Storm Damage Reduction Project Design for Wallops Island, Virginia, Version 1.01

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-10-01

69 4.5.2 Dune response...93 6.1.2 Characterization of berm and dune volumes ............................................................. 98 6.1.3 Characterization of...contour. .............................................................. 70 Figure 4-12. Return period for dune crest lowering

Climate Change Adaptation Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

evapotranspiration impacting reservoirs and soil moisture; increased risk of wild fires; alterations in material properties Increases in worker safety...Changes in evapotranspiration N: Navig ion F: Flood and Coastal Storm Damage Reduction R: cosystem Restoration H: Hydropower RG: Regulatory RC

75 FR 62386 - Environmental Impacts Statements; Notice of Availability

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-08

... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [ER-FRL-8993-1] Environmental Impacts Statements; Notice of..., USACE, NC, Surf City and North Topsail Beach Project, To Evaluate Coastal Storm Damage Reduction..., Integrated Feasibility Study, Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Implementation, Lafourche, Terrebonne, St. Mary...

Using Bayesian Network as a tool for coastal storm flood impact prediction at Varna Bay (Bulgaria, Western Black Sea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valchev, Nikolay; Eftimova, Petya; Andreeva, Nataliya; Prodanov, Bogdan

2017-04-01

Coastal zone is among the fastest evolving areas worldwide. Ever increasing population inhabiting coastal settlements develops often conflicting economic and societal activities. The existing imbalance between the expansion of these activities, on one hand, and the potential to accommodate them in a sustainable manner, on the other, becomes a critical problem. Concurrently, coasts are affected by various hydro-meteorological phenomena such as storm surges, heavy seas, strong winds and flash floods, which intensities and occurrence frequency is likely to increase due to the climate change. This implies elaboration of tools capable of quick prediction of impact of those phenomena on the coast and providing solutions in terms of disaster risk reduction measures. One such tool is Bayesian network. Proposed paper describes the set-up of such network for Varna Bay (Bulgaria, Western Black Sea). It relates near-shore storm conditions to their onshore flood potential and ultimately to relevant impact as relative damage on coastal and manmade environment. Methodology for set-up and training of the Bayesian network was developed within RISC-KIT project (Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts - toolKIT). Proposed BN reflects the interaction between boundary conditions, receptors, hazard, and consequences. Storm boundary conditions - maximum significant wave height and peak surge level, were determined on the basis of their historical and projected occurrence. The only hazard considered in this study is flooding characterized by maximum inundation depth. BN was trained with synthetic events created by combining estimated boundary conditions. Flood impact was modeled with the process-based morphodynamical model XBeach. Restaurants, sport and leisure facilities, administrative buildings, and car parks were introduced in the network as receptors. Consequences (impact) are estimated in terms of relative damage caused by given inundation depth. National depth-damage (susceptibility) curves were used to define the percentage of damage ranked as low, moderate, high and very high. Besides previously described components, BN includes also two hazard influencing disaster risk reduction (DRR) measures: re-enforced embankment of Varna Port wall and beach nourishment. As a result of training process the network is able to evaluate spatially varying hazards and damages for specific storm conditions. Moreover, it is able to predict where on the site the highest impact would occur and to quantify the mitigation capacity of proposed DRR measures. For example, it is estimated that storm impact would be considerably reduced in present conditions but vulnerability would be still high in climate change perspective.

Use of Remote Sensing Data to Enhance NWS Storm Damage Toolkit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jedlove, Gary J.; Molthan, Andrew L.; White, Kris; Burks, Jason; Stellman, Keith; Smith, Mathew

2012-01-01

In the wake of a natural disaster such as a tornado, the National Weather Service (NWS) is required to provide a very detailed and timely storm damage assessment to local, state and federal homeland security officials. The Post ]Storm Data Acquisition (PSDA) procedure involves the acquisition and assembly of highly perishable data necessary for accurate post ]event analysis and potential integration into a geographic information system (GIS) available to its end users and associated decision makers. Information gained from the process also enables the NWS to increase its knowledge of extreme events, learn how to better use existing equipment, improve NWS warning programs, and provide accurate storm intensity and damage information to the news media and academia. To help collect and manage all of this information, forecasters in NWS Southern Region are currently developing a Storm Damage Assessment Toolkit (SDAT), which incorporates GIS ]capable phones and laptops into the PSDA process by tagging damage photography, location, and storm damage details with GPS coordinates for aggregation within the GIS database. However, this tool alone does not fully integrate radar and ground based storm damage reports nor does it help to identify undetected storm damage regions. In many cases, information on storm damage location (beginning and ending points, swath width, etc.) from ground surveys is incomplete or difficult to obtain. Geographic factors (terrain and limited roads in rural areas), manpower limitations, and other logistical constraints often prevent the gathering of a comprehensive picture of tornado or hail damage, and may allow damage regions to go undetected. Molthan et al. (2011) have shown that high resolution satellite data can provide additional valuable information on storm damage tracks to augment this database. This paper presents initial development to integrate satellitederived damage track information into the SDAT for near real ]time use by forecasters and decision makers.

Use of Remote Sensing Data to Enhance NWS Storm Damage Toolkit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jedlovec, G.; Molthan, A.; White, K.; Burks, J.; Stellman, K.; Smith, M. R.

2012-12-01

In the wake of a natural disaster such as a tornado, the National Weather Service (NWS) is required to provide a very detailed and timely storm damage assessment to local, state and federal homeland security officials. The Post-Storm Data Acquisition (PSDA) procedure involves the acquisition and assembly of highly perishable data necessary for accurate post-event analysis and potential integration into a geographic information system (GIS) available to its end users and associated decision makers. Information gained from the process also enables the NWS to increase its knowledge of extreme events, learn how to better use existing equipment, improve NWS warning programs, and provide accurate storm intensity and damage information to the news media and academia. To help collect and manage all of this information, forecasters in NWS Southern Region are currently developing a Storm Damage Assessment Toolkit (SDAT), which incorporates GIS-capable phones and laptops into the PSDA process by tagging damage photography, location, and storm damage details with GPS coordinates for aggregation within the GIS database. However, this tool alone does not fully integrate radar and ground based storm damage reports nor does it help to identify undetected storm damage regions. In many cases, information on storm damage location (beginning and ending points, swath width, etc.) from ground surveys is incomplete or difficult to obtain. Geographic factors (terrain and limited roads in rural areas), manpower limitations, and other logistical constraints often prevent the gathering of a comprehensive picture of tornado or hail damage, and may allow damage regions to go undetected. Molthan et al. (2011) have shown that high resolution satellite data can provide additional valuable information on storm damage tracks to augment this database. This paper presents initial development to integrate satellite-derived damage track information into the SDAT for near real-time use by forecasters and decision makers.

Automatic Detection of Storm Damages Using High-Altitude Photogrammetric Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Litkey, P.; Nurminen, K.; Honkavaara, E.

2013-05-01

The risks of storms that cause damage in forests are increasing due to climate change. Quickly detecting fallen trees, assessing the amount of fallen trees and efficiently collecting them are of great importance for economic and environmental reasons. Visually detecting and delineating storm damage is a laborious and error-prone process; thus, it is important to develop cost-efficient and highly automated methods. Objective of our research project is to investigate and develop a reliable and efficient method for automatic storm damage detection, which is based on airborne imagery that is collected after a storm. The requirements for the method are the before-storm and after-storm surface models. A difference surface is calculated using two DSMs and the locations where significant changes have appeared are automatically detected. In our previous research we used four-year old airborne laser scanning surface model as the before-storm surface. The after-storm DSM was provided from the photogrammetric images using the Next Generation Automatic Terrain Extraction (NGATE) algorithm of Socet Set software. We obtained 100% accuracy in detection of major storm damages. In this investigation we will further evaluate the sensitivity of the storm-damage detection process. We will investigate the potential of national airborne photography, that is collected at no-leaf season, to automatically produce a before-storm DSM using image matching. We will also compare impact of the terrain extraction algorithm to the results. Our results will also promote the potential of national open source data sets in the management of natural disasters.

Storm-Related Postmortem Damage to Skeletal Remains.

PubMed

Maijanen, Heli; Wilson-Taylor, Rebecca J; Jantz, Lee Meadows

2016-05-01

In April 2011, human skeletons were exposed to heavy storms at the outdoor Anthropology Research Facility (ARF) in Knoxville, Tennessee. Of the approximate 125 skeletons at the ARF in April 2011, 30 donations exhibited postmortem damage that could be attributed to the storms. At least 20 of the affected donations exhibit postmortem damage clearly associated with hailstones due to the oval shape and similar small size of the defects observed. The irregular shape and larger size of other defects may be a product of other falling objects (e.g., tree branches) associated with the storms. Storm-related damage was observed throughout the skeleton, with the most commonly damaged skeletal elements being the scapula and ilium, but more robust elements (i.e., femora and tibiae) also displayed characteristic features of hailstone damage. Thus, hailstone damage should be considered when forensic practitioners observe unusual postmortem damage in skeletal remains recovered from the outdoor context. © 2016 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Winter storm intensity, hazards, and property losses in the New York tristate area.

PubMed

Shimkus, Cari E; Ting, Mingfang; Booth, James F; Adamo, Susana B; Madajewicz, Malgosia; Kushnir, Yochanan; Rieder, Harald E

2017-07-01

Winter storms pose numerous hazards to the Northeast United States, including rain, snow, strong wind, and flooding. These hazards can cause millions of dollars in damages from one storm alone. This study investigates meteorological intensity and impacts of winter storms from 2001 to 2014 on coastal counties in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York and underscores the consequences of winter storms. The study selected 70 winter storms on the basis of station observations of surface wind strength, heavy precipitation, high storm tide, and snow extremes. Storm rankings differed between measures, suggesting that intensity is not easily defined with a single metric. Several storms fell into two or more categories (multiple-category storms). Following storm selection, property damages were examined to determine which types lead to high losses. The analysis of hazards (or events) and associated damages using the Storm Events Database of the National Centers for Environmental Information indicates that multiple-category storms were responsible for a greater portion of the damage. Flooding was responsible for the highest losses, but no discernible connection exists between the number of storms that afflict a county and the damage it faces. These results imply that losses may rely more on the incidence of specific hazards, infrastructure types, and property values, which vary throughout the region. © 2017 The Authors. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of The New York Academy of Sciences.

Predicting severe winter coastal storm damage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hondula, David M.; Dolan, Robert

2010-07-01

Over the past 40 years residents of, and visitors to, the North Carolina coastal barrier islands have experienced the destructive forces of several 'named' extratropical storms. These storms have caused large-scale redistributions of sand and loss of coastal structures and infrastructure. While most of the population living on the islands are familiar with the wintertime storms, the damage and scars of the 'super northeasters'—such as the Ash Wednesday storm of 7 March 1962, and the Halloween storm of 1989—are slipping away from the public's memory. In this research we compared the damage zones of the 1962 Ash Wednesday storm, as depicted on aerial photographs taken after the storm, with photos taken of the same areas in 2003. With these high-resolution aerial photos we were able to estimate the extent of new development which has taken place along the Outer Banks of North Carolina since 1962. Three damage zones were defined that extend across the islands from the ocean landward on the 1962 aerial photos: (1) the zone of almost total destruction on the seaward edge of the islands where the storm waves break; (2) the zone immediately inland where moderate structural damage occurs during severe storms; and (3) the zone of flood damage at the landward margin of the storm surge and overwash. We considered the rate of coastal erosion, the rate of development, and increases in property values as factors which may contribute to changing the financial risk for coastal communities. In comparing the values of these four factors with the 1962 damage data, we produced a predicted dollar value for storm damage should another storm of the magnitude of the 1962 Ash Wednesday storm occur in the present decade. This model also provides an opportunity to estimate the rate of increase in the potential losses through time as shoreline erosion continues to progressively reduce the buffer between the development and the edge of the sea. Our data suggest that the losses along the North Carolina coast would rank amongst the all-time most costly natural disasters to have occurred in the United States, with up to 1 billion in losses in North Carolina alone.

76 FR 53424 - Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Larose to Golden...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-08-26

... post-Katrina Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction System (HSDRRS) Design Guidelines, are in...-Hurricane Katrina hydrology and hydraulics design guidelines; (2) modify the 1965 design to complete the... adjustments) using the current HSDRRS Design Guidelines to include the Post-Hurricane Katrina surge models; (3...

Flood Losses Associated with Winter Storms in the U.S. Northeast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ting, M.; Shimkus, C.

2015-12-01

Winter storms pose a number of hazards to coastal communities in the U.S. Northeast including heavy rain, snow, strong wind, cold temperatures, and flooding. These hazards can cause millions in property damages from one storm alone. This study addresses the impacts of winter storms from 2001 - 2012 on coastal counties in the U.S. Northeast and underscores the significant economic consequences extreme winter storms have on property. The analysis on the types of hazards (floods, strong wind, snow, etc.) and associated damage from the National Climatic Data Center Storm Events Database indicates that floods were responsible for the highest damages. This finding suggests that winter storm vulnerability could grow in the future as precipitation intensity increases and sea level rise exacerbate flood losses. Flood loss maps are constructed based on damage amount, which can be compared to the flood exposure maps constructed by the NOAA Office of Coastal Management. Interesting agreements and discrepancies exist between the two methods, which warrant further examination. Furthermore, flood losses often came from storms characterized as heavy precipitation storms and strong surge storms, and sometimes both, illustrating the compounding effect of flood risks in the region. While New Jersey counties experienced the most damage per unit area, there is no discernable connection between population density and damage amount, which suggests that societal impacts may rely less on population characteristics and more on infrastructure types and property values, which vary throughout the region.

Using Satellite Remote Sensing to Assist the National Weather Service (NWS) in Storm Damage Surveys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schultz, Lori A.; Molthan, Andrew; McGrath, Kevin; Bell, Jordan; Cole, Tony; Burks, Jason

2016-01-01

In the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Weather Service (NWS) is charged with performing damage assessments when storm or tornado damage is suspected after a severe weather event. This has led to the development of the Damage Assessment Toolkit (DAT), an application for smartphones, tablets and web browsers that allows for the collection, geolocation, and aggregation of various damage indicators collected during storm surveys.

The Value of Wetlands in Protecting Southeast Louisiana from Hurricane Storm Surges

PubMed Central

Barbier, Edward B.; Georgiou, Ioannis Y.; Enchelmeyer, Brian; Reed, Denise J.

2013-01-01

The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 have spurred global interest in the role of coastal wetlands and vegetation in reducing storm surge and flood damages. Evidence that coastal wetlands reduce storm surge and attenuate waves is often cited in support of restoring Gulf Coast wetlands to protect coastal communities and property from hurricane damage. Yet interdisciplinary studies combining hydrodynamic and economic analysis to explore this relationship for temperate marshes in the Gulf are lacking. By combining hydrodynamic analysis of simulated hurricane storm surges and economic valuation of expected property damages, we show that the presence of coastal marshes and their vegetation has a demonstrable effect on reducing storm surge levels, thus generating significant values in terms of protecting property in southeast Louisiana. Simulations for four storms along a sea to land transect show that surge levels decline with wetland continuity and vegetation roughness. Regressions confirm that wetland continuity and vegetation along the transect are effective in reducing storm surge levels. A 0.1 increase in wetland continuity per meter reduces property damages for the average affected area analyzed in southeast Louisiana, which includes New Orleans, by $99-$133, and a 0.001 increase in vegetation roughness decreases damages by $24-$43. These reduced damages are equivalent to saving 3 to 5 and 1 to 2 properties per storm for the average area, respectively. PMID:23536815

The value of wetlands in protecting southeast louisiana from hurricane storm surges.

PubMed

Barbier, Edward B; Georgiou, Ioannis Y; Enchelmeyer, Brian; Reed, Denise J

2013-01-01

The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 have spurred global interest in the role of coastal wetlands and vegetation in reducing storm surge and flood damages. Evidence that coastal wetlands reduce storm surge and attenuate waves is often cited in support of restoring Gulf Coast wetlands to protect coastal communities and property from hurricane damage. Yet interdisciplinary studies combining hydrodynamic and economic analysis to explore this relationship for temperate marshes in the Gulf are lacking. By combining hydrodynamic analysis of simulated hurricane storm surges and economic valuation of expected property damages, we show that the presence of coastal marshes and their vegetation has a demonstrable effect on reducing storm surge levels, thus generating significant values in terms of protecting property in southeast Louisiana. Simulations for four storms along a sea to land transect show that surge levels decline with wetland continuity and vegetation roughness. Regressions confirm that wetland continuity and vegetation along the transect are effective in reducing storm surge levels. A 0.1 increase in wetland continuity per meter reduces property damages for the average affected area analyzed in southeast Louisiana, which includes New Orleans, by $99-$133, and a 0.001 increase in vegetation roughness decreases damages by $24-$43. These reduced damages are equivalent to saving 3 to 5 and 1 to 2 properties per storm for the average area, respectively.

Sedimentary and Vegetative Impacts of Hurricane Irma to Coastal Wetland Ecosystems across Southwest Florida

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moyer, R. P.; Khan, N.; Radabaugh, K.; Engelhart, S. E.; Smoak, J. M.; Horton, B.; Rosenheim, B. E.; Kemp, A.; Chappel, A. R.; Schafer, C.; Jacobs, J. A.; Dontis, E. E.; Lynch, J.; Joyse, K.; Walker, J. S.; Halavik, B. T.; Bownik, M.

2017-12-01

Since 2014, our collaborative group has been working in coastal marshes and mangroves across Southwest Florida, including Tampa Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Ten Thousand Islands, Biscayne Bay, and the lower Florida Keys. All existing field sites were located within 50 km of Hurricane Irma's eye path, with a few sites in the Lower Florida Keys and Naples/Ten Thousand Islands region suffering direct eyewall hits. As a result, we have been conducting storm-impact and damage assessments at these locations with the primary goal of understanding how major hurricanes contribute to and/or modify the sedimentary record of mangroves and salt marshes. We have also assessed changes to the vegetative structure of the mangrove forests at each site. Preliminary findings indicate a reduction in mangrove canopy cover from 70-90% pre-storm, to 30-50% post-Irma, and a reduction in tree height of approximately 1.2 m. Sedimentary deposits consisting of fine carbonate mud up to 12 cm thick were imported into the mangroves of the lower Florida Keys, Biscayne Bay, and the Ten Thousand Islands. Import of siliciclastic mud up to 5 cm thick was observed in Charlotte Harbor. In addition to fine mud, all sites had imported tidal wrack consisting of a mixed seagrass and mangrove leaf litter, with some deposits as thick as 6 cm. In areas with newly opened canopy, a microbial layer was coating the surface of the imported wrack layer. Overwash and shoreline erosion were also documented at two sites in the lower Keys and Biscayne Bay, and will be monitored for change and recovery over the next few years. Because active research was being conducted, a wealth of pre-storm data exists, thus these locations are uniquely positioned to quantify hurricane impacts to the sedimentary record and standing biomass across a wide geographic area. Due to changes in intensity along the storm path, direct comparisons of damage metrics can be made to environmental setting, wind speed, storm surge, and distance to eyewall.

Tropical and Extratropical Cyclone Damages under Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ranson, M.; Kousky, C.; Ruth, M.; Jantarasami, L.; Crimmins, A.; Tarquinio, L.

2014-12-01

This paper provides the first quantitative synthesis of the rapidly growing literature on future tropical and extratropical cyclone losses under climate change. We estimate a probability distribution for the predicted impact of changes in global surface air temperatures on future storm damages, using an ensemble of 296 estimates of the temperature-damage relationship from twenty studies. Our analysis produces three main empirical results. First, we find strong but not conclusive support for the hypothesis that climate change will cause damages from tropical cyclones and wind storms to increase, with most models (84 and 92 percent, respectively) predicting higher future storm damages due to climate change. Second, there is substantial variation in projected changes in losses across regions. Potential changes in damages are greatest in the North Atlantic basin, where the multi-model average predicts that a 2.5°C increase in global surface air temperature would cause hurricane damages to increase by 62 percent. The ensemble predictions for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones and European wind storms (extratropical cyclones) are approximately one third of that magnitude. Finally, our analysis shows that existing models of storm damages under climate change generate a wide range of predictions, ranging from moderate decreases to very large increases in losses.

Landscape analysis and pattern of hurricane impact and circulation on mangrove forests of the everglades

USGS Publications Warehouse

Doyle, T.W.; Krauss, K.W.; Wells, C.J.

2009-01-01

The Everglades ecosystem contains the largest contiguous tract of mangrove forest outside the tropics that were also coincidentally intersected by a major Category 5 hurricane. Airborne videography was flown to capture the landscape pattern and process of forest damage in relation to storm trajectory and circulation. Two aerial video transects, representing different topographic positions, were used to quantify forest damage from video frame analysis in relation to prevailing wind force, treefall direction, and forest height. A hurricane simulation model was applied to reconstruct wind fields corresponding to the ground location of each video frame and to correlate observed treefall and destruction patterns with wind speed and direction. Mangrove forests within the storm's eyepath and in the right-side (forewind) quadrants suffered whole or partial blowdowns, while left-side (backwind) sites south of the eyewall zone incurred moderate canopy reduction and defoliation. Sites along the coastal transect sustained substantially more storm damage than sites along the inland transect which may be attributed to differences in stand exposure and/or stature. Observed treefall directions were shown to be non-random and associated with hurricane trajectory and simulated forewind azimuths. Wide-area sampling using airborne videography provided an efficient adjunct to limited ground observations and improved our spatial understanding of how hurricanes imprint landscape-scale patterns of disturbance. ?? 2009 The Society of Wetland Scientists.

Evaluation of ikonos satellite imagery for detecting ice storm damage to oak forests in Eastern Kentucky

Treesearch

W. Henry McNab; Tracy Roof

2006-01-01

Ice storms are a recurring landscape-scale disturbance in the eastern U.S. where they may cause varying levels of damage to upland hardwood forests. High-resolution Ikonos imagery and semiautomated detection of ice storm damage may be an alternative to manually interpreted aerial photography. We evaluated Ikonos multispectral, winter and summer imagery as a tool for...

Detection of Storm Damage Tracks with EOS Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jedlovec, Gary J.; Nair, Udaysankar; Haines, Stephanie L.

2006-01-01

The damage surveys conducted by the NWS in the aftermath of a reported tornadic event are used to document the location of the tornado ground damage track (pathlength and width) and an estimation of the tornado intensity. This study explores the possibility of using near-real-time medium and high spatial resolution satellite imagery from the NASA Earth Observing System satellites to provide additional information for the surveys. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data were used to study the damage tracks from three tornadic storms: the La Plata, Maryland, storm of 28 April 2002 and the Ellsinore and Marquand, Missouri, storms of 24 April 2002. These storms varied in intensity and occurred over regions with significantly different land cover. It was found that, depending on the nature of the land cover, tornado damage tracks from intense storms (F1 or greater) and hail storms may be evident in ASTER, Landsat, and MODIS satellite imagery. In areas where the land cover is dominated by forests, the scar patterns can show up very clearly, while in areas of grassland and regions with few trees, scar patterns are not as obvious or cannot be seen at all in the satellite imagery. The detection of previously unidentified segments of a damage track caused by the 24 April 2002 Marquand, Missouri, tornado demonstrates the utility of satellite imagery for damage surveys. However, the capability to detect tornado tracks in satellite imagery depends on the ability to observe the ground without obstruction from space and appears to be as much dependent on the nature of the underlying surface and land cover as on the severity of the tornadic storm.

An assessment of management history of damaged and undamaged trees 8 years after the ice storm in Rochester, New York, U.S.

Treesearch

Wayne C. Zipperer; Susan M. Sisinni; Jerry Bond; Chris Luley; Andrew G. Pleninger

2004-01-01

Rochester, New York, U.S., were reviewed to evaluate the city's storm related removal protocol and how maintenance varied by damage classes. Maintenance codes assigned in 1991 were used to identify ice-storm damage classes based on percentage of crown loss. We evaluated seven species Noway maple (Acer platanoides), silver maple (A. saccharinum), sugar maple (A....

VULNERABILITY TO HURRICANE DAMAGE ON THE U.S. GULF COAST SINCE 1950

PubMed Central

LOGAN, JOHN R.; XU, ZENGWANG

2015-01-01

We study hurricane risk on the U.S. Gulf Coast during 1950–2005, estimating the wind damage and storm surge from every hurricane in this extended period. Wind damage is estimated from the known path and wind speeds of individual storms and calibrated to fit actual damage reports for a sample of Gulf Coast storms. Storm surge is estimated using the SLOSH model developed by NOAA. These models provide the first comprehensive overview of the hurricane storm hazard as it has been experienced over a fifty-six-year period. We link the estimated damage with information on the population and specific socio-demographic components of the population (by age, race, and poverty status). Results show that white, young adult, and nonpoor populations have shifted over time away from zones with higher risk of wind damage, while more vulnerable population groups–the elderly, African Americans, and poor—have moved in the opposite direction. All groups have moved away from areas with high risk of storm surge since 1970. But in this case, perhaps because living near the water is still perceived as an amenity, those at highest risk are whites, elderly, and nonpoor households. Here exposure represents a trade-off between the risk and the amenity. PMID:25926706

Storm-related mortality--central Texas, October 17-31, 1998.

PubMed

2000-02-25

On October 17, 1998, a series of storms moved across the central and south regions of Texas, dropping up to 22 inches of rain in some areas and spawning several tornados. Sixty Texas counties (24%) reported flooding during October 17-19. Thirty-six counties became eligible for federal and/or state assistance as a result of damages suffered from this storm system during October 17-31. Estimated flood damage was approximately $900 million, including damage to 12,000 homes, 700 businesses, and public property. This report summarizes findings of an epidemiologic investigation of 31 deaths associated with the storm system.

Applying stochastic small-scale damage functions to German winter storms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prahl, B. F.; Rybski, D.; Kropp, J. P.; Burghoff, O.; Held, H.

2012-03-01

Analyzing insurance-loss data we derive stochastic storm-damage functions for residential buildings. On district level we fit power-law relations between daily loss and maximum wind speed, typically spanning more than 4 orders of magnitude. The estimated exponents for 439 German districts roughly range from 8 to 12. In addition, we find correlations among the parameters and socio-demographic data, which we employ in a simplified parametrization of the damage function with just 3 independent parameters for each district. A Monte Carlo method is used to generate loss estimates and confidence bounds of daily and annual storm damages in Germany. Our approach reproduces the annual progression of winter storm losses and enables to estimate daily losses over a wide range of magnitudes.

Advances in using satellite altimetry to observe storm surge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Guoqi

2017-04-01

Storm surges are the major cause for coastal flooding, resulting in catastrophic damage to properties and loss of life in coastal communities. Thus it is important to utilize new technology to enhance our capabilities of observing storm surges and ultimately to improve our capacity for forecasting storm surges and mitigating damage and loss. In this talk we first review traditional methods of monitoring storm surges. We then provide examples of storm surges observed by nadir satellite altimetry, during Hurricane Sandy and Igor, as well as typhoon and cyclone events. We further evaluate satellite results against tide-gauge data and explain storm surge features. Finally, we discuss the potential of a wide-swath altimetry mission, the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), for observing storm surges.

Economic costs of extratropical storms under climate change: An application of FUND

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Narita, D.; Tol, R.; Anthoff, D.

2009-12-01

Extratropical cyclones have attracted some attention in climate policy circles as a possible significant damage factor of climate change. This study conducts an assessment of economic impacts of increased storm activities under climate change with the integrated assessment model FUND 3.5. FUND is a model that calculates damages of climate change for 16 regions by making use of exogenous scenarios of socioeconomic variables (for details of our estimation approach, see our working paper whose URL is indicated below). Our estimation shows that in the base case, the direct economic damage of enhanced storms due to climate change amounts to $2.8 billion globally (approximately 38% of the total economic loss of storms at present) at the year 2100, while the ratio to the world GDP is 0.0009%. The regional results (Figure 1) indicate that the economic effect of extratropical storms with climate change would have relatively minor importance for the US (USA): The enhanced extratropical storm damage (less than 0.001% of GDP for the base case) is one order of magnitude lower than the tropical cyclone damage (roughly 0.01% GDP) calculated by the same version of FUND. In the regions without strong tropical cyclone influence, such as Western Europe (WEU) and Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), the extratropical storms might have some more significance as a possible damage factor of climate change. Especially for the latter, the direct economic damage could amount to more than 0.006% of GDP. Still, the impact is small relative to the income growth expected in these regions. Figure 1. Increased direct economic loss at the year 2100 for selected regions (results are shown for the three different baselines: the years 1986-2005, 1976-2005, and 1996-2005). US - USA; Canada - CAN; Western Europe - WEU; Australia and New Zealand - ANZ.

33 CFR 203.49 - Rehabilitation of Hurricane and Shore Protection Projects.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm... to the repair/restoration of the HSPP to a pre-storm condition that allows for the adequate functioning of the project, provided that the damage was caused by an extraordinary storm. (2) To be eligible...

33 CFR 203.49 - Rehabilitation of Hurricane and Shore Protection Projects.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm... to the repair/restoration of the HSPP to a pre-storm condition that allows for the adequate functioning of the project, provided that the damage was caused by an extraordinary storm. (2) To be eligible...

33 CFR 203.49 - Rehabilitation of Hurricane and Shore Protection Projects.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm... to the repair/restoration of the HSPP to a pre-storm condition that allows for the adequate functioning of the project, provided that the damage was caused by an extraordinary storm. (2) To be eligible...

Case Study: Sensitivity Analysis of the Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline Wetland Value Assessment Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-07-01

wetlands in providing resting, foraging , breeding, and nursery habitat to a diverse assemblage of fish and wildlife species in coastal Louisiana (EWG...services, including fish and wildlife production, storm damage reduction, and recreation. Federal, state, and local partners have jointly pursued large...habitat units” (HU) provided by a given alternative. Whereas traditional HEP models focused on specific taxa, WVA assesses the fish and wildlife community

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Damage to a facility roof is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Damaged power lines are seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Damage to a facility roof is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Relative Impacts of Ice Storms on Loblolly Pine Plantations in Central Arkansas

Treesearch

Don C. Bragg; Michael G. Shelton; Eric Heitzman

2004-01-01

Catastrophic ice storms can inflict widespread damage to forests in the Southeastern United States. Two severe ice storms struck Arkansas in December 2000, resulting in heavy losses to loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations. We assessed the type and magnitude of damage in four loblolly pine plantation conditions: unthinned 11- to 12-year-old...

Effects of ice storm damage on hardwood survival and growth in Ohio

Treesearch

Richard M. Turcotte; Thomas R. Elliott; Mary Ann Fajvan; Yong-Lak Park; Daniel A. Snider; Patrick C. Tobin

2012-01-01

In 2003, an ice storm occurred across four Mid-Atlantic states. This study investigated the effects of the ice-storm damage on growth and mortality of five tree species (Acer rubrum, Acer saccharum, Quercus alba, Quercus prinus, and Quercus rubra) from three forest stands in the Wayne National Forest in Ohio. We remeasured the same...

Simulating damage for wind storms in the land surface model ORCHIDEE-CAN (revision 4262)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yi-Ying; Gardiner, Barry; Pasztor, Ferenc; Blennow, Kristina; Ryder, James; Valade, Aude; Naudts, Kim; Otto, Juliane; McGrath, Matthew J.; Planque, Carole; Luyssaert, Sebastiaan

2018-03-01

Earth system models (ESMs) are currently the most advanced tools with which to study the interactions among humans, ecosystem productivity, and the climate. The inclusion of storm damage in ESMs has long been hampered by their big-leaf approach, which ignores the canopy structure information that is required for process-based wind-throw modelling. Recently the big-leaf assumptions in the large-scale land surface model ORCHIDEE-CAN were replaced by a three-dimensional description of the canopy structure. This opened the way to the integration of the processes from the small-scale wind damage risk model ForestGALES into ORCHIDEE-CAN. The integration of ForestGALES into ORCHIDEE-CAN required, however, developing numerically efficient solutions to deal with (1) landscape heterogeneity, i.e. account for newly established forest edges for the parameterization of gusts; (2) downscaling spatially and temporally aggregated wind fields to obtain more realistic wind speeds that would represents gusts; and (3) downscaling storm damage within the 2500 km2 pixels of ORCHIDEE-CAN. This new version of ORCHIDEE-CAN was parameterized over Sweden. Subsequently, the performance of the model was tested against data for historical storms in southern Sweden between 1951 and 2010 and south-western France in 2009. In years without big storms, here defined as a storm damaging less than 15 × 106 m3 of wood in Sweden, the model error is 1.62 × 106 m3, which is about 100 % of the observed damage. For years with big storms, such as Gudrun in 2005, the model error increased to 5.05 × 106 m3, which is between 10 and 50 % of the observed damage. When the same model parameters were used over France, the model reproduced a decrease in leaf area index and an increase in albedo, in accordance with SPOT-VGT and MODIS records following the passing of Cyclone Klaus in 2009. The current version of ORCHIDEE-CAN (revision 4262) is therefore expected to have the capability to capture the dynamics of forest structure due to storm disturbance on both regional and global scales, although the empirical parameters calculating gustiness from the gridded wind fields and storm damage from critical wind speeds may benefit from regional fitting.

Ice damage effects on thinned loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) stands in southeastern Oklahoma

Treesearch

Thomas Hennessey; Robert Heinemann; Randal Holeman; Rodney Will; Thomas Lynch; Douglas Stevenson; Edward Lorenzi; Giulia Caterina

2012-01-01

Loblolly pine plantations in southeastern Oklahoma and Arkansas are periodically subjected to damaging ice storms. Following one such event, damage to a 25-year-old, previously thinned stand was assessed and quantitative relationships were developed to guide stand management in ice storm-prone areas.

Development of a Near-Real Time Hail Damage Swath Identification Algorithm for Vegetation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, Jordan R.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Schultz, Lori A.; McGrath, Kevin M.; Burks, Jason E.

2015-01-01

The Midwest is home to one of the world's largest agricultural growing regions. Between the time period of late May through early September, and with irrigation and seasonal rainfall these crops are able to reach their full maturity. Using moderate to high resolution remote sensors, the monitoring of the vegetation can be achieved using the red and near-infrared wavelengths. These wavelengths allow for the calculation of vegetation indices, such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). The vegetation growth and greenness, in this region, grows and evolves uniformly as the growing season progresses. However one of the biggest threats to Midwest vegetation during the time period is thunderstorms that bring large hail and damaging winds. Hail and wind damage to crops can be very expensive to crop growers and, damage can be spread over long swaths associated with the tracks of the damaging storms. Damage to the vegetation can be apparent in remotely sensed imagery and is visible from space after storms slightly damage the crops, allowing for changes to occur slowly over time as the crops wilt or more readily apparent if the storms strip material from the crops or destroy them completely. Previous work on identifying these hail damage swaths used manual interpretation by the way of moderate and higher resolution satellite imagery. With the development of an automated and near-real time hail swath damage identification algorithm, detection can be improved, and more damage indicators be created in a faster and more efficient way. The automated detection of hail damage swaths will examine short-term, large changes in the vegetation by differencing near-real time eight day NDVI composites and comparing them to post storm imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard Terra and Aqua and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) aboard Suomi NPP. In addition land surface temperatures from these instruments will be examined as for hail damage swath identification. Initial validation of the automated algorithm is based upon Storm Prediction Center storm reports but also the National Severe Storm Laboratory (NSSL) Maximum Estimated Size Hail (MESH) product. Opportunities for future work are also shown, with focus on expansion of this algorithm with pixel-based image classification techniques for tracking surface changes as a result of severe weather.

Wind damage effects of Hurricane Andrew on mangrove communities along the southwest coast of Florida, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Doyle, T.W.; Smith, T. J.; Robblee, M.B.

1995-01-01

On August 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew downed and defoliated an extensive swath of mangrove trees across the lower Florida peninsula. Permanent field sites were established to assess the extent of forest damage and to monitor the rate and process of forest recovery. Canopy trees suffered the highest mortality particularly for sites within and immediately north of the storm's eyewall. The type and extent of site damage, windthrow, branch loss, and defoliation generally decreased exponentially with increasing distance from the storm track. Forest damage was greater for sites in the storm's right quadrant than in the left quadrant tor the same given distance from the storm center. Stand exposure, both horizontally and vertically, increased the susceptibility and probability of forest damage and accounted for much of the local variability. Slight species differences were found. Laguncularia racemosa exceeded Avicennia germinans and Rhizophora mangle in damage tendency under similar wind conditions. Azimuths of downed trees were strongly correlated with maximum wind speed and vector based on a hurricane simulation of the storm. Lateral branch loss and leaf defoliation on sites without windthrow damage indicated a degree of crown thinning and light penetration equivalent to treefall gaps under normally intact forest conditions. Mangrove species and forests are susceptible to catastrophic disturbance by hurricanes; the impacts of which are significant to changes in forest structure and function.

Observing storm surges from satellite altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Guoqi

2016-07-01

Storm surges can cause catastrophic damage to properties and loss of life in coastal communities. Thus it is important to enhance our capabilities of observing and forecasting storm surges for mitigating damage and loss. In this presentation we show examples of observing storm surges around the world using nadir satellite altimetry, during Hurricane Sandy, Igor, and Isaac, as well as other cyclone events. The satellite observations are evaluated against tide-gauge observations and discussed for dynamic mechanisms. We also show the potential of a new wide-swath altimetry mission, the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), for observing storm surges.

Orographic influence on storm damage to forests in mountain areas by the example of windstorm 'Lothar'

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmoeckel, J.; Kottmeier, Ch.

2003-04-01

The extraordinary strong storm 'LOTHAR' on December 26, 1999 caused large damage in the forests of France, Switzerland and Germany. In Germany, specially the Black Forest (Schwarzwald) was concerned. In this contribution an empirical analysis of storm damage in the northern Black Forest is given. The aim is to derive the orographical influence on the windfield from the damage pattern. This is recorded approx. 5 months after the desaster by an airborne survey with a digital line scanner. From these data highly resolved, georeferenced distributions of the vegetation index are calculated (2 m x 2 m pixel size). The damaged forest areas appear with a lower vegetation index than areas with intact vegetation. Demarcation between damaged forest areas and populated or differently used areas is given by a landuse model. Mapping of the storm damages and their combination with a digital elevation model and landuse data is performed in a GIS. It is shown that the damage pattern is significantly affected by orographic factors. Large damage occurred e.g. at the location of saddles between single mountains, on mountain flanks facing to the North and Northwest, and at the windward (west) flanks of extended mountain ridges. Little damage is found in areas that presumably were protected against the wind, i.e. on the leeside (eastern) mountain flanks, in dells and niches as well as in valleys perpendicular to the mean west to southwest winds. To explain the spatially complex distribution of damages more fully, an analysis is made where characteristics of the forest and of the soil are taken into account. The knowledge gained can be profitable for future afforestation in mountain areas to stabilize forests against severe storms.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

A beach area is seen during a survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

February 1994 ice storm: forest resource damage assessment in northern Mississippi

Treesearch

Dennis M. Jacobs

2000-01-01

During February 8­11, 1994, a severe winter storm moved from Texas and Oklahoma to the mid-Atlantic depositing in northern Mississippi a major ice accumulation of 3 to 6 inches. An assessment of forest resource damage was initiated immediately after the storm by performing an airborne video mission to acquire aerial imagery linked to global positioning coordinates....

Does it make sense to modify tropical cyclones? A decision-analytic assessment.

PubMed

Klima, Kelly; Morgan, M Granger; Grossmann, Iris; Emanuel, Kerry

2011-05-15

Recent dramatic increases in damages caused by tropical cyclones (TCs) and improved understanding of TC physics have led DHS to fund research on intentional hurricane modification. We present a decision analytic assessment of whether it is potentially cost-effective to attempt to lower the wind speed of TCs approaching South Florida by reducing sea surface temperatures with wind-wave pumps. Using historical data on hurricanes approaching South Florida, we develop prior probabilities of how storms might evolve. The effects of modification are estimated using a modern TC model. The FEMA HAZUS-MH MR3 damage model and census data on the value of property at risk are used to estimate expected economic losses. We compare wind damages after storm modification with damages after implementing hardening strategies protecting buildings. We find that if it were feasible and properly implemented, modification could reduce net losses from an intense storm more than hardening structures. However, hardening provides "fail safe" protection for average storms that might not be achieved if the only option were modification. The effect of natural variability is larger than that of either strategy. Damage from storm surge is modest in the scenario studied but might be abated by modification.

Damage from wind and other causes in mixed white fir-red fir stands adjacent to clearcuttings

Treesearch

Donald T. Gordon

1973-01-01

Damage to timber surrounding clearcuttings and in one light selection cutting in mixed white fir-red fir stands was monitored for 6 years in northeastern California. In some years, bark beetles apparently killed more trees than did wind damage, but in two of the study years, severe wind storms caused much damage. One storm produced mainly break-age, apparently...

Factors Contributing To Genetic Variation In Ice Damage Susceptibility In Shortleaf Pine

Treesearch

Ronald C. Schmidtling; Valerie Hipkins

2002-01-01

There are differences among species in susceptibility to ice damage (Williston 1974). There is also at least one report on within-species variation, where coastal Ioblolly pine was damaged more than interior seed sources in an ice storm (Jones and Wells 1969). Of ail the maladies affecting the growth and s&ival of southern pines. damage from ice storms is one of...

33 CFR 203.50 - Nonstructural alternatives to rehabilitation of flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm... rehabilitation, repair, or restoration of flood control works damaged by floods or coastal storms. (b) Policy. (1...

98. DETAIL VIEW OF STORM DAMAGE AND EXPOSED SUBSTRUCTURE, NORTHWEST ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

98. DETAIL VIEW OF STORM DAMAGE AND EXPOSED SUBSTRUCTURE, NORTHWEST SIDE OF 4TH TEE, LOOKING WEST - Huntington Beach Municipal Pier, Pacific Coast Highway at Main Street, Huntington Beach, Orange County, CA

KSC-08pd2423

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Flooding and some tree damage near the Vehicle Assembly Building are results from Tropical Storm Fay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

Analysis of Storm Surge in Hong Kong

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kao, W. H.

2017-12-01

A storm surge is a type of coastal flood that is caused by low-pressure systems such as tropical cyclones. Storm surges caused by tropical cyclones can be very powerful and damaging, as they can flood coastal areas, and even destroy infrastructure in serious cases. Some serious cases of storm surges leading to more than thousands of deaths include Hurricane Katrina (2005) in New Orleans and Typhoon Haiyan (2013) in Philippines. Hong Kong is a coastal city that is prone to tropical cyclones, having an average of 5-6 tropical cyclones entering 500km range of Hong Kong per year. Storm surges have seriously damaged Hong Kong in the past, causing more than 100 deaths by Typhoon Wanda (1962), and leading to serious damage to Tai O and Cheung Chau by Typhoon Hagupit (2008). To prevent economic damage and casualties from storm surges, accurately predicting the height of storm surges and giving timely warnings to citizens is very important. In this project, I will be analyzing how different factors affect the height of storm surge, mainly using data from Hong Kong. These factors include the windspeed in Hong Kong, the atmospheric pressure in Hong Kong, the moon phase, the wind direction, the intensity of the tropical cyclone, distance between the tropical cyclone and Hong Kong, the direction of the tropical cyclone relative to Hong Kong, the speed of movement of the tropical cyclone and more. My findings will also be compared with cases from other places, to see if my findings also apply for other places.

Detection Of Tornado Damage Tracks With EOS Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jedlovec, Gary J.; Nair, Udaysankar; Haines, Stephanie L.

2005-01-01

The damage surveys conducted by the NWS in the aftermath of a reported tornadic event are used to document the location of the tornado ground damage track (path length and width) and an estimation of the tornado intensity. This study explored the possibility of using near real-time medium and high-resolution satellite imagery from the NASA EOS satellites to provide additional information for the surveys. MODIS and ASTER data were used to study the damage tracks from three tornadic storms; the La Plata, Maryland storm of 28 April 2002 and the Carter-Butler Counties and Madison County Missouri storms of 24 April 2002. These storms varied in intensity (from F0-F4) and occurred over regions with different land use. It was found that, depending on the nature of land use, tornado damage tracks from intense storms (F2 or greater) may be evident in both ASTER and MODIS satellite imagery. In areas of dense vegetation the scar patterns show up very clearly, while in areas of grassland and regions with few trees, scar patterns are not at all obvious in the satellite imagery. The detection of previously unidentified segments of a damage track caused by the 24 April 2004 Madison County, Missouri tornado demonstrates the utility of satellite imagery for damage surveys. However, the capability to detect tornado tracks in satellite imagery appears to be as much dependent on the nature of the underlying surface and land use as on the severity of the tornadic storm. The imaging sensors on the NPOESS operational satellites to be launched in 2006 will continue the unique observing capabilities of the EOS instruments.

Andrew spares Florida Coast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bush, Susan

When geologists heard of the intensity of Hurricane Andrew, which struck the Florida coast on August 25 and then moved on to southern Louisiana, they were expecting the same kinds of coastal damage that Hurricane Hugo brought to the Caribbean and Carolina shores in 1989. Both storms were category 4 hurricanes, having winds of 131-155 mph and surges of 13-18 feet. However, the coastal damage never materialized, leaving geologists to analyze the factors that lessened the impact of the storm. “For minimum coastal damage, you couldn't have designed a better storm,” said Orrin Pilkey, director of the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines (PSDS) in Durham, N.C. This was due in part to the nature of the storm itself and where it hit land, and in part to the regional geology, said Rob Thieler of PSDS. Despite the huge amounts of damage to buildings, there was virtually no evidence of coastal process destruction, he said.

Effect of Nitrogen and Phosphorus Fertilization on Growth of a Sweetgum Plantation Damaged by an Ice Storm

Treesearch

Yanfei Guo; Curtis Vanderschaaf

2002-01-01

In 1994, an ice storm impacted a 19-year-old sweetgum plantation (Liquidambar styraciflua L.) fertilized with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) at age 4. Thirty-nine percent of the stems were broken, 55 percent were not damaged, and 6 percent were leaning. After the ice storm, differences in height and dbh among the fertilization treatments disappeared...

Dynamical structure and risk assessment of 20th Century Windstorms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varino, Filipa; Philippe, Arbogast; Bruno, Joly; Gwendal, Rivière; Marie-Laure, Fandeur; Henry, Bovy; Jean-Baptiste, Granier; Mitchell-Wallace, Kirsten

2017-04-01

Windstorms play an important role in weather variability over western Europe. Strong winds associated with fronts and sting jets can lead to several social and economic damages. However, in addition to wind intensity, the displacement speed of the storm, its area and position are also important factors in determining loss. In this study we focus on windstorms associated with the highest damages of the 20th century, and we analyse whether the dynamical structure of the storm is related to its impact. First, we apply an extra-tropical storm tracking algorithm to the ECMWF ERA-20C reanalysis that covers the whole twentieth century and for the whole Northern Hemisphere. Secondly, using the same data, we compute the 3-hourly Loss and Meteorological index for 18 different European countries as in Pinto et al. (2012) with a 25km grid resolution. Thirdly, we develop a High-Loss Tracking Method that matches information from the Loss Index results and the trajectories tracked to systematically associate damages over a particular country to a particular storm. Such a combination provides information on the typical life cycle of storms that create strong damages over a particular country. Finally, only storms hitting France are considered. More than 1500 storms are detected over the whole period and their evolution is analyzed by performing various composites depending on their position relative to the jet stream and their region of impact.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Central Campus construction site is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

A support building is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The roof of the Operations Support Building I is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The roof of the Operations Support Building II is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Bob Cabana, director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, begins an aerial survey of the center on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The NASA News Center is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Beach House is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Vehicle Assembly Building is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Launch Complex 39 area is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Launch Complex 39B is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

Launch Complex 39B is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The NASA TV Support Building at the NASA News Center is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

A display area in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

A tree is seen across a road during a survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Survey

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

The Beach House is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-08

An aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida was conducted after Hurricane Matthew hit the Space Coast area. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Matthew as the storm passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Do natural disturbances or the forestry practices that follow them convert forests to early-successional communities?

