St. Croix, notable for being the largest island of the U.S. Territory, received the highest caliber of damage out of any other region affected by Hurricane Hugo. Forming off the coast of West Africa a week prior to September 17, 1989, residents of the Virgin Islands braced themselves for the impending doom. With limited communications on hand, few knew of the strength this particular storm was amassing as it trekked across the Atlantic, honing in on its direct target; St. Croix. Nevertheless, citizens drew together any perishable resources they could find and barricaded their doors as best as they could in the hopes it would be just another storm. However, according to various accounts taken by journalists on the ground, the perceived threat posed by Hurricane Hugo was much greater in brevity as it made landfall on St. Croix. This event draws a clear line to the first policy recommendation; that monetary and technical resources be put into research and development to create more efficient/viable early warning systems. As documented repeatedly throughout the tumultuous events surrounding Hurricane Hugo’s landfall, citizens were kept in the dark as to truth of the storm’s strength. The only sources of news were spotty weather updates provided by local CBS news channels and local newspapers (Hell under God’s Orders, 33-37). Nonetheless, the few lucky enough to heed the news took flight on whatever commercial airline was providing transportation out of the territory. This service was only offered between 1st of September until 10th, as Henry Rohlsen Airport staff decided to shut down airline service and securitize as much of the facility as possible (Hell under God’s Orders, 33-37). HOVENSA, one of the largest oil refineries in th... ... middle of paper ... ...f the proposal would be to ensure that the Virgin Islands National Guard be given additional financial resources to upgrade existing systems and tools. These additional financial resources would come from increased local appropriations from the Virgin Islands General Fund, in addition, through increased funding from FEMA. Despite the audacious financial support granted by the Defense Department, FEMA hardly contributes to the wellbeing of the National Guard. Thus, if FEMA were to appropriate funds towards the National Guard, it would place less of a burden on them to come at the behest of some Virgin Islands catastrophe. Not to say that the proposal would do away with FEMA’s presence on the ground, rather, it would assert that the National Guard does indeed have the capability to tackle a natural disaster like Hugo if one were to ever hit the Virgin Islands again.
Nearly 45 years ago one of the most powerful and damaging weather phenomenon’s ever to be recorded slammed into the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, a storm that effected people far and wide. Camille formed on August 14th just west of the Cayman Islands and rapidly intensified overnight becoming a category 3 hurricane approaching the island of Cuba. The storm trekked north-northwestward across the Gulf and became a stage 5 hurricane and maintained its strength before making landfall on the Mississippi Coast on the eve of August 17th. The devastating aftermath in the weeks to follow induced by the winds, surges, and rainfall took the lives of 256 people, and caused an estimated damage of 1.421 billion dollars.
In 1992, hurricane Andrew was a category four hurricane and said to be one of the worst natural disasters to happen in the United States at the time. It’s winds surpassed 160 miles per hour and caused damage to over 125,000 homes within 400 square miles. Hurricane Andrew left approximately 175,000 families and children temporarily homeless.
Perks, Alan R. "The New Orleans Hurricane Protection System: What Went Wrong and Why." Canadian Consulting Engineer, 48.6 (2007): 10.
On August 24th, 1992 in the state of Florida, complete destruction was the end result of Hurricane Andrew. A Hurricane that began in the Atlantic ocean at 20mph. That is almost twice the strength that normal hurricanes begin at. The peak strength of Hurricane Andrew was so strong that devices were not able to measure the winds. An approximation of the force of the winds was said to be up to 200mph. Andrew destroyed about 28,000 homes, damaged 100,000 homes and left 250,000 people homeless along with 30 billion dollars in damage and almost 30 deaths. Hurricane Andrew did not end its devastation in Florida, soon it went to Louisiana causing more damage. (Fig.1)
The Coast Guard, for instance, rescued some 34,000 people in New Orleans alone, and many ordinary citizens commandeered boats, offered food and shelter, and did whatever else they could to help their neighbors. Yet the government–particularly the federal government–seemed unprepared for the disaster. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) took days to establish operations in New Orleans, and even then did not seem to have a sound plan of action. Officials, even including President George W. Bush, seemed unaware of just how bad things were in New Orleans and elsewhere: how many people were stranded or missing; how many homes and businesses had been damaged; how much food, water and aid was needed. Katrina had left in her wake what one reporter called a “total disaster zone” where people were “getting absolutely
Disasters are often followed by reports of damages to the built environment—the cost of buildings, roads, bridges, electricity lines, stores, schools and hospitals. These of course follow the death toll and economic and social impacts of citizen’s lives. It was not different from Hurricane Ike, whose 20-foot surge left one of the biggest damage ever. The stories of how it impacted other things for the benefit do not make much of the well-known history. For Gene Straatmeyer, a resident of Bolivar Peninsula— which was most hit by the storm, the story is not just about how destructive it was.
Imagine that a family is sitting at home watching a calm game of baseball, when suddenly they realize that a massive wall of water is approaching the neighborhood. Where did this flash flood come from, a reader might ask? The wall of water was made by the raging winds and immense power of Hurricane Andrew. Hurricane Andrew was the second most expensive storm in history that destroyed over 250,000 homes in the states of Florida and Louisiana alone. Hurricane Andrew was not predicted to make landfall, so when it did many civilians did not have any ideas that the Hurricane was coming until it was almost too late. Hurricane Andrew also caused many short and long term effects in the ecosystem and local economies.
