastern Nebraska. Things have been relatively slow, but today was spent with the students at Cambridge Public Schools in Cambridge, Nebraska! We had a great day and discussed severe weather awareness, tornado season (specifically this year) and had the time to show off Dorothy! We hope to see our new friends in Cambridge again soon!

Stand strong Mayor!

Galveston's Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas made a decision on Monday and ordered all city employees not to talk to news reporters. She did not say when that order would be lifted. Reporters staying at San Luis hotel were asked to leave Thomas and City Manager Steve LeBlanc will be the only officials allowed to talk to reporters. City spokeswoman Mary Jo Naschke vehemently denied the city was trying to clamp down on news coverage. She said emergency personnel and city employees were too busy to talk to reporters. Naschke also said the city had been accommodating news reporters by allowing them access to the island when others weren't allowed, giving them escorted rides to damaged areas and allowing them to move about outside during a curfew. But at a noon press conference on Monday, Thomas and LeBlanc talked for less than 30 minutes and refused to answer any more than five questions. Galveston Daily News reporters who tried to speak to city employees at rescue sites were denied information and told no one was authorized to talk to them except for the mayor and city manager.

As you can imagine, the press is angry over the decision, but let's look at the facts. Mayor Thomas is taking a lot of grief from the press as she is a part-time, unpaid Mayor and yet has pretty much all the power in the city right now as it is a disaster area. The Mayor instituted a "look and leave" earlier, allowing people to travel through the area and then retreat back over the causeway but the plan was poorly concieved and so the allowance was cancelled.

There are many in the press that are jumping all over Thomas because of her part-time, unpaid position claiming that she should not be the one in charge.

Seriously, there is a lot of work to do on the island of Galveston and none of it will be accomplished by homeowners, reporters and on-lookers right now, so I am going to go on record as standing behind the Mayor's decision despite my affiliation with KHAS TV and the media as a whole.

As for evacuees suffering because of the blackout as the Daily News has stated, perhaps America needs to focus on the possibility of this happening elsewhere. Maybe the media, now that they have 3 minutes of extra time during the 10 o'clock, should use this time to promote disaster resilience education throughout the country pointing out that ANYONE, ANYWHERE in this country could suddenly be uprooted from their home for months without any idea what condition their home is in.

Maybe that is a reality that America needs to focus on right now while being locked out of Galveston, for surely, once the "gates" to the city are reopened, there will be work to do and the aftermath of Ike will soon be pushed into the back of people's minds along with any thought that they should maybe prepare for this to happen to them.

For three days before Ike, the media ran informational ads and short pieces encouraging folks to put Home Disaster Kits together. perhaps now would be a better time to run those pieces. Perhaps now we should grab hold of the recent tragedy and turn it into something good for a change and start using airtime to educate the public about options for surviving the future. Death tolls and damage pictures can all come later.

As for Mayor Thomas, she has received many honors, including the Beacon of Hope Award from Catholic Charities, the Downtown Renaissance Hall of Fame Award, the Spirit of Elissa Award from the Galveston Historical Foundation, the Community Enrichment Award from the Grand 1894 Opera House, the Pacesetter and Quality of Life Awards from Clean Galveston, the People of Vision Award (with her family) from Prevent Blindness, the Brotherhood Award from Reedy Chapel AME Church, the Helping Hands Award from Public, Inc.

As Mayor, Thomas has been acknowledged nationwide for her leadership and stewardship of the citizens during the Hurricane Rita evacuation in 2005 and for her efforts since Rita to plan, prepare and be ready to respond and recover from any future disaster. In 2006 she was chosen to make a presentation on preparedness at the Kennedy School in Boston. She received the 2007 National Blueprint Best Practices Award from the National Council on Readiness & Preparedness.

Immediately after Hurricane Katrina, Thomas created the Mayor’s Citizen Response Team to coordinate the evacuation of special needs individuals, which was put to the test a few weeks later when Rita forced Galveston to evacuate. Because of her public and civic endeavors, she was given the BRAVO Award by the League of Women Voters in 2005, was selected as Public Elected Official of the Year 2005, named the Galvestonian of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce. The Mayor was named Citizen of the Year in 2006 by the Galveston County Daily News, the newspaper that now claims she is hurting the evacuees.

Her people may not be home, but they are alive, and I believe it is because she is a woman of determination and vision and forethought.

As for the criticism that she is only part-time and unpaid and therefore not capable?

I'd be careful making statements like that around a volunteer firefighter, son.

The special few

There is a reason why our team does not just chase storms. The disaster recovery work we have done over the years has been rewarding, not because you feel like you helped the "unfortunate" victims, but because you become a part of a great remnant of people that are scattered throughout this country. These are people like firefighters, EMT's, construction workers, remodelers, emergency management officials, pet rescue technicians and linemen.