PubMed

Brewer, J Stephen; Bertz, Christine A; Cannon, Jeffery B; Chesser, Jason D; Maynard, Erynn E

2012-03-01

Stand-replacing natural disturbances in mature forests are traditionally seen as events that cause forests to revert to early stages of succession and maintain species diversity. In some cases, however, such transitions could be an artifact of salvage logging and may increase biotic homogenization. We present initial (two-year) results of a study of the effects of tornado damage and the combined effects of tornado damage and salvage logging on environmental conditions and ground cover plant communities in mixed oak-pine forests in north central Mississippi. Plots were established in salvage-logged areas, adjacent to plots established before the storm in unlogged areas, spanning a gradient of storm damage intensity. Vegetation change directly attributable to tornado damage was driven primarily by a reduction in canopy cover but was not consistent with a transition to an early stage of succession. Although we observed post-storm increases of several disturbance indicators (ruderals), we also observed significant increases in the abundance of a few species indicative of upland forests. Increases in flowering were just as likely to occur in species indicative of forests as in species indicative of open woodlands. Few species declined as a result of the tornado, resulting in a net increase in species richness. Ruderals were very abundant in salvage-logged areas, which contained significantly higher amounts of bare ground and greater variance in soil penetrability than did damaged areas that were not logged. In contrast to unlogged areas severely damaged by the tornado, most upland forest indicators were not abundant in logged areas. Several of the forest and open-woodland indicators that showed increased flowering in damaged areas were absent or sparse in logged areas. Species richness was lower in salvage-logged areas than in adjacent damaged areas but similar to that in undamaged areas. These results suggest that salvage logging prevented positive responses of several forest and open-woodland species to tornado damage. Anthropogenic disturbances such as salvage logging appear to differ fundamentally from stand-level canopy-reducing disturbances in their effects on ground cover vegetation in the forests studied here and are perhaps more appropriately viewed as contributing to biotic homogenization than as events that maintain diversity.

Recent Extreme Marine Events at Southern Coast of Black Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ozyurt Tarakcioglu, Gulizar; Cevdet Yalciner, Ahmet; Kirezci, Cagil; Baykal, Cuneyt; Gokhan Guler, Hasan; Erol, Onur; Zaytsev, Andrey; Kurkin, Andrey

2015-04-01

The utilization at the coastal areas of Black Sea basin has increased in the recent years with the projects such as large commercial ports, international transportation hubs, gas and petrol pipelines, touristic and recreational infrastructures both along surrounding shoreline. Although Black Sea is a closed basin, extreme storms and storm surges have also been observed with an increasing frequency in the recent years. Among those events, February 1999, March 2013 and September 2014 storms impacted Southern coast of Black sea have clearly shown that the increasing economic value at the coastal areas caused the increasing cost of damages and loss of property by natural hazards. The storm occurred on February 19-20, 1999 is one of the most destructive storm in the last decades. The 1999 event (1999 Southern Black sea storm) caused destruction at all harbors and coastal protection structures along the Black Sea coast of Turkey. The complete damage of the breakwater of Giresun Harbor and damage on the harbor structures and cargo handling equipment were the major impacts of the 1999 Southern Black sea storm. Similar coastal impact have also been observed during the September 24, 2014 storm at 500m East of Giresun harbor. Although there are considerable number of destructive storms observed at southern coast of Black sea recently, data on these events are limited and vastly scattered. In this study the list of recent extreme marine events at South coast of the Black sea compiled and related data such as wind speed, wave height, period, and type of damages are cataloged. Particular attention is focused on the 1999 and 2014 storm events. The meteorological and morphological characteristics which may be considered as the reasons of the generation and coastal amplification of these storms are discussed. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: This study is partly supported by Turkish Russian Joint Research Grant Program by TUBITAK (Turkey) and RFBR (Russia), and TUBITAK 213M534 Research Project.

Hurricane Irma Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-12

An aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida was conducted on September 12, 2017. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Irma as the storm passed Kennedy on September 10, 2017. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm's onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Assessing Hurricane Katrina Damage to the Mississippi Gulf Coast Using IKONOS Imagery

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joseph; McKellip, Rodney

2006-01-01

Hurricane Katrina hit southeastern Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf Coast as a Category 3 hurricane with storm surges as high as 9 m. Katrina devastated several coastal towns by destroying or severely damaging hundreds of homes. Several Federal agencies are assessing storm impacts and assisting recovery using high-spatial-resolution remotely sensed data from satellite and airborne platforms. High-quality IKONOS satellite imagery was collected on September 2, 2005, over southwestern Mississippi. Pan-sharpened IKONOS multispectral data and ERDAS IMAGINE software were used to classify post-storm land cover for coastal Hancock and Harrison Counties. This classification included a storm debris category of interest to FEMA for disaster mitigation. The classification resulted from combining traditional unsupervised and supervised classification techniques. Higher spatial resolution aerial and handheld photography were used as reference data. Results suggest that traditional classification techniques and IKONOS data can map wood-dominated storm debris in open areas if relevant training areas are used to develop the unsupervised classification signatures. IKONOS data also enabled other hurricane damage assessment, such as flood-deposited mud on lawns and vegetation foliage loss from the storm. IKONOS data has also aided regional Katrina vegetation damage surveys from multidate Land Remote Sensing Satellite and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer data.

Effect of pellet-cladding interaction (PCI) and degradation mechanisms on spent nuclear fuel rod mechanical performance during transportation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peterson, Brittany Ann

Winter storms can affect millions of people, with impacts such as disruptions to transportation, hazards to human health, reduction in retail sales, and structural damage. Blizzard forecasts for Alberta Clippers can be a particular challenge in the Northern Plains, as these systems typically depart from the Canadian Rockies, intensify, and impact the Northern Plains all within 24 hours. The purpose of this study is to determine whether probabilistic forecasts derived from a local physics-based ensemble can improve specific aspects of winter storm forecasts for three Alberta Clipper cases. Verification is performed on the ensemble members and ensemble mean with a focus on quantifying uncertainty in the storm track, two-meter winds, and precipitation using the MERRA and NOHRSC SNODAS datasets. This study finds that addition improvements are needed to proceed with operational use of the ensemble blizzard products, but the use of a proxy for blizzard conditions yields promising results.

Enhanced Tools and Techniques to Support Debris Management in Disaster Response Missions (Flood and Coastal Storm Damage Reduction Research and Development Program)

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-05-01

debris removal without restoration is deployed.  Conduct a controlled field study of restoration activity, for example, along the Wabash ...hazardous metals including chromium, cadmium , lead and mercury (MDEQ 2008; Thibodeau 2002). 3. Batteries in electronics and computers may contain lead...mercury, nickel and cadmium . Appliances Appliances are a problem mainly due to their large size, creating issues with loading, hauling, and

Cross-Shore Numerical Model CSHORE for Waves, Currents, Sediment Transport and Beach Profile Evolution

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

still water shoreline. This modification is necessary for a berm that is slanted downward toward the toe of a dune . The wet probability Pw on the...high dune provides storm protection and damage reduction, recreational and economical benefits, and biological habitats for plants and animals. Most...has been used to predict wave overwash of dunes . The hydrodynamic model has also been extended to the wet and dry zone on a permeable bottom for

Disseminating Landslide Hazard Information for California Local Government

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wills, C. J.

2010-12-01

Since 1969, the California Geological Survey has produced numerous maps showing landslide features and delineating potential slope-stability problem areas. These maps have been provided to local governments to encourage consideration of landslide hazards in planning and development decisions. Maps produced from 1986 through 1995 under the Landslide Hazard Mapping Act were advisory only, and their use by local government was never consistent. By contrast, maps of Zones of Required Investigation for seismically induced landslides produced under the Seismic Hazard Zoning Act since 1997 come with detailed guidelines and legal requirements. A legislative act that required landslide hazards be mapped and hazard maps disseminated to local government proved ineffective in landslide hazard mitigation. A later act with requirements that the hazard zone maps be used by local government proved more effective. Planning scenarios have proven to be an effective way of transmitting scientific information about natural hazards to emergency response professionals. Numerous earthquake planning scenarios have been prepared and used as the basis for emergency response exercises. An advantage of scenarios that include loss estimates is that the effects can be put in units of measure that everyone understands, principally deaths and dollars. HAZUS software available from FEMA allows calculation of losses for earthquake scenarios, but similar methods for landslides have not been developed. As part of the USGS Multi-Hazard Demonstration Project, we have estimated the landslide losses for a major west-coast winter storm scenario by developing a system based loosely on HAZUS. Data on landslide damage in past storms has been sparse and inconsistent, but a few data sets are available. The most detailed and complete available data on landslide damage was gathered by the City of Los Angeles following the 1978 storms. We extrapolate from that data to the entire state by first generalizing a landslide susceptibility map to give a single value of susceptibility for each census tract. We then calculated the loss ratio, the cost of landslide damage from the 1978 storms divided by the value of light wood frame structures in the census tract. The comparison suggests three general categories of damage: tracts with low landslide susceptibility have no landslide damage: tracts with moderate susceptibility have loss ratios of about 0.016%: and tracts with high susceptibility have loss ratios of 0.096%. Using these values, the susceptibility map becomes a landslide loss ratio map for the average storm intensity and landslide vulnerability of Los Angeles in 1978. Generalization to other storm intensities uses differences in storm intensity and landslide damage data from the 1982 storm in the Bay Area. In Santa Cruz County, that storm had a recurrence interval of over 100 years, and over 3 times the damage as our projection from the 1978 data. In Sonoma County, that storm had a recurrence interval of only 10 years and damage that was only 2% of our projection. If a relationship between storm intensity and the projections from the 1978 Los Angeles data can be developed, we may be able to estimate landslide losses for any projected storm intensity.

Assessing Hurricane Katrina Vegetation Damage at Stennis Space Center using IKONOS Image Classification Techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joseph P.; Ross, Kenton W.; Graham, William D.

2007-01-01

Hurricane Katrina hit southwestern Mississippi on August 29, 2005, at 9:45 a.m. CDT as a category 3 storm with surges up to approx. 9 m and sustained winds of approx. 120 mph. The hurricane's wind, rain, and flooding devastated several coastal towns, from New Orleans through Mobile. The storm also caused significant damage to infrastructure and vegetation of NASA's SSC (Stennis Space Center). Storm recovery at SSC involved not only repairs of critical infrastructure but also forest damage mitigation (via timber harvests and control burns to reduce fire risk). This presentation discusses an effort to use commercially available high spatial resolution multispectral IKONOS data for vegetation damage assessment, based on data collected over SSC on September 2, 2005.

Landslides, Floods, and Marine Effects of the Storm of January 3-5, 1982, in the San Francisco Bay Region, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ellen, Stephen D.; Wieczorek, Gerald F.

1988-01-01

A catastrophic rainstorm in central California on January 3-5,1982, dropped as much as half the mean annual precipitation within a period of about 32 hours, triggering landslides and floods throughout 10 counties in the vicinity of the San Francisco Bay. More than 18,000 of the slides induced by the storm transformed into debris flows that swept down hillslopes or drainages with little warning. Debris flows damaged at least 100 homes, killed 14 residents, and carried a 15th victim into a creek. Shortly after rainfall ceased, more than 459,000 m3 of earth and rock slid from a mountainside above the community of Love Creek in Santa Cruz County, burying 10 people in their homes. Throughout the bay region, thousands of people vacated homes in hazardous areas, entire communities were isolated as roads were blocked, public water systems were destroyed, and power and telephone services were disrupted. Altogether, the storm damaged 6,300 homes, 1,500 businesses, and tens of kilometers of roads, bridges, and communication lines. Preliminary rough estimates of total storm damage, compiled for emergency purposes within 2 weeks of the storm, exceeded $280 million. Carefully documented direct costs from landslides exceeded $66 million; total costs from landslides certainly were greater and probably constituted a much larger proportion of the total storm damage than suggested by these disparate figures. Landslides accounted for 25 of the 33 deaths attributed to the storm.

Recovery of planted loblolly pine 5 years after severe ice storms in Arkansas

Treesearch

Don C. Bragg; Michael G. Shelton

2010-01-01

Following a severe ice storm, one of a landowner’s first considerations regarding the future of their damaged stands should be on the recovery potential of injured crop trees. The ice storms that struck Arkansas in December 2000 provided an opportunity to monitor 410 injured loblolly pines (Pinus taeda L.), representing a wide range of damage in 18 –20-year-old...

Hurricane Irma Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-12

A boat dock torn apart is seen during a survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on September 12, 2017. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Irma as the storm passed Kennedy on September 10, 2017. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm's onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Irma Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-12

The Beach House is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on September 12, 2017. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Irma as the storm passed Kennedy on September 10, 2017. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm's onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

New Method for Estimating Landslide Losses for Major Winter Storms in California.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wills, C. J.; Perez, F. G.; Branum, D.

2014-12-01

We have developed a prototype system for estimating the economic costs of landslides due to winter storms in California. This system uses some of the basic concepts and estimates of the value of structures from the HAZUS program developed for FEMA. Using the only relatively complete landslide loss data set that we could obtain, data gathered by the City of Los Angeles in 1978, we have developed relations between landslide susceptibility and loss ratio for private property (represented as the value of wood frame structures from HAZUS). The landslide loss ratios estimated from the Los Angeles data are calibrated using more generalized data from the 1982 storms in the San Francisco Bay area to develop relationships that can be used to estimate loss for any value of 2-day or 30-day rainfall averaged over a county. The current estimates for major storms are long projections from very small data sets, subject to very large uncertainties, so provide a very rough estimate of the landslide damage to structures and infrastructure on hill slopes. More importantly, the system can be extended and improved with additional data and used to project landslide losses in future major winter storms. The key features of this system—the landslide susceptibility map, the relationship between susceptibility and loss ratio, and the calibration of estimates against losses in past storms—can all be improved with additional data. Most importantly, this study highlights the importance of comprehensive studies of landslide damage. Detailed surveys of landslide damage following future storms that include locations and amounts of damage for all landslides within an area are critical for building a well-calibrated system to project future landslide losses. Without an investment in post-storm landslide damage surveys, it will not be possible to improve estimates of the magnitude or distribution of landslide damage, which can range up to billions of dollars.

Severe Autumn storms in future Western Europe with a warmer Atlantic Ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baatsen, Michiel; Haarsma, Reindert J.; Van Delden, Aarnout J.; de Vries, Hylke

2015-08-01

Simulations with a very high resolution (~25 km) global climate model indicate that more severe Autumn storms will impact Europe in a warmer future climate. The observed increase is mainly attributed to storms with a tropical origin, especially in the later part of the twentyfirst century. As their genesis region expands, tropical cyclones become more intense and their chances of reaching Europe increase. This paper investigates the properties and evolution of such storms and clarifies the future changes. The studied tropical cyclones feature a typical evolution of tropical development, extratropical transition and a re-intensification. A reduction of the transit area between regions of tropical and extratropical cyclogenesis increases the probability of re-intensification. Many of the modelled storms exhibit hybrid properties in a considerable part of their life cycle during which they exhibit the hazards of both tropical and extratropical systems. In addition to tropical cyclones, other systems such as cold core extratropical storms mainly originating over the Gulf Stream region also increasingly impact Western Europe. Despite their different history, all of the studied storms have one striking similarity: they form a warm seclusion. The structure, intensity and frequency of storms in the present climate are compared to observations using the MERRA and IBTrACS datasets. Damaging winds associated with the occurrence of a sting jet are observed in a large fraction of the cyclones during their final stage. Baroclinic instability is of great importance for the (re-)intensification of the storms. Furthermore, so-called atmospheric rivers providing tropical air prove to be vital for the intensification through diabatic heating and will increase considerably in strength in the future, as will the associated flooding risks.

33 CFR 203.41 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program § 203.41... constructed hurricane/shore protection projects. (b) Implementation of authority. The Rehabilitation and... projects damaged by floods and coastal storm events. The RIP consists of a process to inspect flood control...

33 CFR 203.41 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program § 203.41... constructed hurricane/shore protection projects. (b) Implementation of authority. The Rehabilitation and... projects damaged by floods and coastal storm events. The RIP consists of a process to inspect flood control...

33 CFR 203.41 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program § 203.41... constructed hurricane/shore protection projects. (b) Implementation of authority. The Rehabilitation and... projects damaged by floods and coastal storm events. The RIP consists of a process to inspect flood control...

33 CFR 203.41 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program § 203.41... constructed hurricane/shore protection projects. (b) Implementation of authority. The Rehabilitation and... projects damaged by floods and coastal storm events. The RIP consists of a process to inspect flood control...

33 CFR 203.41 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program § 203.41... constructed hurricane/shore protection projects. (b) Implementation of authority. The Rehabilitation and... projects damaged by floods and coastal storm events. The RIP consists of a process to inspect flood control...

Cumulative impacts of hurricanes on Florida mangrove ecosystems: Sediment deposition, storm surges and vegetation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, T. J.; Anderson, G.H.; Balentine, K.; Tiling, G.; Ward, G.A.; Whelan, K.R.T.

2009-01-01

Hurricanes have shaped the structure of mangrove forests in the Everglades via wind damage, storm surges and sediment deposition. Immediate effects include changes to stem size-frequency distributions and to species relative abundance and density. Long-term impacts to mangroves are poorly understood at present. We examine impacts of Hurricane Wilma on mangroves and compare the results to findings from three previous storms (Labor Day, Donna, Andrew). Surges during Wilma destroyed ??? 1,250 ha of mangroves and set back recovery that started following Andrew. Data from permanent plots affected by Andrew and Wilma showed no differences among species or between hurricanes for stem mortality or basal area lost. Hurricane damage was related to hydro-geomorphic type of forest. Basin mangroves suffered significantly more damage than riverine or island mangroves. The hurricane by forest type interaction was highly significant. Andrew did slightly more damage to island mangroves. Wilma did significantly more damage to basin forests. This is most likely a result of the larger and more spatially extensive storm surge produced by Wilma. Forest damage was not related to amount of sediment deposited. Analyses of reports from Donna and the Labor Day storm indicate that some sites have recovered following catastrophic disturbance. Other sites have been permanently converted into a different ecosystem, namely intertidal mudflats. Our results indicate that mangroves are not in a steady state as has been recently claimed. ?? 2009 The Society of Wetland Scientists.

Overview of the ARkStorm scenario

USGS Publications Warehouse

Porter, Keith; Wein, Anne; Alpers, Charles N.; Baez, Allan; Barnard, Patrick L.; Carter, James; Corsi, Alessandra; Costner, James; Cox, Dale; Das, Tapash; Dettinger, Mike; Done, James; Eadie, Charles; Eymann, Marcia; Ferris, Justin; Gunturi, Prasad; Hughes, Mimi; Jarrett, Robert; Johnson, Laurie; Le-Griffin, Hanh Dam; Mitchell, David; Morman, Suzette; Neiman, Paul; Olsen, Anna; Perry, Suzanne; Plumlee, Geoffrey; Ralph, Martin; Reynolds, David; Rose, Adam; Schaefer, Kathleen; Serakos, Julie; Siembieda, William; Stock, Jonathan; Strong, David; Wing, Ian Sue; Tang, Alex; Thomas, Pete; Topping, Ken; Wills, Chris; Jones, Lucile

2011-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, Multi Hazards Demonstration Project (MHDP) uses hazards science to improve resiliency of communities to natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, landslides, floods and coastal erosion. The project engages emergency planners, businesses, universities, government agencies, and others in preparing for major natural disasters. The project also helps to set research goals and provides decision-making information for loss reduction and improved resiliency. The first public product of the MHDP was the ShakeOut Earthquake Scenario published in May 2008. This detailed depiction of a hypothetical magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the San Andreas Fault in southern California served as the centerpiece of the largest earthquake drill in United States history, involving over 5,000 emergency responders and the participation of over 5.5 million citizens. This document summarizes the next major public project for MHDP, a winter storm scenario called ARkStorm (for Atmospheric River 1,000). Experts have designed a large, scientifically realistic meteorological event followed by an examination of the secondary hazards (for example, landslides and flooding), physical damages to the built environment, and social and economic consequences. The hypothetical storm depicted here would strike the U.S. West Coast and be similar to the intense California winter storms of 1861 and 1862 that left the central valley of California impassible. The storm is estimated to produce precipitation that in many places exceeds levels only experienced on average once every 500 to 1,000 years. Extensive flooding results. In many cases flooding overwhelms the state's flood-protection system, which is typically designed to resist 100- to 200-year runoffs. The Central Valley experiences hypothetical flooding 300 miles long and 20 or more miles wide. Serious flooding also occurs in Orange County, Los Angeles County, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay area, and other coastal communities. Windspeeds in some places reach 125 miles per hour, hurricane-force winds. Across wider areas of the state, winds reach 60 miles per hour. Hundreds of landslides damage roads, highways, and homes. Property damage exceeds $300 billion, most from flooding. Demand surge (an increase in labor rates and other repair costs after major natural disasters) could increase property losses by 20 percent. Agricultural losses and other costs to repair lifelines, dewater (drain) flooded islands, and repair damage from landslides, brings the total direct property loss to nearly $400 billion, of which $20 to $30 billion would be recoverable through public and commercial insurance. Power, water, sewer, and other lifelines experience damage that takes weeks or months to restore. Flooding evacuation could involve 1.5 million residents in the inland region and delta counties. Business interruption costs reach $325 billion in addition to the $400 property repair costs, meaning that an ARkStorm could cost on the order of $725 billion, which is nearly 3 times the loss deemed to be realistic by the ShakeOut authors for a severe southern California earthquake, an event with roughly the same annual occurrence probability. The ARkStorm has several public policy implications: (1) An ARkStorm raises serious questions about the ability of existing federal, state, and local disaster planning to handle a disaster of this magnitude. (2) A core policy issue raised is whether to pay now to mitigate, or pay a lot more later for recovery. (3) Innovative financing solutions are likely to be needed to avoid fiscal crisis and adequately fund response and recovery costs from a similar, real, disaster. (4) Responders and government managers at all levels could be encouraged to conduct risk assessments, and devise the full spectrum of exercises, to exercise ability of their plans to address a similar event. (5) ARkStorm can be a reference point for application of Federal Emergency Ma

Hurricane Irma Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-12

The Central Campus construction site is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on September 12, 2017. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Irma as the storm passed Kennedy on September 10, 2017. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Studies of images of short-lived events using ERTS data. [forest fires, oil spills, vegetation damage, volcanoes, storm ridges, earthquakes, and floods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deutschman, W. A. (Principal Investigator)

1973-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. Detection of short-lived events has continued. Forest fires, oil spills, vegetation damage, volcanoes, storm ridges, earthquakes, and floods have been detected and analyzed.

Templates of Change: Storms and Shoreline Hazards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dolan, Robert; Hayden, Bruce

1980-01-01

Presents results of research designed to assess and predict the storm-related hazards of living on the coast. Findings suggest that certain sections of coastline are more vulnerable than others to storm damage. (WB)

USACE Extreme Sea Levels Advice on Guidance on Procedures to Evaluate and Adapt to Changes in Mean and Extreme Sea Levels.

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-09

influences of changes in extreme sea levels as they affect the four mission areas of USACE: storm damage reduction, flood risk mitigation, ecosystems...winds and surface pressure can occur on the scale of the inundation area under investigation, cyclonic climatologies and more sophisticated inundation...Federal and State agencies (particularly the Bureau of Meteorology) providing forecast data (e.g. DIPNR, 2005, Appendix N). In more developed areas of

Using remotely sensed data and elementary analytical techniques in post-katrina mississippi to examine storm damage modeling

Treesearch

Curtis A. Collins; David L. Evans; Keith L. Belli; Patrick A. Glass

2010-01-01

Hurricane Katrina’s passage through south Mississippi on August 29, 2005, which damaged or destroyed thousands of hectares of forest land, was followed by massive salvage, cleanup, and assessment efforts. An initial assessment by the Mississippi Forestry Commission estimated that over $1 billion in raw wood material was downed by the storm, with county-level damage...

Carbohydrate reserves in Acer saccharum trees damaged during the January 1998 ice storm in northern New York

Treesearch

B.L. Wong; L.J. Staats; A.S. Burfeind; K.L. Baggett; A.H. Rye; A.H. Rye

2005-01-01

To assess the effect of the ice storm of January 1998 on sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) tree health, starch, and soluble sugars in twigs from two damaged sugarbushes (younger: trees 50-100 years old, and older: trees approximately 200 years old) in northern New York were measured throughout the leafless phase (September 1998 - May 1999). Trees severely damaged by...

Glaze Damage In 13- To 18-Year-Old, Natural, Even-Aged Stands of Loblolly Pines in Southeastern Arkansas

Treesearch

Michael D. Cain; Michael G. Shelton

2002-01-01

In late December 1998, a severe winter storm deposited 2.1 inches of precipitation on the Crossett Experimental Forest in southeastern Arkansas. Ice, in the form of glaze, accumulated on needles and branches of trees, and resulted in visual damage to sapling and pulpwood-sized pines. Within 60 days after the storm, damage was assessed within naturally regenerated,...

Wakeup Call

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultz, Corey

2007-01-01

Tornados damage and destroy schools every year, but many school designers and planners continue to propose new facilities that do not incorporate storm safety techniques. They often subscribe to the "it can't happen here" idea or argue that making schools safe is too expensive. On the heels of two violent storms that damaged schools in…

Flood Damage Assessment in Pearl River Delta Rural Area Application in Huashan Town, Huadu District,Guanghzou during the 2017 5.7 Heavy Rain Storm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, X.

2017-12-01

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) in China, the summer rain storm occurs frequently, the flood damage is very serious. Damage assessment is the basis of scientific decision-making in disaster mitigation. All approaches of flood damage analysis contain uncertainties due to the inaccuracies and generalisations used, the lack of data aggravates this problem, making methods very rough. This study presents a detailed flood damage assessment framework in Pearl River Delta rural area, using 2017 "5.7" heavy rain storm event to simulate the process and estimate the flood loss in resident building and property, agriculture production. The framework integrates four modules,1) utilize the remote sensing and statistical yearbook and so on to construct the disaster bearing bodies GIS database; 2) using hydraulics model to simulate the flood extent and depth spatial distribution;3)through field investigation to obtain the flood loss data for all kinds of hazard-affected body, using statistical analysis method to get the damage curves;4)Integrate flood scenarios, disaster bearing bodies GIS database and damage curves to calculate the flood loss estimation value. Using this methodology, in the 2017 "5.7" heavy rain storm event, Huashan Town flood damage loss is underestimate compared with the government report, because of not considering the damage of water conservancy facilities. But the disaster loss value on the spatial distribution is consistent with actual situation. In terms of aggregated values in the whole town, the model is capable of obtaining figures that are within the same order of magnitude. This study produce a flood damage assessment framework taking into account the regional characteristics of PRD rural area, provide a template for future practice. This study only considers the current impacts, the framework should be improved by taking into account socio-economic and climatic changes, as well as implementing adaptation measures to be applied to assess the potential future damages. Key words: Heavy rain storm; flood; damage assessment; Pearl River Delta; rural area

KSC-08pd2429

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At NASA's Kennedy Space Center, this alligator was spotted cruising the flood waters caused by Tropical Storm Fay. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

Implementation and adaptation of a macro-scale methodology to calculate direct economic losses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Natho, Stephanie; Thieken, Annegret

2017-04-01

As one of the 195 member countries of the United Nations, Germany signed the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (SFDRR). With this, though voluntary and non-binding, Germany agreed to report on achievements to reduce disaster impacts. Among other targets, the SFDRR aims at reducing direct economic losses in relation to the global gross domestic product by 2030 - but how to measure this without a standardized approach? The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) has hence proposed a methodology to estimate direct economic losses per event and country on the basis of the number of damaged or destroyed items in different sectors. The method bases on experiences from developing countries. However, its applicability in industrial countries has not been investigated so far. Therefore, this study presents the first implementation of this approach in Germany to test its applicability for the costliest natural hazards and suggests adaptations. The approach proposed by UNISDR considers assets in the sectors agriculture, industry, commerce, housing, and infrastructure by considering roads, medical and educational facilities. The asset values are estimated on the basis of sector and event specific number of affected items, sector specific mean sizes per item, their standardized construction costs per square meter and a loss ratio of 25%. The methodology was tested for the three costliest natural hazard types in Germany, i.e. floods, storms and hail storms, considering 13 case studies on the federal or state scale between 1984 and 2016. Not any complete calculation of all sectors necessary to describe the total direct economic loss was possible due to incomplete documentation. Therefore, the method was tested sector-wise. Three new modules were developed to better adapt this methodology to German conditions covering private transport (cars), forestry and paved roads. Unpaved roads in contrast were integrated into the agricultural and forestry sector. Furthermore overheads are proposed to include costs of housing content as well as the overall costs of public infrastructure, one of the most important damage sectors. All constants considering sector specific mean sizes or construction costs were adapted. Loss ratios were adapted for each event. Whereas the original UNISDR method over- und underestimates the losses of the tested events, the adapted method is able to calculate losses in good accordance for river floods, hail storms and storms. For example, for the 2013-flood economic losses of EUR 6.3 billion were calculated (UNISDR EUR 0.85 billion, documentation EUR 11 billion). For the hail storms in 2013 the calculated EUR 3.6 billion overestimate the documented losses of EUR 2.7 billion less than the original UNISDR approach with EUR 5.2 billion. Only for flash floods, where public infrastructure can account for more than 90% of total losses, the method is absolutely not applicable. The adapted methodology serves as a good starting point for macro-scale loss estimations by accounting for the most important damage sectors. By implementing this approach into damage and event documentation and reporting standards, a consistent monitoring according to the SFDRR could be achieved.

Hurricane Katrina storm surge distribution and field observations on the Mississippi Barrier Islands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fritz, Hermann M.; Blount, Chris; Sokoloski, Robert; Singleton, Justin; Fuggle, Andrew; McAdoo, Brian G.; Moore, Andrew; Grass, Chad; Tate, Banks

2007-08-01

Hurricane Katrina (23-30 August 2005) struck low-lying coastal plains particularly vulnerable to storm surge flooding. Maximum storm surges, overland flow depths, and inundation distances were measured along the Gulf Coast of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. The vehicle based survey was complemented by inspections with the reconnaissance boat along the Gulf Coast and the Mississippi Barrier Islands. The storm surge peaked to the East of Katrina's path exceeding 10 meters in several locations along the Mississippi coastline. The storm surge measurements show that the lower floors of specially designed buildings were damaged by the surge of seawater and associated wave action, while the upper floors sustained minimal wind damage. Furthermore, the storm surge measurements along New Orleans's Lake shore indicate that the 17th Street Canal levee failed prior to overtopping. The land loss on the barrier islands resulted in an increased vulnerability of the US Gulf Coast to future hurricane storm surges.

Tree recovery from ice storm injury

Treesearch

Kevin T. Smith

2015-01-01

Ice storms are part of nature, particularly in northeastern North America. The combination of air and surface temperatures, precipitation, and wind that result in damaging layers of ice is very specific, occurring infrequently at any given location. Across the region however, damaging ice is formed in fragmented areas every year. Occasionally as in December 2013 and...

Ice damage in loblolly pine: understanding the factors that influence susceptibility

Treesearch

Doug P. Aubrey; Mark D. Coleman; David R. Coyle

2007-01-01

Winter ice storms frequently occur in the southeastern United States and can severely damage softwood plantations. In January 2004, a severe storm deposited approximately 2 cm of ice on an intensively managed 4-year-old loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation in South Carolina. Existing irrigation and fertilization treatments presented an...

Silvicultural lessons from the December 2000 ice storms

Treesearch

Don C. Bragg; Michael G. Shelton; Eric Heitzman

2002-01-01

In December of 2000, two destructive ice storms covered Arkansas, affecing 40% of the state's forestlands. Damage estimates ran into the hundreds of millions of dollars, with much of the loss occuring in loblolly pine () plantations. A study was initiated in south-central Arkansas to track the recovery of damaged trees on these...

GIS-based estimation of the winter storm damage probability in forests: a case study from Baden-Wuerttemberg (Southwest Germany).

PubMed

Schindler, Dirk; Grebhan, Karin; Albrecht, Axel; Schönborn, Jochen; Kohnle, Ulrich

2012-01-01

Data on storm damage attributed to the two high-impact winter storms 'Wiebke' (28 February 1990) and 'Lothar' (26 December 1999) were used for GIS-based estimation and mapping (in a 50 × 50 m resolution grid) of the winter storm damage probability (P(DAM)) for the forests of the German federal state of Baden-Wuerttemberg (Southwest Germany). The P(DAM)-calculation was based on weights of evidence (WofE) methodology. A combination of information on forest type, geology, soil type, soil moisture regime, and topographic exposure, as well as maximum gust wind speed field was used to compute P(DAM) across the entire study area. Given the condition that maximum gust wind speed during the two storm events exceeded 35 m s(-1), the highest P(DAM) values computed were primarily where coniferous forest grows in severely exposed areas on temporarily moist soils on bunter sandstone formations. Such areas are found mainly in the mountainous ranges of the northern Black Forest, the eastern Forest of Odes, in the Virngrund area, and in the southwestern Alpine Foothills.

Coupled effects of wind-storms and drought on tree mortality across 115 forest stands from the Western Alps and the Jura mountains.

PubMed

Csilléry, Katalin; Kunstler, Georges; Courbaud, Benoît; Allard, Denis; Lassègues, Pierre; Haslinger, Klaus; Gardiner, Barry

2017-12-01

Damage due to wind-storms and droughts is increasing in many temperate forests, yet little is known about the long-term roles of these key climatic factors in forest dynamics and in the carbon budget. The objective of this study was to estimate individual and coupled effects of droughts and wind-storms on adult tree mortality across a 31-year period in 115 managed, mixed coniferous forest stands from the Western Alps and the Jura mountains. For each stand, yearly mortality was inferred from management records, yearly drought from interpolated fields of monthly temperature, precipitation and soil water holding capacity, and wind-storms from interpolated fields of daily maximum wind speed. We performed a thorough model selection based on a leave-one-out cross-validation of the time series. We compared different critical wind speeds (CWSs) for damage, wind-storm, and stand variables and statistical models. We found that a model including stand characteristics, drought, and storm strength using a CWS of 25 ms -1 performed the best across most stands. Using this best model, we found that drought increased damage risk only in the most southerly forests, and its effect is generally maintained for up to 2 years. Storm strength increased damage risk in all forests in a relatively uniform way. In some stands, we found positive interaction between drought and storm strength most likely because drought weakens trees, and they became more prone to stem breakage under wind-loading. In other stands, we found negative interaction between drought and storm strength, where excessive rain likely leads to soil water saturation making trees more susceptible to overturning in a wind-storm. Our results stress that temporal data are essential to make valid inferences about ecological impacts of disturbance events, and that making inferences about disturbance agents separately can be of limited validity. Under projected future climatic conditions, the direction and strength of these ecological interactions could also change. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

KSC-08pd2422

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Debris covers a road eroded by Tropical Storm Fay near Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

KSC-08pd2424

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Wind and rain from Tropical Storm Fay pummel the area near the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

KSC-08pd2430

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Due to Tropical Storm Fay, the ground is flooded on a road alongside the turn basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

KSC-08pd2431

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Due to Tropical Storm Fay, the roadside canals and surrounding grounds are flooded at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. In the background is the Vehicle Assembly Building. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky

KSC-08pd2428

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – An alligator seeks higher ground alongside a road at NASA's Kennedy Space Center during the onslaught of Tropical Storm Fay. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

Hurricane Irma Damage Assessment

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-12

The Operations Support Building I (OSB I) is seen during an aerial survey of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on September 12, 2017. The roof of the building is currently undergoing repair from Hurricane Matthew. The survey was performed to identify structures and facilities that may have sustained damage from Hurricane Irma as the storm passed Kennedy on September 10, 2017. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm's onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Rideout Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Floods of August and September 2004 in Eastern Ohio: FEMA Disaster Declaration 1556

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ebner, Andrew D.; Straub, David E.; Lageman, Jonathan D.

2008-01-01

A band of severe thunderstorms at the end of August 2004 and the passage of the remnants of Hurricanes Frances and Ivan during September 2004 caused severe flooding in eastern Ohio during August and September 2004. Record peak streamflow occurred at 12 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgages. Damages caused by the flooding produced by these storms were severe enough for 21 counties in eastern Ohio to be declared Federal disaster areas. In all, there were 4 storm- or flood-related deaths, 2,563 private structures damaged or destroyed, and an estimated $81 million in damages. This report describes the meteorological factors that resulted in severe flooding in eastern Ohio during August 27-September 27, 2004, and examines the damages caused by the storms and flooding. Peak-stage, peak-streamflow, and recurrence-interval data are reported for selected USGS streamgages. Flood profiles determined by the USGS are presented for selected streams.

Winter in the Ouachitas--a severe winter storm signature in Pinus echinata in the Ouachita Mountains of Oklahoma and Arkansas, USA

Treesearch

Douglas J. Stevenson; Thomas B. Lynch; Pradip Saud; Robert Heineman; Randal Holeman; Dennis Wilson; Keith Anderson; Chris Cerny; James M. Guldin

2016-01-01

Each year severe winter storms (≈ice storms) damage trees throughout the southern USA. Arkansas and Oklahoma have a history of severe winter storms. To extend that history back beyond the reach of written records, a distinctive tree ring pattern or signature is needed. Storm-caused breakage, branch loss and bending stress provide that signature. We found a severe storm...

Evaluation of Loss Due to Storm Surge Disasters in China Based on Econometric Model Groups.

PubMed

Jin, Xue; Shi, Xiaoxia; Gao, Jintian; Xu, Tongbin; Yin, Kedong

2018-03-27

Storm surge has become an important factor restricting the economic and social development of China's coastal regions. In order to improve the scientific judgment of future storm surge damage, a method of model groups is proposed to refine the evaluation of the loss due to storm surges. Due to the relative dispersion and poor regularity of the natural property data (login center air pressure, maximum wind speed, maximum storm water, super warning water level, etc.), storm surge disaster is divided based on eight kinds of storm surge disaster grade division methods combined with storm surge water, hypervigilance tide level, and disaster loss. The storm surge disaster loss measurement model groups consist of eight equations, and six major modules are constructed: storm surge disaster in agricultural loss, fishery loss, human resource loss, engineering facility loss, living facility loss, and direct economic loss. Finally, the support vector machine (SVM) model is used to evaluate the loss and the intra-sample prediction. It is indicated that the equations of the model groups can reflect in detail the relationship between the damage of storm surges and other related variables. Based on a comparison of the original value and the predicted value error, the model groups pass the test, providing scientific support and a decision basis for the early layout of disaster prevention and mitigation.

Evaluation of Loss Due to Storm Surge Disasters in China Based on Econometric Model Groups

PubMed Central

Shi, Xiaoxia; Xu, Tongbin; Yin, Kedong

2018-01-01

Storm surge has become an important factor restricting the economic and social development of China’s coastal regions. In order to improve the scientific judgment of future storm surge damage, a method of model groups is proposed to refine the evaluation of the loss due to storm surges. Due to the relative dispersion and poor regularity of the natural property data (login center air pressure, maximum wind speed, maximum storm water, super warning water level, etc.), storm surge disaster is divided based on eight kinds of storm surge disaster grade division methods combined with storm surge water, hypervigilance tide level, and disaster loss. The storm surge disaster loss measurement model groups consist of eight equations, and six major modules are constructed: storm surge disaster in agricultural loss, fishery loss, human resource loss, engineering facility loss, living facility loss, and direct economic loss. Finally, the support vector machine (SVM) model is used to evaluate the loss and the intra-sample prediction. It is indicated that the equations of the model groups can reflect in detail the relationship between the damage of storm surges and other related variables. Based on a comparison of the original value and the predicted value error, the model groups pass the test, providing scientific support and a decision basis for the early layout of disaster prevention and mitigation. PMID:29584628

Martin County, FL, Case Study: Physical and Economic Performance of Martin County Federal Shore Protection Project During 2004 Tropical Season. Flood and Coastal Storm Damage Reduction Program

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-08-01

the landward toe of the dune along with the loss of upland width associated with erosion and volume of sand placed in each reach for emergency dune ...landward toe of the dune for the with-project design cross- section is approximately 49 cu yd/ft. All but one of the representative without-project profiles...2004, 9.2 million dollars in emergency protective actions including seawalls, revetments and construction of emergency dune features are estimated to

Gold in the hills: patterns of placer gold accumulation under dynamic tectonic and climatic conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roy, Sam; Upton, Phaedra; Craw, Dave

2018-01-01

Formation of placer accumulations in fluvial environments requires 103-106 or even greater times concentration of heavy minerals. For this to occur, regular sediment supply from erosion of adjacent topography is required, the river should remain within a single course for an extended period of time and the material must be reworked such that a high proportion of the sediment is removed while a high proportion of the heavy minerals remains. We use numerical modeling, constrained by observations of circum-Pacific placer gold deposits, to explore processes occurring in evolving river systems in dynamic tectonic environments. A fluvial erosion/transport model is used to determine the mobility of placer gold under variable uplift rate, storm intensity, and rock mass strength conditions. Gold concentration is calculated from hydraulic and bedload grain size conditions. Model results suggest that optimal gold concentration occurs in river channels that frequently approach a threshold between detachment-limited and transport-limited hydraulic conditions. Such a condition enables the accumulation of gold particles within the framework of a residual gravel lag. An increase in transport capacity, which can be triggered by faster uplift rates, more resistant bedrock, or higher intensity storm events, will strip all bedload from the channel. Conversely, a reduction in transport capacity, triggered by a reduction in uplift rate, bedrock resistance, or storm intensity, will lead to a greater accumulation of a majority of sediments and a net decrease in gold concentration. For our model parameter range, the optimal conditions for placer gold concentration are met by 103 times difference in strength between bedrock and fault, uplift rates between 1 and 5 mm a-1, and moderate storm intensities. Fault damage networks are shown to be a critical factor for high Au concentrations and should be a target for exploration.

Dust Storm Feature Identification and Tracking from 4D Simulation Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, M.; Yang, C. P.

2016-12-01

Dust storms cause significant damage to health, property and the environment worldwide every year. To help mitigate the damage, dust forecasting models simulate and predict upcoming dust events, providing valuable information to scientists, decision makers, and the public. Normally, the model simulations are conducted in four-dimensions (i.e., latitude, longitude, elevation and time) and represent three-dimensional (3D), spatial heterogeneous features of the storm and its evolution over space and time. This research investigates and proposes an automatic multi-threshold, region-growing based identification algorithm to identify critical dust storm features, and track the evolution process of dust storm events through space and time. In addition, a spatiotemporal data model is proposed, which can support the characterization and representation of dust storm events and their dynamic patterns. Quantitative and qualitative evaluations for the algorithm are conducted to test the sensitivity, and capability of identify and track dust storm events. This study has the potential to assist a better early warning system for decision-makers and the public, thus making hazard mitigation plans more effective.

Early density management of longleaf pine reduces susceptibility to ice storm damage

Treesearch

Timothy B. Harrington; Thaddeus A. Harrington

2016-01-01

The Pax winter storm of February 2014 caused widespread damage to forest stands throughout the southeastern U.S. In a long-term study of savanna plant community restoration at the Savannah River Site, Aiken, SC, precommercial thinning (PCT) of 8- to 11-year-old plantations of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) in 1994 reduced...

26 CFR 1.47-3 - Exceptions to the application of § 1.47-1.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... value of such gift is included in his gross estate for estate tax purposes (such as, a gift in... section 38 property with respect to the taxpayer on account of its destruction or damage by fire, storm... property with respect to the taxpayer on account of its destruction or damage by fire, storm, shipwreck or...

Mitigating the health impacts of a natural disaster--the June 2007 long-weekend storm in the Hunter region of New South Wales.

PubMed

Cretikos, Michelle A; Merritt, Tony D; Main, Kelly; Eastwood, Keith; Winn, Linda; Moran, Lucille; Durrheim, David N

A severe storm that began on Thursday, 7 June 2007 brought heavy rains and gale-force winds to Newcastle, Gosford, Wyong, Sydney, and the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales. The storm caused widespread flooding and damage to houses, businesses, schools and health care facilities, and damaged critical infrastructure. Ten people died as a result of the storm, and approximately 6000 residents were evacuated. A natural disaster was declared in 19 local government areas, with damage expected to reach $1.5 billion. Additional demands were made on clinical health services, and interruption of the electricity supply to over 200,000 homes and businesses, interruption of water and gas supplies, and sewerage system pump failures presented substantial public health threats. A public health emergency operations centre was established by the Hunter New England Area Health Service to coordinate surveillance activities, respond to acute public health issues and prevent disease outbreaks. Public health activities focused on providing advice, cooperating with emergency service agencies, monitoring water quality and availability, preventing illness from sewage-contaminated flood water, assessing environmental health risks, coordinating the local government public health response, and surveillance for storm-related illness and disease outbreaks, including gastroenteritis. The local ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) radio station played a key role in disseminating public health advice. A household survey conducted within a fortnight of the storm established that household preparedness and storm warning systems could be improved.

The observed clustering of damaging extra-tropical cyclones in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cusack, S.

2015-12-01

The clustering of severe European windstorms on annual timescales has substantial impacts on the re/insurance industry. Management of the risk is impaired by large uncertainties in estimates of clustering from historical storm datasets typically covering the past few decades. The uncertainties are unusually large because clustering depends on the variance of storm counts. Eight storm datasets are gathered for analysis in this study in order to reduce these uncertainties. Six of the datasets contain more than 100~years of severe storm information to reduce sampling errors, and the diversity of information sources and analysis methods between datasets sample observational errors. All storm severity measures used in this study reflect damage, to suit re/insurance applications. It is found that the shortest storm dataset of 42 years in length provides estimates of clustering with very large sampling and observational errors. The dataset does provide some useful information: indications of stronger clustering for more severe storms, particularly for southern countries off the main storm track. However, substantially different results are produced by removal of one stormy season, 1989/1990, which illustrates the large uncertainties from a 42-year dataset. The extended storm records place 1989/1990 into a much longer historical context to produce more robust estimates of clustering. All the extended storm datasets show a greater degree of clustering with increasing storm severity and suggest clustering of severe storms is much more material than weaker storms. Further, they contain signs of stronger clustering in areas off the main storm track, and weaker clustering for smaller-sized areas, though these signals are smaller than uncertainties in actual values. Both the improvement of existing storm records and development of new historical storm datasets would help to improve management of this risk.

The protective service of mangrove ecosystems: A review of valuation methods.

PubMed

Barbier, Edward B

2016-08-30

Concern over the loss of mangrove ecosystems often focuses on their role in protecting coastal communities from storms that damage property and cause deaths and injury. With climate change, mangrove loss may also result in less protection against coastal storms as well as sea-level rise, saline intrusion and erosion. Past valuations of the storm protection benefit of mangroves have relied on the second-best replacement cost method, such as estimating this protective value with the cost of building human-made storm barriers. More reliable methods instead model the production of the protection service of mangroves and estimate its value in terms of reducing the expected damages or deaths avoided by coastal communities. This paper reviews recent methods of valuing the storm protection service of mangroves and their role in protecting coastal areas and communities of tropical developing countries. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

3 CFR 8830 - Proclamation 8830 of May 25, 2012. National Hurricane Preparedness Week, 2012

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... damage from storm surges, flooding, high winds, and tornadoes. During National Hurricane Preparedness... prepare before storms strike. With the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Hurricane Center, we continue to advance accurate tropical storm forecasting that gives individuals more...

On the derivation of the areal reduction factor of storms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bacchi, Baldassare; Ranzi, Roberto

A stochastic derivation of the areal reduction factor (ARF) of the storm intensity is presented: it is based on the analysis of the crossing properties of the rainfall process aggregated in space and time. As a working hypothesis, the number of crossings of high rainfall intensity levels is assumed to be Poisson-distributed and a hyperbolic tail of the probability of exceedances of rainfall intensity has been adopted. These hypotheses are supported by the analysis of radar maps during an intense storm event which occurred in Northern Italy. The reduction factor derived from this analysis shows a power-law decay with respect to the area of integration and the duration of the storm. The areal reduction results as a function of the storm duration and of its frequency. A weak, but significant decrease of the areal reduction factor with respect to the return period is shown by the functions derived, and this result is consistent with that of some recent studies on this topic. The results derived, although preliminary, may find useful applications for the definition of the design storm in urban catchments of a size greater than some square kilometres and with duration of some hours.

KSC-08pd2502

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-23

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – This aerial view shows the high water surrounding Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center following Tropical Storm Fay. In the foreground is the Atlantic Ocean. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Amanda Diller

KSC-08pd2427

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The median of one of the roads on NASA's Kennedy Space Center is flooded from Tropical Storm Fay. An emergency vehicle illustrates the flooding on the road as well. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

KSC-08pd2503

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-23

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Launch Pad 39A seems to be an island in the high water surrounding it caused by Tropical Storm Fay. In the distance is the Atlantic Ocean. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Amanda Diller

KSC-08pd2426

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The large windows of a building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center are covered by plywood and sandbags to protect against the wind and rain driven by Tropical Storm Fay. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

A Novel Ice Storm Experiment for Evaluating the Ecological Impacts of These Extreme Weather Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Driscoll, C. T.; Campbell, J. L.; Rustad, L.; Fahey, T.; Fahey, R. T.; Garlick, S.; Groffman, P.; Hawley, G. J.; Schaberg, P. G.