In summary, the events of Hurricane Katrina had left a lasting and devastating impact on not only the general public, but also those within public safety including local, state and federal agencies. The storm had affected nearly hundreds of square miles resulting in thousands of casualties, and people misplaced with no homes to go to as well. In addition, there were many contributing factors that had resulted in major life, including the geography of New Orleans, how the levees around New Orleans were built, as well as the lack of coordination between local, state and federal officials.
In response to the damage caused by Hurricane Isabel, Virginia Governor Mark Warner described it as, “Probably the worst storm in a generation” (Washington Post, Ambrose). This was certainly not an overstatement as the National Weather Service reported that Isabel created 925 million dollars of damage in the state of Virginia alone (Johnson). While Isabel was not the most intense storm once it reached the United States, the size of this storm and the population of the area it impacted was why it caused so much damage (Johnson). This paper will discuss the science behind the creation of this storm, the impact of the storm in Richmond, Virginia and its surrounding areas, and the efforts to decrease the effects of the storm along with what could have further prevented any damages.
On August 29, 2005, the third strongest and biggest hurricane ever recorded in American history hit the Gulf Coast at eight o’clock a.m. The interaction between a tropical depression and a tropical wave created a tropical storm later referred to as Hurricane Katrina (FAQS, 2013). Forming over the Bahamas, Hurricane Katrina gradually strengthened as it moved closer and closer to the Gulf of Mexico. Recorded on August 28th, 2005, Katrina jumped from a category three storm to a category five storm with maximum sustained winds up to 160 miles per hour. Although other hurricanes, such as Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Wilma, exceeded Katrina, this dominant storm was classified as the fourth most intense hurricane based its pressure capacity. Once Hurricane Katrina hit land, it was pronounced as a category four storm moving slowly. While people thought that the slow speed of this storm prevented trauma, records show that Katrina did more damage than any fast-moving storm could have ever achieved (Solanki, 2013). Katrina produced abundant debris. The debris was in such large quantity that if it was stacked together on a football field, the rubble would reach the elevation of ten and a half miles. The size of Katrina also caused 90,000 square miles to be affected. Once proclaimed a category three storm, Hurricane Katrina slowed to the speed of 155 miles per hour. At this point in time, Katrina proved to be the sixth most prevailing hurricane traced in history. (Solanki, 2013). Several different aspects of life were impacted by Hurricane Katrina such as availability of gasoline, economic issues, and the ability to have an adequate supply of drinking water (Solanki, 2013). Hurricane Katrina was a large storm ...
Hazards pose risk to everyone. Our acceptance of the risks associated with hazards dictates where and how we live. As humans, we accept a certain amount of risk when choosing to live our daily lives. From time to time, a hazard becomes an emergent situation. Tornadoes in the Midwest, hurricanes along the Gulf Coast or earthquakes in California are all hazards that residents in those regions accept and live with. This paper will examine one hazard that caused a disaster requiring a response from emergency management personnel. Specifically, the hazard more closely examined here is an earthquake. With the recent twenty year anniversary covered by many media outlets, the January 17, 1994, Northridge, California earthquake to date is the most expensive earthquake in American history.
On Friday evening, September 7, 1900, many of the 37,000 residents of Galveston, Texas, were settling down to dinner, few if any of them concerned about the steady 15 mph northerly wind rattling their windows. Within 48 hours, at least 8,000 of the townspeople would be dead, victims of the single worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Relatively few people are aware that the deadliest natural disaster in the United States was the hurricane that struck Galveston Island on September 8, 1900. One of the best resources that can be found to help fully understand the significance of this storm is Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson.
On August 27, 1965, a weather satellite detected a weak tropical disturbance, which was named Betsy, near the Barbados. However, by August 29th the “disturbance” had grown into a hurricane. Betsy not only became one of the most dangerous, but also one of the most expensive storms in the history of the United States. In fact, Time Magazine has rated Hurricane Betsy number 11 in its “Most Destructive U.S. Hurricanes of All Time.” Moreover, this famous hurricane gained the nickname “Billion Dollar Betsy” because it was the first tropical storm to have caused more than $1 billion dollars in damage.
Hurricanes are powerful and destructive storms that involve great rain and wind. The United States of America has dealt with many hurricanes that have cost a great amount of damage. However, there is one hurricane that happened in 2005 that stands out among the others, Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst hurricanes to hit the United States, a category 5 on the Saffir/Simpson Hurricane Scale. An estimated 1836 people died because of the hurricane and the floodings that happened after (Zimmermann 1). Katrina initially beg...
Hurricanes occur all over the world, at different times, but commonly through June first and late November. However in late August 2005 a catastrophic hurricane struck. This was Hurricane Katrina. With winds traveling over one hundred miles per hour making it a category five on the Saffir- Simpson Hurricane Scale it was said to have cause billions of dollars’ worth of damage. Hurricane Katrina flooded nearly forty thousand homes, and killed at least two thousand people (“Hurricane”). An average category five hurricane has enough energy to power street lamps for more than twenty seven thousand hours (Williams 58). Knowing about Hurricane Katrina, and the devastation of the city in New Orleans would be beneficial. Also, general information on hurricanes can help civilians and people of higher authority better understand and prepare for damage that could once hit their town and community. Because experts know the general information on these storms they can help explain to the public why and how Hurricane Katrina and other hurricanes occur. Hopefully, in the future civilians will know and use this information to their advantage against hurricanes.