These people that we meet are amazing individuals with an incredible sense of duty and pride. Their goal is to truly RESTORE not just the damaged and ravaged regions, but to restore the mind and soul and hearts of those that have fallen victim to disaster.

I was on one of the forums in Texas today and saw this post and it made me want to blog it out to you all right away so you could see how cool these folks are. I got to spend time with Linemen in North Carolina last year and they are a group of dedicated men and women...special people that take a lot of grief from folks when the power is out. Know thi: if they can get it on, they will, and if it is out, they are not sitting around doing nothing on a union break.

Here's the post I saw:

I Want all of you to know that Pike Electric and Ga Power Transmission crews are headed your way now by police escort to repair the main Transmission lines on the island. These guys have been traveling for the past 2 days and have been sleeping in their trucks. They are all anxious to help you guys recover and I hope that in whatever capacity you can that you will help them to find a place to lay their heads. They will be working 16 hour days and are the best of the best coming to get you all up and running again. If you see Pike or Ga Power employees let them know we are all thinking about them here at home. We wish you the best and as I get more specific info I will report.
Amy Long
Proud Ga Linemans Wife

Yes, I am ranting!

Well, I have been spending a lot of time with doctors the last few days so I am sorry that the blog has not been well-updated, but you are not missing much.

The Mayor of Galveston asked everyone that is not in town to stay out, and asked everyone still in town to leave. She strikes me as a strong woman and I like her. I feel bad for her as well; this is going to be a long and hard road and she looks very tired already.

Reports and statistics on Ike seem to be plentiful and most of them crap. If you want more storm surge than CNN reported, just go to FOX. If you want the death toll, flip through the channels 'til you find a number that suits you. I have resorted to talking to folks actually there and watching the press conferences in Louisiana, Texas and surrounding states.

Can you tell I am in a mood today?

Here comes more!

The error-plagued disaster food stamp program announced today in Louisiana that 22,000 applicants got double payments, while nearly 33,000 eligible applicants still await benefits.

Once again, we see the flaws in systems that should become a priority during what I call “peacetime”; the days or months when we have no disasters.

I will give you an example of a peacetime project that I think should get some attention:

For three years now, as I have toured, FEMA has done an excellent job of supplying me with disaster recovery booklets, brochures and handouts for my events. We have distributed tens of thousands of pieces of this literature, yet, everytime I ask if there is ANYTHING hurricane related, I am told that it is being discussed, but there is no educational materials available yet. 3 years!

Now, of course, I know we could give a grant to some University and have hurricane preparedness materials right away, except for one thing…

Four years ago I requested earthquake preparedness materials. A grant had been awarded an organization to create these materials, and yet I was told that they were not available. I was told I could get a single copy and duplicate the 4000 pieces I needed with my own money. ARE YOU KIDDING? I got the single brochure, a tri-fold on colored pastel 20lb paper. It had 6 to 8 typos in it, and a poor piece of clipart on the cover.

Lets discuss the business continuity program offered through a University on behalf of The Department of Homeland Security, paid for by government funding that was SO incomplete I had to create over 24 pages on my own just to use it!

I am not surprised that the Emergency Food Stamp Program is not working.

According to the latest report, a "computer program error" caused the duplicate benefits, but it has been corrected. As of 3 p.m. Today, the department processed 334,000 applications for emergency food stamps, which were initiated after Hurricane Gustav evacuations strained budgets and widespread power outages spoiled food left behind in refrigerators and freezers.

I know, Food Stamps conjure up an image of people “sucking off the government” to many, but this program is not like that. If you have been through a hurricane or similar situation, you know how difficult it is to even live day to day when you have suddenly have no home, no job and no cash flow. This program should be a priority to those we entrust to hone and perfect programs for times of crisis!

Despite the report that the gliche was fixed, there were people that were in Louisiana today attempting to use the program after having been approved two weeks ago, to no avail. It is hard enough having to be forced to use food stamps, but it is even worse to stand in the grocery store line and have your food stamp card not work in front of 2 dozen people!

Supposedly the problems stem from a power outage at the Food Stamp office caused by hurricane Ike… hmmm…here is today’s thought…

IF we had hurricane preparedness materials, we could have sent some to the Food Stamp office and they would have known that a generator should be a part of your hurricane preparedness stuff…

All of this comes right after the resignation of DSS head Ann Silverberg Williamson, in the wake of a week of foul-ups with the federally financed, state-administered disaster food stamp program. Today, two other top leaders at DSS were forced out.