2017-12-01

Ice storms are among the most destructive natural disturbances in some regions of the world, and are an example of an extreme weather event that can profoundly disrupt ecosystem function. Despite potential dire consequences of ice storms on ecosystems and society, we are poorly positioned to predict responses because severe ice storms are infrequent and understudied. Since it is difficult to determine when and where ice storms will occur, most previous research has consisted of ad hoc attempts to characterize impacts in the wake of major icing events. To evaluate ice storm effects in a more controlled manner, we conducted a novel ice storm manipulation experiment at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire. Water was sprayed above the forest canopy in sub-freezing conditions to simulate a glaze ice event. Treatments included replicate plots that received three levels of radial ice thickness (6, 13, and 19 mm) and reference plots that were not sprayed. Additionally, two of the mid-level treatment plots received ice applications in back-to-back years to evaluate effects associated with ice storm frequency. Measures of the forest canopy, including hemispherical photography, photosynthetically active radiation, and ground-based LiDAR, indicated that the ice loads clearly damaged vegetation and opened up the canopy, allowing more light to penetrate. These changes in the canopy were reflected in measurements of fine and coarse woody debris that were commensurate with the level of icing. Soil respiration declined in the most heavily damaged plots, which we attribute to changes in root activity. Although soil solution nitrogen showed clear seasonal patterns, there was no treatment response. These results differ from the severe regional natural ice storm of 1998, which caused large leaching losses of nitrate in soil solutions and stream water during the growing season after the event, due to lack of uptake by damaged vegetation. It is not yet clear why there is a discrepancy between the results from our experiment and the natural ice storm, even though the levels of damage were comparable. It is possible that large declines in N supply observed over the last two decades have resulted in a tightening of the nitrogen cycle. Quantification of additional pools and fluxes (especially foliar N) should provide further insight.

Interaction of ice storms and management practices on current carbon sequestration in forests with potential mitigation under future CO2 atmosphere

Treesearch

Heather R. McCarthy; Ram Oren; Hyun-Seok Kim; Kurt H. Johnsen; Chris Maier; Seth G. Pritchard; Michael A. Davis

2006-01-01

Ice storms are disturbance events with potential impacts on carbon sequestration. Common forest management practices, such as fertilization and thinning, can change wood and stand properties and thus may change vulnerability to ice storm damage. At the same time, increasing atmospheric CO2 levels may also influence ice storm vulnerability. Here...

Tree-ring record of droughts and severe winter storms in the Ouachita Mountains since 1745

Treesearch

Douglas J. Stevenson; Thomas B. Lynch; James M. Guldin

2015-01-01

Severe winter storms cause serious damage to trees, timber, power lines, and transportation systems each year. In the Ouachita Mountains, historical records of these storms extend back only 117 years, and many of them are of low-quality or have missing data.

Observations of Building Performance under Combined Wind and Surge Loading from Hurricane Harvey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lombardo, F.; Roueche, D. B.; Krupar, R. J.; Smith, D. J.; Soto, M. G.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas coastline on August 25, 2017, as a Category 4 hurricane - the first major hurricane to reach the US in twelve years. Wind gusts over 130 mph and storm surge as high as 12.5 ft caused widespread damage to buildings and critical infrastructure in coastal communities including Rockport, Fulton, Port Aransas and Aransas Pass. This study presents the methodology and preliminary observations of a coordinated response effort to document residential building performance under wind and storm surge loading. Over a twelve day survey period the study team assessed the performance of more than 1,000 individual, geo-located residential buildings. Assessments were logged via a smartphone application to facilitate rapid collection and collation of geotagged photographs, building attributes and structural details, and structural damage observations. Detailed assessments were also made of hazard intensity, specifically storm surge heights and both wind speed and direction indicators. Preliminary observations and findings will be presented, showing strong gradients in damage between inland and coastal regions of the affected areas that may be due in part to enhanced individual loading effects of wind and storm surge and potentially joint-hazard loading effects. Contributing factors to the many cases of disproportionate damage observed in close proximity will also be discussed. Ongoing efforts to relate building damage to near-surface hazard measurements (e.g., radar, anemometry) in close proximity will also be described.

Evaluation of landsat imagery for detecting ice storm damage in upland forests of Eastern Kentucky

Treesearch

Henry W. McNab; Tracy Roof; Jeffrey F. Lewis; David L. Loftis

2007-01-01

Two categories of forest canopy damage (none to light vs. moderate to heavy) resulting from a 2003 ice storm in eastern Kentucky could be identified on readily available Landsat Thematic Mapper imagery using change detection techniques to evaluate the ratio of spectral bands 4 and 5. Regression analysis was used to evaluate several model formulations based on the...

Multi-hazard risk analysis related to hurricanes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Ning

Hurricanes present major hazards to the United States. Associated with extreme winds, heavy rainfall, and storm surge, landfalling hurricanes often cause enormous structural damage to coastal regions. Hurricane damage risk assessment provides the basis for loss mitigation and related policy-making. Current hurricane risk models, however, often oversimplify the complex processes of hurricane damage. This dissertation aims to improve existing hurricane risk assessment methodology by coherently modeling the spatial-temporal processes of storm landfall, hazards, and damage. Numerical modeling technologies are used to investigate the multiplicity of hazards associated with landfalling hurricanes. The application and effectiveness of current weather forecasting technologies to predict hurricane hazards is investigated. In particular, the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF), with Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL)'s hurricane initialization scheme, is applied to the simulation of the wind and rainfall environment during hurricane landfall. The WRF model is further coupled with the Advanced Circulation (AD-CIRC) model to simulate storm surge in coastal regions. A case study examines the multiple hazards associated with Hurricane Isabel (2003). Also, a risk assessment methodology is developed to estimate the probability distribution of hurricane storm surge heights along the coast, particularly for data-scarce regions, such as New York City. This methodology makes use of relatively simple models, specifically a statistical/deterministic hurricane model and the Sea, Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) model, to simulate large numbers of synthetic surge events, and conducts statistical analysis. The estimation of hurricane landfall probability and hazards are combined with structural vulnerability models to estimate hurricane damage risk. Wind-induced damage mechanisms are extensively studied. An innovative windborne debris risk model is developed based on the theory of Poisson random measure, substantiated by a large amount of empirical data. An advanced vulnerability assessment methodology is then developed, by integrating this debris risk model and a component-based pressure damage model, to predict storm-specific or annual damage to coastal residential neighborhoods. The uniqueness of this vulnerability model lies in its detailed description of the interaction between wind pressure and windborne debris effects over periods of strong winds, which is a major mechanism leading to structural failures during hurricanes.

The effects of hurricanes on birds, with special reference to Caribbean islands

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wiley, J.W.; Wunderle, J.M.

1993-01-01

Cyclonic storms, variously called typhoons, cyclones, or hurricanes (henceforth, hurricanes), are common in many parts of the world, where their frequent occurrence can have both direct and indirect effects on bird populations. Direct effects of hurricanes include mortality from exposure to hurricane winds, rains, and storm surges, and geographic displacement of individuals by storm winds. Indirect effects become apparent in the storm's aftermath and include loss of food supplies or foraging substrates; loss of nests and nest or roost sites; increased vulnerability to predation; microclimate changes; and increased conflict with humans. The short-term response of bird populations to hurricane damage, before changes in plant succession, includes shifts in diet, foraging sites or habitats, and reproductive changes. Bird populations may show long-term responses to changes in plant succession as second-growth vegetation increases in storm-damaged old-growth forests. The greatest stress of a hurricane to most upland terrestrial bird populations occurs after its passage rather than during its impact. The most important effect of a hurricane is the destruction of vegetation, which secondarily affects wildlife in the storm's aftermath. The most vulnerable terrestrial wildlife populations have a diet of nectar, fruit, or seeds; nest, roost, or forage on large old trees; require a closed forest canopy; have special microclimate requirements and/or live in a habitat in which vegetation has a slow recovery rate. Small populations with these traits are at greatest risk to hurricane-induced extinction, particularly if they exist in small isolated habitat fragments. Recovery of avian populations from hurricane effects is partially dependent on the extent and degree of vegetation damage as well as its rate of recovery. Also, the reproductive rate of the remnant local population and recruitment from undisturbed habitat patches influence the rate at which wildlife populations recover from damage.

Meteoroids and Meteor Storms: A Threat to Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, B. Jeffrey

1999-01-01

Robust system design is the best protection against meteoroid damage. Impacts by small meteoroids are common on satellite surfaces, but impacts by meteoroids large enough to damage well designed systems are very rare. Estimating the threat from the normal meteoroid environment is difficult. Estimates for the occasional "storm" are even more uncertain. Common sense precautions are in order for the 1999 Leonids, but wide-spread catastrophic damage is highly unlikely. Strong Leonid showers are also expected in 2000 and 2001, but these pose much less threat than 1999.

Floods of May and June 2004 in Central and Eastern Ohio: FEMA Disaster Declaration 1519

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ebner, Andrew D.; Straub, David E.; Lageman, Jonathan D.

2008-01-01

Several severe thunderstorms that passed through Ohio between May 17 and June 17, 2004, produced large amounts of rain in an already wet central and eastern Ohio, resulting in flooding in this region from May 18 to June 21, 2004. Record peak streamflow occurred at three U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgages. Damages caused by the flooding resulting from these storms were severe enough that 25 counties in central and eastern Ohio were declared Federal disaster areas. In all, there were two storm- or flood-related deaths, 3,529 private structures damaged or destroyed, and an estimated $43 million in damages. This report describes the meteorological factors that resulted in severe flooding in central and eastern Ohio between May 18 and June 21, 2004, and addresses the damages caused by the storms and flooding. Peak-stage, peak-streamflow, and recurrence-interval data are reported for selected USGS streamgages. Flood profiles determined by the USGS are presented for selected streams.

The observed clustering of damaging extratropical cyclones in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cusack, Stephen

2016-04-01

The clustering of severe European windstorms on annual timescales has substantial impacts on the (re-)insurance industry. Our knowledge of the risk is limited by large uncertainties in estimates of clustering from typical historical storm data sets covering the past few decades. Eight storm data sets are gathered for analysis in this study in order to reduce these uncertainties. Six of the data sets contain more than 100 years of severe storm information to reduce sampling errors, and observational errors are reduced by the diversity of information sources and analysis methods between storm data sets. All storm severity measures used in this study reflect damage, to suit (re-)insurance applications. The shortest storm data set of 42 years provides indications of stronger clustering with severity, particularly for regions off the main storm track in central Europe and France. However, clustering estimates have very large sampling and observational errors, exemplified by large changes in estimates in central Europe upon removal of one stormy season, 1989/1990. The extended storm records place 1989/1990 into a much longer historical context to produce more robust estimates of clustering. All the extended storm data sets show increased clustering between more severe storms from return periods (RPs) of 0.5 years to the longest measured RPs of about 20 years. Further, they contain signs of stronger clustering off the main storm track, and weaker clustering for smaller-sized areas, though these signals are more uncertain as they are drawn from smaller data samples. These new ultra-long storm data sets provide new information on clustering to improve our management of this risk.

Littoral Sediment Budget for the Mississippi Sound Barrier Islands

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-07-01

Sound are driven by longshore transport processes associated with storm and normal wave and current conditions. Although beach erosion and washover...from storm impacts (Figure 1.1). Figure 1.1. High-altitude imagery of the northern Gulf of Mexico between New Orleans, LA and Pensacola, FL...increasing storm damage. A comprehensive evaluation of storm impacts requires analysis of historical shoreline and bathymetry data sets to document the

3 CFR 8386 - Proclamation 8386 of May 26, 2009. National Hurricane Preparedness Week, 2009

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... coastal and inland communities. These powerful storms can cause heavy rainfall, high winds, tornadoes, and storm surges, which can in turn bring severe flooding, power outages, damage to homes and businesses... property of those who face advancing storms. Americans can take basic steps before a hurricane arrives. The...

Anticipating environmental and environmental-health implications of extreme storms: ARkStorm scenario

USGS Publications Warehouse

Plumlee, Geoffrey S.; Alpers, Charles N.; Morman, Suzette A.; San Juan, Carma A.

2016-01-01

The ARkStorm Scenario predicts that a prolonged winter storm event across California would cause extreme precipitation, flooding, winds, physical damages, and economic impacts. This study uses a literature review and geographic information system-based analysis of national and state databases to infer how and where ARkStorm could cause environmental damages, release contamination from diverse natural and anthropogenic sources, affect ecosystem and human health, and cause economic impacts from environmental-remediation, liability, and health-care costs. Examples of plausible ARkStorm environmental and health concerns include complex mixtures of contaminants such as petroleum, mercury, asbestos, persistent organic pollutants, molds, and pathogens; adverse physical and contamination impacts on riverine and coastal marine ecosystems; and increased incidences of mold-related health concerns, some vector-borne diseases, and valley fever. Coastal cities, the San Francisco Bay area, the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, parts of the Central Valley, and some mountainous areas would likely be most affected. This type of screening analysis, coupled with follow-up local assessments, can help stakeholders in California and disaster-prone areas elsewhere better plan for, mitigate, and respond to future environmental disasters.

KSC-08pd2425

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-08-21

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – A member of the "ride-out crew," a group of emergency personnel, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center monitors effects from Tropical Storm Fay. In the background is the Operations Support Building I in the Launch Complex 39 Area. The storm passed over the center Aug. 20 and then stalled offshore, bringing with it heavy rain and tropical storm force wind. Kennedy closed Aug. 19 because of Fay and reopened for normal operations Aug. 22. Based on initial assessments, there was no damage to space flight hardware, such as the space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. Some facilities did sustain minor damage. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller

The Potential of Wetlands in Reducing Storm Surge

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

threatened by erosion and damage due to storm waves, wind, and surge. The risk of damage and loss of life is exacerbated by many factors, including coastal...obtained when attempting to correlate hurricane translation speed, surge hydrograph at the coast, and surge elevations inland. However, a trend was...greater surface roughness. In addition to reducing wind speeds, the models eliminate the wind stress in forested wetlands which inhibit wind from

Properties of wood from ice-storm damaged loblolly pine trees

Treesearch

David W. Patterson; Jonathan Hartly

2007-01-01

Fifty-sex trees were harvested to determine the properties of the wood produced by ice-storm damaged trees. There were 12 trees each for three classes of bend: () to 15. 16 to 30. and more than 30 degrees from the vertical. Also. 10 trees were selected for each of two classes of crown loss: 20 percent or less and more than 20 percent loss. Samples were taken from three...

Initial mortality rates and extent of damage to loblolly and longleaf pine plantations affected by an ice storm in South Carolina

Treesearch

Don C. Bragg

2016-01-01

A major ice storm struck Georgia and the Carolinas in February of 2014, damaging or destroying hundreds of thousands of hectares of timber worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Losses were particularly severe in pine plantations in west-central South Carolina, including many on the Savannah River Site (SRS). An array of paired, mid-rotation loblolly (Pinus...

A Community-Led Medical Response Effort in the Wake of Hurricane Sandy.

PubMed

Kraushar, Matthew L; Rosenberg, Rebecca E

2015-08-01

On October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy made landfall in the neighborhood of Red Hook in Brooklyn, New York. The massive tidal surge generated by the storm submerged the coastal area, home to a population over 11,000 individuals, including the largest public housing development in Brooklyn. The infrastructure devastation was profound: the storm rendered electricity, heat, water, Internet, and phone services inoperative, whereas local ambulatory medical services including clinics, pharmacies, home health agencies, and other resources were damaged beyond functionality. Lacking these services or lines of communication, medically fragile individuals became isolated from the hospital and 911-emergency systems without a preexisting mechanism to identify or treat them. Medically fragile individuals primarily included those with chronic medical conditions dependent on frequent and consistent monitoring and treatments. In response, the Red Hook community established an ad hoc volunteer medical relief effort in the wake of the storm, filling a major gap that continues to exist in disaster medicine for low-income urban environments. Here we describe this effort, including an analysis of the medically vulnerable in this community, and recommend disaster risk reduction strategies and resilience measures for future disaster events.

Cloud-to-ground lightning in a tornadic storm on 8 May 1986

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macgorman, Donald R.; Nielsen, Kurt E.

1991-01-01

The National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) gathered Doppler radar and lightning ground strike data on a supercell storm that produced three tornadoes, including an F3 tornado in Edmond, Oklahoma, approximately 40 km north of NSSL. The Edmond storm formed 30 km ahead of a storm complex and developed its first and most damaging tornado just as the storm complex started to overtake it from the west. Lightning strike locations tended to concentrate just north of the mesocyclone, close to and inside a 50 dBZ reflectivity core. Positive ground flashes began just prior to the storm becoming tornadic, and positive flash rates peaked during the tornadic stage of the storm.

Wildlife and habitat damage assessment from Hurricane Charley: recommendations for recovery of the J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge Complex

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meyers, J. Michael; Langtimm, Catherine A.; Smith, Thomas J.; Pednault-Willett, Kendra

2006-01-01

• On 13 August 2004, the first of four hurricanes to strike Florida in <6 weeks came ashore near J. N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge (JNDDNWR) Complex, Sanibel Island, Florida. The eye of Category 4 Hurricane Charley passed just north of Sanibel Island with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (123 knots) and a storm surge of 0.3-2.7 m (1-9 ft). Three USGS-BRD scientists (coastal ecologist and research wildlife biologists) and a USFWS wildlife biologist surveyed the storm damage to JNDDNWR Complex on the ground from 20-24 September 2004. • At the request of United States Fish and Wildlife Service refuge staff, the USGS team concentrated on assessing damage to wetlands and habitat for selected bird populations (especially mangrove forests, Mangrove Cuckoos [Coccyzus minor], and Black-whiskered Vireo [Vireo altiloquus]), waterbird rookeries (mangrove islands), impoundments (waterbirds and waterfowl), sea grass beds (manatees), and upland hardwood hammocks and ridges (threatened eastern indigo snake [Drymarchon couperi]). • The refuge complex sustained moderate to catastrophic damage to vegetation, especially mangrove forests and waterbird nesting or roosting islands. Lumpkin Island, Hemp Island, and Bird Key waterbird nesting areas had >50% and sometimes 90% of their vegetation severely damaged (dead, broken tree stems, and tipped trees). The Shell Mound Trail area of JNDDNWR sustained catastrophic damage to its old growth mangrove forests. Direct storm mortality and injury to manatees in the area of the JNDDNWR Complex was probably slight as manatees may have several strategies to reduce storm mortality. Damage to seagrass beds, an important habitat for manatees, fishes and invertebrates, is believed to be limited to the breach at North Captiva Island. At this breach, refuge staff documented inundation of beds by sand and scarring by trees dragged by winds. • Because seagrass beads and manatee habitat extend beyond refuge boundaries (see p. 28), a regional approach with partner agencies to more thoroughly assess storm impacts and monitor recovery of seagrass and manatees is recommended. • Besides intensive monitoring of waterbirds and their nesting habitat (pre- and post-storm), the survey team recommends that the Mangrove Cuckoo be used as an indicator species for recovery of mangrove forests and also for monitoring songbirds at risk (this songbird is habitat-area sensitive). Black-whiskered Vireo may be another potential indicator species to monitor in mangrove forests. Monitoring for these species can be done by distance sampling on transects or by species presenceabsence from point counts. • Damaged vegetation should be monitored for recovery (permanent or long-term plots), especially where previous study plots have been established and with additional plots in mangrove forests of waterbird nesting islands and freshwater wetlands. • Potential loss of wetlands (and information for management) may be prevented by water level monitoring (3 permanent stations), locating the positions (GPS-GIS) and maintaining existing water control structures, creating a GIS map of the refuge with accurate vertical data, and monitoring and eradicating invasive plants. Invasive species, including Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) and air potato (Dioscorea bulbifora), were common in a very limited survey and may become more dominant in areas damaged by the storm. Special attention is needed to eradicate these exotic plants. • As an important monitoring goal, the survey team recommends that species presence-absence data analysis (with probability of detection) be used to determine changes in animal communities. This could be accomplished possibly with comparison to other storm-damaged and undamaged refuges in the Region. This information may be helpful to refuge managers when storms return in the future.

On the Reduced Geoeffectiveness of Solar Cycle 24: A Moderate Storm Perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Selvakumaran, R.; Veenadhari, B.; Akiyama, S.; Pandya, Megha; Gopalswamy, N,; Yashiro, S.; Kumar, Sandeep; Makela, P.; Xie, H.

2016-01-01

The moderate and intense geomagnetic storms are identified for the first 77 months of solar cycles 23 and 24. The solar sources responsible for the moderate geomagnetic storms are indentified during the same epoch for both the cycles. Solar cycle 24 has shown nearly 80% reduction in the occurrence of intense storms whereas it is only 40% in case of moderate storms when compared to previous cycle. The solar and interplanetary characteristics of the moderate storms driven by coronal mass ejection (CME) are compared for solar cycles 23 and 24 in order to see reduction in geoeffectiveness has anything to do with the occurrence of moderate storm. Though there is reduction in the occurrence of moderate storms, the Dst distribution does not show much difference. Similarly, the solar source parameters like CME speed, mass, and width did not show any significant variation in the average values as well as the distribution. The correlation between VBz and Dst is determined, and it is found to be moderate with value of 0.68 for cycle 23 and 0.61 for cycle 24. The magnetospheric energy flux parameter epsilon (epsilon) is estimated during the main phase of all moderate storms during solar cycles 23 and 24. The energy transfer decreased in solar cycle 24 when compared to cycle 23. These results are significantly different when all geomagnetic storms are taken into consideration for both the solar cycles.

Identifying Hail Signatures in Satellite Imagery from the 9-10 August 2011 Severe Weather Event

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dryden, Rachel L.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Cole, Tony A.; Bell, Jordan

2014-01-01

Severe thunderstorms can produce large hail that causes property damage, livestock fatalities, and crop failure. However, detailed storm surveys of hail damage conducted by the National Weather Service (NWS) are not required. Current gaps also exist between Storm Prediction Center (SPC) hail damage estimates and crop-insurance payouts. NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument aboard the Terra and Aqua satellites can be used to support NWS damage assessments, particularly to crops during the growing season. The two-day severe weather event across western Nebraska and central Kansas during 9-10 August 2011 offers a case study for investigating hail damage signatures by examining changes in Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from MODIS imagery. By analyzing hail damage swaths in satellite imagery, potential economic losses due to crop damage can be quantified and further improve the estimation of weather impacts on agriculture without significantly increasing manpower requirements.

Treatment of Storm Fears Using Virtual Reality and Progressive Muscle Relaxation.

PubMed

Lima, Jessica; McCabe-Bennett, Hanna; Antony, Martin M

2018-03-01

The present study examined the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) exposure therapy for treating individuals with storm fears by comparing a one-session VR exposure treatment with a one-session progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) and psychoeducation session. It was predicted that there would be a reduction in storm-related fear post-treatment for individuals in both conditions, but that this reduction would be greater for those in the VR exposure condition. It was predicted that improvements would be maintained at 30-day follow-up only for those in the VR exposure condition. Thirty-six participants each received one of the two treatment conditions. Those in the PMR treatment group received approximately 30 minutes of PMR and approximately 15 minutes of psychoeducation regarding storms. Those in the VR treatment group received approximately 1 hour of VR exposure. Additionally, participants were asked to complete a pre-treatment and post-treatment 5-minute behavioural approach test to assess changes in storm fears. They were also asked to complete a measure assessing storm phobia. There was a significant interaction between treatment group and self-reported fear at post-treatment, such that fear decreased for both groups, although the reduction was stronger in the VR group. Results also showed that reductions in storm fear were maintained at 30-day follow-up for both groups. Although this study used a small non-clinical sample, these results offer preliminary support for the use of VR exposure therapy in the treatment of storm-related fear.

Zonal wind observations during a geomagnetic storm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, N. J.; Spencer, N. W.

1986-01-01

In situ measurements taken by the Wind and Temperature Spectrometer (WATS) onboard the Dynamics Explorer 2 spacecraft during a geomagnetic storm display zonal wind velocities that are reduced in the corotational direction as the storm intensifies. The data were taken within the altitudes 275 to 475 km in the dusk local time sector equatorward of the auroral region. Characteristic variations in the value of the Dst index of horizontal geomagnetic field strength are used to monitor the storm evolution. The detected global rise in atmospheric gas temperature indicates the development of thermospheric heating. Concurrent with that heating, reductions in corotational wind velocities were measured equatorward of the auroral region. Just after the sudden commencement, while thermospheric heating is intense in both hemispheres, eastward wind velocities in the northern hemisphere show reductions ranging from 500 m/s over high latitudes to 30 m/s over the geomagnetic equator. After 10 hours storm time, while northern thermospheric heating is diminishing, wind velocity reductions, distinct from those initially observed, begin to develop over southern latitudes. In the latter case, velocity reductions range from 300 m/s over the highest southern latitudes to 150 m/s over the geomagnetic equator and extend into the Northern Hemisphere. The observations highlight the interhemispheric asymmetry in the development of storm effects detected as enhanced gas temperatures and reduced eastward wind velocities. Zonal wind reductions over high latitudes can be attributed to the storm induced equatorward spread of westward polar cap plasma convection and the resulting plasma-neutral collisions. However, those collisions are less significant over low latitudes; so zonal wind reductions over low latitudes must be attributed to an equatorward extension of a thermospheric circulation pattern disrupted by high latitude collisions between neutrals transported via eastward winds and ions convecting westward.

Modelling multi-hazard hurricane damages on an urbanized coast with a Bayesian Network approach

USGS Publications Warehouse

van Verseveld, H.C.W.; Van Dongeren, A. R.; Plant, Nathaniel G.; Jäger, W.S.; den Heijer, C.

2015-01-01

Hurricane flood impacts to residential buildings in coastal zones are caused by a number of hazards, such as inundation, overflow currents, erosion, and wave attack. However, traditional hurricane damage models typically make use of stage-damage functions, where the stage is related to flooding depth only. Moreover, these models are deterministic and do not consider the large amount of uncertainty associated with both the processes themselves and with the predictions. This uncertainty becomes increasingly important when multiple hazards (flooding, wave attack, erosion, etc.) are considered simultaneously. This paper focusses on establishing relationships between observed damage and multiple hazard indicators in order to make better probabilistic predictions. The concept consists of (1) determining Local Hazard Indicators (LHIs) from a hindcasted storm with use of a nearshore morphodynamic model, XBeach, and (2) coupling these LHIs and building characteristics to the observed damages. We chose a Bayesian Network approach in order to make this coupling and used the LHIs ‘Inundation depth’, ‘Flow velocity’, ‘Wave attack’, and ‘Scour depth’ to represent flooding, current, wave impacts, and erosion related hazards.The coupled hazard model was tested against four thousand damage observations from a case site at the Rockaway Peninsula, NY, that was impacted by Hurricane Sandy in late October, 2012. The model was able to accurately distinguish ‘Minor damage’ from all other outcomes 95% of the time and could distinguish areas that were affected by the storm, but not severely damaged, 68% of the time. For the most heavily damaged buildings (‘Major Damage’ and ‘Destroyed’), projections of the expected damage underestimated the observed damage. The model demonstrated that including multiple hazards doubled the prediction skill, with Log-Likelihood Ratio test (a measure of improved accuracy and reduction in uncertainty) scores between 0.02 and 0.17 when only one hazard is considered and a score of 0.37 when multiple hazards are considered simultaneously. The LHIs with the most predictive skill were ‘Inundation depth’ and ‘Wave attack’. The Bayesian Network approach has several advantages over the market-standard stage-damage functions: the predictive capacity of multiple indicators can be combined; probabilistic predictions can be obtained, which include uncertainty; and quantitative as well as descriptive information can be used simultaneously.

Evaluating the Impacts of Extreme Events on Ecological Processes Through the Lens of an Ice Storm Manipulation Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campbell, J. L.; Rustad, L.; Driscoll, C. T.; Fahey, T.; Garlick, S.; Groffman, P.; Schaberg, P. G.

2016-12-01

It is increasingly evident that human-induced climate change is altering the prevalence and severity of extreme weather events. Ice storms are an example of a rare and typically localized extreme weather event that is difficult to predict and has impacts that are poorly understood. We used long-term data and a field manipulation experiment to evaluate how ice storms alter the structure, function, and composition of forest ecosystems. Plots established after a major ice storm in the Northeast in 1998 were re-sampled to evaluate longer-term (17 yr) responses of tree health, productivity, and species composition. Results indicate, that despite changes in herbaceous vegetation in the years immediately after the ice storm, the forest canopy recovered, albeit with some changes in composition, most notably a release of American Beech. An ice storm field manipulation experiment was used to evaluate mechanistic understanding of short term ecological responses. Water from a stream was sprayed above the forest canopy when air temperatures were below freezing, which was effective in simulating a natural ice storm. The experimental design consisted of three levels of ice thickness treatment with two replicates per treatment. The plots with the two more severe icing treatments experienced significant damage to the forest canopy, creating gaps. These plots also had large inputs of fine and coarse woody debris to the forest floor. The exposure to light and presence of brush piles in the more heavily damaged plots resulted in warming with increased spatial variability of soil temperature. Preliminary results from the early growing season have shown no significant changes in soil respiration or soil solution losses of nutrients despite significant forest canopy damage. Further monitoring will determine whether these trends continue in the future.

Debris Flows and Road Damage Following a Wildfire in 2014 on the Klamath National Forest, Northern California, Near the Community of Seiad, CA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De La Fuente, J. A.; Mikulovsky, R. P.

2016-12-01

Wildfires in summer 2014 burned more than 200,000 acres on the Klamath National Forest in Northern California, east of Seiad, CA. Much of the area burned at high and moderate severity, and is underlain by Slinkard Pluton granitic rock. During winter 2014-2015, there were a few debris flows in small streams, and some clogged culverts on the road system, but overall road damage was minor. In July of 2015, a strong convective storm triggered several large debris flows, including East Fork Walker and No Name Creeks. These and other debris flows damaged road stream crossings, and delivered a large volume of sediment to the stream network. LiDAR differencing is being used to identify and quantify erosion and deposition from that storm. Field inventories revealed widespread rills and small gullies on steep, burned hillslopes, particularly where underlain by granitic rock. Resulting debris flows were of the sediment bulking variety, and no landslide-triggered debris flows were observed. This may be because intense summer storms are of short duration, and are unlikely to saturate the surface mantle, due also to water repellant soil conditions. It is unknown if erosion during the first winter affected the response to the July storm. Storms around January 17, 2016 initiated many road fill failures, and most were limited to the outer half of the road. Field investigations revealed that granitic road fills failed in a variety of settings, including planar hillslopes, on the flanks of ridges, channel crossings, and at road dips. In virtually all cases, vegetation on the fills, up to 50 years old, had been killed by the 2014 fire. Some fills developed small cracks and scarps, whereas others failed catastrophically as debris slides/flows. Few sediment-bulking debris flows were observed in January, 2016. Road damage exceeded two million dollars, and qualified for Emergency Relief Federally Owned funding (ERFO). The effects of the July, 2015 storm were dominated by sheet wash, rilling, flooding, and debris flows, and road damage was concentrated at stream crossings. In contrast, storms in winter 2015-2016 produced many road fill failures, often far from stream crossings, and these were probably associated with deeper saturation of the regolith. Thus, it is critical that road repair measures address both overland flow and saturation responses.

Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to Modeling Tornado Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wagner, M.; Doe, R. K.

2017-12-01

Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to assess storm damage is a useful research tool. Benefits include their ability to access remote or impassable areas post-storm, identify unknown damages and assist with more detailed site investigations and rescue efforts. Technological advancement of UAVs mean that they can capture high resolution images often at an affordable price. These images can be used to create 3D environments to better interpret and delineate damages from large areas that would have been difficult in ground surveys. This research presents the results of a rapid response site investigation of the 29 April 2017 Canton, Texas, USA, tornado using low cost UAVs. This was a multiple, high impact tornado event measuring EF4 at maximum. Rural farmland was chosen as a challenging location to test both equipment and methodology. Such locations provide multiple impacts at a variety of scales including structural and vegetation damage and even animal fatalities. The 3D impact models allow for a more comprehensive study prior to clean-up. The results show previously unseen damages and better quantify damage impacts at the local level. 3D digital track swaths were created allowing for a more accurate track width determination. These results demonstrate how effective the use of low cost UAVs can be for rapid response storm damage assessments, the high quality of data they can achieve, and how they can help us better visualize tornado site investigations.

Storm Surge Simulation and Ensemble Forecast for Hurricane Irene (2011)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, N.; Emanuel, K.

2012-12-01

Hurricane Irene, raking the U.S. East Coast during the period of 26-30 August 2011, caused widespread damage estimated at $15.8 billion and was responsible for 49 direct deaths (Avila and Cangialosi, 2011). Although the most severe impact in the northeastern U.S. was catastrophic inland flooding, with its unusually large size, Irene also generated high waves and storm surges and caused moderate to major coastal flooding. The most severe surge damage occurred between Oregon Inlet and Cape Hatteras in North Carolina (NC). Significant storm surge damage also occurred along southern Chesapeake Bay, and moderate and high surges were observed along the coast from New Jersey (NJ) northward. A storm surge of 0.9-1.8 m caused hundreds of millions of dollars in property damage in New York City (NYC) and Long Island, despite the fact that the storm made landfall to the west of NYC with peak winds of no more than tropical storm strength. Making three U.S. landfalls (in NC, NJ, and NY), Hurricane Irene provides a unique case for studying storm surge along the eastern U.S. coastline. We apply the hydrodynamic model ADCIRC (Luettich et al. 1992) to conduct surge simulations for Pamlico Sound, Chesapeake Bay, and NYC, using best track data and parametric wind and pressure models. The results agree well with tidal-gauge observations. Then we explore a new methodology for storm surge ensemble forecasting and apply it to Irene. This method applies a statistical/deterministic hurricane model (Emanuel et al. 2006) to generate large numbers of storm ensembles under the storm environment described by the 51 ECMWF ensemble members. The associated surge ensembles are then generated with the ADCIRC model. The numerical simulation is computationally efficient, making the method applicable to real-time storm surge ensemble forecasting. We report the results for NYC in this presentation. The ADCIRC simulation using the best track data generates a storm surge of 1.3 m and a storm tide of 2.1 m at the Battery, NYC, which agree well with the observed storm surge of 1.33 m and storm tide of 2.12 m, although the simulated surge arrives about 2 hours earlier than the observed. Based on the surge climatology estimated by Lin et al. (2012), Hurricane Irene's storm surge is approximately a 60-year event for NYC, but its storm tide, with the surge happening right at the high astronomical tide, is a 100-year event. Lin et al. (2012) also projected that such 100-year storm tide events might occur on average every 3-20 years by the end of the century, under the IPCC A1B emission scenario and a 1-m sea level rise. The ensemble forecasting, starting from two and one days (each with 1000 ensembles) before Irene's first landfall in NC, shows that Irene's actual storm surge at the Battery had a chance of about 9% and 10% to be exceeded, respectively. The largest surges among the two ensemble sets are 2.28 m and 2.05 m, respectively. If happening at the high tide, as with Hurricane Irene, the worst-case storm tides would be about 3-3.2 m, similar to the highest historical water level at the Battery due to a hurricane in 1821. Lin et al. (2012) estimated that such a storm tide of about 3.1 m had a return period of about 500 years under current climate conditions, but the return period might become 25-240 years by the end of the century, under the IPCC A1B emission scenario and a 1-m sea level rise.

Quantification of increased flood risk due to global climate change for urban river management planning.

PubMed

Morita, M

2011-01-01

Global climate change is expected to affect future rainfall patterns. These changes should be taken into account when assessing future flooding risks. This study presents a method for quantifying the increase in flood risk caused by global climate change for use in urban flood risk management. Flood risk in this context is defined as the product of flood damage potential and the probability of its occurrence. The study uses a geographic information system-based flood damage prediction model to calculate the flood damage caused by design storms with different return periods. Estimation of the monetary damages these storms produce and their return periods are precursors to flood risk calculations. The design storms are developed from modified intensity-duration-frequency relationships generated by simulations of global climate change scenarios (e.g. CGCM2A2). The risk assessment method is applied to the Kanda River basin in Tokyo, Japan. The assessment provides insights not only into the flood risk cost increase due to global warming, and the impact that increase may have on flood control infrastructure planning.

The value of coastal wetlands for hurricane protection.

PubMed

Costanza, Robert; Pérez-Maqueo, Octavio; Martinez, M Luisa; Sutton, Paul; Anderson, Sharolyn J; Mulder, Kenneth

2008-06-01

Coastal wetlands reduce the damaging effects of hurricanes on coastal communities. A regression model using 34 major US hurricanes since 1980 with the natural log of damage per unit gross domestic product in the hurricane swath as the dependent variable and the natural logs of wind speed and wetland area in the swath as the independent variables was highly significant and explained 60% of the variation in relative damages. A loss of 1 ha of wetland in the model corresponded to an average USD 33,000 (median = USD 5000) increase in storm damage from specific storms. Using this relationship, and taking into account the annual probability of hits by hurricanes of varying intensities, we mapped the annual value of coastal wetlands by 1 km x 1 km pixel and by state. The annual value ranged from USD 250 to USD 51,000 ha(-1) yr(-1), with a mean of USD 8240 ha(-1) yr(-1) (median = USD 3230 ha(-1) yr(-1)) significantly larger than previous estimates. Coastal wetlands in the US were estimated to currently provide USD 23.2 billion yr(-1) in storm protection services. Coastal wetlands function as valuable, selfmaintaining "horizontal levees" for storm protection, and also provide a host of other ecosystem services that vertical levees do not. Their restoration and preservation is an extremely cost-effective strategy for society.

Katrina: boon or bust for freshwater fish communities?

Treesearch

Susan B. Adams

2005-01-01

Hurricane Katrina was the most damaging storm to hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast in recent history. Although catastrophic in human terms, was Katrina a disaster for freshwater ecosystems? Were the storm and its impacts on freshwater fish communities “natural”? The naturalness of the storm’s effects on freshwater communities varies depending on previous anthropogenic...

Genetic variation for susceptibility to storm-induced stem breakage in Solidago altissima: The role of stem height and morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wise, Michael J.; Abrahamson, Warren G.

2010-07-01

While storms can have obvious ecological impacts on plants, plants' potential to respond evolutionarily to selection for increased resistance to storm damage has received little study. We took advantage of a thunderstorm with strong wind and hail to examine genetic variation for resistance to stem breakage in the herbaceous perennial Solidago altissima. The storm broke the apex of nearly 10% of 1883 marked ramets in a common-garden plot containing 26 genets of S. altissima. Plant genets varied 20-fold in resistance to breakage. Stem height was strongly correlated with resistance to breakage, with taller stems being significantly more susceptible. A stem's growth form (erect versus nodding) had no detectable effect on its resistance to breakage. Therefore, we rejected the hypothesis that a function of the nodding, or "candy-cane," morphology is protection of the apex from storm damage. The significant genetic variation in S. altissima for stem breakage suggests that this plant has the capacity to respond to selection imposed by storms - particularly through changes in mean stem height. Tradeoffs between breakage resistance and competition for light and pollinators may act to maintain a large amount of genetic variation in stem height.

South Texas coastal classification maps - Mansfield Channel to the Rio Grande

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, Robert A.; Peterson, Russell L.

2006-01-01

The Nation's rapidly growing coastal population requires reliable information regarding the vulnerability of coastal regions to storm impacts. This has created a need for classifying coastal lands and evaluating storm-hazard vulnerability. Government officials and resource managers responsible for dealing with natural hazards also need accurate assessments of potential storm impacts in order to make informed decisions before, during, and after major storm events. Both economic development and coastal-damage mitigation require integrated models of storm parameters, hazard vulnerability, and expected coastal responses. Thus, storm-hazard vulnerability assessments constitute one of the fundamental components of forecasting storm impacts. Each year as many as 10 to 12 hurricanes and tropical storms will be the focus of national attention. Of particular interest are intense hurricanes (Categories 3 to 5 of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale) that have the potential to cause substantial economic and environmental damage to the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the United States. These coastal regions include some of the largest metropolitan areas in the country and they continue to experience rapid population growth. Based on media reports, there is a general lack of public knowledge regarding how different coastal segments will respond to the same storm or how the same coastal segment will respond differently depending on storm conditions. A primary purpose of the USGS National Assessment of Coastal Change Project is to provide accurate representations of pre-storm ground conditions for areas that are designated high priority because they have dense populations or valuable resources that are at risk. A secondary purpose is to develop a broad coastal classification that, with only minor modification, can be applied to most coastal regions in the United States.

Agricultural damages and losses from ARkStorm scenario flooding in California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wein, Anne; David Mitchell,; Peters, Jeff; John Rowden,; Johnny Tran,; Alessandra Corsi,; Dinitz, Laura B.

2016-01-01

Scientists designed the ARkStorm scenario to challenge the preparedness of California communities for widespread flooding with a historical precedence and increased likelihood under climate change. California is an important provider of vegetables, fruits, nuts, and other agricultural products to the nation. This study analyzes the agricultural damages and losses pertaining to annual crops, perennial crops, and livestock in California exposed to ARkStorm flooding. Statewide, flood damage is incurred on approximately 23% of annual crop acreage, 5% of perennial crop acreage, and 5% of livestock, e.g., dairy, feedlot, and poultry, acreage. The sum of field repair costs, forgone income, and product replacement costs span $3.7 and $7.1 billion (2009) for a range of inundation durations. Perennial crop loss estimates dominate, and the vulnerability of orchards and vineyards has likely increased with recent expansion. Crop reestablishment delays from levee repair and dewatering more than double annual crop losses in the delta islands, assuming the fragile system does not remain permanently flooded. The exposure of almost 200,000 dairy cows to ARkStorm flooding poses livestock evacuation challenges. Read More: http://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/%28ASCE%29NH.1527-6996.0000174

Geography of blizzards in the conterminous United States, 1959--2000

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwartz, Robert Michael

2001-07-01

Many individuals think of tornadoes and hurricanes when considering weather-related storms. However, winter storms and blizzards have potential impacts on millions of people and effects on the social landscape such as fatalities, injuries, and economic consequences. Additionally, these storms can last from a few hours to over a week. This study established a climatology of blizzards in the conterminous United States from 1959-2000 utilizing data from Storm Data to identify the spatial and temporal patterns of blizzards. The annual probability of a blizzard on a county level was calculated to give the empirical probability of having a blizzard in any given winter season. Additionally, the number of blizzards were compared to the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) teleconnection by running a linear regression to check for correlation. Finally, the social impacts of blizzards studied included the population affected, fatalities, injuries, property damage, crop damage, and federal disaster declarations. Maps were produced utilizing MapInfo and ArcView Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to summarize regional differences and temporal trends. There were 438 blizzards analyzed in the study with an annual mean of 10.7 blizzards per winter season with the majority of storms occurring in the northern Plains states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and western Minnesota. Time series analysis indicated an increase in the number of blizzards over the 41-year period while there was no linear trend of the area affected by blizzards. Annual probabilities of a blizzard were as high as 76% for Cavalier, Rolette, Steele, Towner, and Traill Counties in North Dakota. The ENSO teleconnection and the number of blizzards on the national scale suggested a negative correlation with fewer blizzards during El Nino episodes. Social impacts indicated blizzards affected 26.3 million per season with 16 fatalities and 49 injuries per season reported to Storm Data . The total population affected each winter did not show a linear trend. An average winter reported 551 million in property damage and 26 million in crop damage according to Storm Data. The number of declared disasters or emergencies due to blizzards has been increasing, especially in the 1990s.

Wildlife and habitat damage assessment from Hurricane Charley: recommendations for recovery of the J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge Complex. [Final report to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meyers, J.M.; Langtimm, C.A.; Smith, T. J.; Pednault-Willett, K.

2005-01-01

On 13 August 2004, the first of four hurricanes to strike Florida in 50% and sometimes 90% of their vegetation severely damaged (dead, broken tree stems, and tipped trees). Shell Mound Trail of JNDDNWR sustained catastrophic damage to its old growth mangrove forests. Direct storm mortality and injury to manatees in the area was probably slight. Because seagrass beads and manatee habitat extend beyond refuge boundaries, we recommended a regional approach with partner agencies to more thoroughly assess storm impacts and monitor recovery of seagrass and manatees. Besides intensive monitoring of waterbirds and their nesting habitat (pre- and post-storm), we recommend that the Mangrove Cuckoo be used as an indicator species for recovery of mangrove forests and also for monitoring songbirds at risk. Black-whiskered Vireo may be another potential indicator species to monitor in mangrove forests. Damaged vegetation should be monitored for recovery (permanent or long-term plots), especially where previous study plots have been established and with additional plots in mangrove forests of waterbird nesting islands and freshwater wetlands. Potential loss of wetlands may be prevented by water level monitoring, locating the positions (GPS-GIS) and maintaining existing water control structures, creating a GIS map of refuge with accurate vertical data, and monitoring and eradicating invasive plants. Invasive species, including Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) and air potato (Dioscorea bulbifora), were common in a very limited survey. As an important monitoring goal, we recommend that species presence-absence data analysis (with probability of detection) be used to determine changes in animal communities. This could be accomplished possibly with comparison to other storm-damaged and undamaged refuges in the Region. This information may be helpful to refuge managers when storms return in the future.

Hurricane Harvey: Infrastructure Damage Assessment of Texas' Central Gulf Coast Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mooney, W. D.; Fovenyessy, S.; Patterson, S. F.

2017-12-01

We report a detailed ground-based damage survey for Hurricane Harvey, the first major hurricane to make landfall along the central Texas coast since the 1970 Category 3 Hurricane Celia. Harvey, a Category 4 storm, made landfall near Rockport, Texas on August 25th, 2017 at 10 PM local time. From September 2nd to 5th we visited Rockport and 22 nearby cities to assess the severity of the damage. Nearly all damage observed occurred as a direct result of the hurricane-force winds, rather than a storm surge. This observation is in contrast to the severe damage caused by both high winds and a significant storm surge, locally 3 to 5 m in height, in the 2013 Category 5 Hurricane Haiyan, that devastated the Philippines. We have adopted a damage scale and have given an average damage score for each of the areas investigated. Our damage contour map illustrates the areal variation in damage. The damage observed was widespread with a high degree of variability. Different types of damage included: (1) fallen fences and utility poles; (2) trees with branches broken or completely snapped in half; (3) business signs that were either partially or fully destroyed; (4) partially sunken or otherwise damaged boats; (5) and sheet metal sheds either completely or partially destroyed. There was also varying degrees of damage to both residential and commercial structures. Many homes had (6) roof damage, ranging from minor damage to complete destruction of the roof and second story, and (7) siding damage, where parts or whole sections of the homes siding had been removed. The area that had the lowest average damage score was Corpus Christi, and the areas that had the highest average damage score was both Fulton and Holiday Beach. There is no simple, uniform pattern of damage distribution. Rather, the damage was scattered, revealing hot spots of areas that received more damage than the surrounding area. However, when compared to the NOAA wind swath map, all of the damage was contained within the zone of highest wind speed.

Bioswales reduce contaminants associated with toxicity in urban storm water.

PubMed

Anderson, Brian S; Phillips, Bryn M; Voorhees, Jennifer P; Siegler, Katie; Tjeerdema, Ronald

2016-12-01

Contamination and toxicity associated with urban storm water runoff are a growing concern because of the potential impacts on receiving systems. California water regulators are mandating implementation of green infrastructure as part of new urban development projects to treat storm water and increase infiltration. Parking lot bioswales are low impact development practices that promote filtering of runoff through plants and soil. Studies have demonstrated that bioswales reduce concentrations of suspended sediments, metals, and hydrocarbons. There have been no published studies evaluating how well these structures treat current-use pesticides, and studies have largely ignored whether bioswales reduce toxicity in surface water. Three storms were monitored at 3 commercial and residential sites, and reductions of contaminants and associated toxicity were quantified. Toxicity testing showed that the majority of untreated storm water samples were toxic to amphipods (Hyalella azteca) and midges (Chironomus dilutus), and toxicity was reduced by the bioswales. No samples were toxic to daphnids (Ceriodaphnia dubia) or fish (Pimephales promelas). Contaminants were significantly reduced by the bioswales, including suspended solids (81% reduction), metals (81% reduction), hydrocarbons (82% reduction), and pyrethroid pesticides (74% reduction). The single exception was the phenypyrazole pesticide fipronil, which showed inconsistent treatment. The results demonstrate these systems effectively treat contaminated storm water associated with surface water toxicity but suggest that modifications of their construction may be required to treat some contaminant classes. Environ Toxicol Chem 2016;35:3124-3134. © 2016 SETAC. © 2016 SETAC.

