Dual threat to the United States

Hurricane Katia: East Coast not out of the woods

Washington Post

2 September 2011, 12.45 pm ET

After weakening last night to a 70 mph tropical storm, Katia has regained hurricane intensity today with maximum winds of 75 mph. It is moving west-northwest at about 14 mph, and is still roughly 2000 miles from North America. Although it remains likely to turn out to sea late next week, some models are starting to bring Katia a little close to the East Coast for comfort.

In the most recent update from National Hurricane Center (NHC), Katia is expected to intensify to category 3 status in about four to five days as it moves west-northwestward across the warm Atlantic waters.

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Rain From Gulf Storm Expected to Cause Flooding

New York Times
2 September 2011

NEW ORLEANS — A slow-moving and soggy storm that has been dawdling in the Gulf of Mexico for days is expected to come ashore this weekend, bringing rainfall so heavy that officials say excessive flooding is all but inevitable in areas along the coast.

While it is still parked offshore and may not make landfall until Sunday, Tropical Storm Lee has already brought about tropical storm warnings from Pascagoula, Miss., to the Texas-Louisiana border and state of emergency declarations by Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi.

Though winds are projected to strengthen to just below hurricane level, the most pressing worry is the amount of rainfall the storm is bringing, a problem exacerbated by its leisurely pace.

“The bottom line is the longer it stays, the more rain we’re going to get,” said Ken Graham of the National Weather Service forecasting office in Slidell, La., in a conference call with reporters.

Rainfall of 10 to 15 inches is expected on the coast from Alabama through Louisiana by Sunday evening; in some areas up to 20 inches of rainfall could accumulate.

The potential for flooding is alleviated somewhat by the drought conditions that have left much of southern Louisiana bone dry this summer, allowing the ground to absorb rainfall more easily. But with so much water coming at once, and with tides running two to five feet above normal, the water piling up in inlets, rivers and bays will have nowhere to drain, potentially resulting in extensive inland flooding, forecasters said.

Bill Read, director of the National Hurricane Center, said that there were further concerns about flooding as the storm moves northeast into Appalachia. Intense rainfall over the rocky soil there could potentially lead to violent flash floods like those in New England and western New York after Hurricane Irene.

Though this storm is not seen as a worst-case threat here in hurricane country, preparations are under way along the coast. The amount of rainfall predicted could bring serious hazards, and the storm presents something of a test run in the busiest part of hurricane season.

“This storm is not expected to become a hurricane at this point, but we are reminded yet again to always prepare for the worst and hope for the best,” Governor Jindal said in a statement.

Out in the gulf, nearly half of the current oil production has been shut down, and over a quarter of the 617 staffed production platforms evacuated, according to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.

Parishes in southern Louisiana have been lowering water levels in drainage canals, putting road-clearing crews on standby and piling sandbags. Voluntary evacuations are under way in some low-lying areas.

“Be prepared for whatever may come our way because we just don’t know,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans, where city agencies have 68 boats at the ready and where the likelihood of street flooding is such that the police are allowing residents to park their cars on the elevated medians.

The storm could help the city out in one respect, by dousing a marsh fire that has been burning hundreds of acres over the past week in an unpopulated area of eastern New Orleans, sending a giant cloud of smoke over the rest of the city.

Otherwise, many residents along the Gulf Coast stocked up on supplies, tied down what was sitting outside and resigned themselves to an extremely wet Labor Day weekend.

“It ain’t our first rodeo, you know,” said Buggy Vegas, the owner of Bridge Side Marina in Grand Isle, La. “We’re just following the routine.”