It appears that Governor Bobby Jindal is cleaning house at home…I wonder if we could loan him to the Feds?

Okay, I have a lot of opinions and due to no storm activity ANYWHERE right now, I have some time on my hands…tomorrow maybe we will talk about why we will never have an accurate death toll from Ike and why I know for a fact that we never got one from Katrina and Rita… maybe a discussion on RFID will liven this blog up a bit.

Ike is dead

Ike is dead. This morning, the last warning was issued, but like many famous entities, Ike's influence lives on.

Ike has left a Texas-sized disaster. Experts are estimating that total insured damage in Texas and Louisiana will be $10 billion. An additional $3.4 billion in damage was likely done in the Gulf of Mexico, due to wind and wave damage to oil platforms and the indirect loss of revenue attributable to reductions in oil and gas production.
According to Jeff Maters, there is a usual rule of thumb that total hurricane damages are double the insured damages, the price tag for Ike will be about $27 billion. That would make Ike the third costliest hurricane in history. Only Hurricane Katrina of 2005 and Hurricane Andrew of 1992 did more damage than Ike has.

We are all hoping that the low death toll numbers remain low, but rescue efforts are still underway, and of course when such a large portion of the population refuses to evacuate, it takes much longer to determine the whereabouts of these people afterwards as we learned in Katrina and Rita.

We awoke this morning to about what we expected...most structures and homes on the island of Galveston have been damaged by the storm, but are still standing and still intact.




Most of the island was covered by floodwaters, which are now receding.



The City is without power, water, and gas, and until all this is restored, folks are being asked to remain where they are.





The city's curfew has been extended indefinitely from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.





Galveston police and the National Guard are patrolling streets to offer aid and protect property.
City officials and staff are actively working on the island's recovery with the assistance of the State of Texas and FEMA.



At this point, re-entry is completely restricted to authorized personnel ONLY.





Officials expected that cell phone service would be restored sometime today.





Citizens presently located on the island are asked to consider evacuating.





Texas Task Force 1 is currently searching Galveston homes and structures. The teams will move across the island east to west. Search activities should be complete in the next 72 hours.





We did receive a report that there may be some damage to the Galveston Causeway and that inspections should be completed within 24 hours.





Over the last 24 hours we have been tracking severe weather in Arkansas, Illinois and most recently have been in touch with Team members in Ohio who have had a day of high winds, power outages and minor damage. Reports are that over 1.5 million people lost power between Kentucky and Ohio today.

Time to pray...again.

I guess now is when we just sit for a while and pray. The latest aerial footage of Bridge City is grim and a request was made to residents in the region with boats to respond for rescue assistance.

Coast Guard choppers seem to fill the sky now and people that chose to ignore warnings are now in desperate need of rescue. We will continue to post updates, but now will be looking toward disaster recovery efforts.

If you want to help, please plug in to an organized entity and find out just what assistance is actually needed.

Stay tuned…

Take a nap between press conferences!

IKE hit Galveston texas officially around 3 am this morning (EDT) as a very strong Category 2, just one mile per hour shy of a Category 3 although some winds from this storm, as evidenced in Galveston and Houston, were of Category 4 strength. The power of Ike’s storm surge was incredible, actually a 5 on a scale of 1 to 6 according to NOAA’s experimental Integrated Kinetic Energy product. This puts Ike at the same strength as Katrina as far as storm surge…an interesting fact you probably are not going to hear from standard weather or news coverage.

Galveston’s Sea Wall worked well for them as storm surge was around 12 to 14 feet enhanced by high tide and high winds. Some storm surge was recorded near 20 feet as we expected near Galveston Bay. As we watched landfall, Ike’s pressure started to drop just moments before landfall meaning that he was strengthening even more, but the combination of Ike’s enormous size and the fact that he made a direct hit rather than slightly south of Galveston saved the city from what could have been worse, although the Coast Guard has already rescued over 100 people this morning that decided to stay after evacuation orders were issued.

This is not to minimize at all what has happened. We have no real death tolls, and damage reports are hindered by rescue efforts right now so I expect we will be seeing horrific reports over the next 48 hours and then the recovery will really begin in an area inundated by water with buildings and homes still burning, disease, mosquitos and missing people.
Houston was still experiencing high winds at 6 am this morning and the downtown area looks horrible. Galveston has been reduced to a city of debris and smoke and water right now and despite cautions and warnings, people are out and about gawking at the damage. Folks, there are power lines everywhere throughout this region, debris, broken glass and flooded roadways…GO HOME!