Susceptibility of central hardwood trees to stem breakage due to ice glazing

Treesearch

KaDonna C. Randolph

2014-01-01

During January 26-28, 2009, a winter storm dropped a mix of rain, ice, and snow from Texas across the Ohio River Valley and into New England. The storm caused multiple fatalities and millions of dollars of property damage and was called "the biggest natural disaster in modern Kentucky history" (Brammer and Funk 2009: 13). The storm disturbed an estimated 2.4...

Assessing Cost-effectiveness of Green Infrastructures in response to Large Storm Events at Household Scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chui, T. F. M.; Liu, X.; Zhan, W.

2015-12-01

Green infrastructures (GI) are becoming more important for urban stormwater control worldwide. However, relatively few studies focus on researching the specific designs of GI at household scale. This study assesses the hydrological performance and cost-effectiveness of different GI designs, namely green roofs, bioretention systems and porous pavements. It aims to generate generic insights by comparing the optimal designs of each GI in 2-year and 50-year storms of Hong Kong, China and Seattle, US. EPA SWMM is first used to simulate the hydrologic performance, in particular, the peak runoff reduction of thousands of GI designs. Then, life cycle costs of the designs are computed and their effectiveness, in terms of peak runoff reduction percentage per thousand dollars, is compared. The peak runoff reduction increases almost linearly with costs for green roofs. However, for bioretention systems and porous pavements, peak runoff reduction only increases significantly with costs in the mid values. For achieving the same peak runoff reduction percentage, the optimal soil depth of green roofs increases with the design storm, while surface area does not change significantly. On the other hand, for bioretention systems and porous pavements, the optimal surface area increases with the design storm, while thickness does not change significantly. In general, the cost effectiveness of porous pavements is highest, followed by bioretention systems and then green roofs. The cost effectiveness is higher for a smaller storm, and is thus higher for 2-year storm than 50-year storm, and is also higher for Seattle when compared to Hong Kong. This study allows us to better understand the hydrological performance and cost-effectiveness of different GI designs. It facilitates the implementation of optimal choice and design of each specific GI for stormwater mitigation.

Impacts of a Destructive and Well-Observed Cross-Country Winter Storm.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martner, Brooks E.; Rauber, Robert M.; Ramamurthy, Mohan K.; Rasmussen, Roy M.; Prater, Erwin T.

1992-02-01

A winter storm that crossed the continental United States in mid-February 1990 produced hazardous weather across a vast area of the nation. A wide range of severe weather was reported, including heavy snowfall; freezing rain and drizzle; thunderstorms with destructive winds, lightning, large hail, and tornadoes; prolonged heavy rain with subsequent flooding; frost damage to citrus orchards; and sustained destructive winds not associated with thunderstorms. Low-end preliminary estimates of impacts included 9 deaths, 27 injuries, and $120 million of property damage. At least 35 states and southeastern Canada were adversely affected. The storm occurred during the field operations of four independent atmospheric research projects that obtained special, detailed observations of it from the Rocky Mountains to the eastern great Lakes.

Scour damage to Vermont bridges and scour monitoring.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-06-01

Scour is by far the primary cause of bridge failures in the United States. Regionally, the : vulnerability of bridges to flood damage became evident from the damage seen to Vermont : bridges in the 2011 Tropical Storm Irene. Successfully mitigating s...

1954 hurricane damage on Penobscot Experimental Forest

Treesearch

T. J. Grisez

1954-01-01

The two hurricanes "Carol" and "Edna" that struck inland over New England this summer caused some timber losses. But the damage was neither so extensive nor so severe as the damage done by the hurricane of 1938 and the storms of 1950.

Investigation of the passage of a derecho in Belgium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamid, Karim

2012-04-01

From the 7th July, 2010 until 14th July, 2010, a heat wave dominated the weather in Belgium. Three major storm situations occurred during this period and all three caused severe damage. In this paper, we discuss the last storm case of 14th July. That day, a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) crossed parts of France, Belgium and the Netherlands and caused very important wind damages and at least 2 people were killed. Most of the damage was caused by straight-line wind but at least one tornado was observed over the north of the Netherlands. This complex was induced in a very favorable synoptic configuration for severe weather and also the timing of the storm was favorable. In the frame of the Supercell project at the RMI, a damage survey was made of one of the most affected regions, which yielded useful information about the origin of the losses. Careful examination of the radar imagery revealed some connections between internal mesovortices and tracks of enhanced damage. As far as known, this paper is the first description of a derecho in Belgium. It is also the first time a connection is shown between some mesovortices and several damage tracks over the country. During the evolution of the QLCS, several examples of successive vortices were found in front of the system. Several of the vortices were accompanied by a tornado or a funnel cloud and the damage was typically concentrated along elongated tracks.

Areal-reduction factors for the precipitation of the 1-day design storm in Texas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Asquith, William H.

1999-01-01

The reduction of the precipitation depth from a design storm for a point to an effective (mean) depth over a watershed often is important for cost-effective design of hydraulic structures by reducing the volume of precipitation. A design storm for a point is the depth of precipitation that has a specified duration and frequency (recurrence interval). The effective depth can be calculated by multiplying the design-storm depth by an areal-reduction factor (ARF). ARF ranges from 0 to 1, varies with the recurrence interval of the design storm, and is a function of watershed characteristics such as watershed size and shape, geographic location, and time of year that the design storm occurs. This report documents an investigation of ARF by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Texas Department of Transportation, for the 1-day design storm for Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Texas. The ?annual maxima-centered? approach used in this report specifically considers the distribution of concurrent precipitation surrounding an annual precipitation maxima. Unlike previously established approaches, the annual maxima-centered approach does not require the spatial averaging of precipitation nor explicit definition of a representative area of a particular storm in the analysis. Graphs of the relation between ARF and circular watershed area (to about 7,000 square miles) are provided, and a technique to calculate ARF for noncircular watersheds is discussed.

Preliminary assessment of post-Haiyan mangrove damage and short-term recovery in Eastern Samar, central Philippines.

PubMed

Primavera, J H; Dela Cruz, M; Montilijao, C; Consunji, H; Dela Paz, M; Rollon, R N; Maranan, K; Samson, M S; Blanco, A

2016-08-30

Strong winds and storm surges from Typhoon Haiyan caused damage of US$12-15billion and >10,000 human casualties in central Philippines in November 2013. To validate a proposed government US$22million mangrove replanting program, mangrove damage and short-term recovery were surveyed in seven natural and planted mangrove sites in Eastern Samar province at 2.5month and 4.5month post-Haiyan. The preliminary assessment showed that natural mangroves (except for those directly hit by the storm) were recovering by means of tree sprouts and surviving seedlings and saplings compared to the devastated plantation. Likewise, tree mortality was higher in the plantation and natural forests hit by the storm surge, compared to more undamaged and partially damaged trees in natural mangroves. Hence the main recommendations to government are (1) to protect recovering mangroves by not releasing rehabilitation funds (that will inadvertently pay for clearing of live trees and for removal of seedlings), (2) to only plant in totally damaged sites (e.g., plantations), and (3) to only plant naturally dominant species, e.g., Sonneratia alba and Avicennia marina (instead of the popular Rhizophora apiculata, R. mucronata and R. stylosa). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Incorporating Storm Sewer Exfiltration into SWMM: Proof of Concept

EPA Science Inventory

This study evaluates the peak flow and volume reduction achieved by exfiltration from a perforated storm sewer in an urban catchment. There are three related objectives: [1] quantify peak flow and volume reduction; [2] demonstrate adaptability to climate change; and [3] evaluate ...

Major coastal impact induced by a 1000-year storm event

PubMed Central

Fruergaard, Mikkel; Andersen, Thorbjørn J.; Johannessen, Peter N.; Nielsen, Lars H.; Pejrup, Morten

2013-01-01

Extreme storms and storm surges may induce major changes along sandy barrier coastlines, potentially causing substantial environmental and economic damage. We show that the most destructive storm (the 1634 AD storm) documented for the northern Wadden Sea within the last thousand years both caused permanent barrier breaching and initiated accumulation of up to several metres of marine sand. An aggradational storm shoal and a prograding shoreface sand unit having thicknesses of up to 8 m and 5 m respectively were deposited as a result of the storm and during the subsequent 30 to 40 years long healing phase, on the eroded shoreface. Our results demonstrate that millennial-scale storms can induce large-scale and long-term changes on barrier coastlines and shorefaces, and that coastal changes assumed to take place over centuries or even millennia may occur in association with and be triggered by a single extreme storm event.

Establishing storm thresholds for the Spanish Gulf of Cádiz coast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Del Río, Laura; Plomaritis, Theocharis A.; Benavente, Javier; Valladares, María; Ribera, Pedro

2012-03-01

In this study critical thresholds are defined for storm impacts along the Spanish coast of the Gulf of Cádiz. The thresholds correspond to the minimum wave and tide conditions necessary to produce significant morphological changes on beaches and dunes and/or damage on coastal infrastructure or human occupation. Threshold definition was performed by computing theoretical sea-level variations during storms and comparing them with the topography of the study area and the location of infrastructure at a local level. Specifically, the elevations of the berm, the dune foot and the entrance of existing washovers were selected as threshold parameters. The total sea-level variation generated by a storm event was estimated as the sum of the tidal level, the wind-induced setup, the barometric setup and the wave-associated sea-level variation (wave setup and runup), assuming a minimum interaction between the different processes. These components were calculated on the basis of parameterisations for significant wave height (Hs) obtained for the oceanographic and environmental conditions of the Gulf of Cadiz. For this purpose real data and reanalysis time-series (HIPOCAS project) were used. Validation of the obtained results was performed for a range of coastal settings over the study area. The obtained thresholds for beach morphological changes in spring tide conditions range between a significant wave height of 1.5 m and 3.7 m depending on beach characteristics, while for dune foot erosion are around 3.3 to 3.7 m and for damage to infrastructure around 7.2 m. In case of neap tide conditions these values are increased on average by 50% over the areas with large tidal range. Furthermore, records of real damage in coastal infrastructure caused by storms were collected at a regional level from newspapers and other bibliographic sources and compared with the hydrodynamic conditions that caused the damage. These were extracted from the hindcast database of the HIPOCAS project, including parameters such as storm duration, mean and maximum wave height and wave direction. Results show that the duration of the storm is not critical in determining the occurrence of coastal damage in the regional study area. This way, the threshold would be defined as a duration ≥30 h, with moderate average wave height (≥3.3 m) and high maximum wave height (≥4.1 m) approaching from the 3rd and 4th quadrants, during mean or spring tide situation. The calculated thresholds constitute snapshots of risk conditions within a certain time framework. Beach and nearshore zones are extremely dynamic, and also the characteristics of occupation on the coast change over time, so critical storm thresholds will change accordingly and therefore will need to be updated.

Intensified coastal development in beach-nourishment zones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lazarus, E.; Armstrong, S.; Limber, P. W.; Goldstein, E. B.; Ballinger, R.

2016-12-01

Population density, housing development, and property values in coastal counties along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts continue to rise despite increasing hazard from storm impacts. Beach nourishment, a method for mitigating coastal storm damage or chronic erosion by deliberately replacing sand on an eroded beach, has been the leading form of coastal protection in the U.S. since the 1970s. However, investment in hazard protection can have the unintended consequence of encouraging development in places especially vulnerable to damage. To quantitatively compare development in nourishing and non-nourishing zones, we examine the parcel-scale housing stock of all shorefront single-family homes in the state of Florida. We find that houses in nourishing zones are significantly larger and more numerous than in non-nourishing zones. Florida represents both an advanced case of coastal risk and an exemplar of ubiquitous, fundamental challenges in coastal management. The predominance of larger homes in nourishing zones indicates a positive feedback between nourishment and development that is compounding coastal risk in zones already characterized by high vulnerability. We offer that this phenomenon represents a variant of Jevons' paradox, a theoretical argument from environmental economics in which more efficient use of a resource spurs an increase in its consumption. Here, we suggest reductions in coastal risk through hazard protection are ultimately offset or reversed by increased coastal development.

Effects of the May 5-6, 1973, storm in the Greater Denver area, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hansen, Wallace R.

1973-01-01

Rain began falling on the Greater Denver area the evening of Saturday, May 5, 1973, and continued through most of Sunday, May 6. Below about 7,000 feet altitude, the precipitation was mostly rain; above that altitude, it was mostly snow. Although the rate of fall was moderate, at least 4 inches of rain or as much as 4 feet of snow accumulated in some places. Sustained precipitation falling at a moderate rate thoroughly saturated the ground and by midday Sunday sent most of the smaller streams into flood stage. The South Platte River and its major tributaries began to flood by late Sunday evening and early Monday morning. Geologic and hydrologic processes activated by the May 5-6 storm caused extensive damage to lands and to manmade structures in the Greater Denver area. Damage was generally most intense in areas where man had modified the landscape--by channel constrictions, paving, stripping of vegetation and topsoil, and oversteepening of hillslopes. Roads, bridges, culverts, dams, canals, and the like were damaged or destroyed by erosion and sedimentation. Streambanks and structures along them were scoured. Thousands of acres of croplands, pasture, and developed urban lands were coated with mud and sand. Flooding was intensified by inadequate storm sewers, blocked drains, and obstructed drainage courses. Saturation of hillslopes along the Front Range caused rockfalls, landslides, and mudflows as far west as Berthoud Pass. Greater attention to geologic conditions in land-use planning, design, and construction would minimize storm damage in the future.

Convective weather hazards in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, MN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blumenfeld, Kenneth A.

This dissertation investigates the frequency and intensity of severe convective storms, and their associated hazards, in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area (TCMA), Minnesota. Using public severe weather reports databases and high spatial density rain gauge data, annual frequencies and return-periods are calculated for tornadoes, damaging winds, large hail, and flood-inducing rainfall. The hypothesis that severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are less likely in the central TCMA than in surrounding areas also is examined, and techniques for estimating 100-year rainfall amounts are developed and discussed. This research finds that: (i) storms capable of significant damage somewhere within the TCMA recur annually (sometimes multiple times per year), while storms virtually certain to cause such damage recur every 2-3 years; (ii) though severe weather reports data are not amenable to classical comparative statistical testing, careful treatment of them suggests all types and intensity categories of severe convective weather have been and should continue to be approximately as common in the central TCMA as in surrounding areas; and (iii) applications of Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) statistics and areal analyses of rainfall data lead to significantly larger (25-50%) estimates of 100-year rainfall amounts in the TCMA and parts of Minnesota than those currently published and used for precipitation design. The growth of the TCMA, the popular sentiment that downtown areas somehow deter severe storms and tornadoes, and the prior underestimation of extreme rainfall thresholds for precipitation design, all act to enhance local susceptibility to hazards from severe convective storms.

Storm Surge Hazard in Oman Based on Cyclone Gonu and Historic Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blount, C.; Fritz, H. M.; Albusaidi, F. B.; Al-Harthy, A. H.

2008-12-01

Super Cyclone Gonu was the strongest tropical cyclone on record in the Arabian Sea. Gonu developed sustained winds reaching 240 km/h with gusts up to 315 km/h and an estimated central pressure of 920 mbar by late 4 June 2007 while centered east-southeast of Masirah Island on the coast of Oman. Gonu weakened after encountering dry air and cooler waters prior to the June 5 landfall on the eastern-most tip of Oman, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to hit the Arabian Peninsula. Gonu dropped heavy rainfall near the eastern coastline, reaching up to 610 mm which caused wadi flooding and heavy damage. The shore parallel cyclone track resulted in coastal damage due to storm surge and storm wave impact along a 300km stretch of Omani coastline. Maximum high water marks, overland flow depths, and inundation distances were measured along the Gulf of Oman during the 1-4 August 2007 reconnaissance. The high water marks peaked at Ras al Hadd at the eastern tip of Oman exceeding 5 meters, surpassing 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami runup at every corresponding point. The cyclone caused $4 billion in damage and at least 49 deaths in the Sultanate of Oman. Prior to Gonu, only two similar cyclones struck the coast of Oman in the last 1200 years (in 865 and 1890). The 1890 storm, which remains the worst natural disaster in Oman's history, drenched the coast from Soor to Suwayq causing inland wadi flooding. Matrah and Muscat were the hardest hit areas with many ships being washed ashore and wrecked. The storm is known to have killed about 727 people and caused huge agricultural and shipping losses. Similarly, the 865 storm affected areas between Gobrah and Sohar. A high-resolution finite element ADCIRC mesh of the Arabian Sea is created to model storm surge and is coupled with STWAVE. Modeling results from Gonu are compared to measurements and used to determine the contribution from storm surge and waves. The 1890 and 865 storms are modeled with standard cyclone parameters and results are compared to historical records to estimate the storm tracks. These results can be used to assess the coastal vulnerability in the Gulf of Oman.

Detection and Prediction of Hail Storms in Satellite Imagery using Deep Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pullman, M.; Gurung, I.; Ramachandran, R.; Maskey, M.

2017-12-01

Natural hazards, such as damaging hail storms, dramatically disrupt both industry and agriculture, having significant socio-economic impacts in the United States. In 2016, hail was responsible for 3.5 billion and 23 million dollars in damage to property and crops, respectively, making it the second costliest 2016 weather phenomenon in the United States. The destructive nature and high cost of hail storms has driven research into the development of more accurate hail-prediction algorithms in an effort to mitigate societal impacts. Recently, weather forecasting efforts have turned to deep learning neural networks because neural networks can more effectively model complex, nonlinear, dynamical phenomenon that exist in large datasets through multiple stages of transformation and representation. In an effort to improve hail-prediction techniques, we propose a deep learning technique that leverages satellite imagery to detect and predict the occurrence of hail storms. The technique is applied to satellite imagery from 2006 to 2016 for the contiguous United States and incorporates hail reports obtained from the National Center for Environmental Information Storm Events Database for training and validation purposes. In this presentation, we describe a novel approach to predicting hail via a neural network model that creates a large labeled dataset of hail storms, the accuracy and results of the model, and its applications for improving hail forecasting.

A matter of scale: damage from Hurricane Hugo (1989) to U.S. Virgin Islands reefs at the colony, community and whole reef level

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rogers, Caroline S.

1993-01-01

Studies at Buck Island Reef National Monument (St. Croix) and Virgin Islands National Park (St. John) by scientists in the U.S. National Park Service Coral Reef Assessment Program re- vealed the effects of Humcane Hugo on individual coral species, community parameters, and overall reef structure. Effects of the storm varied with depth, coral species, location relative to the storm path, character of the pre-storm communities, and ecological history. Live coral cover, initially less than 30% at all sites, dropped by 40 to 73%. Cover by the dominant species Montastrea annularis de- clined about 35% on the St. John reefs. At Buck Island, Acropora palmata cover, already reduced from 85% to 5% by white band disease and storms, fell to 0.8% after Hugo. Some areas on the south side of Buck Island were reduced to rubble pave- ment while other areas escaped serious damage. Data from cores at Buck Island reveal the influence of wave energy and storm frequency on overall reef character. Patchiness and variation in the responses of different species, zones, and entire reefs to the storm suggest that assessment of long-term trends in reef structure and composition requires analysis of changes at permanent study sites distributed over large areas.

Rapid assessment of household needs in the Houston area after Tropical Storm Allison.

PubMed

Waring, Stephen C; Reynolds, Kaye M; D'Souza, Gypsyamber; Arafat, Raouf R

2002-09-01

Tropical Storm Allison, which hit landfall near Galveston, Texas, on June 5, 2001, caused the most severe flood-related damage ever recorded in the Houston metropolitan area. The main goal of the public health response to tropical storm Allison was to evaluate the immediate health needs of the community. To estimate damage and household needs, we conducted a rapid needs assessment in the areas most affected by flooding with use of a modified cluster sampling method facilitated by Geographical Information Systems methodology. A total of 420 households participated in the survey, 210 each from the 2 sampling areas. We found a 4-fold increase in illness among persons living in flooded homes compared with those living in nonflooded homes. These findings suggest a need for rapid resolution of flood-related damage and the possibility that residents should seek temporary housing during clean-up and repair. In addition, we obtained reliable estimates of damage and household needs to help guide relief efforts. The findings underscore the usefulness of a rapid-needs assessment as a tool to identify actual health threats and to facilitate delivery of resources to those with the greatest and most immediate need.

Hurricane Matthew Recovery Briefing with Center Director Bob Cabana

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-11

In the Press Site auditorium of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA officials speak to media about efforts to recover from Hurricane Matthew. From the left are Mike Curie of NASA Communications, Center Director Bob Cabana and Bob Holl, chief of the Kennedy Damage Assessment and Recovery Team. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Ride-out Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Recovery Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-11

In the Press Site auditorium of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA officials speak to media about efforts to recover from Hurricane Matthew. From the left are Mike Curie of NASA Communications, Center Director Bob Cabana and Bob Holl, chief of the Kennedy Damage Assessment and Recovery Team. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Ride-out Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Hurricane Matthew Recovery Briefing

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-11

In the Press Site auditorium of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA officials speak to media about efforts to recover from Hurricane Matthew. From the left are Bob Holl, chief of the Kennedy Damage Assessment and Recovery Team, Center Director Bob Cabana and Mike Curie of NASA Communications. Officials determined that the center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected. NASA closed the center ahead of the storm’s onset and only a small team of specialists known as the Ride-out Team was on the center as the storm approached and passed.

Geologic effects of hurricanes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coch, Nicholas K.

1994-08-01

Hurricanes are intense low pressure systems of tropical origin. Hurricane damage results from storm surge, wind, and inland flooding from heavy rainfall. Field observations and remote sensing of recent major hurricanes such as Hugo (1989), Andrew (1992) and Iniki (1992) are providing new insights into the mechanisms producing damage in these major storms. Velocities associated with hurricanes include the counterclockwise vortex winds flowing around the eye and the much slower regional winds that steer hurricane and move it forward. Vectorial addition of theseof these two winds on the higher effective wind speed than on the left side. Coast-parallel hurricane tracks keep the weaker left side of the storm against the coast, whereas coast-normal tracks produce a wide swath of destruction as the more powerful right side of the storm cuts a swath of destruction hundreds of kilometers inland. Storm surge is a function of the wind speed, central pressure, shelf slope, shoreline configuration, and anthropogenic alterations to the shoreline. Maximum surge heights are not under the eye of the hurricane, where the pressure is lowest, but on the right side of the eye at the radius of maximum winds, where the winds are strongest. Flood surge occurs as the hurricane approaches land and drives coastal waters, and superimposed waves, across the shore. Ebb surge occurs when impounded surface water flows seaward as the storm moves inland. Flood and ebb surge damage have been greatly increased in recent hurricanes as a result of anthropogenic changes along the shoreline. Hurricane wind damage occurs on three scales — megascale, mesoscale and microscale. Local wind damage is a function of wind speed, exposure and structural resistance to velocity pressure, wind drag and flying debris. Localized extreme damage is caused by gusts that can locally exceed sustained winds by a factor of two in areas where there is strong convective activity. Geologic changes occuring in hurricanes include beach erosion, dune erosion, inlet formation from flood and ebb surge, landscape changes through tree destruction by wind and nearshore channeling and sedimentation resulting from ebb surge. Multi-decadal wet and dry cycles in West Africa seem to be associated with increases (wet periods) and decreases (dry periods) in the frequency of Atlantic Coast landfalling hurricanes. Coastalzone population and development has increased markedly in a time of low hurricane frequency in the 24 year dry cycle from1970 to the present. However, no previous climatic cycle in this century has exceeded 26 years. We may entering a multi-decadal cycle of greater hurricane activity, placing these highly urbanized shorelines in considerable danger.

33 CFR 203.15 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., after the structure has been damaged by a flood, hurricane, or coastal storm, to the level of protection... Washington, D.C. Hurricane/Shore Protection Project (HSPP). A flood control project designed and constructed... of hurricanes, tsunamis, and coastal storms. These effects are primarily to protect against wave...

Benthic habitat and fish assemblage structure from shallow to mesophotic depths in a storm-impacted marine protected area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abesamis, Rene A.; Langlois, Tim; Birt, Matthew; Thillainath, Emma; Bucol, Abner A.; Arceo, Hazel O.; Russ, Garry R.

2018-03-01

Baseline ecological studies of mesophotic coral ecosystems are lacking in the equatorial Indo-West Pacific region where coral reefs are highly threatened by anthropogenic and climate-induced disturbances. Here, we used baited remote underwater video to describe benthic habitat and fish assemblage structure from 10 to 80 m depth at Apo Island, a well-managed marine protected area in the Philippines. We conducted surveys 2 yr after two storms (in 2011 and 2012) caused severe damage to shallow coral communities within the no-take marine reserve (NTMR) of Apo Island, which led to declines in fish populations that had built up over three decades. We found that hard coral cover was restricted to < 40 m deep in the storm-impacted NTMR and a nearby fished area not impacted by storms. Benthic cover at mesophotic depths (> 30 m) was dominated by sand/rubble and rock (dead coral) with low cover of soft corals, sponges and macroalgae. Storm damage appeared to have reached the deepest limit of the fringing reef (40 m) and reduced variability in benthic structure within the NTMR. Species richness and/or abundance of most trophic groups of fish declined with increasing depth regardless of storm damage. There were differences in taxonomic and trophic structure and degree of targeting by fisheries between shallow and mesophotic fish assemblages. Threatened shark species and a fish species previously unreported in the Philippines were recorded at mesophotic depths. Our findings provide a first glimpse of the benthic and fish assemblage structure of Philippine coral reef ecosystems across a wide depth gradient. This work also underscores how a combination of limited coral reef development at mesophotic depths close to shallow reefs and severe habitat loss caused by storms would result in minimal depth refuge for reef fish populations.

Risks, Health Consequences, and Response Challenges for Small-Island-Based Populations: Observations From the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season.

PubMed

Shultz, James M; Kossin, James P; Shepherd, J Marshall; Ransdell, Justine M; Walshe, Rory; Kelman, Ilan; Galea, Sandro

2018-04-06

ABSTRACTThe intensely active 2017 Atlantic basin hurricane season provided an opportunity to examine how climate drivers, including warming oceans and rising seas, exacerbated tropical cyclone hazards. The season also highlighted the unique vulnerabilities of populations residing on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to the catastrophic potential of these storms. During 2017, 22 of the 29 Caribbean SIDS were affected by at least one named storm, and multiple SIDS experienced extreme damage. This paper aims to review the multiplicity of storm impacts on Caribbean SIDS throughout the 2017 season, to explicate the influences of climate drivers on storm formation and intensity, to explore the propensity of SIDS to sustain severe damage and prolonged disruption of essential services, to document the spectrum of public health consequences, and to delineate the daunting hurdles that challenged emergency response and recovery operations for island-based, disaster-affected populations. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;page 1 of 13).

A long-lived tornado on 7 December 2010 in mainland Portugal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Belo-Pereira, Margarida; Andrade, Cristina; Pinto, Paulo

2017-03-01

On 7 December 2010 a long lived convective storm formed southwest of Lisbon in an instability line that developed in a very moist and unstable airmass, in the circulation of an extra-tropical cyclone propagating north-eastwards. This storm crossed the Lisbon district and spawned an F3 tornado a few dozens of kilometers to the northeast. Several parameters evaluating buoyancy, available moisture and vertical wind shear, were derived from Lisbon rawinsonde and ECMWF analyses, highlighting an environment that is favourable for tornadic development. The tornado touchdown occurred by 14:15 UTC, lasting for about 45 min and producing an exceptionally long damage path of around 54 km, according to the damage survey. It caused about 18 million Euros damage, > 40 injured people, but no fatalities. This storm had a very long lifetime of at least 5 h, intensified inland, sustained strong updrafts during, at least, 1 h and hold large hail cores as observed on radar. Exhibiting several supercell like features, it also produced intense lightning, with a predominance of cloud-to-ground flashes before the tornado touchdown and intra-cloud flashes during the tornado lifetime. Furthermore, in high resolution visible satellite imagery, a pattern of feeder clouds was identified one hour before tornadogenesis. This pattern has been associated to storm intensification and the onset of severe weather.

Long-term and storm-related shoreline change trends in the Florida Gulf Islands National Seashore

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hapke, C.J.; Christiano, M.

2007-01-01

Coastal erosion on Northern Gulf of Mexico barrier islands is an ongoing issue that was exacerbated by the storm seasons of 2004 and 2005 when several hurricanes made landfall in the Gulf of Mexico. Two units of the Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS), located on Santa Rosa Island, a barrier island off the Panhandle coast of Florida, were highly impacted during the hurricanes of 2004 (Ivan) and 2005 (Cindy, Dennis, Katrina and Rita). In addition to the loss of or damage to natural and cultural resources within the park, damage to park infrastructure, including park access roads and utilities, occurred in areas experiencing rapid shoreline retreat. The main park road was located as close as 50 m to the pre-storm (2001) shoreline and was still under repair from damage incurred during Hurricane Ivan when the 2005 hurricanes struck. A new General Management Plan is under development for the Gulf Islands National Seashore. This plan, like the existing General Management Plan, strives to incorporate natural barrier island processes, and will guide future efforts to provide access to units of Gulf Islands National Seashore on Santa Rosa Island. To assess changes in island geomorphology and provide data for park management, the National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey are currently analyzing shoreline change to better understand long-term (100+ years) shoreline change trends as well as short-term shoreline impact and recovery to severe storm events. Results show that over an ~140-year period from the late 1800s to May 2004, the average shoreline erosion rates in the Fort Pickens and Santa Rosa units of GUIS were -0.7m/yr and -0.1 m/yr, respectively. Areas of historic erosion, reaching a maximum rate of -1.3 m/yr, correspond to areas that experienced overwash and road damage during the 2004 hurricane season. The shoreline eroded as much as ~60 m during Hurricane Ivan, and as much as ~88 m over the course of the 2005 storm season. The shoreline erosion rates in the areas where the park road was heavily damaged were as high as -70.2 m/yr over the 2004-2005 time period. Additional post-storm monitoring of these sections of the island, to assess whether erosion rates stabilize, will help to parks to determine the best long-term management strategy for the park infrastructure.

Reduction of coherence of the human brain electric potentials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Novik, Oleg; Smirnov, Fedor

Plenty of technological processes are known to be damaged by magnetic storms. But technology is controlled by men and their functional systems may be damaged as well. We are going to consider the electro-neurophysiological aspect of the general problem: men surrounded by physical fields including ones of cosmic origination. Magnetic storms’ influence had been observed for a group of 13 students (practically healthy girls and boys from 18 to 23 years old, Moscow). To control the main functional systems of the examinees, their electroencephalograms (EEG) were being registered along with electrocardiograms, respiratory rhythms, arterial blood pressure and other characteristics during a year. All of these characteristics, save for the EEG, were within the normal range for all of the examinees during measurements. According to the EEG investigations by implementation of the computer proof-reading test in absence of magnetic storms, the values of the coherence function of time series of the theta-rhythm oscillations (f = 4 - 7.9 Hz, A = 20 μV) of electric potentials of the frontal-polar and occipital areas of the head belong to the interval [0.3, 0.8] for all of the students under investigation. (As the proof-reading test, it was necessary to choose given symbols from a random sequence of ones demonstrated at a monitor and to enter the number of the symbols discovered in a computer. Everyone was known that the time for determination of symbols is unlimited. On the other hand, nobody was known that the EEG and other registrations mentioned are connected with electromagnetic geophysical researches and geomagnetic storms). Let us formulate the main result: by implementation of the same test during a magnetic storm, 5 ≤ K ≤ 6, or no later then 24 hours after its beginning (different types of moderate magnetic storms occurred, the data of IZMIRAN were used), the values of the theta-rhythm frontal - occipital coherence function of all of the students of the group under consideration decreased by a factor of two or more, including the zero coherence function value. The similar result was obtained for another basic low-frequency electro-neurophysiological rhythm delta (f = 0.5 - 3.9 Hz, A = 20 μV). The usual coherence function values from the interval [0.3, 0.8] were being registered, typically, about 48 hours after the magnetic storm end. The result about decreasing of the coherence of the brain low frequency bioelectric oscillations under a magnetic storm influence was obtained by two methods: 1) comparison of the time series of bioelectric oscillations of a given person without a magnetic storm and under its influence; 2) comparison of two sets of time series of oscillations: a) the set A of time series measured without a magnetic storm and b) the set B of time series measured under its influence, regardless to an individual. Surely, the total number of the EEGs available for the investigation by the set’s approach, i.e. without personification, is more than the number of the EEGs available by the individual approach because there were ones investigated without a magnetic storm only as well as ones investigated under its influence only. By the EEG measurements with closed or open eyes, but without a functional load on the brain in the form of the proof-reading test, a distinctive decrease of the coherence function was not observed during a magnetic storm as well as for pairs of points from other parts of the head (see above) or other rhythms.

Recent Atlantic Hurricanes, Pacific Super Typhoons, and Tropical Storm Awareness in Underdeveloped Island and Coastal Regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plondke, D. L.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey was the first major hurricane to make landfall in the continental U.S. in 12 years. The next tropical storm in the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season was Hurricane Irma, a category 5 storm and the strongest storm to strike the U.S. mainland since Hurricane Wilma in 2005. These two storms were the third and fourth in a sequence of 10 consecutive storms to reach hurricane status in this season that ranks at least seventh among the most active seasons as measured by the Accumulate Cyclone Energy (ACE) index. Assessment of damage from Harvey may prove it to be the costliest storm in U.S. history, approaching $190 billion. Irma was the first category 5 hurricane to hit the Leeward Islands, devastating island environments including Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Barbuda, Saint Barthelemy, and Anguilla with sustained winds reaching at times 185 mph. Together with the two super typhoons of the 2017 Pacific season, Noru and Lan, the two Atlantic hurricanes rank among the strongest, longest-lasting tropical cyclones on record. How many more billions of dollars will be expended in recovery and reconstruction efforts following future mega-disasters comparable to those of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma? Particularly on Caribbean and tropical Pacific islands with specialized and underdeveloped economies, aging and substandard infrastructure often cannot even partially mitigate against the impacts of major hurricanes. The most frequently used measurements of storm impact are insufficient to assess the economic impact. Analysis of the storm tracks and periods of greatest storm intensity of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and Super Typhoons Lan and Noru, in spatial relationship with island and coastal administrative regions, shows that rainfall totals, flooded area estimates, and property/infrastructure damage dollar estimates are all quantitative indicators of storm impact, but do not measure the costs that result from lack of storm preparedness and education of residents about the urgency of climate change mitigation. Lacking in most of the island and coastal environments where major storms occur and are likely to occur more frequently in the future are educational opportunities and public dissemination of information about climate change forecasts, storm impact mitigation, and emergency preparedness.

The role of nature-based infrastructure (NBI) in coastal resiliency planning: A literature review.

PubMed

Saleh, Firas; Weinstein, Michael P

2016-12-01

The use of nature-based infrastructure (NBI) has attracted increasing attention in the context of protection against coastal flooding. This review is focused on NBI approaches to improve coastal resilience in the face of extreme storm events, including hurricanes. We not only consider the role of NBI as a measure to protect people and property but also in the context of other ecological goods and services provided by tidal wetlands including production of fish and shellfish. Although the results of many studies suggest that populated areas protected by coastal marshes were less likely to experience damage when exposed to the full force of storm surge, it was absolutely critical to place the role of coastal wetlands into perspective by noting that while tidal marshes can reduce wave energy from low-to-moderate-energy storms, their capacity to substantially reduce storm surge remains poorly quantified. Moreover, although tidal marshes can reduce storm surge from fast moving storms, very large expanses of habitat are needed to be most effective, and for most urban settings, there is insufficient space to rely on nature-based risk reduction strategies alone. The success of a given NBI method is also context dependent on local conditions, with potentially confounding influences from substrate characteristics, topography, near shore bathymetry, distance from the shore and other physical factors and human drivers such as development patterns. Furthermore, it is important to better understand the strengths and weaknesses of newly developed NBI projects through rigorous evaluations and characterize the local specificities of the particular built and natural environments surrounding these coastal areas. In order for the relevant science to better inform policy, and assist in land-use challenges, scientists must clearly state the likelihood of success in a particular circumstance and set of conditions. We conclude that "caution is advised" before selecting a particular NBI method as there is no "one size fits all" solution to address site-specific conditions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-26

Following Hurricane Matthew, repairs have been made to the roof of the Operations Support Building (OSB) II in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs continue on various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from the storm, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

Dual-Polarimetric Radar-Based Tornado Debris Signatures and Paths Associated with Tornadoes Over Northern Alabama During the Historic Outbreak of 27 April 2011

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carey, Lawrence D.; Schultz, Christopher J.; Schultz, Elise V.; Petersen, Walter A.; Gatlin, Patrick N.; Knupp, Kevin R.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Jedloved, Gary J.; Carcione, Brian C.; Darden, Christopher B.;

Spatial Patterns of first spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus L.) infestation of standing Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) after heavy storm damage in Switzerland

Treesearch

R. Gall; A. Heimgartner

2003-01-01

On December 26, 1999, Switzerland was struck by the most severe storm in the country's history. An extensive dataset from the Canton Berne allowed us to test the hypothesis that in regions where windthrown wood was cleared a) the intensity of the first Ips typographus-infestation on standing trees after the storm depends on the distance from...

Development of targeted STORM for super resolution imaging of biological samples using digital micro-mirror device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valiya Peedikakkal, Liyana; Steventon, Victoria; Furley, Andrew; Cadby, Ashley J.

2017-12-01

We demonstrate a simple illumination system based on a digital mirror device which allows for fine control over the power and pattern of illumination. We apply this to localization microscopy (LM), specifically stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM). Using this targeted STORM, we were able to image a selected area of a labelled cell without causing photo-damage to the surrounding areas of the cell.

Responses of two genetically superior loblolly pine clonal ideotypes to a severe ice storm

Treesearch

Lauren S. Pile; Christopher A. Maier; G. Geoff Wang; Dapao Yu; Tim M. Shearman

2016-01-01

An increase in the frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events, such as major ice storms, can have severe impacts on southern forests. We investigated the damage inflicted by a severe ice storm that occurred in February 2014 on two loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) ideotypes in Cross, South Carolina located in the southeastern coastal plain. The ‘‘narrow crown”...

Use of waveform lidar and hyperspectral sensors to assess selected spatial and structural patterns associated with recent and repeat disturbance and the abundance of sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) in a temperate mixed hardwood and conifer forest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Anderson, J.E.; Ducey, Mark J.; Fast, A.; Martin, M.E.; Lepine, L.; Smith, M.-L.; Lee, T.D.; Dubayah, R.O.; Hofton, M.A.; Hyde, P.; Peterson, Birgit; Blair, J.B.

2011-01-01

Waveform lidar imagery was acquired on September 26, 1999 over the Bartlett Experimental Forest (BEF) in New Hampshire (USA) using NASA's Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS). This flight occurred 20 months after an ice storm damaged millions of hectares of forestland in northeastern North America. Lidar measurements of the amplitude and intensity of ground energy returns appeared to readily detect areas of moderate to severe ice storm damage associated with the worst damage. Southern through eastern aspects on side slopes were particularly susceptible to higher levels of damage, in large part overlapping tracts of forest that had suffered the highest levels of wind damage from the 1938 hurricane and containing the highest levels of sugar maple basal area and biomass. The levels of sugar maple abundance were determined through analysis of the 1997 Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) high resolution spectral imagery and inventory of USFS Northern Research Station field plots. We found a relationship between field measurements of stem volume losses and the LVIS metric of mean canopy height (r2 = 0.66; root mean square errors = 5.7 m3/ha, p < 0.0001) in areas that had been subjected to moderate-to-severe ice storm damage, accurately documenting the short-term outcome of a single disturbance event.

On the Storm Surge and Sea Level Rise Projections for Infrastructure Risk Analysis and Adaptation

EPA Science Inventory

Storm surge can cause coastal hydrology changes, flooding, water quality changes, and even inundation of low-lying terrain. Strong wave actions and disruptive winds can damage water infrastructure and other environmental assets (hazardous and solid waste management facilities, w...

Increasing large scale windstorm damage in Western, Central and Northern European forests, 1951-2010

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregow, H.; Laaksonen, A.; Alper, M. E.

2017-04-01

Using reports of forest losses caused directly by large scale windstorms (or primary damage, PD) from the European forest institute database (comprising 276 PD reports from 1951-2010), total growing stock (TGS) statistics of European forests and the daily North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index, we identify a statistically significant change in storm intensity in Western, Central and Northern Europe (17 countries). Using the validated set of storms, we found that the year 1990 represents a change-point at which the average intensity of the most destructive storms indicated by PD/TGS > 0.08% increased by more than a factor of three. A likelihood ratio test provides strong evidence that the change-point represents a real shift in the statistical behaviour of the time series. All but one of the seven catastrophic storms (PD/TGS > 0.2%) occurred since 1990. Additionally, we detected a related decrease in September-November PD/TGS and an increase in December-February PD/TGS. Our analyses point to the possibility that the impact of climate change on the North Atlantic storms hitting Europe has started during the last two and half decades.

Increasing large scale windstorm damage in Western, Central and Northern European forests, 1951–2010

PubMed Central

Gregow, H.; Laaksonen, A.; Alper, M. E.

2017-01-01

Using reports of forest losses caused directly by large scale windstorms (or primary damage, PD) from the European forest institute database (comprising 276 PD reports from 1951–2010), total growing stock (TGS) statistics of European forests and the daily North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index, we identify a statistically significant change in storm intensity in Western, Central and Northern Europe (17 countries). Using the validated set of storms, we found that the year 1990 represents a change-point at which the average intensity of the most destructive storms indicated by PD/TGS > 0.08% increased by more than a factor of three. A likelihood ratio test provides strong evidence that the change-point represents a real shift in the statistical behaviour of the time series. All but one of the seven catastrophic storms (PD/TGS > 0.2%) occurred since 1990. Additionally, we detected a related decrease in September–November PD/TGS and an increase in December–February PD/TGS. Our analyses point to the possibility that the impact of climate change on the North Atlantic storms hitting Europe has started during the last two and half decades. PMID:28401947

A qualitative and quantitative assessment of the reproductive litter from Posidonia oceanica accumulated on a sand beach following a storm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balestri, E.; Vallerini, F.; Lardicci, C.

2006-01-01

The biomass of reproductive litter from Posidonia oceanica deposited on a 3.5 km stretch of beach in the north-western Mediterranean, as a consequence of a storm in May 2004, was quantified. The damage caused by this storm to the meadow from which fruits originated was evaluated in terms of loss of seed production. Intermediate fruits (i.e., developing fruits) were the most important reproductive component, followed by immature and damaged fruits. No fully mature fruits were found. No significant differences in the average number of fruits and biomass accumulated were detected among beach sections hundreds of metres apart. Extrapolation of the results at four beach sections indicated that about 1 million fruits were deposited on the entire (3.5 km) beach. This was equivalent to the seed production potential of about 313,217 inflorescences, or a flowered area of 1500 m 2. The organic input to the beach was 224 kg ash-free dry weight (AFDM). These results suggest that storms may provide an unpredictable source of seed mortality in P. oceanica. The reproductive material produced by storms, however, may constitute an important source of allochthonous organic matter to the beach.

Damage to offshore infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico by hurricanes Katrina and Rita

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cruz, A. M.; Krausmann, E.

2009-04-01

The damage inflicted by hurricanes Katrina and Rita to the Gulf-of-Mexico's (GoM) oil and gas production, both onshore and offshore, has shown the proneness of industry to Natech accidents (natural hazard-triggered hazardous-materials releases). In order to contribute towards a better understanding of Natech events, we assessed the damage to and hazardous-materials releases from offshore oil and natural-gas platforms and pipelines induced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Data was obtained through a review of published literature and interviews with government officials and industry representatives from the affected region. We also reviewed over 60,000 records of reported hazardous-materials releases from the National Response Center's (NRC) database to identify and analyze the hazardous-materials releases directly attributed to offshore oil and gas platforms and pipelines affected by the two hurricanes. Our results show that hurricanes Katrina and Rita destroyed at least 113 platforms, and severely damaged at least 53 others. Sixty percent of the facilities destroyed were built 30 years ago or more prior to the adoption of the more stringent design standards that went into effect after 1977. The storms also destroyed 5 drilling rigs and severely damaged 19 mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs). Some 19 MODUs lost their moorings and became adrift during the storms which not only posed a danger to existing facilities but the dragging anchors also damaged pipelines and other infrastructure. Structural damage to platforms included toppling of sections, and tilting or leaning of platforms. Possible causes for failure of structural and non-structural components of platforms included loading caused by wave inundation of the deck. Failure of rigs attached to platforms was also observed resulting in significant damage to the platform or adjacent infrastructure, as well as damage to equipment, living quarters and helipads. The failures are attributable to tie-down components and occurred on both fixed and floating platforms. The total number of pipelines damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita as of May 1, 2006, was 457. Pipeline damage was mostly caused by damage or failure of the host platform or its development and production piping, the impact of dragging and displaced objects, and pipeline interaction at a crossing. Damage to pipelines was a major contributing factor in delaying start up of offshore oil and gas production. During our analysis of the NRC database we identified 611 reported hazardous-materials releases directly attributed to offshore platforms and pipelines affected by the two hurricanes. There were twice as many releases during Hurricane Katrina than during Rita; 80% or more of the releases reported in the NRC database occurred from platforms. Our analysis suggests that the majority of releases were petroleum products, such as crude oil and condensate, followed by natural gas. In both Katrina and Rita, releases were more likely in the front, right quadrant of the storm. Storm-surge values were highest closer to the coastline. This may help explain the higher number of releases in shallow waters. The higher number of hazardous-materials releases from platforms during Katrina may partly be attributed to the higher wind speeds for this storm as it approached land.

Applications of Earth Remote Sensing for Identifying Tornado and Severe Weather Damage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schultz, Lori; Molthan, Andrew; Burks, Jason E.; Bell, Jordan; McGrath, Kevin; Cole, Tony

2016-01-01

NASA SPoRT (Short-term Prediction Research and Transition Center) provided MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer) and ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) imagery to WFOs (Weather Forecast Offices) in Alabama to support April 27th, 2011 damage assessments across the state. SPoRT was awarded a NASA Applied Science: Disasters Feasibility award to investigate the applicability of including remote sensing imagery and derived products into the NOAA/NWS (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather System) Damage Assessment Toolkit (DAT). Proposal team was awarded the 3-year proposal to implement a web mapping service and associate data feeds from the USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) to provide satellite imagery and derived products directly to the NWS thru the DAT. In the United States, NOAA/NWS is charged with performing damage assessments when storm or tornado damage is suspected after a severe weather event. This has led to the development of the Damage Assessment Toolkit (DAT), an application for smartphones, tablets and web browsers that allows for the collection, geo-location, and aggregation of various damage indicators collected during storm surveys.

Hydrologic aspects of Hurricane Hugo in South Carolina, September 1989

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schuck-Kolben, R. E.; Cherry, R.N.

1995-01-01

Hurricane Hugo, with winds in excess of 135 miles per hour(mi/h), made landfall near Charleston, S.C., early on the morning of September 22, 1989. It was the most destructive hurricane ever experienced in South Carolina. The storm caused 35 deaths and $7 billion in property damage in South Carolina (Purvis, 1990).This report documents some hydrologic effects of Hurricane Hugo along the South Carolina coast. The report includes maps showing storm-tide stage and profiles of the maximum storm-tide stages along the outer coast. Storm-tide stage frequency information is presented and changes in beach morphology and water quality of coastal streams resulting from the storm are described.

78 FR 34293 - Regulated Navigation Area; Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, Inner Harbor Navigation Canal, New Orleans...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-06-07

... of Proposed Rulemaking CPRA Coastal Protection Restoration Authority HSDRRS Hurricane Storm Damage... Canal, and the Algiers Canal. This action is necessary for the flood protection of high-risk areas... restrictions providing the necessary protections at the time and until the final floodwalls and storm...

OHD/HL - Hurricane

Science.gov Websites

flooding. While storm surge is always a potential threat, more people have died from inland flooding in the 56 people who perished, 50 drowned due to inland flooding. Satellite image of Hurricane Floyd people drowned. Damages exceeded $750 million. Tropical Storm Claudette (1979) brought 45 inches of rain

Laboratory measurements of wave attenuation through model and live vegetation

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Surge and waves generated by hurricanes and tropical storms often cause severe damage and loss of life in coastal areas. It is widely recognized that wetlands along coastal fringes reduce storm surge and waves. Yet, the potential role and primary mechanisms of wave mitigation by wetland vegetation a...

Experimental investigation of wave attenuation through model and live vegetation

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Hurricanes and tropical storms often cause severe damage and loss of life in coastal areas. It is widely recognized that wetlands along coastal fringes reduce storm surge and waves. Yet, the potential role and primary mechanisms of wave mitigation by wetland vegetation are not fully understood. K...

