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Possible Hurricane Hannah? Ike also upgraded |
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The News -
Natural Disasters
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September 04, 2008 |
 After several days in a hostile environment near the Bahamas, Tropical Storm Hanna by Thursday is expected to begin to regenerate and move toward the East Coast.
The AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center reports that Hanna has been battling wind shear that is keeping it disorganized as it has meandered near the Turks and Caicos islands.
The flow around a dip in the jet stream to the north of Hanna has kept it nearly stationary. According to Expert Senior Meteorologist John Kocet, "The dip will move away on Thursday and Friday, finally allowing Hanna to move and strengthen."
Hanna is forecast to reach Category 2 strength by Friday as it skirts the east coast of Florida. While landfall is forecast for late Friday or early Saturday along the South Carolina coast, Kocet says the wind and rain will begin to lash the Southeast as much as 12 hours earlier.
The East Regional News story reports that rough surf and dangerous rip currents are expected as far north as the beaches of Long Island and southern New England the next couple of days. The story also discusses two possible scenarios as to the track, speed and strength of Hanna in the days ahead.
AccuWeather.com Hurricane Expert Joe Bastardi is concerned that hurricane-force winds with Hanna reach as far north as the mid-Atlantic states. All interests along the Eastern Seaboard should already be monitoring Hanna, stocking up on supplies and preparing an emergency plan.
Hanna has added to the misery in Haiti, a country that has lost more than 100 lives to mudslides and flooding since mid-August. Haitian authorities said today the death toll from Hanna has risen to 23.
U.N. soldiers on Tuesday were unable to get through high water to the western city of Gonaives, where people climbed to rooftops to escape rising flood waters.
Heavy rain is falling in the Bahamas. National Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Chrystal Glinton told Associated Press, "Even though we're not feeling the full effects of the storm, it is rough out there."
Hurricane Ike and Tropical Storm Josephine are stacked up behind Hanna in the Atlantic.  Ike continues to move to the west-northwest more than 800 miles east-northeast of the Leeward Islands, while Josephine moves away from the Cape Verde Islands.
Ike has the greater potential to impact the U.S. According to Expert Senior Meteorologist John Kocet, by Sunday Ike will be in a position close to where Hanna is Wednesday, and could reach the Southeast Coast by the middle of next week.
Kocet says early indications show that Josephine could make a turn to the north and northeast, remaining over the open water of the Atlantic.
While the train of trouble continues across the Atlantic, tropical rainstorm Gustav today continues to pound the Arklatex and the Mississippi Valley.
Storm and tornado watches and warnings remain in effect tonight in the lower and middle Mississippi Valley as Gustav slowly makes its way into Missouri.
There were 18 unconfirmed reports of tornadoes on Tuesday, while heavy rain sparked widespread flooding from Mississippi to Arkansas.
Rainfall through noon CDT on Wednesday includes:  - Deville, La.: 19.40 inches
- Hamburg, Ark.: 11.25 inches
- Alexandria, La.: 9.54 inches
- Monroe, La.: 9.43 inches
- Hattiesburg, Miss.: 6.40 inches
The Midwest Regional News story reports that a cold front crossing into the Midwest will steer Gustav to the north.
Thunderstorms will continue tonight from Missouri to the mouth of the Mississippi. The rain is forecast to reach the western Great Lakes by late Thursday.
President Bush on Tuesday declared the Gulf Coast region as a "major disaster" zone, making federal funding available for rebuilding, temporary housing and home repairs. The President Wednesday visited Louisiana to get a first-hand look at the devastation caused by Gustav,  | | Gov. Bobby Jindal walks the streets of Grand Isle, La., assessing damage from Hurricane Gustav, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Kathy Anderson, POOL)[ | three years after he and other federal officials came under intense criticism in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Thousands of residents on Tuesday began to return to their homes along the Coast; however, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin both asked residents to wait a little longer .
Jindal on Tuesday said Gustav caused extensive damage. "The hospitals don't have power, in some cases water, and sewer systems aren't operating. They don't have traffic lights." On Monday, he warned that most gas stations were empty.
Nagin announced plans for a phased return of evacuees. City workers and business operators will be the first to return, opening shops and getting the infrastructure working before residents are allowed to return. Schools in New Orleans and other parishes could re-open next Monday.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry announced Wednesday that more than a quarter of a million residents of southeast Texas will be able to return home after mandatory evacuation orders in Hardin, Jefferson and Orange counties had been lifted.
In a visit Wednesday to an emergency shelter in Tyler, Gov. Perry said. "As residents begin to return home, I want to thank them for their cooperation with state and local officials, and thank all of those who have assisted in preparing to keep Texans and our Louisiana neighbors out of harm's way."
The New Orleans Saints have announced that they will play their National Football League season opener against Tampa Bay at the Superdome on Sunday as scheduled. Superdome officials say the stadium sustained minor damage.
In Baton Rouge, officials at Louisiana State University expect that Saturday's game against Troy State will go on as scheduled, despite damage to Tiger Stadium. |
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