The next few days will bring about better reports and we will continue to monitor radio transmissions from the region for you as well as contacting folks we have in the area that can give us SUBSTANTIATED reports. This brings up another issue: right now, much of the media is struggling to stay on the air with “Up to the minute coverage” yet we are seeing a lot of unsubstantiated reports emblazoned across the bottom of many screens here in the Tracking Center. One report said that the 6th floor of a hotel was flooded, yet another channel had a reporter on the second floor of the same hotel reporting live. I suggest you stay tuned here or watch the press conferences throughout the day if you want accurate reports before you panic and assume Grandpa and Grandma must be dead. We have found that Texas television KHOU has stayed on things, broadcasts ACTUAL interviews with officials and is showing video from many areas rather than simply those hardest hit. You can watch KHOU online.

As for missing people or checking on loved ones, I suggest you email info@ chasing4life.org or hit the KHOU website forums today rather than relying on safeandwell.org as that website, although designated for just such a purpose, has only had about 25 posts in the last 24 hours. Like the evacuation order that was not heeded because of sore feelings and bad memories after Rita, I believe that safeandwell is probably not people’s first choice for the same reason.

Trust is a big deal during a time like this, and it is unfortunate that after disasters like Katrina, the public ceases to trust at such a level that potentially useful projects and efforts are overlooked for years to come, but this is what we are seeing.

During Katrina and Rita we stayed very active in tracking reports and assisting in the search for missing people. With over 13,000 posts on our forum website from 2004 to 2005, we learned the value of reporting only what we KNOW. I guess you could say that what stands the test of time is “Coverage you can count on”.

Ike has made me think that we should re-open our search forums again, but for now, my hat’s off to KHOU for a job well-done. Their city and surrounding area can be proud of that station and its reporters.

Stephanie Abrams and Mike Bettes, Jim Cantore and the Mike Sidell once again showed how professionals operate, making sure that they made it clear to viewers that they were reporting from a dangerous situation in order to keep folks from going outside. Another job well-done.

I have to recognize at least one more guy, and I wish I had his name. There was a CNN reporter last night that made a speech about the importance of responsible reporting and pointed out in no uncertain terms that he was risking his life in the hopes of people watching him and deciding to NEVER ignore evacuation orders again. My hero.

Once we have established better radio contact with Galveston, we will update you some more.

Watch carefully…

Oh yeah, there is a depression in the mid-Atlantic…

Finding Mom

KHOU TV has a forum for attempting to communicate with loved ones. It is located at www.khou.com/forums

Area Reports

Here is a preliminary report from KHOU TV in Texas:

Harris County: Harris County Office of Emergency Management suspends 911 service in Pasadena because of problems. People urged to call (713) 920-2136, (713) 920-1604, (713) 475-9714 and (713) 472-0144

CenterPoint says customers with service through above ground lines are without power

Conroe: Half of the city is without power

Liberty County: Reports of roof torn off of a home near 2018 Grand Ave.

Dickinson: Residents asked to boil water

West Houston: Building collapse at the Palm Court Apartments on 90 Country Place near I-10 and the Beltway

Reliant Center: Hole in the roof

Clear Lake: Damage reported at the Hilton Hotel on Clear Lake Blvd.

Galveston: Hooters restaurant damaged

Galveston: Several boats caught fire at the Galveston Yacht Basin Friday afternoon, but weather conditions prevented fire crews from responding.
Houston: Brennan's restaurant burned to the ground. Three people were hurt.
Downtown Houston: Bus shelters knocked over and shards of glass raining down from
Galveston: There's about three feet of water inside the courthouse building, according to Galveston County Emergency officials. There are 27 people currently inside that building but EOC officials believe they are perfectly safe, because they have moved to the second floor. The water was beginning to recede a bit by 3 a.m., so they’re not worried about it coming up further. The courthouse still has power because it is running on a generator. The people inside managed to move most of the first floor computers and several boxes of election materials up to the second floor before it flooded.

Deer Park: The roof has blown off the Casa El Dora apartment complex at 200 Helgra. Six residents were being taken elsewhere and no one was hurt.

Matagorda County: With Ike making landfall on Galveston, Matagorda County found itself more on the “clean” side of the storm.
John O’Connell with the Matagorda County Office of Emergency Management in Bay City said that outside of power interruptions, there were not reports of major problems within the county.
“We’ve had some gusts of wind and some rain, but no major rain,” said O’Connell.

Kemah: City adminsitrator Bill Kerber said there is high water across Kemah. Six feet deep even in higher areas. City hall and the fire station have some water in them, not sure yet how much. City Hall, which is on Highway 146, sits at roughly the high point in Kemah.

La Porte: With the eye of Hurricane Ike approaching, officials in this Galveston Bay community had reports of widespread street flooding, but no major damage.
But EOC head Jeff Suggs said the true extent of Ike’s damage wouldn’t be known until an assessment of the city could be made at first light after Ike had moved on.