Structural health monitoring of I-10 twin span bridge - part I : analysis of lateral load test.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2014-11-01

The old I-10 Twin Span Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain was heavily damaged by the storm surges during : Hurricane Katrina in 2005. A new 5.4-mile long replacement bridge was constructed with higher resistance to : extreme events, such as storm surges ...

CONTROLLING EXCESS STORM WATER RUNOFF WITH TRADABLE CREDITS

EPA Science Inventory

Development that increases the impervious surface in a watershed causes excess storm water runoff (SWR) that has been identified as a major contributor to stream and riparian habitat degradation. Reduction of storm water runoff can be achieved through establishment of a number of...

Validation of Satellite-based Rainfall Estimates for Severe Storms (Hurricanes & Tornados)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nourozi, N.; Mahani, S.; Khanbilvardi, R.

2005-12-01

Severe storms such as hurricanes and tornadoes cause devastating damages, almost every year, over a large section of the United States. More accurate forecasting intensity and track of a heavy storm can help to reduce if not to prevent its damages to lives, infrastructure, and economy. Estimating accurate high resolution quantitative precipitation (QPE) from a hurricane, required to improve the forecasting and warning capabilities, is still a challenging problem because of physical characteristics of the hurricane even when it is still over the ocean. Satellite imagery seems to be a valuable source of information for estimating and forecasting heavy precipitation and also flash floods, particularly for over the oceans where the traditional ground-based gauge and radar sources cannot provide any information. To improve the capability of a rainfall retrieval algorithm for estimating QPE of severe storms, its product is evaluated in this study. High (hourly 4km x 4km) resolutions satellite infrared-based rainfall products, from the NESDIS Hydro-Estimator (HE) and also PERSIANN (Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using an Artificial Neural Networks) algorithms, have been tested against NEXRAD stage-IV and rain gauge observations in this project. Three strong hurricanes: Charley (category 4), Jeanne (category 3), and Ivan (category 3) that caused devastating damages over Florida in the summer 2004, have been considered to be investigated. Preliminary results demonstrate that HE tends to underestimate rain rates when NEXRAD shows heavy storm (rain rates greater than 25 mm/hr) and to overestimate when NEXRAD gives low rainfall amounts, but PERSIANN tends to underestimate rain rates, in general.

Comparison between the Coastal Impacts of Cyclone Nargis and the Indian Ocean Tsunami

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fritz, H. M.; Blount, C.

2009-12-01

On 26 December 2004 a great earthquake with a moment magnitude of 9.3 occurred off the North tip of Sumatra, Indonesia. The Indian Ocean tsunami claimed 230,000 lives making it the deadliest in recorded history. Less than 4 years later tropical cyclone Nargis (Cat. 4) made landfall in Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady delta on 2 May 2008 causing the worst natural disaster in Myanmar’s recorded history. Official death toll estimates exceed 138,000 fatalities making it the 7th deadliest cyclone ever recorded worldwide. The Bay of Bengal counts seven tropical cyclones with death tolls in excess of 100,000 striking India and Bangladesh in the past 425 years, which highlights the difference in return periods between extreme cyclones and tsunamis. Damage estimates at over $10 billion made Nargis the most damaging cyclone ever recorded in the Indian Ocean. Although the two natural disasters are completely different in their generation mechanisms they both share massive coastal inundations as primary damage and death cause. While the damage patterns exhibit similarities the forcing differs. The primary tsunami impact is dominated by the runup of a few main waves washing rapidly ashore and inducing high lateral forces. On the contrary the tropical cyclone storm surge damage is the result of numerous storm waves continuously hitting the flooded structures on the elevated storm tide level. While coastal vegetation such as mangroves may be effective at reducing superimposed storm waves they are limited at reducing storm surge. Unfortunately, mangroves have been significantly cut for charcoal and land use as rice paddies in Myanmar due to rapid population growth and economic reasons, thereby increasing coastal vulnerability and land loss due to erosion (Figure 1). The period of a storm surge is typically an order of magnitude longer than the period of a tsunami resulting in significantly larger inundation distances along coastal plains and river deltas. The storm surge of cyclone Nargis penetrated more than 50 km inland along the Ayeyarwady delta while the maximum inundation of the Indian Ocean tsunami was 7 km at Banda Aceh. The extent of affected coast lines differs with 2 m storm surge thresholds of cyclone Nargis spanning 200 km of coastline, whereas East Africa was severely affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami at 5000 km from the epicenter. The available time window for dissemination of warnings and evacuations are significantly shorter for tsunamis than cyclones. Coastal protection in the Indian Ocean must be approached with community-based planning, education and awareness programs suited for a multi-hazard perspective. Ayeyarwady delta in Myanmar after cyclone Nargis: (a) Deforestation of mangroves for use as charcoal and land use as rice paddies; (b) Drinking water wells scoured in surf zone at Aya highlighting more than 100 m land loss due to coastal erosion.

RiskScape: a new tool for comparing risk from natural hazards (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stirling, M. W.; King, A.

2010-12-01

The Regional RiskScape is New Zealand’s joint venture between GNS Science & NIWA, and represents a comprehensive and easy-to-use tool for multi-hazard-based risk and impact analysis. It has basic GIS functionality, in that it has Import/Export functions to use with GIS software. Five natural hazards have been implemented in Riskscape to date: Flood (river), earthquake, volcano (ash), tsunami and wind storm. The software converts hazard exposure information into the likely impacts for a region, for example, damage and replacement costs, casualties, economic losses, disruption, and number of people affected. It therefore can be used to assist with risk management, land use planning, building codes and design, risk identification, prioritization of risk-reduction/mitigation, determination of “best use” risk-reduction investment, evacuation and contingency planning, awareness raising, public information, realistic scenarios for exercises, and hazard event response. Three geographically disparate pilot regions have been used to develop and triall Riskscape in New Zealand, and each region is exposed to a different mix of natural hazards. Future (phase II) development of Riskscape will include the following hazards: Landslides (both rainfall and earthquake triggered), storm surges, pyroclastic flows and lahars, and climate change effects. While Riskscape developments have thus far focussed on scenario-based risk, future developments will advance the software into providing probabilistic-based solutions.

Development of Real-Time System for Urban Flooding by Surcharge of Storm Drainge and River Inundation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shim, J. B.; Won, C. Y.; Park, J.; Lee, K.

2017-12-01

Korea experiences frequent flood disasters, which cause considerable economic losses and damages to towns and farms. Especially, a regional torrential storm is about 98.5mm/hr on September 21, 2010 in Seoul. The storm exceeds the capacity of urban drainage system of 75mm/hr, and 9,419 houses. How to monitor and control the urban flood disasters is an important issue in Korea. To mitigate the flood damage, a customizing system was developed to estimate urban floods and inundation using by integrating drainage system data and river information database which are managed by local governments and national agencies. In the case of Korean urban city, there are a lot of detention ponds and drainage pumping stations on end of drainage system and flow is going into river. The drainage pumping station, it is very important hydraulic facility for flood control between river and drainage system. So, it is possible to occur different patterns of flood inundation according to operation rule of drainage pumping station. A flood disaster is different damage as how to operate drainage pumping station and plan operation rule.

Documentary evidence of economic character as a source for the study of hydrometeorological extremes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chromá, K.; Brázdil, R.; Valášek, H.

2009-04-01

Various human activities, such as agriculture, forestry and water management, have always been influenced by climate variability and hydrometeorological extremes. From this reason historical economic records often include information about contemporaneous weather as well as descriptions of its impacts. This study deals with the interpretation of hydrometeorological extremes for the territory of Moravia (eastern part of the Czech Republic) derived from taxation records and reports of domain and estate administrators. Information obtained reflects the occurrence of floods, convective storms (including hailstorms), windstorms, late spring and early autumn frosts. Based on data from eight domains or estates, frequency series of floods and convective storms (including hailstorms) were compiled for the period 1650-1849. Detail analysis of disastrous weather event from 10 August 1694 in the Pernštejn domain is used to demonstrate the potential of such data for the study of hydrometeorological extremes and their impacts on human activity. Another example is analysis of data about tax reduction due to hailstorm damage on agriculture crops in Moravia in the period 1896-1906.

Development of Inundation Map for Bantayan Island, Cebu Using Delft3D-Flow Storm Surge Simulations of Typhoon Haiyan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cuadra, Camille; Suarez, John Kenneth; Biton, Nophi Ian; Cabacaba, Krichi May; Lapidez, John Phillip; Santiago, Joy; Mahar Francisco Lagmay, Alfredo; Malano, Vicente

2014-05-01

On average, 20 typhoons enter the Philippine area of responsibility annually, making it vulnerable to different storm hazards. Apart from the frequency of tropical cyclones, the archipelagic nature of the country makes it particularly prone to storm surges. On 08 November 2013, Haiyan, a Category 5 Typhoon with maximum one-minute sustained wind speed of 315 kph, hit the central region of the Philippines. In its path, the howler devastated Bantayan Island, a popular tourist destination. The island is located north of Cebu City, the second largest metropolis of the Philippines in terms of populace. Having been directly hit by Typhoon Haiyan, Bantayan Island was severely damaged by strong winds and storm surges, with more than 11,000 houses totally destroyed while 5,000 more suffered minor damage. The adverse impacts of possible future storm surge events in the island can only be mitigated if hazard maps that depict inundation of the coastal areas of Bantayan are generated. To create such maps, Delft3D-Flow, a hydrodynamic model was used to simulate storm surges. These simulations were made over a 10-m per pixel resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) bathymetry. The results of the coastal inundation model for Typhoon Haiyan's storm surges were validated using data collected from field work and local government reports. The hydrodynamic model of Bantayan was then calibrated using the field data and further simulations were made with varying typhoon tracks. This was done to generate scenarios on the farthest possible inland incursion of storm surges. The output of the study is a detailed storm surge inundation map that depicts safe zones for development of infrastructure near coastal areas and for construction of coastal protection structures. The storm surge inundation map can also be used as basis for disaster preparedness plans of coastal communities threatened by approaching typhoons.

Aggregated responses of human mobility to severe winter storms: An empirical study.

PubMed

Wang, Yan; Wang, Qi; Taylor, John E

2017-01-01

Increasing frequency of extreme winter storms has resulted in costly damages and a disruptive impact on the northeastern United States. It is important to understand human mobility patterns during such storms for disaster preparation and relief operations. We investigated the effects of severe winter storms on human mobility during a 2015 blizzard using 2.69 million Twitter geolocations. We found that displacements of different trip distances and radii of gyration of individuals' mobility were perturbed significantly. We further explored the characteristics of perturbed mobility during the storm, and demonstrated that individuals' recurrent mobility does not have a higher degree of similarity with their perturbed mobility, when comparing with its similarity to non-perturbed mobility. These empirical findings on human mobility impacted by severe winter storms have potential long-term implications on emergency response planning and the development of strategies to improve resilience in severe winter storms.

Damage and recovery assessment of the Philippines' mangroves following Super Typhoon Haiyan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Long, Jordan; Giri, Chandra; Primavera, Jurgene H.; Trivedi, Mandar

2016-01-01

We quantified mangrove disturbance resulting from Super Typhoon Haiyan using a remote sensing approach. Mangrove areas were mapped prior to Haiyan using 30 m Landsat imagery and a supervised decision-tree classification. A time sequence of 250 m eMODIS data was used to monitor mangrove condition prior to, and following, Haiyan. Based on differences in eMODIS NDVI observations before and after the storm, we classified mangrove into three damage level categories: minimal, moderate, or severe. Mangrove damage in terms of extent and severity was greatest where Haiyan first made landfall on Eastern Samar and Western Samar provinces and lessened westward corresponding with decreasing storm intensity as Haiyan tracked from east to west across the Visayas region of the Philippines. However, within 18 months following Haiyan, mangrove areas classified as severely, moderately, and minimally damaged decreased by 90%, 81%, and 57%, respectively, indicating mangroves resilience to powerful typhoons.

Investigating extreme event loading on coastal bridges using wireless sensor technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gelineau, Douglas A.; Davis, Justin R.; Rice, Jennifer A.

2017-04-01

Coastal infrastructure, such as bridges, are susceptible to many forms of coastal hazards: particularly hurricane surge and wave loading. These two forms of loading can cause catastrophic damage to aging highway infrastructure. It is estimated that storm damage costs the United States about $50 Billion per year. In light of this, it is crucial that we understand the damaging forces placed on infrastructure during storm events so that we can develop safer and more resilient coastal structures. This paper presents the ongoing research to enable the efficient collection of extreme event loads acting on both the substructure and superstructure of low clearance, simple span, reinforced concrete bridges. Bridges of this type were commonly constructed during the 1950's and 60's and are particularly susceptible to deck unseating caused by hurricane surge and wave loading. The sensing technology used to capture this data must be ruggedized to survive in an extremely challenging environment, be designed to allow for redundancy in the event of sensors or other network components being lost in the storm, and be relatively low cost to allow for more bridges to be instrumented per storm event. The prototype system described in this paper includes wireless technology, rapid data transmission, and, for the sensors, self-contained power. While this specific application focuses on hurricane hazards, the framework can be extended to include other natural hazards.

Debris-Flow Hazards within the Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wieczorek, Gerald F.; Morgan, Benjamin A.

2008-01-01

Tropical storms, including hurricanes, often inflict major damage to property and disrupt the lives of people living in coastal areas of the Eastern United States. These storms also are capable of generating catastrophic landslides within the steep slopes of the Appalachian Mountains. Heavy rainfall from hurricanes, cloudbursts, and thunderstorms can generate rapidly moving debris flows that are among the most dangerous and damaging type of landslides. This fact sheet explores the nature and occurrence of debris flows in the central and southern Appalachian Mountains, which extend from central Pennsylvania to northern Alabama.

Finding Snowmageddon: Detecting and quantifying northeastern U.S. snowstorms in a multi-decadal global climate ensemble

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zarzycki, C. M.

2017-12-01

The northeastern coast of the United States is particularly vulnerable to impacts from extratropical cyclones during winter months, which produce heavy precipitation, high winds, and coastal flooding. These impacts are amplified by the proximity of major population centers to common storm tracks and include risks to health and welfare, massive transportation disruption, lost spending productivity, power outages, and structural damage. Historically, understanding regional snowfall in climate models has generally centered around seasonal mean climatologies even though major impacts typically occur at the scales of hours to days. To quantify discrete snowstorms at the event level, we describe a new objective detection algorithm for gridded data based on the Regional Snowfall Index (RSI) produced by NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information. The algorithm uses 6-hourly precipitation to collocate storm-integrated snowfall with population density to produce a distribution of snowstorms with societally relevant impacts. The algorithm is tested on the Community Earth System Model (CESM) Large Ensemble Project (LENS) data. Present day distributions of snowfall events is well-replicated within the ensemble. We discuss classification sensitivities to assumptions made in determining precipitation phase and snow water equivalent. We also explore projected reductions in mid-century and end-of-century snowstorms due to changes in snowfall rates and precipitation phase, as well as highlight potential improvements in storm representation from refined horizontal resolution in model simulations.

Disentangling factors that control the vulnerability of forests to catastrophic wind damage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dracup, E.; Taylor, A.; MacLean, D.; Boulanger, Y.

2017-12-01

Wind is an important driver of forest dynamics along North America's north-eastern coastal forests, but also damages many commercially managed forests which society relies as an important source of wood fiber. Although the influence of wind on north-eastern forests is well recognized, knowledge of factors predisposing trees to wind damage is less known, especially in the context of large, powerful wind storm events. This is of particular concern as climate change is expected to alter the frequency and severity of strong wind storms affecting this region. On 29 September 2003, Hurricane Juan made landfall over Nova Scotia, Canada as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 158 km/h, and gusts of up to 185 km/h. Hurricane Juan variously damaged a swath of over 600,000 ha of forest. The damaged forest area was surveyed using aerial photography and LandSAT imagery and categorized according to level of wind damage sustained (none, low, moderate, severe) at a resolution of 15 x 15 m square cells. We used Random Forest to analyze and compare level of wind damage in each cell with a myriad of abiotic (exposure, depth to water table, soil composition, etc.) and biotic (tree species composition, canopy closure, canopy height, etc.) factors known or expected to predispose trees to windthrow. From our analysis, we identified topographic exposure, precipitation, and maximum gust speed as the top predictors of windthrow during Hurricane Juan. To our surprise, forest stand factors, such as tree species composition and height, had minimal effects on level of windthrow. These results can be used to construct predictive risk maps which can help society to assess the vulnerability of forests to future wind storm events.

30 CFR 220.011 - Schedule of allowable direct and allocable joint costs and credits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... household applicances, and purchases of insurance against damages to or loss of personal property are... approval. (h) Damages and losses to NPSL property. All costs necessary for the repair or replacement of NPSL property made necessary because of damages or losses incurred by fire, flood, storm, theft...

Impacts and management implications of ice storms on forests in the southern United States

Treesearch

Don C. Bragg; Michael G Shelton; Boris Zeide

2003-01-01

Abstract: This review explores the ecological and silvicultural impacts of ice storms on forests in the southern United States. Different environmental factors like weather conditions, topography, vegetation, stand density, and management practices influence the degree of glaze damage a particular forest may experience. Additionally, the frequent...

Arecibo weathers the storm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rivera-Valentín, Edgard G.; Schmelz, Joan T.

2018-04-01

Hurricane Maria was 2 mph short of category 5 when it made landfall on Puerto Rico on 20 September 2017. The 305 m radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory withstood the storm, suffering only minor structural damage. Staff have worked diligently to return the site to full operations and provide vital services to the surrounding Puerto Rican community.

Sensing Hazards with Operational Unmanned Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hood, R. E.

2016-12-01

The Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is working with the National Weather Service, the National Ocean Service, other Federal agencies, private industry, and academia to evaluate the feasibility of UAS observations to provide time critical information needed for situational awareness, prediction, warning, and damage assessment of hazards. This activity is managed within a portfolio of projects entitled "Sensing Hazards with Operational Unmanned Technology (SHOUT)." The diversity of this portfolio includes evaluations of high altitude UAS observations for high impact oceanic storms prediction to low altitude UAS observations of rivers, severe storms, and coastal areas for pre-hazard situational awareness and post-hazard damage assessments. Each SHOUT evaluation project begins with a proof-of-concept field demonstration of a UAS observing strategy for a given hazard and then matures to joint studies of both scientific data impact along with cost and operational feasibility of the observing strategy for routine applications. The technology readiness and preliminary evaulation results will be presented for several UAS observing strategies designed for improved observations of oceanic storms, floods, severe storms, and coastal ecosystem hazards.

Case study of the 9 May 2003 windstorm in southwestern Slovakia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaňák, Ján; Benko, Martin; Simon, André; Sokol, Alois

2007-02-01

May 9, 2003 thunderstorm in southwest Slovakia is considered one of the most severe convective events to have happened in Slovakia during the past ten years. The majority of the reported damage was caused by very strong outflowing winds and hail. The downburst (macroburst) nature of the event was confirmed by a damage survey carried out in the area hit by the thunderstorm. The supercell nature of the storm was inferred from radar measurements, with the fields of radar reflectivity and radial Doppler velocity showing typical supercell features (e.g. BWER echo). The satellite imagery (from METEOSAT 7) indicated a large-scale dry air intrusion as a possible factor of downdraft enhancement. Aspects of the storm environment were inferred from soundings, numerical analysis of the ALADIN model and Velocity Azimuth Display data from radar. The results enable comparison of the outputs of several instability indices, such as CAPE, DCAPE and Storm to Relative Environmental Helicity (SREH). It was concluded based on structure and development that the storm showed many similarities to the so called High Precipitation (HP) supercell type.

33 CFR 203.46 - Restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program... constructed to have appreciable and dependable protection in preventing damage from irregular and unusual..., recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement, land reclamation, habitat restoration, drainage, bank protection...

33 CFR 203.46 - Restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program... constructed to have appreciable and dependable protection in preventing damage from irregular and unusual..., recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement, land reclamation, habitat restoration, drainage, bank protection...

33 CFR 203.46 - Restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program... constructed to have appreciable and dependable protection in preventing damage from irregular and unusual..., recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement, land reclamation, habitat restoration, drainage, bank protection...

33 CFR 203.46 - Restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program... constructed to have appreciable and dependable protection in preventing damage from irregular and unusual..., recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement, land reclamation, habitat restoration, drainage, bank protection...

33 CFR 203.46 - Restrictions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program... constructed to have appreciable and dependable protection in preventing damage from irregular and unusual..., recreation, fish and wildlife enhancement, land reclamation, habitat restoration, drainage, bank protection...

Long-term and Storm-related Shoreline Change Trends in the Florida Gulf Islands National Seashore

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hapke, Cheryl J.; Christiano, Mark

2007-01-01

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Coastal erosion on Northern Gulf of Mexico barrier islands is an ongoing issue that was exacerbated by the storm seasons of 2004 and 2005 when several hurricanes made landfall in the Gulf of Mexico. Two units of the Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS), located on Santa Rosa Island, a barrier island off the Panhandle coast of Florida, were highly impacted during the hurricanes of 2004 (Ivan) and 2005 (Cindy, Dennis, Katrina and Rita). In addition to the loss of or damage to natural and cultural resources within the park, damage to park infrastructure, including park access roads and utilities, occurred in areas experiencing rapid shoreline retreat. The main park road was located as close as 50 m to the pre-storm (2001) shoreline and was still under repair from damage incurred during Hurricane Ivan when the 2005 hurricanes struck. A new General Management Plan is under development for the Gulf Islands National Seashore. This plan, like the existing General Management Plan, strives to incorporate natural barrier island processes, and will guide future efforts to provide access to units of Gulf Islands National Seashore on Santa Rosa Island. To assess changes in island geomorphology and provide data for park management, the National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey are currently analyzing shoreline change to better understand long-term (100+ years) shoreline change trends as well as short-term shoreline impact and recovery to severe storm events. Results show that over an ~140-year period from the late 1800s to May 2004, the average shoreline erosion rates in the Fort Pickens and Santa Rosa units of GUIS were -0.7m/yr and -0.1 m/yr, respectively. Areas of historic erosion, reaching a maximum rate of -1.3 m/yr, correspond to areas that experienced overwash and road damage during the 2004 hurricane season.. The shoreline eroded as much as ~60 m during Hurricane Ivan, and as much as ~88 m over the course of the 2005 storm season. The shoreline erosion rates in the areas where the park road was heavily damaged were as high as -70.2 m/yr over the 2004-2005 time period. Additional post-storm monitoring of these sections of the island, to assess whether erosion rates stabilize, will help to parks to determine the best long-term management strategy for the park infrastructure.

Lightning Sensors for Observing, Tracking and Nowcasting Severe Weather

PubMed Central

Price, Colin

2008-01-01

Severe and extreme weather is a major natural hazard all over the world, often resulting in major natural disasters such as hail storms, tornados, wind storms, flash floods, forest fires and lightning damages. While precipitation, wind, hail, tornados, turbulence, etc. can only be observed at close distances, lightning activity in these damaging storms can be monitored at all spatial scales, from local (using very high frequency [VHF] sensors), to regional (using very low frequency [VLF] sensors), and even global scales (using extremely low frequency [ELF] sensors). Using sensors that detect the radio waves emitted by each lightning discharge, it is now possible to observe and track continuously distant thunderstorms using ground networks of sensors. In addition to the number of lightning discharges, these sensors can also provide information on lightning characteristics such as the ratio between intra-cloud and cloud-to-ground lightning, the polarity of the lightning discharge, peak currents, charge removal, etc. It has been shown that changes in some of these lightning characteristics during thunderstorms are often related to changes in the severity of the storms. In this paper different lightning observing systems are described, and a few examples are provided showing how lightning may be used to monitor storm hazards around the globe, while also providing the possibility of supplying short term forecasts, called nowcasting. PMID:27879700

Assessing Hurricane Katrina Vegetation Damage at Stennis Space Center using IKONOS Image Classification Techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joseph P.; Ross, Kenton W.; Graham, William D.

2006-01-01

Hurricane Katrina inflicted widespread damage to vegetation in southwestern coastal Mississippi upon landfall on August 29, 2005. Storm damage to surface vegetation types at the NASA John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) was mapped and quantified using IKONOS data originally acquired on September 2, 2005, and later obtained via a Department of Defense ClearView contract. NASA SSC management required an assessment of the hurricane s impact to the 125,000-acre buffer zone used to mitigate rocket engine testing noise and vibration impacts and to manage forestry and fire risk. This study employed ERDAS IMAGINE software to apply traditional classification techniques to the IKONOS data. Spectral signatures were collected from multiple ISODATA classifications of subset areas across the entire region and then appended to a master file representative of major targeted cover type conditions. The master file was subsequently used with the IKONOS data and with a maximum likelihood algorithm to produce a supervised classification later refined using GIS-based editing. The final results enabled mapped, quantitative areal estimates of hurricane-induced damage according to general surface cover type. The IKONOS classification accuracy was assessed using higher resolution aerial imagery and field survey data. In-situ data and GIS analysis indicate that the results compare well to FEMA maps of flooding extent. The IKONOS classification also mapped open areas with woody storm debris. The detection of such storm damage categories is potentially useful for government officials responsible for hurricane disaster mitigation.

Effects of Hurricane Katrina’s storm surge on the quality of shallow aquifers near the northern shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain, southeastern Louisiana: Chapter 7D in Science and the storms-the USGS response to the hurricanes of 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tomaszewski, Dan J.; Lovelace, John K.

2007-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) sampled 13 wells on the northern shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain to determine the effect of Hurricane Katrina-induced storm surge water on the shallow groundwater resources. Surge water entering damaged wells did not contaminate the entire aquifer; however, contamination did occur locally at well sites. Because the storm surge from Katrina lasted only a few hours, surge water entering the aquifer will probably have only a short-term effect.

Prediction and mitigation of scour and scour damage to Vermont bridges.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-02-20

Over 300 Vermont bridges were damaged in the 2011 Tropical Storm Irene and many experienced significant scour. Successfully mitigating bridge scour in future flooding events depends on our ability to reliably estimate scour potential, design safe and...

Initial estimates of hurricane Katrina impacts of Mississippi gulf coast forest resources

Treesearch

Patrick A. Glass; Sonja N. Oswalt

2007-01-01

Hurricane Katrina pummeled the Gulf Coast of Mississippi on August 29, 2005. The eye wall of the storm passed directly over Hancock and Pearl River Counties. Harrison, Jackson, Stone, and George Counties on the windward side of the hurricane's path sustained severe damage before the storm's strength dissipated as it moved farther inland (fig. 1).

Hardwood crown injuries and rebuilding following ice storms: a literature review

Treesearch

Martin J. Kraemer; Ralph D. Nyland

2010-01-01

Ice storms occur frequently in northeastern North America. They damage and kill trees, change the structural characteristics of a forest, and may importantly alter the goods and services that owners realize from their land. This literature review summarizes 90 years of relevant information, mainly from fairly short term studies published between 1904 and 2006. It...

Aerial sketchmapping for monitoring forest conditions in Southern Brazil

Treesearch

Y. M. Malheiros de Oliveira; M. A. Doetzer Rosot; N. B. da Luz; W. M. Ciesla; E.W. Johnson; R. Rhea; J.F. Jr. Penteado

2006-01-01

Aerial sketchmapping is a simple, low cost remote sensing method used for detection and mapping of forest damage caused by biotic agents (insects, pathogens and other pests) and abiotic agents (wind, fire, storms, hurricane, ice storms) in North America. This method was introduced to Brazil in 2001/2002 via a USDA Forest Service/EMBRAPA technical exchange program,...

Simulating storm surge inundation and damage potential within complex port facilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mawdsley, Robert; French, Jon; Fujiyama, Taku; Achutan, Kamalasudhan

2017-04-01

Storm surge inundation of port facilities can cause damage to critical elements of infrastructure, significantly disrupt port operations and cause downstream impacts on vital supply chains. A tidal surge in December 2013 in the North Sea partly flooded the Port of Immingham, which handles the largest volume of bulk cargo in the UK including major flows of coal and biomass for power generation. This flooding caused damage to port and rail transport infrastructure and disrupted operations for several weeks. This research aims to improve resilience to storm surges using hydrodynamic modelling coupled to an agent-based model of port operations. Using the December 2013 event to validate flood extent, depth and duration, we ran a high resolution hydrodynamic simulation using the open source Telemac 2D finite element code. The underlying Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was derived from Environment Agency LiDAR data, with ground truthing of the flood defences along the port frontage. Major infrastructure and buildings are explicitly resolved with varying degrees of permeability. Telemac2D simulations are run in parallel and take only minutes on a single 16 cpu compute node. Inundation characteristics predicted using Telemac 2D differ from a simple Geographical Information System 'bath-tub' analysis of the DEM based upon horizontal application of the maximum water level across the port topography. The hydrodynamic simulation predicts less extensive flooding and more closely matches observed flood extent. It also provides more precise depth and duration curves. Detailed spatial flood depth and duration maps were generated for a range of tide and surge scenarios coupled to mean sea-level rise projections. These inundation scenarios can then be integrated with critical asset databases and an agent-based model of port operation (MARS) that is capable of simulating storm surge disruption along wider supply chains. Port operators are able to act on information from a particular flood scenario to perform adaptive responses (e.g. pre-emptive relocation of equipment), as well as estimate the likely duration of any disruption to port and supply chain operation. High resolution numerical inundation modelling, coupled to accurate storm surge forecasting and an agent based port operation model, thus has the potential to significantly reduce damage and disruption costs associated with storm surge impacts on port infrastructure and systems.

Future Flood Inundation and Damages from Storm Surge in the Coast of Virginia and Maryland with Projected Climate Change and Sea Level Rise Scenarios

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rezaie, A. M.; Ferreira, C.; Walls, M. A.

2016-12-01

The recurrent flood risks on coastal areas in the United States (US) due to hurricane wind and storm surge are likely to rise with warmer climate, frequent storms, and increasing coastal population. Recent studies suggested that the global financial losses from hurricanes will be doubled by 2100 due to combined impact of climate change, sea level rise (SLR) and intensified hurricanes. While the predicted average SLR for the Mid-Atlantic region of the US is 2.2 meter, some coastal areas in Virginia (VA) and Maryland (MD) are expected to experience a 0.7 to 1.6m and 0.6 to 1.7m SLR respectively. Nearly 80 percent of the total $5.3 billion property damage by Hurricane Isabel in 2003 was within VA and MD. In order to provide a quantitative assessment of the future flooding and associated damages for projected climate change and SLR scenarios, this study integrated state-of-the-art coastal numerical model ADCIRC with a careful economic valuation exercise of flood damages. The study area covers the entire coastal zone of VA and MD focusing on regions that are in the vicinity of the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean with high susceptibility to storm surge and flooding. Multiple climate change land cover scenarios generated by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) under a series of the IPCC's Emissions Scenarios are incorporated in the modeling approach to integrate climate change whereas local SLR projections are included to provide the regional aspects of future risks. Preliminary results for hurricane Isabel (2003) shows that a 2.3m rise in sea level can cause storm surges rising up to 3-4m in the coastal areas. While a 0.5m SLR makes the range 1-2.5m in the affected areas. It is also seen that higher increase in the sea level not only causes higher range of inundation but a greater extent of flood as well. The projected inland flooding extents are highest for the SRES A2 Scenario. Alongside an estimate of future loss and damage will be prepared to assist in future planning for the coastal areas near the Chesapeake Bay regions and finally progressing in developing a climate resilient coast. Furthermore the estimated damages will be applied to quantify the functionality and benefits of natural and nature-based features for coastal defense for future changes in climate and development.

Heavy snowfall damage Virginia pine

Treesearch

Richard H. Fenton

1959-01-01

In the Coastal Plain from Virginia to Pennsylvania, snowstorms heavy enough to damage trees are unusual. Weather Bureau records for the general area show that heavy snowfall - 8 to 25 inches in a single storm - occurs at an average frequency of about once in 7 years.

Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Characteristics of a Major Tropical Cyclone Tornado Outbreak

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McCaul, Eugene W., Jr.; Buechler, Dennis; Goodman, Steven J.

1999-01-01

A comprehensive analysis has been conducted of the cloud-to-ground lightning activity occurring within a landfalling tropical cyclone that produced an outbreak of strong and damaging tornadoes. Radar data indicate that 12 convective cells were responsible for 29 tornadoes, several of which received an F3 intensity rating, in the southeastern United States on 16 August 1994 within the remnants of Tropical Storm Beryl. Of these 12 tornadic storms, the most active cell produced 315 flashes over a 5.5 hour period, while the other storms were less active. Three tornadic storms failed to produce any CG lightning at all. In general, the tornadic storms were more active electrically than other non-tornadic cells within Beryl's remnants, although the flash rates were rather modest by comparison with significant midlatitude severe storm events. Very few positive polarity flashes were found in the Beryl outbreak. During some of the stronger tornadoes, CG flash rates in the parent storms showed sharp transient decreases. Doppler radar data suggest the stronger tornadic storms were small supercells, and the lightning data indicate these storms exhibited lightning characteristics similar to those found in heavy-precipitation supercell storms.

Floods of January-February 1963 in California and Nevada

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rantz, S.E.; Harris, E.E.

1963-01-01

Widespread flooding occurred in central California and northwestern Nevada during January 31 - February 1, 1963, as a result of intense precipitation of about 72 hours duration. The flood-producing storm was of the warm type, with precipitation falling as rain at altitudes as high as 8,000 feet. The heavy precipitation, totaling as much as 20 inches or more in the Sierra Nevada, fell on frozen ground or on the sparse snowpack that existed in the higher altitudes. The response of runoff to rainfall was dramatic, as streams throughout the area rose rapidly. Hardest hit were the basins of the American, Yuba, and Truckee Rivers, where flood peaks either reached record-breaking heights or rivalled the discharges attained in the memorable floods of November 1950 and December 1955. Because of the relatively short duration of the storm, the volume of flood flow in 1963 was not outstanding. Ten deaths were attributed to the storm or flood. Preliminary estimates indicate damage in excess of $16 million in foothill and valley areas, but no attempt has yet been made to assess the heavy damage to highways and drainage structures in the mountain areas. The U. S. Army, Corps of Engineirs estimates that its operation of flood-control facilities prevented additional damage of $236 million. Other reservoirs, operated primarily for water conservation or power production, were also instrumental in preventing damage.

September 2013 Storm and Flood Assessment Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walterscheid, J. C.

2015-12-21

Between September 10 and 17, 2013, New Mexico and Colorado received a historically large amount of precipitation (Figure 1). This report assesses the damage caused by flooding along with estimated costs to repair the damage at Los Alamos National Laboratory (the Laboratory) on the Pajarito Plateau. Los Alamos County, New Mexico, received between 200% and 600% of the normal precipitation for this time period (Figure 2), and the Laboratory received approximately 450% percent of its average precipitation for September (Figure 3). As a result, the Laboratory was inundated with rain, including the extremely large, greater-than-1000-yr return period event that occurredmore » between September 12 and 13 (Table 1). With saturated antecedent soil conditions from the September 10 storm, when the September 12 to September 13 storm hit, the flooding was disastrous to the Laboratory’s environmental infrastructure, including access roads, gage stations, watershed controls, control measures installed under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit (hereafter, the Individual Permit), and groundwater monitoring wells (Figures 4 through 21). From September 16 to October 1, 2013, the Laboratory completed field assessments of environmental infrastructure and generated descriptions and estimates of the damage, which are presented in spreadsheets in Attachments 1 to 4 of this report. Section 2 of this report contains damage assessments by watershed, including access roads, gage stations, watershed controls, and control measures installed under the Individual Permit. Section 3 contains damage assessments of monitoring wells by the groundwater monitoring groups as established in the Interim Facility-Wide Groundwater Monitoring Plan for Monitoring Year 2014. Section 4 addresses damage and loss of automated samplers. Section 5 addresses sediment sampling needs, and Section 6 is the summary of estimated recovery costs from the significant rain and flooding during September 2013.« less

Assessing and Mitigating Hurricane Storm Surge Risk in a Changing Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, N.; Shullman, E.; Xian, S.; Feng, K.

2017-12-01

Hurricanes have induced devastating storm surge flooding worldwide. The impacts of these storms may worsen in the coming decades because of rapid coastal development coupled with sea-level rise and possibly increasing storm activity due to climate change. Major advances in coastal flood risk management are urgently needed. We present an integrated dynamic risk analysis for flooding task (iDraft) framework to assess and manage coastal flood risk at the city or regional scale, considering integrated dynamic effects of storm climatology change, sea-level rise, and coastal development. We apply the framework to New York City. First, we combine climate-model projected storm surge climatology and sea-level rise with engineering- and social/economic-model projected coastal exposure and vulnerability to estimate the flood damage risk for the city over the 21st century. We derive temporally-varying risk measures such as the annual expected damage as well as temporally-integrated measures such as the present value of future losses. We also examine the individual and joint contributions to the changing risk of the three dynamic factors (i.e., sea-level rise, storm change, and coastal development). Then, we perform probabilistic cost-benefit analysis for various coastal flood risk mitigation strategies for the city. Specifically, we evaluate previously proposed mitigation measures, including elevating houses on the floodplain and constructing flood barriers at the coast, by comparing their estimated cost and probability distribution of the benefit (i.e., present value of avoided future losses). We also propose new design strategies, including optimal design (e.g., optimal house elevation) and adaptive design (e.g., flood protection levels that are designed to be modified over time in a dynamic and uncertain environment).

Satellite remote sensing and cloud modeling of St. Anthony, Minnesota storm clouds and dew point depression

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hung, R. J.; Tsao, Y. D.

1988-01-01

Rawinsonde data and geosynchronous satellite imagery were used to investigate the life cycles of St. Anthony, Minnesota's severe convective storms. It is found that the fully developed storm clouds, with overshooting cloud tops penetrating above the tropopause, collapsed about three minutes before the touchdown of the tornadoes. Results indicate that the probability of producing an outbreak of tornadoes causing greater damage increases when there are higher values of potential energy storage per unit area for overshooting cloud tops penetrating the tropopause. It is also found that there is less chance for clouds with a lower moisture content to be outgrown as a storm cloud than clouds with a higher moisture content.

Evaluating the Potential Usefulness of new Hurricane Indices for Emergency Management and Other Decision Makers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jordan, M. R.; Clayson, C. A.

2006-12-01

Over the past 35 years, the Saffir-Simpson scale has used wind speed as a means for categorizing damage and surge risks associated with hurricanes. Time has shown, however, that hurricanes with the same wind speed do not necessarily cause equal damage values and storm-surge heights. Therefore, it is prudent to now consider a different method for categorizing storms so that emergency management officials in a coastal location can have a better idea as to the potential hazards posed by a particular hurricane. Recognizing this need, three new indices were developed by Lakshmi Kantha in 2005 for evaluating hurricane intensity, hurricane damage potential, and hurricane surge potential. This paper applies these indices to a twenty-year database (1986-2005) of Atlantic, U.S.-landfalling hurricanes and compares the relative indices to known damage estimates and surge heights. Some general conclusions will be made regarding the possible usefulness of these indices for emergency management officials in areas prone to landfalling tropical cyclones.

Damage and recovery assessment of the Philippines' mangroves following Super Typhoon Haiyan.

PubMed

Long, Jordan; Giri, Chandra; Primavera, Jurgenne; Trivedi, Mandar

2016-08-30

We quantified mangrove disturbance resulting from Super Typhoon Haiyan using a remote sensing approach. Mangrove areas were mapped prior to Haiyan using 30m Landsat imagery and a supervised decision-tree classification. A time sequence of 250m eMODIS data was used to monitor mangrove condition prior to, and following, Haiyan. Based on differences in eMODIS NDVI observations before and after the storm, we classified mangrove into three damage level categories: minimal, moderate, or severe. Mangrove damage in terms of extent and severity was greatest where Haiyan first made landfall on Eastern Samar and Western Samar provinces and lessened westward corresponding with decreasing storm intensity as Haiyan tracked from east to west across the Visayas region of the Philippines. However, within 18months following Haiyan, mangrove areas classified as severely, moderately, and minimally damaged decreased by 90%, 81%, and 57%, respectively, indicating mangroves resilience to powerful typhoons. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

How to sow mustard in burned watersheds of southern California

Treesearch

Clark H. Gleason

1944-01-01

After the chaparral cover of the mountain watersheds in southern California is burned, damage is usually done during winter storms by increased runoff and erosion debris from the denuded area. The damage is done not only to the works of man, but to the watershed itself. Improvements that most often suffer tangible damage include water storage and diversion structures;...

Hurricane impacts on forest resources in the Eastern United States: a post-sandy assessment

Treesearch

Greg C. Liknes; Susan J. Crocker; Randall S. Morin; Brian F. Walters

2015-01-01

Extreme weather events play a role in shaping the composition and structure of forests. Responding to and mitigating a storm event in a forested environment requires information about the location and severity of tree damage. However, this information can be difficult to obtain immediately following an event. Post-storm assessments using regularly collected forest...

The National Shipbuilding Research Program. Strategies and Demonstrations for the Reduction of Government Regulations Related to Commercial Shipbuilding

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-09-01

inspecting storm water quality associated with storm water runoff or snowmelt: January through March; April through June: July through September and October...beyond those described in Part V.B. of this permit. 5. Monitoring and Reporting . Requirements Storm Water Quality . Facilities shall perform and document...event. (I) Examinations shall be conducted in each of the following periods for the purposes of visually inspecting storm water quality associated

Objective classification of historical tropical cyclone intensity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chenoweth, Michael

2007-03-01

Preinstrumental records of historical tropical cyclone activity require objective methods for accurately categorizing tropical cyclone intensity. Here wind force terms and damage reports from newspaper accounts in the Lesser Antilles and Jamaica for the period 1795-1879 are compared with wind speed estimates calculated from barometric pressure data. A total of 95 separate barometric pressure readings and colocated simultaneous wind force descriptors and wind-induced damage reports are compared. The wind speed estimates from barometric pressure data are taken as the most reliable and serve as a standard to compare against other data. Wind-induced damage reports are used to produce an estimated wind speed range using a modified Fujita scale. Wind force terms are compared with the barometric pressure data to determine if a gale, as used in the contemporary newspapers, is consistent with the modern definition of a gale. Results indicate that the modern definition of a gale (the threshold point separating the classification of a tropical depression from a tropical storm) is equivalent to that in contemporary newspaper accounts. Barometric pressure values are consistent with both reported wind force terms and wind damage on land when the location, speed and direction of movement of the tropical cyclone are determined. Damage reports and derived wind force estimates are consistent with other published results. Biases in ships' logbooks are confirmed and wind force terms of gale strength or greater are identified. These results offer a bridge between the earlier noninstrumental records of tropical cyclones and modern records thereby offering a method of consistently classifying storms in the Caribbean region into tropical depressions, tropical storms, nonmajor and major hurricanes.

Assessing storm events for energy meteorology: using media and scientific reports to track a North Sea autumn storm.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kettle, Anthony

2016-04-01

Important issues for energy meteorology are to assess meteorological conditions for normal operating conditions and extreme events for the ultimate limit state of engineering structures. For the offshore environment in northwest Europe, energy meteorology encompasses weather conditions relevant for petroleum production infrastructure and also the new field of offshore wind energy production. Autumn and winter storms are an important issue for offshore operations in the North Sea. The weather in this region is considered as challenging for extreme meteorological events as the Gulf of Mexico with its attendant hurricane risk. The rise of the Internet and proliferation of digital recording devices has placed a much greater amount of information in the public domain than was available to national meteorological agencies even 20 years ago. This contribution looks at reports of meteorology and infrastructure damage from a storm in the autumn of 2006 to trace the spatial and temporal record of meteorological events. Media reports give key information to assess the events of the storm. The storm passed over northern Europe between Oct.31-Nov. 2, 2006, and press reports from the time indicate that its most important feature was a high surge that inundated coastal areas. Sections of the Dutch and German North Sea coast were affected, and there was record flooding in Denmark and East Germany in the southern Baltic Sea. Extreme wind gusts were also reported that were strong enough to damage roofs and trees, and there was even tornado recorded near the Dutch-German border. Offshore, there were a series of damage reports from ship and platforms that were linked with sea state, and reports of rogue waves were explicitly mentioned. Many regional government authorities published summaries of geophysical information related to the storm, and these form part of a regular series of online winter storm reports that started as a public service about 15 years ago. Depending on the issuing authority, these reports include wind speed and atmospheric pressure for a number of stations. However, there is also important ancillary information that includes satellite images, weather radar pictures, sea state recordings, tide gauge records, and coastal surveys. When collated together, the literature survey gives good view of events related to the autumn storm. The key information from media reports is backed up by quantitative numbers from the scientific literature. For energy meteorology in the offshore environment, there is an outline of extreme wave events that may be important to help define the ultimate limit state of engineering structures and the return periods of extreme waves. While this contribution focusses on events from an old storm in the autumn of 2006, more severe regional storms have occurred since then, and the scientific literature indicates that these may be linked with climate warming. Literature surveys may help to fully define extreme meteorological conditions offshore and benefit different branches of the energy industry in Europe.

Impacts on Coralligenous Outcrop Biodiversity of a Dramatic Coastal Storm

PubMed Central

Teixidó, Núria; Casas, Edgar; Cebrián, Emma; Linares, Cristina; Garrabou, Joaquim

2013-01-01

Extreme events are rare, stochastic perturbations that can cause abrupt and dramatic ecological change within a short period of time relative to the lifespan of organisms. Studies over time provide exceptional opportunities to detect the effects of extreme climatic events and to measure their impacts by quantifying rates of change at population and community levels. In this study, we show how an extreme storm event affected the dynamics of benthic coralligenous outcrops in the NW Mediterranean Sea using data acquired before (2006–2008) and after the impact (2009–2010) at four different sites. Storms of comparable severity have been documented to occur occasionally within periods of 50 years in the Mediterranean Sea. We assessed the effects derived from the storm comparing changes in benthic community composition at sites exposed to and sheltered from this extreme event. The sites analyzed showed different damage from severe to negligible. The most exposed and impacted site experienced a major shift immediately after the storm, represented by changes in the species richness and beta diversity of benthic species. This site also showed higher compositional variability immediately after the storm and over the following year. The loss of cover of benthic species resulted between 22% and 58%. The damage across these species (e.g. calcareous algae, sponges, anthozoans, bryozoans, tunicates) was uneven, and those with fragile forms were the most impacted, showing cover losses up to 50 to 100%. Interestingly, small patches survived after the storm and began to grow slightly during the following year. In contrast, sheltered sites showed no significant changes in all the studied parameters, indicating no variations due to the storm. This study provides new insights into the responses to large and rare extreme events of Mediterranean communities with low dynamics and long-lived species, which are among the most threatened by the effects of global change. PMID:23326496

Effects of the Large June 1975 Meteoroid Storm on Earth's Ionosphere.

PubMed

Kaufmann, P; Kuntz, V L; Leme, N M; Piazza, L R; Boas, J W; Brecher, K; Crouchley, J

1989-11-10

The June 1975 meteoroid storm detected on the moon by the Apollo seismometers was the largest ever observed. Reexamination of radio data taken at that time showed that the storm also produced pronounced disturbances on Earth, which were recorded as unique phase anomalies on very low frequency (VLF) radio propagation paths in the low terrestrial ionosphere. Persistent effects were observed for the major storm period (20 to 30 June 1975), including reductions in the diurnal phase variation, advances in the nighttime and daytime phase levels, and reductions in the sunset phase delay rate. Large nighttime phase advances, lasting a few hours, were detected on some days at all VLF transmissions, and for the shorter propagation path they were comparable to solar Lyman alpha daytime ionization. Ion production rates attributable to the meteor storm were estimated to be about 0.6 to 3.0 ions per centimeter cubed per second at the E and D regions, respectively. The storm was a sporadic one with a radiant (that is, the point of apparent origin in the sky) located in the Southern Hemisphere, with a right ascension 1 to 2 hours larger than the sun's right ascension.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Plant debris left behind by Hurricane Matthew covers a stretch of the NASA Railroad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A portion of the line near the ocean was used during the Apollo era, although some portions were used to deliver commodities to the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station through the end of the Titan program. NASA determined it was financially and ecologically advantageous to leave the tracks in place. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Erosion caused by Hurricane Matthew has worn away sections of the ground beneath the NASA Railroad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A portion of the line near the ocean was used during the Apollo era, although some portions were used to deliver commodities to the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station through the end of the Titan program. NASA determined it was financially and ecologically advantageous to leave the tracks in place. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

New fronts emerge in the influenza cytokine storm.

