Intro
From Internet Archive: This film “shows the birth of Hurricane Mimi off the Coast of Africa, carefully tracing its growth and development as it eventually brings destruction to the Central Atlantic States.”
Contents
Wikipedia Definition
Wikipedia defines a hurricane as: “A hurricane or typhoon (sometimes simply referred to as a tropical cyclone, as opposed to a depression or storm) is a system with sustained winds of at least 33 metres per second (64 kn) or 74 miles per hour (119 km/h).A cyclone of this intensity tends to develop an eye, an area of relative calm (and lowest atmospheric pressure) at the center of circulation. The eye is often visible in satellite images as a small, circular, cloud-free spot. Surrounding the eye is the eyewall, an area about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) to 80 kilometres (50 mi) wide in which the strongest thunderstorms and winds circulate around the storm’s center. Maximum sustained winds in the strongest tropical cyclones have been estimated at about 85 metres per second (165 kn) or 195 miles per hour (314 km/h).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_cyclone
Fema: Learn About Hurricanes
What is a Hurricane?
A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone, the generic term for a low pressure system that generally forms in the tropics. A typical cyclone is accompanied by thunderstorms, and in the Northern Hemisphere, a counterclockwise circulation of winds near the earth’s surface.
All Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastal areas are subject to hurricanes or tropical storms. Parts of the Southwest United States and the Pacific Coast experience heavy rains and floods each year from hurricanes spawned off Mexico. The Atlantic hurricane season lasts from June to November, with the peak season from mid-August to late October.
Hurricanes can cause catastrophic damage to coastlines and several hundred miles inland. Winds can exceed 155 miles per hour. Hurricanes and tropical storms can also spawn tornadoes and microbursts, create storm surges along the coast, and cause extensive damage from heavy rainfall.
Hurricanes are classified into five categories based on their wind speed, central pressure, and damage potential (see chart). Category Three and higher hurricanes are considered major hurricanes, though Categories One and Two are still extremely dangerous and warrant your full attention.
How are the Hurricane Categories Determined?
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale
Scale Number
(Category) Sustained Winds
(MPH) Damage Storm Surge
1 74-95 Minimal: Unanchored mobile homes,
vegetation and signs. 4-5 feet
2 96-110 Moderate: All mobile homes, roofs,
small crafts, flooding. 6-8 feet
3 111-130 Extensive: Small buildings, low-lying
roads cut off. 9-12 feet
4 131-155 Extreme: Roofs destroyed, trees
down, roads cut off, mobile homes
destroyed. Beach homes flooded. 13-18 feet
5 More than 155 Catastrophic: Most buildings
destroyed. Vegetation destroyed.
Major roads cut off. Homes flooded. Greater than 18 feet
Hurricanes can produce widespread torrential rains. Floods are the deadly and destructive result. Slow moving storms and tropical storms moving into mountainous regions tend to produce especially heavy rain. Excessive rain can trigger landslides or mud slides, especially in mountainous regions. Flash flooding can occur due to intense rainfall. Flooding on rivers and streams may persist for several days or more after the storm.
Between 1970 and 1999, more people lost their lives from freshwater inland flooding associated with land falling tropical cyclones than from any other weather hazard related to tropical cyclones.
How are Hurricanes Named?
Since 1953, Atlantic tropical storms have been named from lists originated by the National Hurricane Center and now maintained and updated by an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization. The lists featured only women’s names until 1979. After that, men’s and women’s names were alternated. Six lists are used in rotation. Thus, the 2001 lists will be used again in 2007.
The only time there is a change in the list is if a storm is so deadly or costly that the continued use of the name would be inappropriate for reasons of sensitivity. When this occurs, the name is stricken from the list and another name is selected to replace it.
Sometimes names are changed. Lorenzo replaced Luis and Michelle replaced Marilyn.
Hurricane FAQ
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/tcfaqHED.html
U.S. Hurricane Information
Preparing Makes Sense
Preparing Makes Sense Video Transcript
GETTING YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY PREPARED IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY TAKES LESS TIME AND EFFORT THAN YOU MAY THINK. BUT IF A DISASTER HITS YOUR COMMUNITY, HAVING A PLAN FOR WHAT TO DO, AND STOCKING UP ON SOME BASIC SUPPLIES, CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN HOW SAFELY AND COMFORTABLY YOU MAKE IT THROUGH THE CRISIS.