Texas City: Officials in Texas City were breathing a presumptive sigh of relief early Saturday morning as it appeared that the levee system that encircles the city held back the vicious storm surge of Hurricane Ike.
Most of the city is without power and there are lots of downed power lines and tree limbs. Clawson said too that what water was coming into the city was quickly receding.
The local refineries and chemical plants also reported no significant damage.
He stressed that the city won’t be totally out of the woods until Saturday afternoon.
“It’s not where we wanted to be, but it doesn’t look like we suffered any major damage,” said Clawson.

Friendswood: Officials in Friendswood have been unable to assess what damage has occurred because of Hurricane Ike. Police Chief Bob Wieners said there have not been any calls to the public safety building of major damage within the city.
Power has been cut off to most of the city, he said.
He also said there were no calls from residents of life-threatening instances.

Angleton: A large chunk of the Brazoria County Courthouse was blown off by the winds of Hurricane Ike. It also damaged some cars that were in the parking lot.

Freeport: A police car had a window smashed out by flying debris. There are also downed street lights throughout the city.

San Leon: Boats pushed up out of the water into yards and houses

Jersey Village: The roof was blown off a hotel on 290 and Jones Road in Jersey Village and into power lines. The lines are across a feeder road. About 55 occupants were moved to a temporary shelter.

9 AM Update

Good morning. We slept a little early this morning but we are back now. radio frequencies are hard to listen to this morning as Emergency Management and Responders are on the streets and beginning door to door searches in Galveston and Houston just begins to assess damage.., That damage includes windows out, homes destroyed and widespread flooding. Several fires are still burning without any attendance yet, so the day will be a long one.

Death tolls are not an issue right now as daylight has only now allowed action on the part of search and rescue so we will be monitoring that as well this morning as we report to you. Millions are without power and we cannot stress enough how important it is to try to keep your phone calls to a minimum despite the urge and desire to try to reach loved ones. Clogged lines deter those in real need from making calls that they need to make right now.

We will have an update for you agai in an hour as we gather information, but for now we know that there is millions without power and it was a scary night as Ike made landfall during our last blog post.

We know that Galveston experienced winds in excess of 110 MPH as the eyewalls struck the island and according to reports, we had over 140,000 folks in the evacuation areas that did not evacuate. FEMA is on top of things with several thousand officials at the ready and a plan to begin shipping in packaged meals, generators and water.

Ike is still a Cat 1 and storms will continue throughout the day.

Another update soon.

Ike 1AM Update

Ike is only a few miles from landfall now. It is still hovering on the edge of Cat 2/Cat3. Current reports indicate a 12ft. storm surge in Galveston. Authorities have received several calls from residents needing rescued from the rising water in their homes. Unfortunately, they were warned to evacuate, chose not to, and now rescue is not an option. In addition, Centerpoint Energy is now reporting 750,000 power outages and estimate it could be 2-3 weeks before all power is restored. We knew it would be bad, morning will tell the full story. We are going to nap a little, but will continue to update throughout the night. Stay safe.

Ike Report

Just a quick update. We just heard the first floor of UT Medical Hospital in downtown Galveston is flooded with 10ft. of water. We will have more information in our next hourly update.

Ike Midnight Update

Ike is only about 35 miles from Galveston now. It is still a Cat 2 and the NWS is saying to expect 50ft. waves and peak wind gusts of 115mph. We are starting to hear numerous reports of trees and power poles down. Everyone needs to beware of Ike's large, slow moving eye. Avoid the temptation to venture out as the eye passes over. While the winds will be somewhat calmer for a few hours, the storm surge will still be building. The Coast Guard is estimating as many as 37,000 people may need rescued after Ike passes. Stay safe, more updates to come.

Ike 11PM Update

Not too much change. Ike has slowed down slightly, but the eye will make landfall in the next couple of hours. It has shown some signs of strengthening still with an increase in upper level winds. Centerpoint Energy is now reporting 425,000 power outages, and fire crews are reporting several large fires around Galveston that they are still unable to get to. As I said before, we are here for the duration and will continue to update Ike's intensity and any damage or other pertinent information we recieve here at the tracking center.

10 PM Ike Update

(Left: Eddy and John at the KHAS Weather Center during the 6'0'clock news)

Well, we are only a couple of hours away from Ike's landfall and the hurricane is now just 1 MPH shy of being a Cat 3 hurricane before it makes landfall. The lower parishes in Louisiana are taking quite a hit from wind and water but Galveston is still taking the brunt of Ike's fury with water continually rising and wind gusts now in excess of 130 MPH out in the water...soon to be on Galveston's shore. The latest report shows Ike gaining strength and centering it's eye on Galveston Bay and then directly on to Houston.