PubMed

Guo, Xi-Zhi J; Thomas, Paul G

2017-07-01

Influenza virus is a significant pathogen in humans and animals with the ability to cause extensive morbidity and mortality. Exuberant immune responses induced following infection have been described as a "cytokine storm," associated with excessive levels of proinflammatory cytokines and widespread tissue damage. Recent studies have painted a more complex picture of cytokine networks and their contributions to clinical outcomes. While many cytokines clearly inflict immunopathology, others have non-pathological delimited roles in sending alarm signals, facilitating viral clearance, and promoting tissue repair, such as the IL-33-amphiregulin axis, which plays a key role in resolving some types of lung damage. Recent literature suggests that type 2 cytokines, traditionally thought of as not involved in anti-influenza immunity, may play an important regulatory role. Here, we discuss the diverse roles played by cytokines after influenza infection and highlight new, serene features of the cytokine storm, while highlighting the specific functions of relevant cytokines that perform unique immune functions and may have applications for influenza therapy.

An Examination of Selected Historical Rainfall-Induced Debris-Flow Events within the Central and Southern Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wieczorek, Gerald F.; Eaton, L. Scott; Morgan, Benjamin A.; Wooten, R.M.; Morrissey, M.

2009-01-01

Generally, every several years, heavy amounts of rainfall trigger a large number of debris flows within the central and southern Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States. These types of landslides damage buildings, disrupt infrastructure, and occasionally injure and kill people. One of the first large debris flows was described in Pennsylvania in August 1779. The most destructive event occurred during August 19-20, 1969, in Nelson County, Va. During a period of 8 hours, 710 to 800 milimeters of rain triggered more than 3,000 landslides, killing more than 150 people. As the population increases in this region, future storms will likely increase the risks of property damage and loss of life. We provide a general overview of debris flows in the Appalachians, using a compilation of 19 storm events for which rainfall, duration of the storm, and descriptions of the resulting landslides have been substantially documented.

Remote Sensing Techniques for Rapid Assessment of Forest Damage Caused by Catastrophic Climatic Events, NA-TP-01-01

Treesearch

William Ciesla; William Frament; Margaret Miller-Weeks

2001-01-01

Catastrophic climatic events such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and ice storms can cause billions of dollars in damage to infrastructure and personal property, loss of lives, and damage to natural resources. Forests are especially susceptible to these events. The following is a list of recent climatic events in North America that have had devastating effects on forest...

Effect of simulated ice storm damage on loblolly pine tree and stand growth

Treesearch

Rodney E. Will; Thomas Hennessey; Thomas Lynch; Robert Heinemann; Randal Holeman; Dennis Wilson

2012-01-01

Ice damage to loblolly pine plantations is a recurrent problem in eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas with significant ice events occurring recently in 1995, twice in 2000, and in 2007. Following ice damage, forest owners need to decide to clear-cut and replant, thin or partial cut to rehabilitate, or take no action. A quantitative assessment of tree and stand growth...

Ice Damage in a Georgia Planting of Loblolly Pine from Different Seed Sources

Treesearch

Earle P. Jones; Osborn O. Wells

1969-01-01

After a severe ice storm in south-central Georgia, the degree of ice damage in a provenance test planting of 11-year-old loblolly pines varied considerably among the nine widely seperated seed sources represented. Damage was less among tress from the colder, more inland locations than among tress from coastal areas where the climate is more moderate. In terms of...

Tsunami damage in the southern Kanto region from the 1703 Genroku Kanto earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muragishi, J.; Satake, K.

2014-12-01

The Genroku Kanto earthquake occurred on Dec. 31th, 1703 along the Sagami Trough where the Philippine Sea plate subducts beneath the continental plate. Hatori (1976) reported significant tsunami damage with estimated tsunami heights of 5 m along Kujukuri coast on the Pacific Ocean, and estimated the tsunami heights in the inner Tokyo Bay as approximately 2 m. In Tokyo Bay, there are no records that indicate the tsunami inundated residential areas, while some descriptions of tsunami are recorded in Edo, the former Tokyo. The notice from Edo City Commissioners to residences in Edo described that the tsunami came up to the upper-limit of Sumida River in Tokyo, where four major arrivals of tsunamis were reported. According to Saihen-onkoroku, tsunami came to Fukagawa, where one person was killed by throwing away from a boat affected by the tsunami. In Ichikawa along the coast of Chiba Prefecture in Tokyo Bay, there are historical records about the salt farm. The embankments were collapsed and the salt farm was ruined, while the tsunami damage is not described. At this location, the damage due to storm surge in 1680 is recorded in the same document. Although storm surge damage is recorded in detail, there are no records about the Genroku tsunami, suggesting that the tsunami damage, if any, is slighter than the storm surge. Along the Kujukui coast outside the Tokyo bay, the descriptions are not only damage to buildings or deaths but also an influx of sand brought by the tsunami which damaged the agricultural land. In summary, it became certain that the Genroku tsunami caused some damage in the inner Tokyo Bay area. In addition, we found that a wide range of farmland was suffered by influx of sand and crops could not grow well. Such a description may be able to contribute to the tsunami deposits in future research. This study was supported by the Special Project for Reducing Vulnerability for Urban Mega Earthquake Disasters from the MEXT of Japan.

Implications and Constraints of Fiscal Laws in Contingency Contracting

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-08-30

earthquakes, and floods and are supported by U.S. military forces providing cleanup and humanitarian assistance (for example, after Hurricanes Hugo , Andrew...included operations in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and in New York after storm damage in 2012. The military has also supported...Emergency Relief Operations Domestic disaster and emergency relief operations focus on natural disasters such as hurricanes , weather storms

Discontinuous Galerkin methods for modeling Hurricane storm surge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dawson, Clint; Kubatko, Ethan J.; Westerink, Joannes J.; Trahan, Corey; Mirabito, Christopher; Michoski, Craig; Panda, Nishant

2011-09-01

Storm surge due to hurricanes and tropical storms can result in significant loss of life, property damage, and long-term damage to coastal ecosystems and landscapes. Computer modeling of storm surge can be used for two primary purposes: forecasting of surge as storms approach land for emergency planning and evacuation of coastal populations, and hindcasting of storms for determining risk, development of mitigation strategies, coastal restoration and sustainability. Storm surge is modeled using the shallow water equations, coupled with wind forcing and in some events, models of wave energy. In this paper, we will describe a depth-averaged (2D) model of circulation in spherical coordinates. Tides, riverine forcing, atmospheric pressure, bottom friction, the Coriolis effect and wind stress are all important for characterizing the inundation due to surge. The problem is inherently multi-scale, both in space and time. To model these problems accurately requires significant investments in acquiring high-fidelity input (bathymetry, bottom friction characteristics, land cover data, river flow rates, levees, raised roads and railways, etc.), accurate discretization of the computational domain using unstructured finite element meshes, and numerical methods capable of capturing highly advective flows, wetting and drying, and multi-scale features of the solution. The discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method appears to allow for many of the features necessary to accurately capture storm surge physics. The DG method was developed for modeling shocks and advection-dominated flows on unstructured finite element meshes. It easily allows for adaptivity in both mesh ( h) and polynomial order ( p) for capturing multi-scale spatial events. Mass conservative wetting and drying algorithms can be formulated within the DG method. In this paper, we will describe the application of the DG method to hurricane storm surge. We discuss the general formulation, and new features which have been added to the model to better capture surge in complex coastal environments. These features include modifications to the method to handle spherical coordinates and maintain still flows, improvements in the stability post-processing (i.e. slope-limiting), and the modeling of internal barriers for capturing overtopping of levees and other structures. We will focus on applications of the model to recent events in the Gulf of Mexico, including Hurricane Ike.

Detection of Hail Storms in Radar Imagery Using Deep Learning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pullman, Melinda; Gurung, Iksha; Ramachandran, Rahul; Maskey, Manil

2017-01-01

In 2016, hail was responsible for 3.5 billion and 23 million dollars in damage to property and crops, respectively, making it the second costliest weather phenomenon in the United States. In an effort to improve hail-prediction techniques and reduce the societal impacts associated with hail storms, we propose a deep learning technique that leverages radar imagery for automatic detection of hail storms. The technique is applied to radar imagery from 2011 to 2016 for the contiguous United States and achieved a precision of 0.848. Hail storms are primarily detected through the visual interpretation of radar imagery (Mrozet al., 2017). With radars providing data every two minutes, the detection of hail storms has become a big data task. As a result, scientists have turned to neural networks that employ computer vision to identify hail-bearing storms (Marzbanet al., 2001). In this study, we propose a deep Convolutional Neural Network (ConvNet) to understand the spatial features and patterns of radar echoes for detecting hailstorms.

Assessing economic impact of storm surge under projected sea level rise scenarios

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Del Angel, D. C.; Yoskowitz, D.

2017-12-01

Global sea level is expected to rise 0.2-2m by the year 2100. Rising sea level is expected to have a number of impacts such as erosion, saltwater intrusion, and decline in coastal wetlands; all which have direct and indirect socio-economic impact to coastal communities. By 2050, 25% of the world's population will reside within flood-prone areas. These statistics raise a concern for the economic cost that sea level and flooding has on the growing coastal communities. Economic cost of storm surge inundation and rising seas may include loss or damage to public facilities and infrastructure that may become temporarily inaccessible, as well as disruptions to business and services. This goal of this project is to assess economic impacts of storms under four SLR scenarios including low, intermediate-low, intermediate-high, and high (0.2m, 0.5m, 1.2m and 2m, respectively) in the Northern Gulf of Mexico region. To assess flooding impact on communities from storm surge, this project utilizes HAZUS-MH software - a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based modeling tool developed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency - to estimate physical, economic, and social impacts of natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and hurricanes. The HAZUS database comes integrated with aggregate and site specific inventory which includes: demographic data, general building stock, agricultural statistics, vehicle inventory, essential facilities, transportation systems, utility systems (among other sensitive facilities). User-defined inundation scenarios will serve to identify assets at risk and damage estimates will be generated using the Depth Damage Function included in the HAZUS software. Results will focus on 3 communities in the Gulf and highlight changes in storm flood impact. This approach not only provides a method for economic impact assessment but also begins to create a link between ecosystem services and natural and nature-based features such as wetlands, beaches and dunes. Results from this analysis can provide actionable information needed for policy development and planning for coastal communities.

Prominent November Coldwaves in the North Central United States Since 1901.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wendland, Wayne M.

1987-06-01

The frequency and intensity of early winter (November) coldwaves were investigated for the north central United States. Twenty-two such storms occurred from 1901 to 1985, and were most frequent in the 1950s and early 1960s, and again from the mid 1970s to the present.November coldwaves are most often the result of Colorado cyclones moving to the cast northeast. On average, temperature declines of 22°C or more within 24 hours, falling to at least 0°C, impacted about 40 percent of the 12-state region. The storms were most often accompanied by strong winds, wind chill, heavy snow to the west, and thunderstorms to the cast, i.e., the trappings of a severe winter storm. Many of these storms inflicted severe damage on land and on the Great Lakes, sometimes taking lives of those not anticipating such a severe "winter" storm in November.

OSSE Assessment of Ocean Observing System Enhancements to Improve Coupled Tropical Cyclone Intensity Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halliwell, G. R., Jr.; Mehari, M. F.; Dong, J.; Kourafalou, V.; Atlas, R. M.; Kang, H.; Le Henaff, M.

2016-02-01

A new ocean OSSE system validated in the tropical/subtropical Atlantic Ocean is used to evaluate ocean observing strategies during the 2014 hurricane season with the goal of improving coupled tropical cyclone forecasts. Enhancements to the existing operational ocean observing system are evaluated prior to two storms, Edouard and Gonzalo, where ocean measurements were obtained during field experiments supported by the 2013 Disaster Relief Appropriation Act. For Gonzalo, a reference OSSE is performed to evaluate the impact of two ocean gliders deployed north and south of Puerto Rico and two Alamo profiling floats deployed in the same general region during most of the hurricane season. For Edouard, a reference OSSE is performed to evaluate impacts of the pre-storm ocean profile survey conducted by NOAA WP-3D aircraft. For both storms, additional OSSEs are then conducted to evaluate more extensive seasonal and pre-storm ocean observing strategies. These include (1) deploying a larger number of synthetic ocean gliders during the hurricane season, (2) deploying pre-storm synthetic thermistor chains or synthetic profiling floats along one or more "picket fence" lines that cross projected storm tracks, and (3) designing pre-storm airborne profiling surveys to have larger impacts than the actual pre-storm survey conducted for Edouard. Impacts are evaluated based on error reduction in ocean parameters important to SST cooling and hurricane intensity such as ocean heat content and the structure of the ocean eddy field. In all cases, ocean profiles that sample both temperature and salinity down to 1000m provide greater overall error reduction than shallower temperature profiles obtained from AXBTs and thermistor chains. Large spatial coverage with multiple instruments spanning a few degrees of longitude and latitude is necessary to sufficiently reduce ocean initialization errors over a region broad enough to significantly impact predicted surface enthalpy flux into the storm. Error reduction in hurricane intensity forecasts resulting from the additional ocean observations is then assessed by initializing the ocean component of the HYCOM-HWRF coupled prediction system with analyses produced by the OSSE system.

26 CFR 1.9300-1 - Reduction in taxable income for housing displaced individuals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) (Stafford Act) by reason of severe storms, tornados, or flooding... attributable to the severe storms, tornados, or flooding in the Midwestern disaster area. (g) Examples. The...

26 CFR 1.9300-1 - Reduction in taxable income for housing displaced individuals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) (Stafford Act) by reason of severe storms, tornados, or flooding... attributable to the severe storms, tornados, or flooding in the Midwestern disaster area. (g) Examples. The...

26 CFR 1.9300-1 - Reduction in taxable income for housing displaced individuals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) (Stafford Act) by reason of severe storms, tornados, or flooding... attributable to the severe storms, tornados, or flooding in the Midwestern disaster area. (g) Examples. The...

26 CFR 1.9300-1 - Reduction in taxable income for housing displaced individuals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) (Stafford Act) by reason of severe storms, tornados, or flooding... attributable to the severe storms, tornados, or flooding in the Midwestern disaster area. (g) Examples. The...

26 CFR 1.9300-1 - Reduction in taxable income for housing displaced individuals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) (Stafford Act) by reason of severe storms, tornados, or flooding... attributable to the severe storms, tornados, or flooding in the Midwestern disaster area. (g) Examples. The...

"Midget typhoon" in the western Pacific Ocean

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

It’s usually the big, sprawling storms that attract the attention of meteorologists, but occasionally tiny storms can make news as well. The most recent example is a suspected mini-typhoon that drifted across the western Pacific Ocean in mid-July 2013. The storm system emerged on July 16 and dissipated by July 19 without making landfall or causing any significant damage. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this true-color image of the storm on July 17, 2013. It had the spiral shape of a tropical cyclone, but the cloud field was less than 100 kilometers (60 miles) across. For comparison, Super Typhoon Jelawat, the most intense storm of the 2012 season, had a cloud field that stretched nearly 1,000 kilometers (600 miles). Jelawat’s eye alone—with a diameter of 64 kilometers (40 miles)—was two-thirds the size of the entire July 2013 storm. Despite their small size, mini-cyclones are driven by the same forces that drive larger storms. Both small and large cyclonic storms are simply organized convection feeding off warm water in areas with low wind shear. According to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, the low-pressure areas for these mini-typhoons must span less than two degrees of latitude (about 140 miles) and have sustained winds of 65 knots (74 miles per hour). The 2013 storm in the Pacific certainly meets the first criteria, but it is unlikely that the storm achieved typhoon-force winds. It’s also unlikely that the system had a “warm core,” which all true tropical cyclones have. While this storm did not cause damage, other mini storms certainly have. In 1974, the miniature cyclone Tracy hit Darwin, Australia, killing 71 people and destroying more than 70 percent of the city’s buildings. According to the National Hurricane Center, tropical cyclone Marco unseated Tracy as the smallest tropical cyclone on record in 2008. Marco had gale force winds that extended just 19 kilometers (12 miles). Typhoon Tip, with gale force winds extending 1,000 kilometers (675 miles) is the largest tropical cyclone on record. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Jeff Schmaltz/MODIS Land Rapid Response Team NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Mapping and Visualization of Storm-Surge Dynamics for Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gesch, Dean B.

2009-01-01

The damages caused by the storm surges from Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita were significant and occurred over broad areas. Storm-surge maps are among the most useful geospatial datasets for hurricane recovery, impact assessments, and mitigation planning for future storms. Surveyed high-water marks were used to generate a maximum storm-surge surface for Hurricane Katrina extending from eastern Louisiana to Mobile Bay, Alabama. The interpolated surface was intersected with high-resolution lidar elevation data covering the study area to produce a highly detailed digital storm-surge inundation map. The storm-surge dataset and related data are available for display and query in a Web-based viewer application. A unique water-level dataset from a network of portable pressure sensors deployed in the days just prior to Hurricane Rita's landfall captured the hurricane's storm surge. The recorded sensor data provided water-level measurements with a very high temporal resolution at surveyed point locations. The resulting dataset was used to generate a time series of storm-surge surfaces that documents the surge dynamics in a new, spatially explicit way. The temporal information contained in the multiple storm-surge surfaces can be visualized in a number of ways to portray how the surge interacted with and was affected by land surface features. Spatially explicit storm-surge products can be useful for a variety of hurricane impact assessments, especially studies of wetland and land changes where knowledge of the extent and magnitude of storm-surge flooding is critical.

Impact of Atmospheric Aerosols on Solar Photovoltaic Electricity Generation in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, X.; Mauzerall, D. L.; Wagner, F.; Peng, W.; Yang, J.

2016-12-01

Hurricanes have induced devastating storm surge flooding worldwide. The impacts of these storms may worsen in the coming decades because of rapid coastal development coupled with sea-level rise and possibly increasing storm activity due to climate change. Major advances in coastal flood risk management are urgently needed. We present an integrated dynamic risk analysis for flooding task (iDraft) framework to assess and manage coastal flood risk at the city or regional scale, considering integrated dynamic effects of storm climatology change, sea-level rise, and coastal development. We apply the framework to New York City. First, we combine climate-model projected storm surge climatology and sea-level rise with engineering- and social/economic-model projected coastal exposure and vulnerability to estimate the flood damage risk for the city over the 21st century. We derive temporally-varying risk measures such as the annual expected damage as well as temporally-integrated measures such as the present value of future losses. We also examine the individual and joint contributions to the changing risk of the three dynamic factors (i.e., sea-level rise, storm change, and coastal development). Then, we perform probabilistic cost-benefit analysis for various coastal flood risk mitigation strategies for the city. Specifically, we evaluate previously proposed mitigation measures, including elevating houses on the floodplain and constructing flood barriers at the coast, by comparing their estimated cost and probability distribution of the benefit (i.e., present value of avoided future losses). We also propose new design strategies, including optimal design (e.g., optimal house elevation) and adaptive design (e.g., flood protection levels that are designed to be modified over time in a dynamic and uncertain environment).

Implications and Constraints of Fiscal Laws in Contingency Contracting

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

humanitarian assistance (for example, after Hurricanes Hugo , Andrew, and Katrina and, most recently, Hurricane Sandy in the northeastern U.S...the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and in New York after storm damage in 2012. The military has also supported disasters in other countries, such as...focus on natural disasters such as hurricanes , weather storms, earthquakes, and floods and are supported by U.S. military forces providing clean-up and

The Northeastern Ice Storm 1998, A forest damage assessment for New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine

Treesearch

Margaret Miller-Weeks; Chris Eagar; Christina M. Petersen

1999-01-01

The ice storm of January 1998 affected 17 million acres of forestland in northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, including parts of the Green Mountain National Forest and the White Mountain National Forest. Portions of eastern Canada were also impacted, especially Quebec. The weight of accumulated ice caused trees to snap off or bend over to the ground....

Shoreline recovery from storms on the east coast of Southern Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corbella, S.; Stretch, D. D.

2012-01-01

Episodic extreme waves due to sea storms can cause severe coastal erosion. The recovery times of such events are important for the analysis of risk and coastal vulnerability. The recovery period of a storm damaged coastline represents a time when the coastline is most vulnerable and nearby infrastructure is at the greatest risk. We propose that identification of the beach recovery period can be used as a coastal management tool when determining beach usage. As a case study, we analyse 37 yr of beach profile data on the east coast of South Africa. Considering beach length and cross-sectional area, we establish a global recovery period and rate and identify the physical characteristics of the coastlines that either accelerate or retard recovery. The beaches in the case study were found to take an average of two years to recover at a rate of approximately 90 m3 m-1 yr-1. Beach profiles with vegetated dunes recovered faster than urbanized beaches. Perpendicular beach structures have both positive and negative effects on beach recovery. Coastlines with rock outcrops in the surf zone tend to recover slowly and long-term sediment loss was identified in cases where storm damaged beaches have not recovered to pre-erosion levels.

Storm-damaged saline-contaminated boreholes as a means of aquifer contamination

USGS Publications Warehouse

Carlson, D.A.; Van Biersel, T. P.; Milner, L.R.

2008-01-01

Saline water from a storm surge can flow down storm-damaged submerged water supply wells and contaminate boreholes and surrounding aquifers. Using data from conventional purging techniques, aquifer test response analysis, chemical analysis, and regression analysis of chloride/silica (Cl/Si) ratio, equations were derived to estimate the volume of saline water intrusion into a well and a porous media aquifer, the volume of water needed to purge a well shortly following an intrusion event, and the volume of water needed after delay of several or more months, when the saline plume has expanded. Purging time required is a function of volume of water and pumping rate. The study site well is located within a shoreline community of Lake Pontchartrain, St. Tammany Parish, in southeastern Louisiana, United States, which was impacted by two hurricane storm surges and had neither been rehabilitated nor chlorinated prior to our study. Chemical analysis of water samples in fall 2005 and purging of well and aquifer in June 6, 2006, indicated saline water had intruded the well in 2005 and the well and aquifer in 2006. The volume of water needed to purge the study well was approximately 200 casing volumes, which is significantly greater than conventionally used during collection of water samples for water quality analyses. ?? 2007 National Ground Water Association.

Intensive longleaf pine management for hurricane recovery: fourth-year results

Treesearch

David S. Dyson; Dale G. Brockway

2015-01-01

The frequency and intensity of hurricanes affecting the United States has been projected to increase during coming decades, and this rising level of cyclonic storm activity is expected to substantially damage southeastern forests. Although hurricane damage to forests in this region is not new, recent emphasis on longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill...

Modelling the economic losses of historic and present-day high-impact winter storms in Switzerland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Welker, Christoph; Stucki, Peter; Bresch, David; Dierer, Silke; Martius, Olivia; Brönnimann, Stefan

2014-05-01

Severe winter storms such as "Vivian" in February 1990 and "Lothar" in December 1999 are among the most destructive meteorological hazards in Switzerland. Disaster severity resulting from such windstorms is attributable, on the one hand, to hazardous weather conditions such as high wind gust speeds; and on the other hand to socio-economic factors such as population density, distribution of values at risk, and damage susceptibility. For present-day winter storms, the data basis is generally good to describe the meteorological development and wind forces as well as the associated socio-economic impacts. In contrast, the information on historic windstorms is overall sparse and the available historic weather and loss reports mostly do not provide quantitative information. This study illustrates a promising technique to simulate the economic impacts of both historic and present winter storms in Switzerland since end of the 19th century. Our approach makes use of the novel Twentieth Century Reanalysis (20CR) spanning 1871-present. The 2-degree spatial resolution of the global 20CR dataset is relatively coarse. Thus, the complex orography of Switzerland is not realistically represented, which has considerable ramifications for the representation of wind systems that are strongly influenced by the local orography, such as Föhn winds. Therefore, a dynamical downscaling of the 20CR to 3 km resolution using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model was performed, for in total 40 high-impact winter storms in Switzerland since 1871. Based on the downscaled wind gust speeds and the climada loss model, the estimated economic losses were calculated at municipality level for current economic and social conditions. With this approach, we find an answer to the question what would be the economic losses of e.g. a hazardous Föhn storm - which occurred in northern Switzerland in February 1925 - today, i.e. under current socio-economic conditions. Encouragingly, the pattern of simulated losses for this specific storm is very similar to historic loss reports. A comparison of wind gust speeds with simulated storm losses for all highly damaging winter storms in Switzerland since the late 19th century considered in this study shows that storm losses have been related primarily to population density (and distribution of values at risk, respectively) rather than hazardous wind speed.

40 CFR 230.41 - Wetlands.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... circulation patterns that flush large expanses of wetland systems, by interfering with the filtration function... buffer zone shielding upland areas from wave actions, storm damage and erosion. ...

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Plant debris left behind by Hurricane Matthew covers a stretch of the NASA Railroad near Launch Pads 39A and B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A portion of the line near the ocean was used during the Apollo era, although some portions were used to deliver commodities to the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station through the end of the Titan program. NASA determined it was financially and ecologically advantageous to leave the tracks in place. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Plant debris and ground erosion left behind by Hurricane Matthew affect a stretch of the NASA Railroad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A portion of the line near the ocean was used during the Apollo era, although some portions were used to deliver commodities to the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station through the end of the Titan program. NASA determined it was financially and ecologically advantageous to leave the tracks in place. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

The cytokine storm of severe influenza and development of immunomodulatory therapy.

PubMed

Liu, Qiang; Zhou, Yuan-hong; Yang, Zhan-qiu

2016-01-01

Severe influenza remains unusual in its virulence for humans. Complications or ultimately death arising from these infections are often associated with hyperinduction of proinflammatory cytokine production, which is also known as 'cytokine storm'. For this disease, it has been proposed that immunomodulatory therapy may improve the outcome, with or without the combination of antiviral agents. Here, we review the current literature on how various effectors of the immune system initiate the cytokine storm and exacerbate pathological damage in hosts. We also review some of the current immunomodulatory strategies for the treatment of cytokine storms in severe influenza, including corticosteroids, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor agonists, sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor 1 agonists, cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors, antioxidants, anti-tumour-necrosis factor therapy, intravenous immunoglobulin therapy, statins, arbidol, herbs, and other potential therapeutic strategies.

Design and quantification of an extreme winter storm scenario for emergency preparedness and planning exercises in California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dettinger, M.D.; Martin, Ralph F.; Hughes, M.; Das, T.; Neiman, P.; Cox, D.; Estes, G.; Reynolds, D.; Hartman, R.; Cayan, D.; Jones, L.

2012-01-01

The USGS Multihazards Project is working with numerous agencies to evaluate and plan for hazards and damages that could be caused by extreme winter storms impacting California. Atmospheric and hydrological aspects of a hypothetical storm scenario have been quantified as a basis for estimation of human, infrastructure, economic, and environmental impacts for emergency-preparedness and flood-planning exercises. In order to ensure scientific defensibility and necessary levels of detail in the scenario description, selected historical storm episodes were concatentated to describe a rapid arrival of several major storms over the state, yielding precipitation totals and runoff rates beyond those occurring during the individual historical storms. This concatenation allowed the scenario designers to avoid arbitrary scalings and is based on historical occasions from the 19th and 20th Centuries when storms have stalled over the state and when extreme storms have arrived in rapid succession. Dynamically consistent, hourly precipitation, temperatures, barometric pressures (for consideration of storm surges and coastal erosion), and winds over California were developed for the so-called ARkStorm scenario by downscaling the concatenated global records of the historical storm sequences onto 6- and 2-km grids using a regional weather model of January 1969 and February 1986 storm conditions. The weather model outputs were then used to force a hydrologic model to simulate ARkStorm runoff, to better understand resulting flooding risks. Methods used to build this scenario can be applied to other emergency, nonemergency and non-California applications. ?? 2011 The Author(s).

Contribution of insurance data to cost assessment of coastal flood damage to residential buildings: insights gained from Johanna (2008) and Xynthia (2010) storm events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

André, C.; Monfort, D.; Bouzit, M.; Vinchon, C.

2013-08-01

There are a number of methodological issues involved in assessing damage caused by natural hazards. The first is the lack of data, due to the rarity of events and the widely different circumstances in which they occur. Thus, historical data, albeit scarce, should not be neglected when seeking to build ex-ante risk management models. This article analyses the input of insurance data for two recent severe coastal storm events, to examine what causal relationships may exist between hazard characteristics and the level of damage incurred by residential buildings. To do so, data was collected at two levels: from lists of about 4000 damage records, 358 loss adjustment reports were consulted, constituting a detailed damage database. The results show that for flooded residential buildings, over 75% of reconstruction costs are associated with interior elements, with damage to structural components remaining very localised and negligible. Further analysis revealed a high scatter between costs and water depth, suggesting that uncertainty remains high in drawing up damage functions with insurance data alone. Due to the paper format of the loss adjustment reports, and the lack of harmonisation between their contents, the collection stage called for a considerable amount of work. For future events, establishing a standardised process for archiving damage information could significantly contribute to the production of such empirical damage functions. Nevertheless, complementary sources of data on hazards and asset vulnerability parameters will definitely still be necessary for damage modelling; multivariate approaches, crossing insurance data with external material, should also be investigated more deeply.

Contribution of insurance data to cost assessment of coastal flood damage to residential buildings: insights gained from Johanna (2008) and Xynthia (2010) storm events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

André, C.; Monfort, D.; Bouzit, M.; Vinchon, C.

2013-03-01

There are a number of methodological issues involved in assessing damage caused by natural hazards. The first is the lack of data, due to the rarity of events and the widely different circumstances in which they occur. Thus, historical data, albeit scarce, should not be neglected when seeking to build ex-ante risk management models. This article analyses the input of insurance data for two recent severe coastal storm events, to examine what causal relationships may exist between hazard characteristics and the level of damage incurred by residential buildings. To do so, data was collected at two levels: from lists of about 4000 damage records, 358 loss adjustment reports were consulted, constituting a detailed damage database. The results show that for flooded residential buildings, over 75% of reconstruction costs are associated with interior elements, damage to structural components remaining very localised and negligible. Further analysis revealed a high scatter between costs and water depth, suggesting that uncertainty remains high in drawing up damage functions with insurance data alone. Due to the paper format of the loss adjustment reports and the lack of harmonisation between their contents, the collection stage called for a considerable amount of work. For future events, establishing a standardised process for archiving damage information could significantly contribute to the production of such empirical damage functions. Nevertheless, complementary sources of data on hazards and asset vulnerability parameters, will definitely still be necessary for damage modelling and multivariate approaches, crossing insurance data with external material, should also be deeper investigated.

Fragmentation increases wind disturbance impacts on forest structure and carbon stocks in a western Amazonian landscape.

PubMed

Schwartz, Naomi B; Uriarte, María; DeFries, Ruth; Bedka, Kristopher M; Fernandes, Katia; Gutiérrez-Vélez, Victor; Pinedo-Vasquez, Miguel A

2017-09-01

Tropical second-growth forests could help mitigate climate change, but the degree to which their carbon potential is achieved will depend on exposure to disturbance. Wind disturbance is common in tropical forests, shaping structure, composition, and function, and influencing successional trajectories. However, little is known about the impacts of extreme winds on second-growth forests in fragmented landscapes, though these ecosystems are often located in mosaics of forest, pasture, cropland, and other land cover types. Indirect evidence suggests that fragmentation increases risk of wind damage in tropical forests, but no studies have found such impacts following severe storms. In this study, we ask whether fragmentation and forest type (old vs. second growth) were associated with variation in wind damage after a severe convective storm in a fragmented production landscape in western Amazonia. We applied linear spectral unmixing to Landsat 8 imagery from before and after the storm, and combined it with field observations of damage to map wind effects on forest structure and biomass. We also used Landsat 8 imagery to map land cover with the goals of identifying old- and second-growth forest and characterizing fragmentation. We used these data to assess variation in wind disturbance across 95,596 ha of forest, distributed over 6,110 patches. We find that fragmentation is significantly associated with wind damage, with damage severity higher at forest edges and in edgier, more isolated patches. Damage was also more severe in old-growth than in second-growth forests, but this effect was weaker than that of fragmentation. These results illustrate the importance of considering landscape context in planning tropical forest restoration and natural regeneration projects. Assessments of long-term carbon sequestration potential need to consider spatial variation in disturbance exposure. Where risk of extreme winds is high, minimizing fragmentation and isolation could increase carbon sequestration potential. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Insurance data as way to evaluate the performance of a sustainable urban drainage system (SUDS) in Augustenborg, Malmö

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sörensen, Johanna; Emilsson, Tobias

2017-04-01

Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) has been put forward as a concept to improve stormwater management in urban areas. The damage reduction due to reduced flooding and storm water detention during extreme events is one of many important features of SUDS. As extreme events are rare, few assessments have earlier been made to evaluate the risk reduction. So far, most assessments have been done by hydraulic modelling, rather than analyses based on data from real flood events. In 2014, Malmö was hit with an extreme rainfall event which led to severe flooding in most parts of the city. This event gave an opportunity to evaluate the efficiency of SUDS during extreme events. In this study, flood claim data were analysed to evaluate flood risk reduction by the SUDS system in Augustenborg. Flood claim data were collected from both an insurance company, as well as the water utility company of Malmö for 5 neighbourhoods in close proximity in Malmö. The study uses the Augustenborg neighbourhood as an example of a retrofitted neighbourhood with an open SUDS. Augustenborg (Malmö, Sweden) was retrofitted 15 years ago using a combination of hard infrastructure and naturebased solutions, to alleviate basement flooding, to reduce combined sewer overflows (CSO) and to increase the ecological and aesthetical values of the area. The introduction of ponds, channels and green roofs dramatically changed the appearance of the area and the more or less regular floods were stopped. Augustenborg and its sustainable drainage system was compared with five similar neighbourhoods nearby. The long-term development of reported insurance claims in the selected neighbourhoods showed a reduction of flooding in Augustenborg compared to the nearby areas. Pre- and post-installation data showed a direct effect of the refurbishment with SUDS. Even though a few properties were flooded in Augustenborg, it was shown that the SUDS performed successfully during the extreme storm event that was the most severe flooding in Malmö in modern history. In conclusion, the SUDS in Augustenborg, Malmö, has been efficient in flood reduction during minor as well as severe flood events.

Testing GIC Mitigation Protocols by Modelling Transformer-Level GIC Flow in New Zealand's Electrical Transmission Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Divett, T.; Ingham, M.; Rodger, C. J.; Richardson, G. S.; Beggan, C.; Thomson, A. W. P.; Dalzell, M.; Mac Manus, D. H.

2017-12-01

Transformers in the South Island of Transpower New Zealand Ltd's electrical transmission network have been impacted by geomagnetically induced currents (GIC) during geomagnetic storms, including the November 2001 event. We aim to make recommendations that lead to improving mitigation strategies for reducing these impacts during extreme events. We have adapted a thin-sheet electromagnetic and GIC network modelling approach that has previously been successfully used in the UK to New Zealand's geology and transmission network. In this presentation we show how we have used this approach to explore Transpower's mitigation procedure as well as alternative mitigation options for reducing the impact of space weather on the network. In order to compare modelled GIC with what has been described as `possibly the best GIC dataset in the world' (Boteler and Pirjola, Pers. Comm. 2016) our model includes every transformer and every high voltage transmission line in the South Island network. This level of detail was required to match the transformer level observations of GIC in the network and to appropriately assess the mitigation options at the level where the damage to power networks occurs. We found that removing a single generator at a central power station and four transmission lines is enough to effectively redistribute GIC away from transformers that have previously experienced very high GIC (as shown in Figure). The redistributed GIC is less damaging to the transformers that it is redistributed to due to lower total GIC at those locations. In the past the impact of GIC on transformers has occurred in the first two minutes of a storm. Hence, mitigation strategies that currently rely on human intervention and involving delays of up to 15 minutes may need to be initiated very rapidly, in a significant departure from Transpower's existing protocol. Reducing delays should significantly reduce the potential for damage in a storm equivalent to the 2001 event. During an extreme storm we expect GIC of 300 A or more to flow through multiple transformers across both islands. In the case of an extreme storm we suggest the more drastic approach of floating the entire network to reduce the potential for damage while retaining power supply to the majority of the country.

36 CFR 78.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... hurricane, tornado, storm, flood, high water, tidal wave, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide... determination of a Federal Agency Head, causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude such that an...

36 CFR 78.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... hurricane, tornado, storm, flood, high water, tidal wave, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide... determination of a Federal Agency Head, causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude such that an...

36 CFR 78.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... hurricane, tornado, storm, flood, high water, tidal wave, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide... determination of a Federal Agency Head, causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude such that an...

Perceived Service Need After Hurricane Sandy in a Representative Sample of Survivors: The Roles of Community-Level Damage and Individual-Level Stressors.

PubMed

Sampson, Laura; Lowe, Sarah R; Gruebner, Oliver; Cohen, Gregory H; Galea, Sandro

2016-06-01

We aimed to explore how individually experienced disaster-related stressors and collectively experienced community-level damage influenced perceived need for mental health services in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. In a cross-sectional study we analyzed 418 adults who lived in the most affected areas of New York City at the time of the storm. Participants indicated whether they perceived a need for mental health services since the storm and reported on their exposure to disaster-related stressors (eg, displacement, property damage). We located participants in communities (n=293 census tracts) and gathered community-level demographic data through the US Census and data on the number of damaged buildings in each community from the Federal Emergency Management Agency Modeling Task Force. A total of 7.9% of participants reported mental health service need since the hurricane. Through multilevel binomial logistic regression analysis, we found a cross-level interaction (P=0.04) between individual-level exposure to disaster-related stressors and community-level building damage. Individual-level stressors were significantly predictive of individual service needs in communities with building damage (adjusted odds ratio: 2.56; 95% confidence interval: 1.58-4.16) and not in communities without damage. Individuals who experienced individual stressors and who lived in more damaged communities were more likely to report need for services than were other persons after Hurricane Sandy. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2016;10:428-435).

Stochastic Modeling of Empirical Storm Loss in Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prahl, B. F.; Rybski, D.; Kropp, J. P.; Burghoff, O.; Held, H.

2012-04-01

Based on German insurance loss data for residential property we derive storm damage functions that relate daily loss with maximum gust wind speed. Over a wide range of loss, steep power law relationships are found with spatially varying exponents ranging between approximately 8 and 12. Global correlations between parameters and socio-demographic data are employed to reduce the number of local parameters to 3. We apply a Monte Carlo approach to calculate German loss estimates including confidence bounds in daily and annual resolution. Our model reproduces the annual progression of winter storm losses and enables to estimate daily losses over a wide range of magnitude.

The Synoptic Climatology of Severe Thunderstorms in Manitoba.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ladochy, Stephen Eugene Gabriel

The thesis presents the climatologies for Manitoba thunderstorms, hailstorms and tornadoes as well as investigates the synoptic weather conditions conducive for their development. The study not only uses standard meteorological information, but also various kinds of proxy data, in the form of damage reports. These damage reports complement the meteorological data by providing a higher resolution of observations, particularly in the sparsely populated regions. The synoptic conditions are relatively similar for all forms of severe thunderstorms, though the upper level jet stream (ULJ) is stronger for tornadoes, in general. Composite charts, drawn for 50 larger, more damaging hail days and 48 tornado days in the 1970's, helped identify important surface and upper air weather parameters and their inter -relationships with each other and the location of the storm. Time sequence composite charts were used to also show the development process in severe weather occurrences. From the composites, a synoptic weather type classification was devised with 10 categories to identify each storm by type. The most common pattern for severe weather has a strong southwesterly ULJ, with the storm occurring ahead of an advancing cold front. The ULJ patterns were drawn for each synoptic type days, showing differences between categories. The average conditions during tornado touchdowns were also seen from composite maps of surface and upper air isobaric charts. While severe thunderstorms are seen to occur under the "ideal" conditions, often described for U.S. severe weather, they can also be produced under other weather patterns and combinations of atmospheric parameters thought less favorable. The ULJ and LLJ (low-level jet stream) models used in U.S. studies do not always fit Manitoba storms, however, less favorable jet positions, at specific levels, can be compensated for by low-level advection of warm, and moist air.

Thinning and Pruning Influence Glaze Damage in a Loblolly Pine Plantation

Treesearch

James D. Burton

1981-01-01

An old-field plantation was thinned and pruned at age 11 and again at age 14 to 4 basal area levels and 3 crown percent levels. A survey was made to determine how damage by an ice storm at age 15 was influenced by treatment. Severe damage was heaviest in the densest stands and in stands with the shortest crowns, while the percent of stand destroyed was least under the...

Prenatal exposure to sand and dust storms and children's cognitive function in China: a quasi-experimental study.

PubMed

Li, Zhihui; Chen, Lincoln; Li, Mingqiang; Cohen, Jessica

2018-05-01

While there is evidence that sand and dust storms can have adverse health effects, the effects of such storms on children's cognitive function has not been explored. We examined whether prenatal exposure to sand and dust storms affects children's cognitive function and, if so, whether harmful effects of sand and dust storms vary by the trimester of exposure. This study used nationally representative data from the China Family Panel Studies between 2010 and 2014 and data on sand and dust storms from the national Sand and Dust Weather Almanac. We selected four indicators of children's cognitive function: mathematics test scores, word-recognition test scores, the age the child began speaking in whole sentences, and the age the child began counting from one to ten. Since the annual incidence of sand and dust storms is highly variable and is largely unpredictable, we used a region-and-year fixed-effect model to compare the cognitive function of children born in the same region and year but with varying amounts of prenatal exposure to sand and dust storms. We also investigated whether the effect of sand and dust storms varied by the specific month of prenatal exposure. We included 1236 observations for the analysis of mathematics and word-recognition test scores, 2693 observations in the analysis of the age the child began speaking in whole sentences, and 1951 observations for the analysis of the age the child began counting from one to ten. Every 10 additional days of prenatal exposure to sand and dust storms was associated with a 0·20 SD (95% CI 0·06 to 0·35, p=0·009) reduction in word test scores, 0·04 (-0·00 to 0·09, p=0·089) additional months to begin speaking in sentences, and 0·14 (0·03 to 0·25, p=0·021) additional months to begin counting, but was not significantly associated with mathematics test scores (reduction of 0·02 SD, -0·19 to 0·15). 10 additional days of prenatal exposure to sand and dust storms in the seventh gestational month was associated with a 0·18 SD (0·10 to 0·25) reduction in mathematics test scores, a 0·34 SD (0·18 to 0·50) reduction in word test scores, an additional 0·33 months (0·07 to 0·59) to begin speaking in sentences, and an additional 0·20 months (0·04 to 0·35) to begin counting. Our results suggest that protecting pregnant women from the effects of sand and dust storms in the critical periods of fetal brain development could generate benefits for the cognitive function of the next generation. None. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Environmental Assessment for Phase 6 and Phase 7, Replace Family Housing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-01-01

resulting in severe constriction and pipe leakage, and plumbing fixtures are worn and discolored and require replacing. Bedrooms are small and lack...construction. Damaged or degraded sections of piping will be replaced as needed during construction. New electrical circuits and supporting infrastructure...drainage at the site occurs primarily through open storm ditches, swales and underground pipes and discharge outfalls. Storm water discharge is

24 CFR 791.407 - Headquarters Reserve.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... needs resulting from natural and other disasters, including hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, high water..., snowstorms, drought, fires, floods, or explosions, which in the determination of the Secretary cause damage...

24 CFR 791.407 - Headquarters Reserve.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... needs resulting from natural and other disasters, including hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, high water..., snowstorms, drought, fires, floods, or explosions, which in the determination of the Secretary cause damage...

24 CFR 791.407 - Headquarters Reserve.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... needs resulting from natural and other disasters, including hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, high water..., snowstorms, drought, fires, floods, or explosions, which in the determination of the Secretary cause damage...

24 CFR 791.407 - Headquarters Reserve.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... needs resulting from natural and other disasters, including hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, high water..., snowstorms, drought, fires, floods, or explosions, which in the determination of the Secretary cause damage...

Reconnaissance Study: Rouge River Watershed, Michigan Flood Hazard Reduction, Riverine Ecosystem Restoration, and Recreational Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-09-12

wetlands for preliminary treatment of sediment, oil, and grease prior to discharging into the Rouge River. While mitigating storm water quality and...land uses. While Alternative 2 and 3 have similar habitat enhancement features, Alternative 2 has much more measurable storm water quality benefits...sediment, oil, and grease prior to discharging into the Rouge River. While mitigating storm water quality and quantity impacts, this alternative

Economic Impact Analyses of Interdisciplinary Multi-hazard Scenarios: ShakeOut and ARkStorm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wein, A. M.; Rose, A.; Sue Wing, I.; Wei, D.

2011-12-01

U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists are using an interdisciplinary strategy to develop and analyze multi-hazard scenarios to help communities enhance resilience to natural hazard disasters. Two such scenarios are the southern California ShakeOut earthquake and the California ARkStorm winter storm. Both scenarios are multi-hazard: Shakeout ground motions trigger landslides and liquefaction and ARkStorm involves wind, flood, landslide, and coastal hazards. A collaborative scenario-process engages partners and stakeholders throughout the development and use of the scenarios, In doing so, community resilience is enhanced by educating communities about hazards and hazard interdependencies, building networks from scientists to decision makers, exercising emergency management strategies, identifying emergency management issues, and motivating solutions prior to an event. In addition, interdisciplinary scenarios stimulate research on the various steps of analysis (e.g., natural hazard processes, physical damages, societal consequences, and policy connections). In particular, USGS scientists have collaborated with economists to advance methods to estimate the economic impacts (business interruption losses) of disasters. Our economic impact analyses evolved from the economic module in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's loss-estimation tool, HAZUS-MH, to a more encompassing input-output analysis for ShakeOut, to a more sophisticated Computable General Equilibrium model for ARkStorm. The analyses depend on physical damage and restoration time estimates from engineers and geographic analyses of economic assets in hazard zones. Economic resilience strategies are incorporated to represent resourcefulness and ingenuity that avoids potential losses during and after an event. Such strategies operate at three levels of the economy: micro (e.g., ability to catch up on lost production time), meso (e.g., coordination within a sector to share resources), and macro (e.g., price adjustments to redistribute scarce resources). A sensitivity analysis of the ARkStorm economic impact model explores the effects of 1) the magnitude of the shocks (e.g., flood damages to buildings and infrastructure, agricultural productivity, and lifeline service disruptions), 2) the sustainability of the economic resilience strategies, and 3) the amount, timing, and source of reconstruction funds. The inclusion of an economic analysis in ShakeOut and ARkStorm broadens the range of interest in the scenario results. For example, the relative contribution of ShakeOut economic shocks to business interruption losses emphasized the need to reduce the impacts of fire following earthquake and water service disruption. Based on the magnitude and duration of the economic impacts for the ARkStorm scenario, policy experts surmised that business interruption policy time elements would be exceeded and business interruptions would be largely unfunded calling attention to the need for innovative funding solutions. Finally, economic impact analyses inform the question of paying now to mitigate or paying more later to recover.

Seamless Modeling for Research & Predictability of Severe Tropical Storms from Weather-to-Climate Timescales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramaswamy, V.; Chen, J. H.; Delworth, T. L.; Knutson, T. R.; Lin, S. J.; Murakami, H.; Vecchi, G. A.

2017-12-01

Damages from catastrophic tropical storms such as the 2017 destructive hurricanes compel an acceleration of scientific advancements to understand the genesis, underlying mechanisms, frequency, track, intensity, and landfall of these storms. The advances are crucial to provide improved early information for planners and responders. We discuss the development and utilization of a global modeling capability based on a novel atmospheric dynamical core ("Finite-Volume Cubed Sphere or FV3") which captures the realism of the recent tropical storms and is a part of the NOAA Next-Generation Global Prediction System. This capability is also part of an emerging seamless modeling system at NOAA/ Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory for simulating the frequency of storms on seasonal and longer timescales with high fidelity e.g., Atlantic hurricane frequency over the past decades. In addition, the same modeling system has also been employed to evaluate the nature of projected storms on the multi-decadal scales under the influence of anthropogenic factors such as greenhouse gases and aerosols. The seamless modeling system thus facilitates research into and the predictability of severe tropical storms across diverse timescales of practical interest to several societal sectors.

Use of Remote Sensing Data to Enhance the National Weather Service (NWS) Storm Damage Toolkit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jedlovec, Gary; Molthan, Andrew; White, Kris; Burks, Jason; Stellman, Keith; Smith, Matthew

2012-01-01

SPoRT is improving the use of near real-time satellite data in response to severe weather events and other diasters. Supported through NASA s Applied Sciences Program. Planned interagency collaboration to support NOAA s Damage Assessment Toolkit, with spinoff opportunities to support other entities such as USGS and FEMA.