CECCO SECCI: In case of a major emergency, if you call 911, we may not be able to come out as quickly as you’d like us, because we’re going to be overwhelmed. We’re going to have so many different situations at hand. So if you are prepared at home – and you have a plan – then you’ll be able to cope with it until help arrives. BRIAN BALLTON: In an emergency, everything goes out the window. Your emotions, the fear factor. Confusion. If everybody’s aware of the plan and can execute the plan, that increases your survivability.
TAKE A FEW MINUTES TO CHECK OUT THE TIPS AND TOOLS AVAILABLE ON READY.GOV THAT MAKE GETTING PREPARED EASY THERE ARE A FEW BASICS: FIRST, LEARN ABOUT THE TYPES OF RISKS THAT COULD AFFECT YOUR AREA. NO MATTER WHERE YOU LIVE, THERE IS A NATURAL OR MAN MADE DISASTER THAT COULD STRIKE WITHOUT WARNING. KNOWING WHAT TO DO BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER THESE TYPES OF EVENTS, AHEAD OF TIME, WILL HELP YOU MAKE AN EFFECTIVE PLAN. THEN, TAKE A MOMENT TO SIT WITH YOUR FAMILY AND DECIDE HOW YOU WILL GET IN CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER, WHERE YOU WILL GO, AND WHAT YOU WILL DO IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY.
BRIAN BALLTON: Having a plan that everyone in the family is aware of can be very helpful in those situations where the family members are not in the same place.
YOU CAN USE THE “FAMILY EMERGENCY PLAN” AVAILABLE ON READY.GOV TO ORGANIZE FAMILY INFORMATION AND HELP YOU DEVELOP A PLAN THAT WORKS FOR YOU. IDENTIFY SOMEONE LOCALLY AND SOMOENE OUT OF STATE WHO WILL BE YOUR CONTACT PERSON IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY. AND LEARN HOW TO SEND UPDATES VIA TEXT MESSAGING TO YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY.
BRIAN BALLTON: One of the things that we’ve noticed in the past during major emergencies, both the regular phone lines as well as the cell phone lines were overwhelmed. But people were still able to text message vital pieces of information in terms of location, nature of problem, or just to text to say, “All is well.”
ONCE YOU’VE ESTABLISHED YOUR PLAN, PRINT OUT A LIST AVAILABLE ON READY DOT GOV. AND START TO PUT TOGETHER AN EMERGENCY KIT. A STANDARD EMERGENCY KIT INCLUDES FOOD WATER AND MEDICINE TO SUSTAIN ALL MEMBERS OF YOUR HOUSEHOLD FOR AT LEAST THREE DAYS. VISIT READY DOT GOV FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF SUGGESTED ITEMS, ALONG WITH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HOW TO PREPARE A FAMILY EMERGENCY PLAN. EVEN IF YOU JUST ADD A FEW ITEMS AT A TIME, VERY QUICKLY YOU WILL HAVE A GREAT KIT THAT WILL ENSURE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ARE PREPARED FOR AN EMERGENCY. ALSO, BE SURE TO KEEP A COPY OF THE EMERGENCY PLAN, TOGETHER WITH COPIES OF IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS LIKE BIRTH CERTIFICATES, INSURANCE POLICIES, AND FINANCIAL FORMS IN YOUR EMERGENCY SUPPLY KIT. AND DON’T FORGET TO MAINTAIN YOUR KIT AND PLAN THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, REPLACING ITEMS PRIOR TO THEIR EXPIRATION AND KEEPING CONTACT INFORMATION CURRENT.
CECCO SECCI: Remember that emergency preparedness is not something you can do once and forget about it. Make sure that you review your kit periodically. You update any medication or food and supplies. And also that you periodically review it with your family.
INQUIRE ABOUT EMERGENCY PLANS AT PLACES WHERE YOUR FAMILY SPENDS TIME LIKE WORK, SCHOOL, FAITH ORGANIZATIONS AND RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES. FINALLY, GET TO KNOW THE LOCAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE IN YOUR COMMUNITY. READY.GOV CAN LINK YOU TO LOCAL EMERGENCY INFORMATION AND CONTACT NUMBERS; INFORMATION ABOUT SHELTERING AND EVACUATION; AND HOW TO GET LOCAL ALERTS AND WARNINGS. WE CAN’T PREDICT WHERE OR WHEN THE NEXT DISASTER WILL HAPPEN. BUT WE DO KNOW THAT WHEN THE TIME COMES, INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES WHO HAVE TAKEN EVEN A FEW STEPS TO PREPARE THEMSELVES WILL FEEL MORE CONFIDENT AND SECURE IN THEIR ABILITY TO GET THROUGH IT. CHECK OUT THE INFORMATION ON READY.GOV AND GET STARTED TODAY!