On a lighter note, geraldo is standing out on the sea wall in Galveston doing his "thing"; in other words, once again being the perfect example of irresponsible as soon he will need rescuing and will then endanger the lives of responders who I hope are too smart to go get him.

The Weather Channel has done an awesome job today on the other hand and I am extremely impressed with Texas station KHOU-TV.

KHAS has dedicated more time than usual to the weather, and you will be able to catch our web broadcast here shortly by visiting http://www.khastv.com/. Eddy has been at the station all evening and we will have a KHAS crew here at the C4L Tracking Center in the morning to further cover this major weather event.

Ike 9PM Update

Ike is 600 miles wide. Hurricane warnings are in effect for more than 400 miles of Texas and Louisiana coast. Water in Galveston is rising at a rate of more than an inch every two minutes. A tornado watch is in effect for the Greater Houston and southeast Texas areas until 10AM. This is only the beginning. The Coast Guard has rescued 60 people and at least 12 high water rescues have been made on Galveston Island. Due to night fall and increasingly severe weather, no more rescues will be attempted tonight, however, authorities ask that you still report any emergency situations to 911. Cell phone carriers are recommending customers to text rather than make voice calls to avoid overloading area cell towers. Authorities are asking all residents staying in Galveston to write their SSN on their forearm in case of the worst. Depending on your location, curfew goes until at least 7AM and as late as 10AM for some areas. The exception is Galveston County where the curfew is in effect from 5PM until dawn Sunday. Fire crews are reporting a large fire in west Galveston jumping from house to house. They have been unable to reach it and expect it will burn through the night. Centerpoint Energy is reporting 200,000 power outages. The Texas Governor believes Ike could be a $100Billion storm. Finally, if you are in the effected area, the American Red Cross provides a service to allow you to reassure and find your loved ones. You can find more information at http://www.safeandwell.org. Stay safe.

Ike 8PM Update

Ike is still out there. I know... I'm ready for bed too. It looks to be a long night here in the tracking center, but we are here for the duration. FEMA has confirmed just over 600,000 people have evacuated, but estimates as least 90,000 ignored the warnings and stayed. They also estimate at least 100,000 homes will be flooded. Galveston's Ball High School has been set up as a "last resort" shelter for those who stayed, however, no rescues will be made after 9PM. All power is out on Galveston Island now. The latest update, Ike is 70 miles from Galveston, still a Cat 2 with 110mph winds, and moving toward Galveston at 14mph. We are past the time for evacuations. We are past the time for rescues. The news tomorrow morning will be horrific. The case for complacency will be made. I imagine our next update will include landfall. Stay safe.

Ike 7PM Update and Surge Map

Storm Surge Map; area will flood in a:

Pink: Category 1 storm

Yellow: Category 2 storm

Green: Category 3 storm

---

We have seen some strengthening and it still looks like Ike will be Cat 3. The outer eyewall is expected to make landfall by 8PM, the inner eyewall by 10PM, and the center by 1AM. Currently, Ike is a Cat 2 with winds of 110mph about 98 miles from Galveston. Storm surge is expected to continue rising through 3AM with a total of at least 20ft. In addition, at least 15in of rain is expected as well. Due to the size of the storm and the specific wind directions, surge water in Galveston may not begin to recede until late Saturday. Reports from the NWS and local authorities are ominous; residents riding out the storm in single story dwellings "face certain death". High winds have halted all off-shore Coast Guard rescue operations and we have heard unconfirmed reports from KHOU-TV, in the Galveston area, of people trapped on their roofs. Due to the weather conditions, local authorities have been unable to even check out these reports. Last we heard, most of Galveston still has power and cell phone service, but authorities expect as many as 5Million power outages. As Ike comes in we will continue to see an increased tornado threat. It is estimated that up to 40 percent of Galveston residents are riding out Ike. Our prayers are with them.

Ike 6PM Update

We still expect Ike may make it to Cat 3 before landfall early Saturday morning. We are watching the Galveston area especially close. We have been busy in the tracking center, monitoring local media outlets and public service radios from the Galveston area. The major concern right now is still flooding due to storm surge. Area police estimate as many as 30 percent of the homes along the coast may still be occupied. We have been listening to boat and helicopter rescues of people who woke up this morning to high water and others who thought they could ride out Ike. The message from Emergency Management; Get out! The Galveston area is already seeing sustained winds of 50mph and gusts of 70+mph. Flooding has been reported up to a half mile inland already. There are an estimated 10,000 without power on Galveston Island alone. Depending on the location, curfew goes into effect between 7pm and midnight for all areas. Finally, we have just heard the first damage estimates of $7Billion. This is a serious storm folks. We will try to get some storm surge maps uploaded. Our next update will be by 8PM. Stay safe.