The use of LANDSAT DCS and imagery in reservoir management and operation. [New England

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cooper, S. (Principal Investigator)

1976-01-01

The author has identified the following signifcant results. From real time data, an intense storm with temperatures in the mid fifties was seen moving through New England. Approximately $33 million in damages were prevented because of the advance warning, and no damage was incurred in northern Maine as a result.

Assessment of Hurricane Katrina Damage to New Orleans Public School Facilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Council of the Great City Schools, 2005

2005-01-01

Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States on August 29, 2005, and triggered one of the most devastating natural disasters in the history of the nation. New Orleans, in particular, and the schools that served the community's children, suffered severe storm damage and massive flooding. Central to the city's strategy of getting back…

Documentation and hydrologic analysis of Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey, October 29–30, 2012

USGS Publications Warehouse

Suro, Thomas P.; Deetz, Anna; Hearn, Paul

2016-11-17

In 2012, a late season tropical depression developed into a tropical storm and later a hurricane. The hurricane, named “Hurricane Sandy,” gained strength to a Category 3 storm on October 25, 2012, and underwent several transitions on its approach to the mid-Atlantic region of the eastern coast of the United States. By October 28, 2012, Hurricane Sandy had strengthened into the largest hurricane ever recorded in the North Atlantic and was tracking parallel to the east coast of United States, heading toward New Jersey. On October 29, 2012, the storm turned west-northwest and made landfall near Atlantic City, N.J. The high winds and wind-driven storm surge caused massive damage along the entire coastline of New Jersey. Millions of people were left without power or communication networks. Many homes were completely destroyed. Sand dunes were eroded, and the barrier island at Mantoloking was breached, connecting the ocean with Barnegat Bay.Several days before the storm made landfall in New Jersey, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) made a decision to deploy a temporary network of storm-tide sensors and barometric pressure sensors from Virginia to Maine to supplement the existing USGS and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) networks of permanent tide monitoring stations. After the storm made landfall, the USGS conducted a sensor data recovery and high-water-mark collection campaign in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).Peak storm-tide elevations documented at USGS tide gages, tidal crest-stage gages, temporary storm sensor locations, and high-water-mark sites indicate the area from southern Monmouth County, N.J., north through Raritan Bay, N.J., had the highest peak storm-tide elevations during this storm. The USGS tide gages at Raritan River at South Amboy and Raritan Bay at Keansburg, part of the New Jersey Tide Telemetry System, each recorded peak storm-tide elevations of greater than 13 feet (ft)—more than 5 ft higher than the previously recorded period-of-record maximum. A comparison of peak storm-tide elevations to preliminary FEMA Coastal Flood Insurance Study flood elevations indicated that these areas experienced the highest recurrence intervals along the coast of New Jersey. Analysis showed peak storm-tide elevations exceeded the 100-year FEMA flood elevations in many parts of Middlesex, Union, Essex, Hudson, and Bergen Counties, and peak storm-tide elevations at many locations in Monmouth County exceeded the 500-year recurrence interval.A level 1 HAZUS (HAZards United States) analysis was done for the counties in New Jersey affected by flooding to estimate total building stock losses. The aggregated total building stock losses estimated by HAZUS for New Jersey, on the basis of the final inundation verified by USGS high-water marks, was almost $19 billion. A comparison of Hurricane Sandy with historic coastal storms showed that peak storm-tide elevations associated with Hurricane Sandy exceeded most of the previously documented elevations associated with the storms of December 1992, March 1962, September 1960, and September 1944 at many coastal communities in New Jersey. This scientific investigation report was prepared in cooperation with FEMA to document flood processes and flood damages resulting from this storm and to assist in future flood mitigation actions in New Jersey.

European extra-tropical storm damage risk from a multi-model ensemble of dynamically-downscaled global climate models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haylock, M. R.

2011-10-01

Uncertainty in the return levels of insured loss from European wind storms was quantified using storms derived from twenty-two 25 km regional climate model runs driven by either the ERA40 reanalyses or one of four coupled atmosphere-ocean global climate models. Storms were identified using a model-dependent storm severity index based on daily maximum 10 m wind speed. The wind speed from each model was calibrated to a set of 7 km historical storm wind fields using the 70 storms with the highest severity index in the period 1961-2000, employing a two stage calibration methodology. First, the 25 km daily maximum wind speed was downscaled to the 7 km historical model grid using the 7 km surface roughness length and orography, also adopting an empirical gust parameterisation. Secondly, downscaled wind gusts were statistically scaled to the historical storms to match the geographically-dependent cumulative distribution function of wind gust speed. The calibrated wind fields were run through an operational catastrophe reinsurance risk model to determine the return level of loss to a European population density-derived property portfolio. The risk model produced a 50-yr return level of loss of between 0.025% and 0.056% of the total insured value of the portfolio.

Health Effects of Coastal Storms and Flooding in Urban Areas: A Review and Vulnerability Assessment

PubMed Central

Charles-Guzman, Kizzy; Matte, Thomas

2013-01-01

Coastal storms can take a devastating toll on the public's health. Urban areas like New York City (NYC) may be particularly at risk, given their dense population, reliance on transportation, energy infrastructure that is vulnerable to flood damage, and high-rise residential housing, which may be hard-hit by power and utility outages. Climate change will exacerbate these risks in the coming decades. Sea levels are rising due to global warming, which will intensify storm surge. These projections make preparing for the health impacts of storms even more important. We conducted a broad review of the health impacts of US coastal storms to inform climate adaptation planning efforts, with a focus on outcomes relevant to NYC and urban coastal areas, and incorporated some lessons learned from recent experience with Superstorm Sandy. Based on the literature, indicators of health vulnerability were selected and mapped within NYC neighborhoods. Preparing for the broad range of anticipated effects of coastal storms and floods may help reduce the public health burden from these events. PMID:23818911

Health effects of coastal storms and flooding in urban areas: a review and vulnerability assessment.

PubMed

Lane, Kathryn; Charles-Guzman, Kizzy; Wheeler, Katherine; Abid, Zaynah; Graber, Nathan; Matte, Thomas

2013-01-01

Coastal storms can take a devastating toll on the public's health. Urban areas like New York City (NYC) may be particularly at risk, given their dense population, reliance on transportation, energy infrastructure that is vulnerable to flood damage, and high-rise residential housing, which may be hard-hit by power and utility outages. Climate change will exacerbate these risks in the coming decades. Sea levels are rising due to global warming, which will intensify storm surge. These projections make preparing for the health impacts of storms even more important. We conducted a broad review of the health impacts of US coastal storms to inform climate adaptation planning efforts, with a focus on outcomes relevant to NYC and urban coastal areas, and incorporated some lessons learned from recent experience with Superstorm Sandy. Based on the literature, indicators of health vulnerability were selected and mapped within NYC neighborhoods. Preparing for the broad range of anticipated effects of coastal storms and floods may help reduce the public health burden from these events.

Comparisons Between Total Lightning Data, Mesocyclone Strength, and Storm Damage Associated with the Florida Tornado Outbreak of February 23, 1998

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hodanish, S; Sharp, D.; Williams, E.; Boldi, B.; Goodman, Steven J.; Raghavan, R.; Matlin, A.; Weber, M.

1998-01-01

During the early morning hours of February 23 1998, the worst tornado outbreak ever recorded occurred over the central Florida peninsula. At least 7 confirmed tornadoes, associated with 4 supercells, developed, with 3 of the tornadoes reaching F3 intensity. Many of the tornadoes where on the ground for tens of miles, uncommon for the state of Florida. A total of 42 people were killed, with over 250 people injured. During the outbreak, National Weather Service Melbourne, in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was collecting data from a unique lightning observing system called Lightning Imaging Sensor Data Applications Display (LISDAD, Boldi et.al., this conference). This system marries radar data collected from the KMLB WSR-88D, cloud to ground data collected from the National Lightning Detection Network, and total lightning data collected from NASKs Lightning Detection And Ranging system. This poster will display, concurrently, total lightning data (displayed in 1 minute increments), time/height storm relative velocity products from the KMLB WSR-88D, and damage information (tornado/hail/wind) from each of the supercell thunderstorms. The primary objective of this poster presentation is to observe how total lightning activity changes as the convective storm intensifies, and how the lightning activity changes with respect to mesocyclone strength (vortex stretching) and damaging weather on the ground.

Major Natural Disasters in China, 1985-2014: Occurrence and Damages.

PubMed

Han, Weixiao; Liang, Chen; Jiang, Baofa; Ma, Wei; Zhang, Ying

2016-11-10

This study aimed to describe the characteristics of natural disasters and associated losses from 1985 to 2014. The Mann-Kendall method was used to detect any long-term trends and abrupt changes. Hotspot analysis was conducted to detect the spatial clusters of disasters. We found an increasing trend in the occurrence of integrated natural disasters ( tau = 0.594 , p < 0.001 ), particularly for floods ( tau = 0.507, p < 0.001), landslides ( tau = 0.365, p = 0.009) and storms ( tau = 0.289, p = 0.032). Besides, there was an abrupt increase of natural disasters in 1998-2000. Hotspots of droughts, floods, landslides and storms were identified in central, southern, southwest and southeast areas of China, respectively. Annual deaths from integrated natural disasters were decreasing (tau = -0.237, p = 0.068) at about 32 persons/year, decreasing at 17 persons/year for floods ( tau = -0.154, p = 0.239), and decreasing at approximately 12 persons/year for storms ( tau = -0.338, p = 0.009). No significant trend was detected in inflation-adjusted damages while a declining trend was detected in the ratio of year damage against GDP (gross domestic product). In conclusion, there has been an increasing trend in occurrence of natural disasters in China with the absence of an increase in life and economic losses. Despite the progress in the disaster adaption, there will be great challenges in disaster control for China in the future.

Assessing the impact of cyclones in the coastal zone of Bangladesh

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolf, Judith; Bricheno, Lucy; Chowdury, Shahad; Rahman, Munsur; Ghosh, Tuhin; Kay, Susan; Caesar, John

2014-05-01

We review the state of knowledge regarding tropical cyclones and their impacts on coastal ecosystems, as well as the livelihood and health of the coastal communities, under the present and future climate, with application to the coastal zone of Bangladesh. This region is particularly vulnerable to tropical cyclones as it is very low-lying and densely populated. Cyclones cause damage due to the high wind speed and also the ensuing storm surge, which causes inundation and salinity intrusion into agricultural land and contaminates fresh water. The world's largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, protects the coast of the Brahmaputra-Ganges-Meghna (BGM) delta from these cyclonic storms but mangroves are themselves vulnerable to cyclone damage, as in 2007 when ~36% of the mangrove area was severely damaged leading to further losses of livelihood. We apply an idealised cyclone model and use the winds and pressures from this model to drive a storm surge model in the Bay of Bengal, in order to examine the impact of the intensity, track speed and landfall of the cyclones in terms of surge and inundation. The model is tested by reproducing the track and intensity of Cyclone Sidr of 2007. We also examine the projected future climate from the South Asia Regional Climate Model to understand how tropical cyclones may change under global warming and assess how this may impact the BGM Delta over the 21st century.

Nutrient enrichment intensifies hurricane impact in scrub mangrove ecosystems in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida, USA.

PubMed

Feller, Ilka C; Dangremond, Emily M; Devlin, Donna J; Lovelock, Catherine E; Proffitt, C Edward; Rodriguez, Wilfrid

2015-11-01

Mangroves are an ecological assemblage of trees and shrubs adapted to grow in intertidal environments along tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate coasts. Despite repeated demonstrations of their ecologic and economic value, multiple stressors including nutrient over-enrichment threaten these and other coastal wetlands globally. These ecosystems will be further stressed if tropical storm intensity and frequency increase in response to global climate changes. These stressors will likely interact, but the outcome of that interaction is uncertain. Here, we examined potential interaction between nutrient over-enrichment and the September 2004 hurricanes. Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne made landfall along Florida's Indian River Lagoon and caused extensive damage to a long-term fertilization experiment in a mangrove forest, which previously revealed that productivity was nitrogen (N) limited across the forest and, in particular, that N enrichment dramatically increased growth rates and aboveground biomass of stunted Avicennia germinans trees in the interior scrub zone. During the hurricanes, these trees experienced significant defoliation with three to four times greater reduction in leaf area index (LAI) than control trees. Over the long-term, the +N scrub trees took four years to recover compared to two years for controls. In the adjacent fringe and transition zones, LAI was reduced by > 70%, but with no differences based on zone or fertilization treatment. Despite continued delayed mortality for at least five years after the storms, LAI in the fringe and transition returned to pre-hurricane conditions in two years. Thus, nutrient over-enrichment of the coastal zone will increase the productivity of scrub mangroves, which dominate much of the mangrove landscape in Florida and the Caribbean; however, that benefit is offset by a decrease in their resistance and resilience to hurricane damage that has the potential to destabilize the system.

Analysis on LID for highly urbanized areas' waterlogging control: demonstrated on the example of Caohejing in Shanghai.

PubMed

Liao, Z L; He, Y; Huang, F; Wang, S; Li, H Z

2013-01-01

Although a commonly applied measure across the United States and Europe for alleviating the negative impacts of urbanization on the hydrological cycle, low impact development (LID) has not been widely used in highly urbanized areas, especially in rapidly urbanizing cities in developing countries like China. In this paper, given five LID practices including Bio-Retention, Infiltration Trench, Porous Pavement, Rain Barrels, and Green Swale, an analysis on LID for highly urbanized areas' waterlogging control is demonstrated using the example of Caohejing in Shanghai, China. Design storm events and storm water management models are employed to simulate the total waterlogging volume reduction, peak flow rate reduction and runoff coefficient reduction of different scenarios. Cost-effectiveness is calculated for the five practices. The aftermath shows that LID practices can have significant effects on storm water management in a highly urbanized area, and the comparative results reveal that Rain Barrels and Infiltration Trench are the two most suitable cost-effective measures for the study area.

Tonga Cyclone Damage Mapped by NASA's ARIA Team

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-21

The Advanced Rapid Imaging and Analysis (ARIA) team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory created this Damage Proxy Map (DPM) of Tongatapu, the main island of Tonga, following the landfall of Cyclone Gita, a Category 4 storm that hit Tonga on Feb. 12-13, 2018. The map depicts areas that are likely damaged from the storm, shown by red and yellow pixels. The map was produced by comparing two pairs of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) images from the COSMO-SkyMed satellites, operated by the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The pre- and post-cyclone images were acquired on Jan. 19 and Feb. 13, 2018, respectively. The later image was acquired just 4-1/2 hours after the peak damage by the cyclone. The map covers the entire island of Tongatapu (the 25-by-25-mile, or 40-by-40 kilometer SAR image footprint indicated with the large red polygon). Each pixel measures about 98 feet (30 meters) across. The color variation from yellow to red indicates increasingly more significant ground surface change. Preliminary validation of the SAR data was done by comparing them with high-resolution optical imagery acquired by DigitalGlobe. This Damage Proxy Map should be used as guidance to identify damaged areas and may be less reliable over vegetated and flooded areas. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22257

Disease prevalence and snail predation associated with swell-generated damage on the threatened coral, Acropora palmata (Lamarck)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bright, Allan J.; Rogers, Caroline S.; Brandt, Marilyn E.; Muller, Erinn; Smith, Tyler B.

2016-01-01

Disturbances such as tropical storms cause coral mortality and reduce coral cover as a direct result of physical damage. Storms can be one of the most important disturbances in coral reef ecosystems, and it is crucial to understand their long-term impacts on coral populations. The primary objective of this study was to determine trends in disease prevalence and snail predation on damaged and undamaged colonies of the threatened coral species, Acropora palmata, following an episode of heavy ocean swells in the US Virgin Islands (USVI). At three sites on St. Thomas and St. John, colonies of A. palmata were surveyed monthly over 1 year following a series of large swells in March 2008 that fragmented 30–93% of colonies on monitored reefs. Post-disturbance surveys conducted from April 2008 through March 2009 showed that swell-generated damage to A. palmata caused negative indirect effects that compounded the initial direct effects of physical disturbance. During the 12 months after the swell event, white pox disease prevalence was 41% higher for colonies that sustained damage from the swells than for undamaged colonies (df = 207, p = 0.01) with greatest differences in disease prevalence occurring during warm water months. In addition, the corallivorous snail, Coralliophila abbreviata, was 46% more abundant on damaged corals than undamaged corals during the 12 months after the swell event (df = 207, p = 0.006).

Near-real-time Forensic Disaster Analysis: experiences from hurricane Sandy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunz, Michael; Mühr, Bernhard; Schröter, Kai; Kunz-Plapp, Tina; Daniell, James; Khazai, Bijan; Wenzel, Friedemann; Vannieuwenhuyse, Marjorie; Comes, Tina; Münzberg, Thomas; Elmer, Florian; Fohringer, Joachim; Lucas, Christian; Trieselmann, Werner; Zschau, Jochen

2013-04-01

Hurricane Sandy was the last tropical cyclone of the 2012 Northern Atlantic Hurricane season that made landfall. It moved on an unusual track from the Caribbean to the East Coast of the United States from 24 to 30 October as a Category 1 and 2 Hurricane according to the Saffir-Simpson Scale. Along its path, the severe storm event caused widespread damage including almost 200 fatalities. In the early hours of 30 October, Sandy made landfall near Atlantic City, N.J. Sandy was an extraordinary event due to its multihazard nature and several cascading effects in the aftermath. From the hydro-meteorological perspective, most unusual was the very large spatial extent of up to 1,700 km. High wind speeds were associated with record breaking storm surges at the U.S. Mid- Atlantic and New England Coast during high (astronomical) tide, leading to widespread flooding. Though Sandy was not the most severe storm event in terms of wind speed and precipitation, the impact in the U.S. was enormous with total damage estimates of up to 90 billion US (own estimate from Dec. 2012). Although much better data emerge weeks after such an event, the Forensic Disaster Analysis (FDA) Task Force of the Center for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction Technology (CEDIM) made an effort to obtain a comprehensive and holistic overview of the causes, hazardous effects and consequences associated with Sandy immediately after landfall at the U.S. coast on 30 October 2012. This was done in an interdisciplinary way by collecting and compiling scattered and distributed information from available databases and sources via the Internet, by applying own methodologies and models for near-real time analyses developed in recent years, and by expert knowledge. This contribution gives an overview about the CEDIM-FDA analyses' results. It describes the situation that led to the extraordinary event, highlights the interaction of the tropical cyclone with other hydro-meteorological events, and examines the impacts such as social and economic losses including cascading effects, for example, due to power outages. It is examined how Sandy compares to historic hurricane events in the U.S., both from the hydro-meteorological and impact perspective. Direct and indirect losses are estimated by comparison with past events and with the help of an economic loss model that describes the interdependencies between various economic sectors (input-output approach) combined with an assessment of the industrial vulnerability against indirect damages.

Meteorology, Macrophysics, Microphysics, Microwaves, and Mesoscale Modeling of Mediterranean Mountain Storms: The M8 Laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Starr, David O. (Technical Monitor); Smith, Eric A.

2002-01-01

Comprehensive understanding of the microphysical nature of Mediterranean storms can be accomplished by a combination of in situ meteorological data analysis and radar-passive microwave data analysis, effectively integrated with numerical modeling studies at various scales, from synoptic scale down through the mesoscale, the cloud macrophysical scale, and ultimately the cloud microphysical scale. The microphysical properties of and their controls on severe storms are intrinsically related to meteorological processes under which storms have evolved, processes which eventually select and control the dominant microphysical properties themselves. This involves intense convective development, stratiform decay, orographic lifting, and sloped frontal lifting processes, as well as the associated vertical motions and thermodynamical instabilities governing physical processes that affect details of the size distributions and fall rates of the various types of hydrometeors found within the storm environment. Insofar as hazardous Mediterranean storms, highlighted in this study by three mountain storms producing damaging floods in northern Italy between 1992 and 2000, developing a comprehensive microphysical interpretation requires an understanding of the multiple phases of storm evolution and the heterogeneous nature of precipitation fields within a storm domain. This involves convective development, stratiform transition and decay, orographic lifting, and sloped frontal lifting processes. This also involves vertical motions and thermodynamical instabilities governing physical processes that determine details of the liquid/ice water contents, size disi:ributions, and fall rates of the various modes of hydrometeors found within hazardous storm environments.

On the improvement of wave and storm surge hindcasts by downscaled atmospheric forcing: application to historical storms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bresson, Émilie; Arbogast, Philippe; Aouf, Lotfi; Paradis, Denis; Kortcheva, Anna; Bogatchev, Andrey; Galabov, Vasko; Dimitrova, Marieta; Morvan, Guillaume; Ohl, Patrick; Tsenova, Boryana; Rabier, Florence

2018-04-01

Winds, waves and storm surges can inflict severe damage in coastal areas. In order to improve preparedness for such events, a better understanding of storm-induced coastal flooding episodes is necessary. To this end, this paper highlights the use of atmospheric downscaling techniques in order to improve wave and storm surge hindcasts. The downscaling techniques used here are based on existing European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts reanalyses (ERA-20C, ERA-40 and ERA-Interim). The results show that the 10 km resolution data forcing provided by a downscaled atmospheric model gives a better wave and surge hindcast compared to using data directly from the reanalysis. Furthermore, the analysis of the most extreme mid-latitude cyclones indicates that a four-dimensional blending approach improves the whole process, as it assimilates more small-scale processes in the initial conditions. Our approach has been successfully applied to ERA-20C (the 20th century reanalysis).

Storminess and geo-hydrological events affecting small coastal basins in a terraced Mediterranean environment.

PubMed

Cevasco, Andrea; Diodato, Nazzareno; Revellino, Paola; Fiorillo, Francesco; Grelle, Gerardo; Guadagno, Francesco M

2015-11-01

This study was prompted by the occurrence of an extreme Damaging geo-Hydrological Event (DHE) which occurred on October 25th 2011 and which affected a wide area of the northern Mediterranean region. After analysing the storm by means of the precipitation time series, the study attempts to relate the October 25th 2011 DHE with a series of other DHEs that occurred in the period 1954-2012, assessed via the use of historical data and classified according to severity, with a Storm Erosivity Indicator (Ra). The annual mean of the Ra value (2582 MJ mm ha(-1) h(-1) y(-1)) confirmed that the study area is one of the European regions with the highest rainfall erosivity level. A shift in storminess during 1991-2012 with respect to 1954-1990 was observed. A return period of 1000 years was calculated for the single storm erosivity of October 25th, which contributed to 84% of the total annual storm erosivity of 2011 A quite good agreement was found comparing DHE distribution and severity with Ra anomalies over time. As a matter of fact, most of the low severity DHEs (62.5%) occurred in years in which the Ra was below the average value. Moreover, almost all DHEs (93%) ranging from medium- to very high-severity occurred in years for which the Ra exceeded the average value. With regard to the occurrence of the most severe DHE classes, a threshold of the Ra and a recurrence time of approximately 3300 MJ mm ha(-1) h(-1) y(-1) and 12 years, respectively, were identified. Finally, some evidences suggest that an increasing frequency of DHEs is expected in the forthcoming years. It is argued that understanding these issues is a major priority for future research in order to improve land and urban planning strategies for preserving people and the environment, leading ultimately to an effective risk reduction. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Storm water management in an urban catchment: effects of source control and real-time management of sewer systems on receiving water quality.

PubMed

Frehmann, T; Nafo, I; Niemann, A; Geiger, W F

2002-01-01

For the examination of the effects of different storm water management strategies in an urban catchment area on receiving water quality, an integrated simulation of the sewer system, wastewater treatment plant and receiving water is carried out. In the sewer system real-time control measures are implemented. As examples of source control measures the reduction of wastewater and the reduction of the amount of impervious surfaces producing storm water discharges are examined. The surface runoff calculation and the simulation of the sewer system and the WWTP are based on a MATLAB/SIMULINK simulation environment. The impact of the measures on the receiving water is simulated using AQUASIM. It can be shown that the examined storm water management measures, especially the source control measures, can reduce the combined sewer overflow volume and the pollutant discharge load considerably. All examined measures also have positive effects on the receiving water quality. Moreover, the reduction of impervious surfaces avoids combined sewer overflow activities, and in consequence prevents pollutants from discharging into the receiving water after small rainfall events. However, the receiving water quality improvement may not be seen as important enough to avoid acute receiving water effects in general.

Species Profiles: Life Histories and Environmental Requirements of Coastal Fishes and Invertebrates (South Florida). Reef-Building Corals.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-08-01

questions regarding this report should be directed to one of the following addresses. Information Transfer Specialist National Coastal Ecosystems Team U.S...to this storm.) At (Anonymous 1982). 30 m there was no damage to A. cervicornis, M. annularis, or M. Poaching is almost impossible to cavernosa...urchins, whose may actually increase poaching on populations were little affected by local coral populations. the storm. Although Ross (1984) proposed a

Precipitation areal-reduction factor estimation using an annual-maxima centered approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asquith, W. H.; Famiglietti, J. S.

2000-04-01

The adjustment of precipitation depth of a point storm to an effective (mean) depth over a watershed is important for characterizing rainfall-runoff relations and for cost-effective designs of hydraulic structures when design storms are considered. A design storm is the precipitation point depth having a specified duration and frequency (recurrence interval). Effective depths are often computed by multiplying point depths by areal-reduction factors (ARF). ARF range from 0 to 1, vary according to storm characteristics, such as recurrence interval; and are a function of watershed characteristics, such as watershed size, shape, and geographic location. This paper presents a new approach for estimating ARF and includes applications for the 1-day design storm in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Texas. The approach, termed "annual-maxima centered," specifically considers the distribution of concurrent precipitation surrounding an annual-precipitation maxima, which is a feature not seen in other approaches. The approach does not require the prior spatial averaging of precipitation, explicit determination of spatial correlation coefficients, nor explicit definition of a representative area of a particular storm in the analysis. The annual-maxima centered approach was designed to exploit the wide availability of dense precipitation gauge data in many regions of the world. The approach produces ARF that decrease more rapidly than those from TP-29. Furthermore, the ARF from the approach decay rapidly with increasing recurrence interval of the annual-precipitation maxima.

Weathering a Perfect Storm from Space

USGS Publications Warehouse

Love, Jeffrey J.

2016-01-01

Extreme space-weather events — intense solar and geomagnetic storms — have occurred in the past: most recently in 1859, 1921 and 1989. So scientists expect that, sooner or later, another extremely intense spaceweather event will strike Earth again. Such storms have the potential to cause widespread interference with and damage to technological systems. A National Academy of Sciences study projects that an extreme space-weather event could end up costing the American economy more than $1 trillion. The question now is whether or not we will take the actions needed to avoid such expensive consequences. Let’s assume that we do. Below is an imagined scenario of how, sometime in the future, an extreme space-weather event might play out.

"Stronger than the Storm": Keeping Infants and Young Children in Mind During the Response to Superstorm Sandy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costa, Gerard; Mulrooney, Kathleen; Spinazzola, Nicci

2013-01-01

Superstorm Sandy hit the coast of New Jersey with deadly force causing hundreds of miles of coastline damage, loss of homes, property and road damage, and power outages throughout the region. despite the state's strong disaster response network, most programs and responders have little background in supporting the needs of infants and very young…

The historical role of Ips hauseri (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in the spruce forest of Ile-Alatausky and Medeo National Parks

Treesearch

N. Mukhamadiev; A. Lynch; C. O' Connor; A. Sagitov; N. Ashikbaev; I. Panyushkina

2014-01-01

On 17 May and 27 June 2011 severe cyclonic storms damaged several hundred hectares of spruce forest (Picea schrenkiana) in the Tian Shan Mountains. Bark beetle populations increased rapidly in dead and damaged trees, particularly Ips hauseri, I. typographus, I. sexdentatus, and Piiyogenesperfossus (all Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and there is concern about the...

Wind in the forests of southeast Alaska and guides for reducing damage.

Treesearch

A.S. Harris

1999-01-01

Alaska based on the literature and the author's experience. Storm winds resulting in damage to forest stands are described, and some ecological and management considerations of wind that are of concern to forest managers are reviewed. The author made a general reconnaissance of forest conditions on Prince of Wales Island and adjacent islands based on forest-type...

Hurricane Hugo: South Carolina Forest Land Research and Management Related to the Storm

Treesearch

Jacqueline L. Haymond; William R. Harms; [Editors

1996-01-01

Hurricane Hugo was probably one of the most destructive hurricanes to assault the forests of the Eastern United States in recorded history. Four and one-half million acres were damaged in North Carolina and South Carolina, an estimated 21.4 billion board feet of timber were destroyed or damaged, and several federally listed endangered species (red-cockaded woodpecker,...

After the Storm: Rebuilding Joplin High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

French, Jim

2012-01-01

One of the deadliest and most destructive tornadoes in the history of the United States ripped through the southeast Missouri town of Joplin on May 22, 2011. As it traveled along a 13-mile path it claimed 161 lives and caused more than $151 million in damages. Ten schools were damaged or destroyed and Joplin High School was a total loss. Just 48…

Interpretation of satellite airglow observations during the March 22, 1979, magnetic storm, using the coupled ionosphere-thermosphere model developed at University College, London

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parish, H. F.; Gladstone, G. R.; Chakrabarti, S.

1994-01-01

The University of California, Berkeley, extreme ultraviolet spectrometer aboard the U.S. Air Force STP 78-1 satellite measured emission features in the Earth's dayglow due to neutral and ionized species in the atmosphere, in the 35 to 140-nm range. The spectrometer was operating between March 1979 and March 1980, including the period of the magnetic storm on March 22, 1979. Some of these measurements are interpreted using the predictions of the three-dimensional time-dependent coupled ionosphere-thermosphere model developed at University College, London. The observations show a reduction in the atomic oxygen 130.4-nm airglow emission at high northern latitudes following the storm. Model simulations show that this reduction in 130.4-nm emission is associated with an increase in the O2/O ratio. Analysis of model results using electron transport and radiative transport codes show that the brightness of 130.4-nm emission at high latitudes due to resonantly scattered sunlight is approximately twice that due to photoelectron impact excitation. However, the observed decrease in the brightness at high northern latitudes is mainly due to a change in the photoelectron impact source, which contributes approximately 75% of the total, as well as its multiple scattering component; for the photoelectron impact source at 70 deg latitude and 200 km altitude, the reduction in multiple scattering is 1.5 times greater than the reduction in the initial excitation. The reduction in the airglow emission is visible only in the norther n hemisphere because the south pole was not sunlit over the storm period. The comparison of model results with observations suggests that 130.4-nm emission may be useful as a tracer for global changes in the concentration of atomic energy.

The Importance of Hurricane Research to Life, Property, the Economy, and National Security.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Busalacchi, A. J.

2017-12-01

The devastating 2017 Atlantic hurricane season has brought into stark relief how much hurricane forecasts have improved - and how important it is to make them even better. Whereas the error in 48-hour track forecasts has been reduced by more than half, according to the National Hurricane Center, intensity forecasts remain challenging, especially with storms such as Harvey that strengthened from a tropical depression to a Category 4 hurricane in less than three days. The unusually active season, with Hurricane Irma sustaining 185-mph winds for a record 36 hours and two Atlantic hurricanes reaching 150-mph winds simultaneously for the first time, also highlighted what we do, and do not, know about how tropical cyclones will change as the climate warms. The extraordinary toll of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria - which may ultimately be responsible for hundreds of deaths and an estimated $200 billion or more in damages - underscores why investments into improved forecasting must be a national priority. At NCAR and UCAR, scientists are working with their colleagues at federal agencies, the private sector, and the university community to advance our understanding of these deadly storms. Among their many projects, NCAR researchers are making experimental tropical cyclone forecasts using an innovative Earth system model that allows for variable resolution. We are working with NOAA to issue flooding, inundation, and streamflow forecasts for areas hit by hurricanes, and we have used extremely high-resolution regional models to simulate successfully the rapid hurricane intensification that has proved so difficult to predict. We are assessing ways to better predict the damage potential of tropical cyclones by looking beyond wind speed to consider such important factors as the size and forward motion of the storm. On the important question of climate change, scientists have experimented with running coupled climate models at a high enough resolution to spin up a hurricane, and we have used a convection-permitting regional model to examine how named storms of the past might look if they were to formed in a warmer, wetter future. Finally, research is also being performed to better communicate forecasts to help residents make informed choices when a damaging storm approaches.

Effects of Hurricane Katrina on the forest structure of taxodium distichum swamps of the Gulf Coast, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Middleton, B.A.

2009-01-01

Hurricane Katrina pushed mixed Taxodium distichum forests toward a dominance of Taxodium distichum (baldcypress) and Nyssa aquatica (water tupelo) because these species had lower levels of susceptibility to wind damage than other woody species. This study documents the volume of dead versus live material of woody trees and shrubs of T. distichum swamps following Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast of Mississippi and Louisiana. Pearl River Wildlife Management Area near Canton, Mississippi had the highest winds of the study areas, and these forests were located in the northeast quadrant of Hurricane Katrina (sustained wind 151 kph (94 mph)). Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve south of New Orleans had medium to high winds (sustained winds 111 kph (69 mph) at the New Orleans lakefront). Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge had a lower level of winds and was positioned on the western edge of the storm. The forests at Pearl River and to a lesser extent at Jean Lafitte had the highest amount of structural damage in the study. For Cat Island, Jean Lafitte, and Pearl River, the total volume of dead material (debris) was 50, 80, and 370 m3 ha-1, respectively. The ratio of dead to live volume was 0.010, 0.082, and 0.039, respectively. For both of the dominant species, T. distichum and N. aquatica, the percentage of dead to live volume was less than 1. Subdominant species including Acer rubrum, Liquidambar styraciflua, Quercus lyrata, and Quercus nigra were more damaged by the storm at both Pearl River and Jean Lafitte. Only branches were damaged by Hurricane Katrina at Cat Island. Shrubs such as Morella cerifera, Euonymous sp., and Vaccinium sp. were often killed by the storm, while other species such as Cephalanthus occidentalis, Forestiera acuminata, and Cornus florida were not killed. Despite the fact that Hurricane Katrina was a Category 3 storm and struck Pearl River and Jean Lafitte fairly directly, dominant species of the T. distichum swamps were relatively little affected, even though certain subdominant and shrub species were completely removed from the species composition. ?? 2009 The Society of Wetland Scientists.

Increasing Flood Risk due to Run-off Outflow near Estuarine City during Storm Event

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Son, S.; Lee, C.; Do, K.; Jung, T.

2017-12-01

Tropical cyclone easily causes inundation damage to low-lying coastal area and the damage may be amplified due to tide motion, sea-level rise, riverine discharges. Specifically, typhoons are accompanied by intensive rainfall, which will of course raise the river water level and thus enhance the flooding damages. If the tidal cycle coincides the high water, flooding will be even aggravated. In the present study, we simulated storm surge motions at the coastal area considering combined effects of tidal and river discharge with aim to improve the accuracy of flooding prediction. The quasi 3-dimension ocean circulation model, Delf3D was used which solves the unsteady shallow water equation in the 2D and 3D. Since Delft3D is much applicable to accommodate the indirect flooding factors such as riverine discharge and short waves, outer-coupled modeling system was established to account for combined tide-surge-riverine discharge effects. In such integrated system, 11 tidal constituents were input as open boundary condition using TPXO 7.2 model, while the water level per unit time was preliminary calculated by HEC-HMS model and input as the upstream boundary conditions for river inside the domain. Typhoon MAEMI which attacked Masan city located at southern coast of South Korea and caused severe inundation damages in 2003 was selected for the study event. Basic information for typhoon such as path, wind speed, atmospheric pressure every 3 hours was provided by the Korea Meteorological Agency and was adopted. The simulation was implemented with tide and storm surge boundary conditions focusing on the target area, Masan, while the additional consideration on the discharge of the river inside the domain was also made. Simulated water level at the fixed location was compared to the observation for its verification and the extent of inundation areas of Masan were compared between observed and calculated. The marginal contribution of riverine discharge on the flooding area(or depth) was assessed by comparing tide-surge with tide-surge-riverine discharge simulations. Finally, the importance of the specific consideration on the riverine discharge during storm surge modeling can be addressed.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

A construction trailer damaged by Hurricane Matthew is seen in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

An ice dispenser damaged by Hurricane Matthew is seen in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

Evaluation of NYC's Coastal Vulnerability and Potential Adaptation Strategies in the Wake of Hurricane Sandy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, S. M.; Foti, R.; Montalto, F. A.

2015-12-01

New York City's coastlines are a mosaic of remnant natural habitat, man-made wetlands, manicured parkland, public beaches, housing, and industrial centers, all of which are extremely vulnerable to flooding, storm surge, and damaging wave action. Risks are projected to increase overtime as sea levels rise, population grows, and the frequency and severity of extreme events increases. In order to protect its citizens and infrastructure, New York City is planning to invest 20 billion into a coastal protection plan, including 200 million towards wetlands creation and restoration. Focusing on the role of wetlands and parkland in reducing damages during Hurricane Sandy, our study seeks to identify the primary causes of coastal vulnerability and to provide guidelines for the design of coastal protection measures. Our findings show that most of the small, fragmented NYC's wetlands did not provide significant protection from the violence of the hurricane. Large stretches of wetlands and parkland, on the other hand, were found to exacerbate storm surge along the coast, but did reduce surge penetration further inland. Much of the protection provided by wetlands and coastal green sites was in the form of cost avoidance. Wetlands existed in the most heavily hit areas and so averted damages that would have occurred if those areas had been developed. Our results suggest that, when positioned in the highest risk areas, coastal green infrastructure such as wetlands and parklands can reduce coastal flood risks associated with extreme events like Hurricane Sandy. Policy would ideally prioritize conservation, restoration, and enhancement of large contiguous areas of wetlands in the lowest elevation areas of the city. Where low-lying coastal development cannot be relocated, the risk of damage from storm surges is best reduced by elevating critical infrastructure.

Gulf Coast Disaster Management: Forest Damage Detection and Carbon Flux Estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maki, A. E.; Childs, L. M.; Jones, J.; Matthews, C.; Spindel, D.; Batina, M.; Malik, S.; Allain, M.; Brooks, A. O.; Brozen, M.; Chappell, C.; Frey, J. W.

2008-12-01

Along the Gulf Coast and Eastern Seaboard, tropical storms and hurricanes annually cause defoliation and deforestation amongst coastal forests. After a severe storm clears, there is an urgent need to assess impacts on timber resources for targeting state and national resources to assist in recovery. It is important to identify damaged areas following the storm, due to their increased probability of fire risk, as well as the effect upon the carbon budget. Better understanding and management of the immediate and future effects on the carbon cycle in the coastal forest ecosystem is especially important. Current methods of detection involve assessment through ground-based field surveys, aerial surveys, computer modeling of meteorological data, space-borne remote sensing, and Forest Inventory and Analysis field plots. Introducing remotely-sensed data from NASA and NASA-partnered Earth Observation Systems (EOS), this project seeks to improve the current methodology and focuses on a need for methods that are more synoptic than field surveys and more closely linked to the phenomenology of tree loss and damage than passive remote sensing methods. The primary concentration is on the utilization of Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) data products to detect changes in forest canopy height as an indicator of post-hurricane forest disturbances. By analyzing ICESat data over areas affected by Hurricane Katrina, this study shows that ICESsat is a useful method of detecting canopy height change, though further research is needed in mixed forest areas. Other EOS utilized in this study include Landsat, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and the NASA verified and validated international Advanced Wide Field Sensor (AWiFS) sensor. This study addresses how NASA could apply ICESat data to contribute to an improved method of detecting hurricane-caused forest damage in coastal areas; thus to pinpoint areas more susceptible to fire damage and subsequent loss of carbon sequestration.

Physically-based Assessment of Tropical Cyclone Damage and Economic Losses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, N.

2012-12-01

Estimating damage and economic losses caused by tropical cyclones (TC) is a topic of considerable research interest in many scientific fields, including meteorology, structural and coastal engineering, and actuarial sciences. One approach is based on the empirical relationship between TC characteristics and loss data. Another is to model the physical mechanism of TC-induced damage. In this talk we discuss about the physically-based approach to predict TC damage and losses due to extreme wind and storm surge. We first present an integrated vulnerability model, which, for the first time, explicitly models the essential mechanisms causing wind damage to residential areas during storm passage, including windborne-debris impact and the pressure-debris interaction that may lead, in a chain reaction, to structural failures (Lin and Vanmarcke 2010; Lin et al. 2010a). This model can be used to predict the economic losses in a residential neighborhood (with hundreds of buildings) during a specific TC (Yau et al. 2011) or applied jointly with a TC risk model (e.g., Emanuel et al 2008) to estimate the expected losses over long time periods. Then we present a TC storm surge risk model that has been applied to New York City (Lin et al. 2010b; Lin et al. 2012; Aerts et al. 2012), Miami-Dade County, Florida (Klima et al. 2011), Galveston, Texas (Lickley, 2012), and other coastal areas around the world (e.g., Tampa, Florida; Persian Gulf; Darwin, Australia; Shanghai, China). These physically-based models are applicable to various coastal areas and have the capability to account for the change of the climate and coastal exposure over time. We also point out that, although made computationally efficient for risk assessment, these models are not suitable for regional or global analysis, which has been a focus of the empirically-based economic analysis (e.g., Hsiang and Narita 2012). A future research direction is to simplify the physically-based models, possibly through parameterization, and make connections to the global loss data and economic analysis.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

Severe wind and snow storms hit the Pacific Northwest region on December 14 – 15, 2006, following severe flooding during the past few days. The severe weather resulted in major power outages through the region. At peak there were 1.8 million customers without power which included BC Hydro in Canada. Currently, there are over 1.5 million outages in the region as a result of the Pacific Northwest Storms. This represents about 42 percent of customers in affected utility service areas in Oregon and Washington. See table below. Because the current wind and snow storms are coming on the heels ofmore » extensive flooding in the region, electric utilities are experiencing damage. Wind gusts reached close to 100 mph in some areas of the region. The storm is expected to bring its strong winds and heavy snow into Idaho, Montana and Wyoming Friday and into the weekend. There are currently no reported major impacts to the petroleum and natural gas infrastructure.« less

Impacts of Landscape Context on Patterns of Wind Downfall Damage in a Fragmented Amazonian Landscape

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwartz, N.; Uriarte, M.; DeFries, R. S.; Gutierrez-Velez, V. H.; Fernandes, K.; Pinedo-Vasquez, M.

2015-12-01

Wind is a major disturbance in the Amazon and has both short-term impacts and lasting legacies in tropical forests. Observed patterns of damage across landscapes result from differences in wind exposure and stand characteristics, such as tree stature, species traits, successional age, and fragmentation. Wind disturbance has important consequences for biomass dynamics in Amazonian forests, and understanding the spatial distribution and size of impacts is necessary to quantify the effects on carbon dynamics. In November 2013, a mesoscale convective system was observed over the study area in Ucayali, Peru, a highly human modified and fragmented forest landscape. We mapped downfall damage associated with the storm in order to ask: how does the severity of damage vary within forest patches, and across forest patches of different sizes and successional ages? We applied spectral mixture analysis to Landsat images from 2013 and 2014 to calculate the change in non-photosynthetic vegetation fraction after the storm, and combined it with C-band SAR data from the Sentinel-1 satellite to predict downfall damage measured in 30 field plots using random forest regression. We then applied this model to map damage in forests across the study area. Using a land cover classification developed in a previous study, we mapped secondary and mature forest, and compared the severity of damage in the two. We found that damage was on average higher in secondary forests, but patterns varied spatially. This study demonstrates the utility of using multiple sources of satellite data for mapping wind disturbance, and adds to our understanding of the sources of variation in wind-related damage. Ultimately, an improved ability to map wind impacts and a better understanding of their spatial patterns can contribute to better quantification of carbon dynamics in Amazonian landscapes.

Impacts on the deep-sea ecosystem by a severe coastal storm.

PubMed

Sanchez-Vidal, Anna; Canals, Miquel; Calafat, Antoni M; Lastras, Galderic; Pedrosa-Pàmies, Rut; Menéndez, Melisa; Medina, Raúl; Company, Joan B; Hereu, Bernat; Romero, Javier; Alcoverro, Teresa

2012-01-01

Major coastal storms, associated with strong winds, high waves and intensified currents, and occasionally with heavy rains and flash floods, are mostly known because of the serious damage they can cause along the shoreline and the threats they pose to navigation. However, there is a profound lack of knowledge on the deep-sea impacts of severe coastal storms. Concurrent measurements of key parameters along the coast and in the deep-sea are extremely rare. Here we present a unique data set showing how one of the most extreme coastal storms of the last decades lashing the Western Mediterranean Sea rapidly impacted the deep-sea ecosystem. The storm peaked the 26(th) of December 2008 leading to the remobilization of a shallow-water reservoir of marine organic carbon associated with fine particles and resulting in its redistribution across the deep basin. The storm also initiated the movement of large amounts of coarse shelf sediment, which abraded and buried benthic communities. Our findings demonstrate, first, that severe coastal storms are highly efficient in transporting organic carbon from shallow water to deep water, thus contributing to its sequestration and, second, that natural, intermittent atmospheric drivers sensitive to global climate change have the potential to tremendously impact the largest and least known ecosystem on Earth, the deep-sea ecosystem.

Impacts on the Deep-Sea Ecosystem by a Severe Coastal Storm

PubMed Central

Sanchez-Vidal, Anna; Canals, Miquel; Calafat, Antoni M.; Lastras, Galderic; Pedrosa-Pàmies, Rut; Menéndez, Melisa; Medina, Raúl; Company, Joan B.; Hereu, Bernat; Romero, Javier; Alcoverro, Teresa

2012-01-01

Major coastal storms, associated with strong winds, high waves and intensified currents, and occasionally with heavy rains and flash floods, are mostly known because of the serious damage they can cause along the shoreline and the threats they pose to navigation. However, there is a profound lack of knowledge on the deep-sea impacts of severe coastal storms. Concurrent measurements of key parameters along the coast and in the deep-sea are extremely rare. Here we present a unique data set showing how one of the most extreme coastal storms of the last decades lashing the Western Mediterranean Sea rapidly impacted the deep-sea ecosystem. The storm peaked the 26th of December 2008 leading to the remobilization of a shallow-water reservoir of marine organic carbon associated with fine particles and resulting in its redistribution across the deep basin. The storm also initiated the movement of large amounts of coarse shelf sediment, which abraded and buried benthic communities. Our findings demonstrate, first, that severe coastal storms are highly efficient in transporting organic carbon from shallow water to deep water, thus contributing to its sequestration and, second, that natural, intermittent atmospheric drivers sensitive to global climate change have the potential to tremendously impact the largest and least known ecosystem on Earth, the deep-sea ecosystem. PMID:22295084

The effects of storms and storm-generated currents on sand beaches in Southern Maine, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hill, H.W.; Kelley, J.T.; Belknap, D.F.; Dickson, S.M.

2004-01-01

Storms are one of the most important controls on the cycle of erosion and accretion on beaches. Current meters placed in shoreface locations of Saco Bay and Wells Embayment, ME, recorded bottom currents during the winter months of 2000 and 2001, while teams of volunteers profiled the topography of nearby beaches. Coupling offshore meteorological and beach profile data made it possible to determine the response of nine beaches in southern Maine to various oceanographic and meteorological conditions. The beaches selected for profiling ranged from pristine to completely developed and permitted further examination of the role of seawalls on the response of beaches to storms. Current meters documented three unique types of storms: frontal passages, southwest storms, and northeast storms. In general, the current meter results indicate that frontal passages and southwest storms were responsible for bringing sediment towards the shore, while northeast storms resulted in a net movement of sediment away from the beach. During the 1999-2000 winter, there were a greater percentage of frontal passages and southwest storms, while during the 2000-2001 winter, there were more northeast storms. The sediment that was transported landward during the 1999-2000 winter was reworked into the berm along moderately and highly developed beaches during the next summer. A northeast storm on March 5-6, 2001, resulted in currents in excess of 1 m s-1 and wave heights that reached six meters. The storm persisted over 10 high tides and caused coastal flooding and property damage. Topographic profiles made before and after the storm demonstrate that developed beaches experienced a loss of sediment volume during the storm, while sediment was redistributed along the profile on moderately developed and undeveloped beaches. Two months after the storm, the profiles along the developed beaches had not reached their pre-storm elevation. In comparison, the moderately developed and undeveloped beaches reached and exceeded their pre-storm elevation and began to show berm buildup characteristic of the summer months. ?? 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synoptic analysis and hindcast of an intense bow echo in Western Europe: The 09 June 2014 storm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathias, Luca; Ermert, Volker; Kelemen, Fanni D.; Ludwig, Patrick; Pinto, Joaquim G.