Tracking Center Working Hard already

The C4L Tracking Center is busy already with Ike reaking havoc throughout the Gulf Coast states and we plan on staying with this storm throughout the night.

Time is running out for Texas as Ike is making its way closer. Although Ike is still a Category 2, its size and strength is still a major issue right now and we still expect Ike to gain some strength before making landfall in the middle of the night. Storm surge from Ike will probably be larger than that oif Katrina which poses a serious problem for those along the Texas coastline not to mention Galveston which is sure to take a horrific hit. Already water is pounding the Galveston coastline and SeaWall Blvd. is inundated.

We will begin to set updates here hourly later this afternoon.

Friday night looking to be brutal

Well, Jim Cantore is in Galveston and changed from his now-familiar black suit to the tight black tee...a bad sign for any city. As I watched him interview the Mayor of Galveston this evening, I chuckled as she ended the conversation by saying she was happy to see him in her town! Obviously she doesn't know how bad it really is when Jim shows up in a t-shirt.

Seriously, preparations are being made to make sure the C4L Tracking Center is ready for tomorrow night.

It has been a long day for those in Texas and things are not much better in Louisiana either. With some dry air off the west side of the Gulf, Ike has stayed a Cat 2 for now but by morning we should see a Cat 3 on its way to being a strong Cat 3 before it makes landfall near Galveston. Already coastal waves are near 9 feet and evacuations seem to be going smoothly according to the Mayor of the sea-bound city; an estimated 75% of the city having evacuated but is it enough?

I doubt it.

Galveston has a population of about 57,000. This means that 14,000 people could be staring out into the darkness tomorrow night as the ocean overcomes their city.

Once Ike nears Galveston, we will know for sure wether or not our predictions were correct; that Ike will strike just south and west of Galveston allowing that dangerous front quarter to raise sea level well beyond not only the sea wall but above the highest point on the island which is only 22 feet above sea level.

We have a lot to contend with here when it comes to surge: first, the winds inside of Ike mixed with the barometric pressure will create a strong surge; second, the storm should arrive just as high tide comes in the middle of Friday night raising sea levels even more.

With over 5 million people just the other side of galveston, evacuations, while running well may not be running well enough as Army Corps of Engineers models show a complete flooding of Galveston and much of the coastal inland.

Once again we are seeing folks simply taping windows and planning on staying, but the City of Galveston is taking a strong stance insisting that there will be no services offered or available for anyone choosing to stay.

Since I know firsthand what it is like to live on an island surrounded by coastal waterway and ocean, I also know how vulnerable you suddenly become with a storm bearing down on you, so I cannot believe folks are staying in Galveston. Should Ike cop an attitude and turn into a Cat 4 before landfall, we could be looking at a storm the likes of which we have only seen on "It Could Happen Tomorrow"!

Even as a Cat 3, this storm is looking like it will be the twin of the 1900 Galveston Hurricane (see earlier blogs) that killed between 6000 and 12000 people.

Our prayers arewith those that are in harm's way for sure.

As they say at the news desk, in other news...

Watch the gas pump prices now as prices have already jumped as much as 30% down south with 96% of the crude business shut down and over 70% of natural gas production has been shut down in the region.

Louisiana is taking a beating again from Ike with surge already effecting the lower parishes and we got a phone call from the Bootheel of Missouri about two hours ago about a series of reported tornadoes near Cabool and Springfield.

Speaking of tornadoes, we will be busy in the C4L Tracking Center starting tomorrow as we staff the center in full to track Ike and the tornadoes that are sure to follow him ashore late tomorrow night. Hopefully we can get the Tracking Center up on KHAS, but if not, stay here checking in and we will continue to post updates and we will attempt to post photos of the tracking center and its staff throughout the night.

If you are in the lower parishes of Louisiana, the coastal areas of Mississippi or near Galveston, please contact us at info@chasing4life.org and make sure you leave us your name, contact numbers and location and we will assign a tracker from the Center to stay in touch with you throughout the next 48 hours or so.

Special thanks to Jeff Masters for the surge model info he provided us yesterday.

REMEMBER

I will be posting several times over the next few days about hurricane Ike, but for this morning, we will focus on something else. Storms like the one Texas is about to experience create heroes and for weeks to come we will hear stories of neighbors helping neighbors, stories of the Coast Guard; stories of Responders; stories of courage...of sacrifice...of determination and of love.

Today we will remember the heroes of September 11, 2001, for today is the anniversary of the day many heroes stepped into eternity answering the call of duty

Today is truly a day of remembrance and reflection for my family. I remember it all as clearly as if it were only yesterday… I was a little over 80 miles from my home at a small diner when the cook came out of the kitchen, his face ashen; his eyes full of tears. Speechless, he motioned to the few customers in the diner to follow him into the kitchen where a small television sat above the grill. We watched in horror as the second plane struck

My home was at the north end of Patrick Air Force Base, and it was several agonizing hours before I could reach my family, and several more before I could make it through the roadblocks and barricades that were immediately set up throughout our region.

For many, the attacks were a thing of television news, but for my family it was a reality that lasted forever as we were surrounded by military for a year, driving through checkpoints to simply go to the store; everyday reminded that our country had been deemed vulnerable. Now, years later, we still remember. We are a firefighter family, and I am the son of a career firefighter. The loss of that day hit close to home, and we felt it our very core.

I wonder today if we really remember. Sure, we have a moment of silence and President Bush will make speeches… the TV will run the saga in drama form and the networks will air every movie made about that day, but do we REALLY remember?

Politics aside, we received a call that day- every one of us. It was a call to be alert, to be prepared, and to support those that live their lives within the shadow of another day like that one. Will you stop today to thank a cop or a firefighter for what they do? Will you take a moment out of your lunch hour to stop by the local fire hall just to say “Thanks for what you do”?

Will you stop sometime tonight between your favorite shows to discuss with your family a communication plan for disasters? Will you stop for a moment today and simply hug your wife, your husband or your kids just because they are there?

There is much to remember today and much to pray about. Hurricane Ike is about to attack our coastline, and I will guarantee you that there are men and women of the same caliber as those that were lost on 9-11 that are waiting for Ike to strike so that they can do what they do.

Eternal God, amidst all the turmoil and changes of our world, we know that you are constant, our firm foundation in the midst of every storm and upheaval. Be with those that still grieve the loss of loved ones lost on that dark day, bless with Your mighty hand those that still stand in defense of our lives, and protect those about to face yet another threat as they answer the call of duty. Bring to our minds the sacrifices of these men and women and give us an extra measure of understanding and appreciation. May our leaders walk in your wisdom this week as we walk in generosity that is sure to be needed. Help us, Lord, to remember what it means to be Americans, help us to remember today what it sometimes takes to be an American, and remind us to pray for those that in uniforms at the ready because they never forget these things. Help us to remember to cherish our country, our freedom and our families as we remember those about to courageously face yet more adversity.

Ike to be a Cat 3 or 4

Hurricane Ike is definitely intensifying, and sometime tomorrow I will post predictions and some links so that you can all take a look at what could be historical storm surge in Texas sometime early Saturday morning as Ike makes landfall a at least a Cat 3 if not a 4!

I have been watching The Weather Channel most of the day and have seen several commercials for SAFETY during flooding, yet have also seen an unbelievable amount of footage of people standing, jumping and riding bicycles in flood waters from Ike!

People, PLEASE stay out of flood waters. I wish that footage of people this stupid would not be aired, but unfortunately seems to be good news content today. Hopefully you are not too easily influenced by the shirtless/witless few that seem to be dominating today's storm footage.

History Lesson

Missing most of the Cuba that would have weakened him considerably, Ike is still a pretty good looking hurricane and I expect will be impressing us even more by Wednesday evening when we expect the C4L Tracking Center will be really humming in expectation of a landfall that still remains fairly vague.

Like we discussed with Gustav, the Loop Current Eddy is going to play a role along with warmer temps and minimal shear; everything is in favor of Ike becoming a major hurricane.

The models are now showing Ike as a Cat 1 in Texas at landfall, but we are leaning toward a major hurricane at landfall based on water temps and surrounding conditions.

As for landfall location, I am not sold on the Texas targets being shown just yet; there is a loop current and a loop current eddy side by side that Ike will be encountering that I still think will shift him a tad bit northward than the models are showing. Texas should hope I am right as the coastline the models are forecasting as Ike’s target are extremely susceptible to large storm surge. I remember looking at the animated models for storm surge in Galveston during 2005 and was amazed at the projected flooding a simple hurricane can cause there. 9 out of 10 people that die in a hurricane are killed by storm surges. In 1900, the Galveston Hurricane struck as a Cat 4 and killed between 6000 and 12,000 people making it the deadliest hurricane to ever hit the United States.

There is in existence film of this storm, reportedly the OLDEST motion picture film of an occurrence like this in existence today.

Another cool fact? It was filmed by Thomas Edison’s employees!