2017-04-01

On Pentecost Monday of 09 June 2014, a severe mesoscale convective system (MCS) hit Belgium and Western Germany. This storm was one of the most severe thunderstorms in Germany for decades. The synoptic-scale and mesoscale characteristics of this storm are analyzed based on remote sensing data and in-situ measurements. Moreover, the forecast potential of the storm is evaluated using sensitivity experiments with a regional climate model. The key ingredients for the development of the Pentecost storm were the concurrent presence of low-level moisture, atmospheric conditional instability and wind shear. The synoptic and mesoscale analysis shows that the outflow of a decaying MCS above northern France triggered the storm, which exhibited the typical features of a bow echo like a mesovortex and rear inflow jet. This resulted in hurricane-force wind gusts (reaching 40 m/s) along a narrow swath in the Rhine-Ruhr region leading to substantial damage. Operational numerical weather predictions models mostly failed to forecast the storm, but high-resolution regional model hindcasts enable a realistic simulation of the storm. The model experiments reveal that the development of the bow echo is particularly sensitive to the initial wind field and the lower tropospheric moisture content. Correct initial and boundary conditions are therefore necessary for realistic numerical forecasts of such a bow echo event. We conclude that the Pentecost storm exhibited a comparable structure and a similar intensity to the observed bow echo systems in the United States.

Perceptions of severe storms, climate change, ecological structures and resiliency three years post-hurricane Sandy in New Jersey.

PubMed

Burger, Joanna; Gochfeld, Michael

2017-12-01

Global warming is leading to increased frequency and severity of storms that are associated with flooding, increasing the risk to urban, coastal populations. This study examined perceptions of the relationship between severe storms, sea level rise, climate change and ecological barriers by a vulnerable environmental justice population in New Jersey. Patients using New Jersey's Federally Qualified Health Centers were interviewed after Hurricane [Superstorm] Sandy because it is essential to understand the perceptions of uninsured, underinsured, and economically challenged people to better develop a resiliency strategy for the most vulnerable people. Patients ( N = 355) using 6 centers were interviewed using a structured interview form. Patients were interviewed in the order they entered the reception area, in either English or Spanish. Respondents were asked to rate their agreement with environmental statements. Respondents 1) agreed with experts that "severe storms were due to climate change", "storms will come more often", and that "flooding was due to sea level rise", 2) did not agree as strongly that "climate change was due to human activity", 3) were neutral for statements that " Sandy damages were due to loss of dunes or salt marshes". 4) did not differ as a function of ethnic/racial categories, and 5) showed few gender differences. It is imperative that the public understand that climate change and sea level rise are occurring so that they support community programs (and funding) to prepare for increased frequency of storms and coastal flooding. The lack of high ratings for the role of dunes and marshes in preventing flooding indicates a lack of understanding that ecological structures protect coasts, and suggests a lack of support for management actions to restore dunes as part of a coastal preparedness strategy. Perceptions that do not support a public policy of coastal zone management to protect coastlines can lead to increased flooding, extensive property damages, and injuries or loss of life.

Perceptions of severe storms, climate change, ecological structures and resiliency three years post-hurricane Sandy in New Jersey

PubMed Central

Gochfeld, Michael

2017-01-01

Global warming is leading to increased frequency and severity of storms that are associated with flooding, increasing the risk to urban, coastal populations. This study examined perceptions of the relationship between severe storms, sea level rise, climate change and ecological barriers by a vulnerable environmental justice population in New Jersey. Patients using New Jersey’s Federally Qualified Health Centers were interviewed after Hurricane [Superstorm] Sandy because it is essential to understand the perceptions of uninsured, underinsured, and economically challenged people to better develop a resiliency strategy for the most vulnerable people. Patients (N = 355) using 6 centers were interviewed using a structured interview form. Patients were interviewed in the order they entered the reception area, in either English or Spanish. Respondents were asked to rate their agreement with environmental statements. Respondents 1) agreed with experts that “severe storms were due to climate change”, “storms will come more often”, and that “flooding was due to sea level rise”, 2) did not agree as strongly that “climate change was due to human activity”, 3) were neutral for statements that “Sandy damages were due to loss of dunes or salt marshes”. 4) did not differ as a function of ethnic/racial categories, and 5) showed few gender differences. It is imperative that the public understand that climate change and sea level rise are occurring so that they support community programs (and funding) to prepare for increased frequency of storms and coastal flooding. The lack of high ratings for the role of dunes and marshes in preventing flooding indicates a lack of understanding that ecological structures protect coasts, and suggests a lack of support for management actions to restore dunes as part of a coastal preparedness strategy. Perceptions that do not support a public policy of coastal zone management to protect coastlines can lead to increased flooding, extensive property damages, and injuries or loss of life. PMID:29398897

Low-E Retrofit Demonstration and Educational Program

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Culp, Thomas D; Wiehagen, Joseph; Drumheller, S Craig

The objective of this project was to demonstrate the capability of low-emissivity (low-E) storm windows / panels and low-E retrofit glazing systems to significantly and cost effectively improve the energy efficiency of both existing residential and commercial buildings. The key outcomes are listed below: RESIDENTIAL CASE STUDIES: (a) A residential case study in two large multifamily apartment buildings in Philadelphia showed a substantial 18-22% reduction in heating energy use and a 9% reduction in cooling energy use by replacing old clear glass storm windows with modern low-E storm windows. Furthermore, the new low-E storm windows reduced the overall apartment airmore » leakage by an average of 10%. (b) Air leakage testing on interior low-E panels installed in a New York City multifamily building over windows with and without AC units showed that the effective leakage area of the windows was reduced by 77-95%. (c) To study the use of low-E storm windows in a warmer mixed climate with a balance of both heating and cooling, 10 older homes near Atlanta with single pane windows were tested with three types of exterior storm windows: clear glass, low-E glass with high solar heat gain, and low-E glass with lower solar heat gain. The storm windows significantly reduced the overall home air leakage by an average of 17%, or 3.7 ACH50. Considerably high variability in the data made it difficult to draw strong conclusions about the overall energy usage, but for heating periods, the low-E storm windows showed approximately 15% heating energy savings, whereas clear storm windows were neutral in performance. For cooling periods, the low-E storm windows showed a wide range of performance from 2% to over 30% cooling energy savings. Overall, the study showed the potential for significantly more energy savings from using low-E glass versus no storm window or clear glass storm windows in warmer mixed climates, but it is difficult to conclusively say whether one type of low-E performed better than the other. COMMERCIAL CASE STUDIES: (a) A 12-story office building in Philadelphia was retrofitted by adding a double-pane low-E insulating glass unit to the existing single pane windows, to create a triple glazed low-E system. A detailed side-by-side comparison in two pairs of perimeter offices facing north and east showed a 39-60% reduction in heating energy use, a 9-36% reduction in cooling energy use, and a 10% reduction in peak electrical cooling demand. An analysis of utility bills estimated the whole building heating and cooling energy use was reduced by over 25%. Additionally, the retrofit window temperatures were commonly 20 degrees warmer on winter days, and 10-20 degrees cooler on summer days, leading to increased occupant comfort. (b) Two large 4-story office buildings in New Jersey were retrofitted with a similar system, but using two low-E coatings in the retrofit system. The energy savings are being monitored by a separate GPIC project; this work quantified the changes in glass surface temperatures, thermal comfort, and potential glass thermal stress. The low-E retrofit panels greatly reduced daily variations in the interior window surface temperatures, lowering the maximum temperature and raising the minimum temperature by over 20F compared to the original single pane windows with window film. The number of hours of potential thermal discomfort, as measured by deviation between mean radiant temperature and ambient air temperature by more than 3F, were reduced by 93 percent on the south orientation and over two-thirds on the west orientation. Overall, the low-E retrofit led to substantially improved occupant comfort with less periods of both overheating and feeling cold. (c) No significant thermal stress was observed in the New Jersey office building test window when using the low-E retrofit system over a variety of weather conditions. The surface temperature difference only exceeded 10F (500 psi thermal stress) for less than 1.5% of the monitored time, and in all cases, the maximum surface temperature difference never exceeded 35F (1,750 psi thermal stress). LOW-E STORM WINDOW OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAM: (a) The project team assisted the State of Pennsylvania in adding low-E storm windows as a cost effective weatherization measure on its priority list for the state weatherization assistance program. (b) No technical barriers that could hinder widespread application were identified in the case studies. However, educational barriers have been identified, in that weatherization personnel commonly misunderstand how the application of low-E storm windows is very different than much more expensive full window replacement. (c) A package of educational materials was developed to help communicate the benefits of low-E storm windows and retrofits as a cost effective tool for weatherization personnel. (d) Using detailed thermal simulations, more accurate U-factor and solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) values were determined for low-E storm windows installed over different primary windows. IN SUMMARY, this work confirmed the potential for low-E storm windows, panels, and retrofit systems to provide significant energy savings, reductions in air leakage, and improvements in thermal comfort in both residential and commercial existing buildings.« less

Precipitation areal-reduction factor estimation using an annual-maxima centered approach

USGS Publications Warehouse

Asquith, W.H.; Famiglietti, J.S.

2000-01-01

The adjustment of precipitation depth of a point storm to an effective (mean) depth over a watershed is important for characterizing rainfall-runoff relations and for cost-effective designs of hydraulic structures when design storms are considered. A design storm is the precipitation point depth having a specified duration and frequency (recurrence interval). Effective depths are often computed by multiplying point depths by areal-reduction factors (ARF). ARF range from 0 to 1, vary according to storm characteristics, such as recurrence interval; and are a function of watershed characteristics, such as watershed size, shape, and geographic location. This paper presents a new approach for estimating ARF and includes applications for the 1-day design storm in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Texas. The approach, termed 'annual-maxima centered,' specifically considers the distribution of concurrent precipitation surrounding an annual-precipitation maxima, which is a feature not seen in other approaches. The approach does not require the prior spatial averaging of precipitation, explicit determination of spatial correlation coefficients, nor explicit definition of a representative area of a particular storm in the analysis. The annual-maxima centered approach was designed to exploit the wide availability of dense precipitation gauge data in many regions of the world. The approach produces ARF that decrease more rapidly than those from TP-29. Furthermore, the ARF from the approach decay rapidly with increasing recurrence interval of the annual-precipitation maxima. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V.The adjustment of precipitation depth of a point storm to an effective (mean) depth over a watershed is important for characterizing rainfall-runoff relations and for cost-effective designs of hydraulic structures when design storms are considered. A design storm is the precipitation point depth having a specified duration and frequency (recurrence interval). Effective depths are often computed by multiplying point depths by areal-reduction factors (ARF). ARF range from 0 to 1, vary according to storm characteristics, such as recurrence interval; and are a function of watershed characteristics, such as watershed size, shape, and geographic location. This paper presents a new approach for estimating ARF and includes applications for the 1-day design storm in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Texas. The approach, termed 'annual-maxima centered,' specifically considers the distribution of concurrent precipitation surrounding an annual-precipitation maxima, which is a feature not seen in other approaches. The approach does not require the prior spatial averaging of precipitation, explicit determination of spatial correlation coefficients, nor explicit definition of a representative area of a particular storm in the analysis. The annual-maxima centered approach was designed to exploit the wide availability of dense precipitation gauge data in many regions of the world. The approach produces ARF that decrease more rapidly than those from TP-29. Furthermore, the ARF from the approach decay rapidly with increasing recurrence interval of the annual-precipitation maxima.

Open Circuit Resonant Sensors for Composite Damage Detection and Diagnosis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mielnik, John J., Jr.

2011-01-01

Under the Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) program work was begun to investigate the feasibility of sensor systems for detecting and diagnosing damage to aircraft composite structures and materials. Specific interest for this study was in damage initiated by environmental storm hazards and the direct effect of lightning strikes on the material structures of a composite aircraft in flight. A series of open circuit resonant sensors was designed, fabricated, characterized, and determined to be a potentially viable means for damage detection and diagnosis of composite materials. The results of this research and development effort are documented in this report.

33 CFR 203.48 - Inspection guidelines for non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.48 - Inspection guidelines for non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.44 - Rehabilitation of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.44 - Rehabilitation of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.44 - Rehabilitation of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.44 - Rehabilitation of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.44 - Rehabilitation of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.48 - Inspection guidelines for non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

33 CFR 203.48 - Inspection guidelines for non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMERGENCY EMPLOYMENT OF ARMY AND OTHER RESOURCES, NATURAL DISASTER PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm...

Soil and tree ring chemistry changes in an oak forest.

Treesearch

Quentin D. Read

2009-01-01

Changes in soil chemistry due to historic large-scale disturbances, e.g. pollution inputs, storm damage, and logging, have previously been shown to cause similar changes in the nutrient concentrations...

Severe storm identification with satellite microwave radiometry: An initial investigation with Nimbus-7 SMMR data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spencer, R. W.; Howland, M. R.

1984-01-01

The severe weather characteristics of convective storms as observed by the Nimbus 7 Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) are investigated. Low 37 GHz brightness temperatures (due to scattering of upwelling radiation by precipitation size ice) are related to the occurrence of severe weather (large hail, strong winds or wind damage, tornadoes and funnel clouds) within one hour of the satellite observation time. During 1979 and 1980 over the United States there were 263 storms which had very cold 37 GHz signatures. Of these storms 15% were severe. The SMMR detected hail, wind, and tornadic storms equally well. Critical Success Indices (CSI's) of 0.32, 0.48, and 0.38 are achieved for the thresholding of severe vs. nonsevere low brightness temperature events during 1979, 1980, and the two years combined, respectively. Such scores are comparable to skill scores for early radar detection methods. These results suggest that a future geostationary passive microwave imaging capability at 37 GHz, with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution, would allow the detection of severe convective storms. This capability would provide a useful complement to radar, especially in areas not covered by radar.

Observational analysis of the interaction between a baroclinic boundary and supercell storms on 27 April 2011

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sherrer, Adam Thomas

A thermal boundary developed during the morning to early afternoon hours on 27 April as a result of rainfall evaporation and shading from reoccurring deep convection. This boundary propagated to the north during the late afternoon to evening hours. The presence of the boundary produced an area more conducive for the formation of strong violent tornadoes through several processes. These processes included the production of horizontally generated baroclinic vorticity, increased values in storm-relative helicity, and decreasing lifting condensation level heights. Five supercell storms formed near and/or propagated alongside this boundary. Supercells that interacted with this boundary typically produced significant tornadic damage over long distances. Two of these supercells formed to the south (warm) side of the boundary and produced a tornado prior to crossing to the north (cool) side of the boundary. These two storms exhibited changes in appearance, intensity, and structure. Two other supercells formed well south of the boundary. These two storms remained relatively weak until they interacted with the boundary. These storms then rapidly intensified and produced tornadoes. Supercells that formed well into the cool side of the boundary either did not produce tornadoes or the tornadoes were determined to be weak in nature.

Coastal Erosion at Padre Island: Insights from UAV Surveys After Hurricane Harvey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evans, A.; Wernette, P. A.; Houser, C.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey caused widespread damage to coastal resources and communities when it made landfall north of Corpus Christi, Texas. Located immediately south of Corpus Christi, Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS) sustained significant beach and dune erosion due to strong wind and waves during Hurricane Harvey. This paper presents a post-storm assessment of the geomorphic changes caused Hurricane Harvey at PAIS. Post-storm geomorphology data was collected within 3 days of PAIS re-opening after the storm and again in late October 2017. Data consisted of oblique photographs, shore-normal survey-grade GNSS surveys, and high resolution (1.5 cm) UAV surveys encompassing a 14-km stretch of the beach and dunes. Comparison of post-storm surveys to 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012 LiDAR series reveals that the beach and dune system sustained substantial erosion during Hurricane Harvey and that erosion is not evenly distributed along the coast. This paper provides valuable insight into how driving on the beach affects patterns of erosion during a storm. Rapid post-storm assessments, such as this paper, also represent valuable baselines for the National Park Service to assess environmental recovery.

Hydrometeorological Hazards: Monitoring, Forecasting, Risk Assessment, and Socioeconomic Responses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wu, Huan; Huang, Maoyi; Tang, Qiuhong; Kirschbaum, Dalia B.; Ward, Philip

2017-01-01

Hydrometeorological hazards are caused by extreme meteorological and climate events, such as floods, droughts, hurricanes,tornadoes, or landslides. They account for a dominant fraction of natural hazards and occur in all regions of the world, although the frequency and intensity of certain hazards and societies vulnerability to them differ between regions. Severe storms, strong winds, floods, and droughts develop at different spatial and temporal scales, but all can become disasters that cause significant infrastructure damage and claim hundreds of thousands of lives annually worldwide. Oftentimes, multiple hazards can occur simultaneously or trigger cascading impacts from one extreme weather event. For example, in addition to causing injuries, deaths, and material damage, a tropical storm can also result in flooding and mudslides, which can disrupt water purification and sewage disposal systems, cause overflow of toxic wastes, andincrease propagation of mosquito-borne diseases.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Huan; Huang, Maoyi; Tang, Qiuhong

Hydrometeorological hazards are caused by extreme meteorological and climate events, such as floods, droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes, or landslides. They account for a dominant fraction of natural hazards and occur in all regions of the world, although the frequency and intensity of certain hazards, and society’s vulnerability to them, differs between regions. Severe storms, strong winds, floods and droughts develop at different spatial and temporal scales, but all can become disasters that cause significant infrastructure damage and claim hundreds of thousands of lives annually worldwide. Oftentimes, multiple hazards can occur simultaneously or trigger cascading impacts from one extreme weather event. Formore » example, in addition to causing injuries, deaths and material damage, a tropical storm can also result in flooding and mudslides, which can disrupt water purification and sewage disposal systems, cause overflow of toxic wastes, and increase propagation of mosquito-borne diseases.« less

The NASA F-106B Storm Hazards Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neely, W. R., Jr.; Fisher, B. D.

1983-01-01

During the NASA LRC Storm Hazards Program, 698 thunderstorm precipitations were made from 1980 to 1983 with an F-106B aircraft in order to record direct lightning strike data and the associated flight conditions. It was found that each of the three composite fin caps tested experienced multiple lightning attachments with only minor cosmetic damage. The maximum current level was only 20 ka, which is well below the design standard of 200 ka; however, indications are that the current rate of rise standard has been approached and may be exceeded in a major strike. The peak lightning strike rate occurred at ambient temperatures between -40 and -45 C, while most previously reported strikes have occurred at or near the freezing level. No significant operational difficulties or major aircraft damage resulting from the thunderstorm penetrations have been found.

Major Natural Disasters in China, 1985–2014: Occurrence and Damages

PubMed Central

Han, Weixiao; Liang, Chen; Jiang, Baofa; Ma, Wei; Zhang, Ying

2016-01-01

This study aimed to describe the characteristics of natural disasters and associated losses from 1985 to 2014. The Mann-Kendall method was used to detect any long-term trends and abrupt changes. Hotspot analysis was conducted to detect the spatial clusters of disasters. We found an increasing trend in the occurrence of integrated natural disasters (tau = 0.594, p < 0.001), particularly for floods (tau = 0.507, p < 0.001), landslides (tau = 0.365, p = 0.009) and storms (tau = 0.289, p = 0.032). Besides, there was an abrupt increase of natural disasters in 1998–2000. Hotspots of droughts, floods, landslides and storms were identified in central, southern, southwest and southeast areas of China, respectively. Annual deaths from integrated natural disasters were decreasing (tau = −0.237, p = 0.068) at about 32 persons/year, decreasing at 17 persons/year for floods (tau = −0.154, p = 0.239), and decreasing at approximately 12 persons/year for storms (tau = −0.338, p = 0.009). No significant trend was detected in inflation-adjusted damages while a declining trend was detected in the ratio of year damage against GDP (gross domestic product). In conclusion, there has been an increasing trend in occurrence of natural disasters in China with the absence of an increase in life and economic losses. Despite the progress in the disaster adaption, there will be great challenges in disaster control for China in the future. PMID:27834899

The transforming perception of a regional geohazard between coastal defence and mediated discourse on global warming: Storm surges in Hamburg, Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neverla, I.; Lüthje, C.

2010-03-01

The term regional geohazard is used for a major geophysical risk which can lead to a natural disaster. The effects will be strictly located to a specific region. It is expected but still not proven that global warming will intensify weather extremes and thus the number of regional geohazards will increase. Regional geohazards are not dangerous per se, but from the perspective of human being certain weather and nature extremes are considered dangerous as they impose damage on human beings and their belongings. Therefore the media often call them ‘natural disaster’ and as a matter of fact it seems to be a ‘must’ - according to theory and practice of news selections - that media report on any natural disaster that occur in their region. Moreover, media even report on geohazards in any other region as soon as these events seem to have any general impact. The major geophysical risk along the coast of the North Sea is storm surges. A long list of historical disasters has deeply engraved the ubiquity of this hazard into the collective memory and habitus of the local population. Not only coastal region is concerned by this danger but also the megacity of Hamburg. Hamburg is the second-largest city in Germany and the sixth-largest city in the European Union. The Hamburg Metropolitan Region has more than 4.3 million inhabitants. The estuary of the river Elbe extends from Cuxhaven (coast) to Hamburg a distance of about 130 km. Hamburg has often been subject to storm surges with significant damages. But after the storm flood in 1855 for more than 100 years until 1962 no severe storm surge happened. The Big Flood in the night from February 16 to February 17 1962 destroyed the homes of about 60.000 people. The death toll amounted to 315 in the city of Hamburg, where the storm surge had a traumatic impact and was followed by political decisions driven by the believe in technological solutions. After 1962 massive investments into the coastal defence were made and dikes were raised. Since 1962 several very high storm surges took place, however the newly enforced coastal defence held and only minor damages were reported. Even if the number of very high storm surges as well as their height has significantly increased in the recent past, the effective coastal defence has created a perception of absolute security (von Storch/Woth/Gönnert 2006). Almost half a century after the traumatic disaster the question arises whether the 1962 storm surge has become a ‘neutral’ historical event, and if so, whether it has any impact on today’s perception on global warming. In this paper we want to analyse and discuss the role of media coverage in the perception and interpretation of the Hamburg storm surge 1962 and the role of the media in the construction of collective memory. This long-term-perspective focuses the media coverage at commemoration days and additionally the fictional reporting on geohazards, especially in film-documentaries. We will discuss the hypotheses that regional geohazards become part of the collective memory and are indicators of a society’s mental mapping. The way geohazards are recalled indicates social gaps and divides (e.g. the profile of the victims, the persons and groups who had to suffer most), the importance of social institutions (e.g. military vs. civil forces in rescue operations), the values and believes in a society (e.g. the importance of religion, technology, ecology). Additional we will analyse some typical patterns of journalistic coverage on a regional geohazard along the time-line. We can distinguish three main stages of actual reporting, starting with the ‘pure’ event, then the damages, and finally the mistakes, responsibilities and debts of (political) authorities and (business) stakeholder Reference: von Storch, Hans, Katja Woth and Gabriele Gönnert (2006): Storm surges - the case of Hamburg. Paper presented on "GEC, nature disasters, and their implications for urban security in coastal urban areas"

Cold-season patterns of reserve and soluble carbohydrates in sugar maple and ice-damaged trees of two age classes following drought

Treesearch

B. L. Wong; K. L. Baggett; A. H. Rye

2009-01-01

This study examines the effects of summer drought on the composition and profiles of cold-season reserve and soluble carbohydrates in sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) trees (50-100 years old or ~200 years old) in which the crowns were nondamaged or damaged by the 1998 ice storm. The overall cold season reserve...

Early performance of knobcone x monterey pine hybrids...on marginal timber sites

Treesearch

James R. Griffin; M. Thompson. Conkle

1967-01-01

Three plantations of knobcone X Monterey pine hybrids were established on marginal timber sites at elevations of 671 m.(2,200 ft.) to 991 m. (3,200 ft.) in northern California in 1964. After 3 years, the hybrids appear more promising than either parent species. Damage from snow and windthrow suggests high risk of storm damage to hybrids planted at higher elevations....

Economic impacts of the SAFRR tsunami scenario in California: Chapter H in The SAFRR (Science Application for Risk Reduction) Tsunami Scenario

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wein, Anne; Rose, Adam; Sue Wing, Ian; Wei, Dan

2013-01-01

This study evaluates the hypothetical economic impacts of the SAFRR (Science Application for Risk Reduction) tsunami scenario to the California economy. The SAFRR scenario simulates a tsunami generated by a hypothetical magnitude 9.1 earthquake that occurs offshore of the Alaska Peninsula (Kirby and others, 2013). Economic impacts are measured by the estimated reduction in California’s gross domestic product (GDP), the standard economic measure of the total value of goods and services produced. Economic impacts are derived from the physical damages from the tsunami as described by Porter and others (2013). The principal physical damages that result in disruption of the California economy are (1) about $100 million in damages to the twin Ports of Los Angeles (POLA) and Long Beach (POLB), (2) about $700 million in damages to marinas, and (3) about $2.5 billion in damages to buildings and contents (properties) in the tsunami inundation zone on the California coast. The study of economic impacts does not include the impacts from damages to roads, bridges, railroads, and agricultural production or fires in fuel storage facilities because these damages will be minimal with respect to the California economy. The economic impacts of damage to other California ports are not included in this study because detailed evaluation of the physical damage to these ports was not available in time for this report. The analysis of economic impacts is accomplished in several steps. First, estimates are made for the direct economic impacts that result in immediate business interruption losses in individual sectors of the economy due to physical damage to facilities or to disruption of the flow of production units (commodities necessary for production). Second, the total economic impacts (consisting of both direct and indirect effects) are measured by including the general equilibrium (essentially quantity and price multiplier effects) of lost production in other sectors by ripple effects upstream and downstream along the supply chain. An appropriate measure of the economic impacts on the California economy for the SAFRR tsunami scenario is the reduction in GDP. The economic impacts are first calculated without resilience, the ability of the economy to adjust to disruptions in ways that mute potential negative impacts. There are many types of resilience, including using existing inventories of materials, using unused capacity, conserving inputs, substituting for disrupted supplies, recapturing production after the disruption is restored, and many others. A method for estimating resilience, identified in the port system and sectors affected by property damages, is applied to indicate potential reductions of direct and total economic impacts. In this SAFRR tsunami scenario analysis of economic impacts to California, we implement established techniques used to model the economic impacts for two previous U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scenarios: the southern California Shakeout earthquake (Rose and others, 2011) and the California ARkStorm severe winter storm (Sue Wing and others, written commun., 2013). For the SAFRR tsunami scenario, we reviewed the relevant studies that assess economic impacts from previous tsunami events affecting California and elsewhere and estimate the economic impacts of potential tsunami and other threats to POLA and POLB. To our knowledge, assessment of impacts to the California economy from distant source tsunamis does not exist. Previous tsunamis, including those from the 1960 Chile earthquake, the 1964 Alaska earthquake, the 2008 Chile earthquake and the 2011 Japan earthquake, had only relatively minor or very localized severe damage (such as that in Crescent City in 1964), and no studies of the economic impacts were completed. A rare study of the economic impacts of a tsunami event has recently been produced for the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami (Kajitani and others, 2013). Quarterly declines in Japan’s GDP are observed to peak at ‒1.63 percent in the second quarter after the event and stagnate for the rest of the year. The majority of the economic impacts are attributed to the tsunami rather than the earthquake. The hardest hit sectors are identified as agriculture, fisheries, manufacturing, retail, and tourism. Other relevant studies have focused on the economic impacts of threats that close POLA and POLB. We find one analysis of a potential tsunami scenario affecting the California economy through disruption of port operations. Borrero and others (2005) estimated economic impacts to the southern California economy of $7 to $40 billion from a locally generated tsunami that closes POLA and POLB for as much as 1 year. There have also been several studies of the economic impacts of non-tsunami events affecting POLA and POLB. Analyses of an 11-day labor lockout produced a range of estimated national impacts of as much as $1.94 billion/day (Park and others 2008, Martin Associates 2001). Examination of a potential terrorist attack that closes the San Pedro port for 1 month yielded a $29 billion impact to the California economy (Park, 2008). These studies have reinforced the importance of recognizing economic resilience in economic impact analyses. Hall (2004) criticized the upper-end estimate of national economic impacts from the labor lockout based on model shortcomings that neglected short-run substitution behavior and fixed the long-run economic behaviors. Following the 2011 Japanese tsunami, resilience was observed in the forms of rapid recovery of manufacturing sectors, energy conservation, and insurance (Kajitani and others, 2013).

The global role of natural disaster fatalities in decision-making: statistics, trends and analysis from 116 years of disaster data compared to fatality rates from other causes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniell, James; Wenzel, Friedemann; McLennan, Amy; Daniell, Katherine; Kunz-Plapp, Tina; Khazai, Bijan; Schaefer, Andreas; Kunz, Michael; Girard, Trevor

2016-04-01

In this study, analysis is undertaken showing disaster fatalities trends from around the world using the CATDAT Natural Disaster and Socioeconomic Indicator databases from 1900-2015. Earthquakes have caused over 2.3 million fatalities since 1900; however absolute numbers of deaths caused by them have remained rather constant over time. However, floods have caused somewhere between 1.7 and 5.4 million fatalities, mostly in the earlier half of the 20th century (depending on the 1931 China floods). Storm and storm surges (ca. 1.3 million fatalities), on the other hand, have shown an opposite trend with increasing fatalities over the century (or a lack of records in the early 1900s). Earthquakes due to their sporadic nature, do not inspire investment pre-disaster. When looking at the investment in flood control vs. earthquakes, there is a marked difference in the total investment, which has resulted in a much larger reduction in fatalities. However, a key consideration for decision-makers in different countries around the world when choosing to implement disaster sensitive design is the risk of a natural disaster death, compared to other types of deaths in their country. The creation of empirical annualised ratios of earthquake, flood and storm fatalities from the year 1900 onwards vs. other methods of fatalities (cancer, diseases, accidents etc.) for each country using the CATDAT damaging natural disasters database is undertaken. On an annualised level, very few countries show earthquakes and other disaster types to be one of the highest probability methods for death. However, in particular years with large events, annual rates can easily exceed the total death count for a particular country. An example of this is Haiti, with the equivalent earthquake death rate in 2010 exceeding the total all-cause death rate in the country. Globally, fatality rates due to disasters are generally at least 1 order of magnitude lower than other causes such as heart disease. However, in some locations in countries such as Armenia, Turkmenistan, Peru and Guatemala, the annual probability of being killed in an earthquake is as high as that of being killed due to heart disease. In this study, around 50 countries have been shown to have at least one single event year for earthquake exceeding that of all traffic fatalities, and 15 countries higher than the equivalent total death rate of the country. China has shown very high death rates due to flood, however, with from 1900-2015, this rate has reduced significantly. Floods are generally an order of magnitude less than traffic accidents measured in micromorts likely due to improved flood risk reduction. However, recent events in Philippines and Myanmar show mortality reduction due to storm surge and cyclones still require much effort. The role of life safety is increasing with risk-based disaster resistant codes becoming more commonplace globally. An examination of government funding around the world shows the correlation between retrofitting investment and disaster fatality reduction. New methods of presenting disaster statistics for political use have been used to present the information upon which such decisions are made.

Simulating Geomagnetically Induced Currents in the Irish Power Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, A. G.; Blake, S. P.; Gallagher, P.; McCauley, J.; Hogg, C.; Beggan, C.; Thomson, A. W. P.; Kelly, G.; Walsh, S.

2014-12-01

Geomagnetic storms are known to cause geomagnetically induced currents (GICs) which can damage or destroy transformers on power grids. Previous studies have examined the vulnerability of power networks in countries such as the UK, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa. Here we describe the application of a British Geological Survey (BGS) thin-sheet conductivity model to compute the geo-electric field from the variation of the magnetic field, in order to better quantify the risk of space weather to Ireland's power network. This was achieved using DIAS magnetotelluric data from across Ireland. As part of a near-real-time warning package for Eirgrid (who oversee Ireland's transmission network), severe storm events such as the Halloween 2003 storm and the corresponding GIC flows at transformers are simulated.

Extreme Wind, Rain, Storm Surge, and Flooding: Why Hurricane Impacts are Difficult to Forecast?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, S. S.

2017-12-01

The 2017 hurricane season is estimated as one of the costliest in the U.S. history. The damage and devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Irma in Florida, and Maria in Puerto Rico are distinctly different in nature. The complexity of hurricane impacts from extreme wind, rain, storm surge, and flooding presents a major challenge in hurricane forecasting. A detailed comparison of the storm impacts from Harvey, Irma, and Maria will be presented using observations and state-of-the-art new generation coupled atmosphere-wave-ocean hurricane forecast model. The author will also provide an overview on what we can expect in terms of advancement in science and technology that can help improve hurricane impact forecast in the near future.

The demise of a major Acropora palmata bank-barrier reef off the southeast coast of Barbados, West Indies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacIntyre, I. G.; Glynn, P. W.; Toscano, M. A.

2007-12-01

Formerly attributed to human activity, the demise of a bank-barrier reef off southeastern Barbados known as Cobbler’s Reef is now thought to be largely the result of late Holocene, millennial-scale storm damage. Eleven surface samples of the reef crest coral Acropora palmata from nine sites along its 15-km length plot above the western Atlantic sea-level curve from 3,000 to 4,500 cal years ago (calibrated, calendar 14C years). These elevated clusters suggest that the reef complex suffered extensive storm damage during this period. The constant heavy wave action typical of this area and consequent low herbivory maintain conditions favoring algal growth, thereby limiting the reestablishment of post-storm reef framework. Site descriptions and detailed line surveys show a surface now composed mainly of reworked fragments of A. palmata covered with algal turf, macroalgae and crustose coralline algae. The reef contains no live A. palmata and only a few scattered coral colonies consisting primarily of Diploria spp . and Porites astreoides, along with the hydrocoral Millepora complanata. A few in situ framework dates plot at expected depths for normal coral growth below the sea-level curve during and after the period of intense storm activity. The most recent of these in situ samples are 320 and 400 cal years old. Corals of this late period likely succumbed to high turbidity associated with land clearance for sugarcane agriculture in the mid-1600s.

Increased wind risk from sting-jet windstorms with climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martínez-Alvarado, Oscar; Gray, Suzanne L.; Hart, Neil C. G.; Clark, Peter A.; Hodges, Kevin; Roberts, Malcolm J.

2018-04-01

Extra-tropical cyclones dominate autumn and winter weather over western Europe. The strongest cyclones, often termed windstorms, have a large socio-economic impact on landfall due to strong surface winds and coastal storm surges. Climate model integrations have predicted a future increase in the frequency of, and potential damage from, European windstorms and yet these integrations cannot properly represent localised jets, such as sting jets, that may significantly enhance damage. Here we present the first prediction of how the climatology of sting-jet-containing cyclones will change in a future warmer climate, considering the North Atlantic and Europe. A proven sting-jet precursor diagnostic is applied to 13 year present-day and future (~2100) climate integrations from the Met Office Unified Model in its Global Atmosphere 3.0 configuration. The present-day climate results are consistent with previously-published results from a reanalysis dataset (with around 32% of cyclones exhibiting the sing-jet precursor), lending credibility to the analysis of the future-climate integration. The proportion of cyclones exhibiting the sting-jet precursor in the future-climate integration increases to 45%. Furthermore, while the proportion of explosively-deepening storms increases only slightly in the future climate, the proportion of those storms with the sting-jet precursor increases by 60%. The European resolved-wind risk associated with explosively-deepening storms containing a sting-jet precursor increases substantially in the future climate; in reality this wind risk is likely to be further enhanced by the release of localised moist instability, unresolved by typical climate models.

The 2012 derecho: emergency medical services and hospital response.

PubMed

Kearns, Randy D; Wigal, Mark S; Fernandez, Antonio; Tucker, March A; Zuidgeest, Ginger R; Mills, Michael R; Cairns, Bruce A; Cairns, Charles B

2014-10-01

During the early afternoon of June 29, 2012, a line of destructive thunderstorms producing straight line winds known as a derecho developed near Chicago (Illinois, USA). The storm moved southeast with wind speeds recorded from 100 to 160 kilometers per hour (kph, 60 to 100 miles per hour [mph]). The storm swept across much of West Virginia (USA) later that evening. Power outage was substantial as an estimated 1,300,000 West Virginians (more than half) were without power in the aftermath of the storm and approximately 600,000 citizens were still without power a week later. This was one of the worst storms to strike this area and occurred as residents were enduring a prolonged heat wave. The wind damage left much of the community without electricity and the crippling effect compromised or destroyed critical infrastructure including communications, air conditioning, refrigeration, and water and sewer pumps. This report describes utilization of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and hospital resources in West Virginia in response to the storm. Also reported is a review of the weather phenomena and the findings and discussion of the disaster and implications.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Woodroffe, Jesse; Jordanova, Vania; Toth, Gabor

Extreme weather happens worldwide and it takes place in the magnetosphere. The magnetosphere is the place where the majority of earth’s satellites reside. These satellites provide weather forecasting and serve as national defense. When solar storms take place, they can damage satellites.

33 CFR 203.42 - Inspection of non-Federal flood control works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... PROCEDURES Rehabilitation Assistance for Flood Control Works Damaged by Flood or Coastal Storm: The Corps... standards and is capable of providing the intended degree of flood protection. An Acceptable or Minimally...

Coastal hazards and groundwater salinization on low coral islands.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Terry, James P.; Chui, T. F. May

2016-04-01

Remote oceanic communities living on low-lying coral islands (atolls) without surface water rely for their survival on the continuing viability of fragile groundwater resources. These exist in the form of fresh groundwater lenses (FGLs) that develop naturally within the porous coral sand and gravel substrate. Coastal hazards such as inundation by high-energy waves driven by storms and continuing sea-level rise (SLR) are among many possible threats to viable FGL size and quality on atolls. Yet, not much is known about the combined effects of wave washover during powerful storms and SLR on different sizes of coral island, nor conversely how island size influences lens resilience against damage. This study investigates FGL damage by salinization (and resilience) caused by such coastal hazards using a modelling approach. Numerical modelling is carried out to generate steady-state FGL configurations at three chosen island sizes (400, 600 and 800 m widths). Steady-state solutions reveal how FGL dimensions are related in a non-linear manner to coral island size, such that smaller islands develop much more restricted lenses than larger islands. A 40 cm SLR scenario is then imposed. This is followed by transient simulations to examine storm-induced wave washover and subsequent FGL responses to saline damage over a 1 year period. Smaller FGLs display greater potential for disturbance by SLR, while larger and more robust FGLs tend to show more resilience. Further results produce a somewhat counterintuitive finding: in the post-SLR condition, FGL vulnerability to washover salinization may actually be reduced, owing to the thinner layer of unsaturated substrate lying above the water table into which saline water can infiltrate during a storm event. Nonetheless, combined washover and SLR impacts imply overall that advancing groundwater salinization may lead to some coral islands becoming uninhabitable long before they are completely submerged by sea-level rise, thereby calling into question the sustainability of atoll communities that face recurrent coastal hazards.

Floods, landslides and erosion from severe meteorological events in the Benevento Province, southern Italy.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mascellaro, Neri; Guerriero, Luigi; Revellino, Paola; Grelle, Gerardo; Guadagno, Francesco M.

2017-04-01

As effect of the ongoing climate change, heavy meteorological events are increasing in frequency all over the world. The Campania Region in southern Italy is among the areas mostly affected by severe rainstorms and is periodically hit by their effect like floods and landslides. In October 2015, two intense rainfall events hit the central and southern regions of Italy but the most destructive effects occurred in the Benevento province (Campania region). The first storm, a self-healing V-shaped storm, began around at 7 p.m. of 14th October and stopped around at 3:00 a.m. of 15th October and was originated by the development of a cyclogenesis. The rain gages recorded a maximum cumulative value of 415.6 mm of rain in Paupisi (BN) and a strong increase in temperature; the maxima for the Benevento province was 24°C. The second storm began around at 12 a.m. of 19th October and stopped around at 7 p.m. of 20th October with a maximum cumulative value of 146.8 mm of rain in Colle Sannita(BN). These storms triggered a set of different effects that devastated more than 60 municipalities of the Sannio Province and were responsible for two casualties, €700 million of damage to infrastructures (estimates from Campania region) and about €1 billion damages to agriculture (Italian farmer Confederation). The the Calore river of the Benevento province and some of its tributaries overflowed destroying the surrounding area; major damages were recorded in the industrial area of the Benevento town. In the central and in the eastern sectors of the Benevento Province characterized by the outcropping of flyschoid units, the heavy rain triggered shallow earth flows, debris flows induced by rilling and soil slides. Debris avalanches and runoff-initiated debris flows reshaped the creeks of the Taburno-Camposauro massif and damaged a lot of infrastructure of the surrounding area. Flood events from the Calore river in the Benevento district have significant historical precedents. The most important events recorded in the past are: 1) the flood of the 2nd of October, 1949, that caused 20 fatalities, and 2) the flooding of May 1729. As first step of our study we reconstructed the spatial pattern and the temporal evolution of the storms affecting the Sannio area using the rainfall data recorded by the meteorological stations distributed across the Benevento Province. Subsequently we mapped all the effects to the landscape caused by the storms as: earth flows, soil slides, flooded area, runoff initiated debris flows and debris avalanches, debris flows initiated by rilling and soil erosion (using mainly Google earth images and field survey). We compered the location of these phenomena with the geological and topographic characteristics to understand likely controls in promote the triggering and the development of this unusual combination of different hazardous effects.

Studying Peculiarities of Ionospheric Response to the 2015 March 17-19 Geomagnetic Storm in East Asia: Observations and Simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romanova, Elena; Zherebtsov, Gelii; Polekh, Nelya; Wang, Xiao; Wang, Guojun; Zolotukhina, Nina; Shi, Jiankui

2016-07-01

We report results of the research into effects of the strong geomagnetic storm in the ionosphere of high, middle, and low latitudes on March 17-19, 2015. The research relies on measurements made at the network of ionospheric stations located near the 120°E meridian. The analysis of experimental data has revealed that at the beginning of the main storm phase the equatorial wall of the main ionospheric trough (MIT) shifted towards geographic latitudes 58-60°N, which caused negative disturbances in subauroral latitudes and positive disturbances in middle latitudes. Further displacement of the MIT equatorial wall towards a geographic latitude of 52° N led to a decrease in the F2-layer critical frequency (foF2) up to 2 MHz in middle latitudes during evening and night hours, and to the appearance of sporadic layers in these latitudes due to energetic particle precipitation. Such phenomena are largely specific to the subauroral ionosphere. During the recovery storm phase on March 18, 2015 during daylight hours, negative disturbances were recorded at all the stations. Since prolonged negative disturbances are usually associated with a reduction in the ratio of concentrations of atomic oxygen and molecular nitrogen [O]/[N2] which is transported by disturbed thermospheric wind from auroral latitudes to middle and low ones, we analyzed measurements of [O]/[N2], made by GUVI (Global Ultraviolet Imager, http://guvi.jhuapl.edu/site/gallery/guvi-galleryl3on2.shtml), during this storm. The storm appeared to be characterized by very low values of [O]/[N2] which were recorded in the longitude sector 60 - 150°E up to 15°N on March 18. The discovered peculiarities of the ionospheric response to the storm were interpreted using a theoretical model of ionosphere-plasmosphere coupling developed at ISTP SB RAS. The simulation showed that the displacement of MIT equatorial wall resulted in foF2 variations similar to those observed during the main storm phase in subauroral and middle latitudes. The prolonged negative disturbances during the recovery storm phase in middle latitudes are attributed to variations in the global wind circulation and to [O]/[N2] reduction; in low latitudes, a prolonged negative disturbance is also conditioned by variations in the global wind circulation and, to a lesser extent, by [O]/[N2] reduction as well as by penetration of electric fields to low latitudes; hence there was no equatorial anomaly on March 18. This is confirmed by total electron content data (http://cdaweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eval2.cgi). The recovery storm phase lasted until mid-March 25. The work is supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR grant No. 16-55-53003_DVEH_a).

Assessing Hurricane Katrina Damage to the Mississippi Gulf Coast Using IKONOS Imagery

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joseph P.; McKellip, Rodney

2007-01-01

Hurricane Katrina hit southwestern Mississippi on August 29, 2005, at 10 a.m. CDT as a category 3 event with storm surges up to approximately 9 m and sustained winds of approximately 120 mph. The hurricane ravaged several coastal towns, destroying or severely damaging hundreds of homes. Hurricand Katrina deposited millions of tons of debris and caused severe damage to coastal forests. In response, several Federal agencies have been using a broad range of remotely sensed data (e.g., IKONOS) to aid damage assessment and disaster recovery efforts. This presentation discusses an effort to use IKONOS data for damage assessment, based on data collected over southwestern coastal Mississippi on September 2, 2005.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

A construction trailer damaged by Hurricane Matthew is seen in front of the Mobile Launcher within the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Siding damage caused by Hurricane Matthew is seen inside a support building in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Ceiling and furniture damage caused by Hurricane Matthew is seen inside a support building in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

Atmospheric chloride: Its implication for foliar uptake and damage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McWilliams, E. L.; Sealy, R. L.

Atmospheric chloride is inversely related to distance from the Texas coast; r2 = 0.86. Levels of atmospheric chloride are higher in the early summer than in the winter because of salt storms. Leaf chloride l'evels of Tillandsia usneoides L. (Spanish moss) reflect the atmospheric chloride levels; r2 = 0.78. The importance of considering the effect of atmospheric chloride on leaf damage to horticultural crops is discussed.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Beach erosion caused by Hurricane Matthew is visible along the Atlantic shoreline at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Although some sections of shoreline suffered erosion, recently restored portions of beach fared well. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion.

Severe Storm Identification with Satellite Microwave Radiometry: An Initial Investigation with Nimbus-7 SMMR Data.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spencer, Roy W.; Howland, Michael R.; Santek, David A.

1987-06-01

In an attempt to determine the feasibility of detecting and monitoring severe weather with future satellite passive microwave observations, the severe weather characteristics of convective storms as observed by the Nimbus 7 Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) are investigated. Low 37 GHz brightness temperatures (due to scattering of upwelling radiation by precipitation size ice) were related to the occurrence of severe weather (large hail, strong winds or wind damage, tornados and funnel clouds) within one hour of the satellite observation time. During 1979 and 1980 over the study area within the United States, there were 263 storms that had cold 37 GHz signatures. Of these storms, 15 percent were reported as severe. The relative number of storms falling in hail, wind, or tornadic categories did not differ from those expected climatologically. Critical Success Indices (CSIs) of 0.32, 0.48 and 0.38 were achieved for the low brightness temperature thresholding of severe versus nonsevere storms during 1979, 1980 and the two years combined, respectively. The preliminary indication is that a future geostationary passive microwave imaging capability at 37 GHz (or possibly higher frequencies), with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution, would facilitate the detection and monitoring of severe convective storms. This capability would provide a useful complement to radar, especially over most of the globe which is not covered by radar.

StenniSphere reopens after Hurricane Katrina

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-01-18

StenniSphere reopened Jan. 18, 2006, almost five months after Hurricane Katrina damaged the basement of the building that houses the visitor center. Thanks to the staff's careful preparations before the storm, no artifacts or exhibits were harmed.

StenniSphere reopens after Hurricane Katrina

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

StenniSphere reopened Jan. 18, 2006, almost five months after Hurricane Katrina damaged the basement of the building that houses the visitor center. Thanks to the staff's careful preparations before the storm, no artifacts or exhibits were harmed.

Summary of Natural Hazard Statistics for 2017 in the United States

MedlinePlus

... Damage Costs Weather Event Convection Lightning Tornado Thunderstorm Wind Hail Extreme Temperatures Cold Heat Flood Flash Flood ... Drought Dust Storm Dust Devil Rain Fog High Wind Waterspout Fire Weather Mud Slide Volcanic Ash Miscellaneous ...

99. VIEW OF NORTHWEST SIDE OF PIER, LOOKING EAST FROM ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

99. VIEW OF NORTHWEST SIDE OF PIER, LOOKING EAST FROM STORM-DAMAGED END. 3RD TEE BUILDINGS IN BACKGROUND - Huntington Beach Municipal Pier, Pacific Coast Highway at Main Street, Huntington Beach, Orange County, CA

Summary of Natural Hazard Statistics for 2015 in the United States

MedlinePlus

... Damage Costs Weather Event Convection Lightning Tornado Thunderstorm Wind Hail Extreme Temperatures Cold Heat Flood Flash Flood ... Drought Dust Storm Dust Devil Rain Fog High Wind Waterspout Fire Weather Mud Slide Volcanic Ash Miscellaneous ...

Debris-flow and flooding hazards associated with the December 1999 storm in coastal Venezuela and strategies for mitigation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wieczorek, G.F.; Larsen, M.C.; Eaton, L.S.; Morgan, B.A.; Blair, J.L.

2001-01-01

Heavy rainfall from the storm of December 14-16, 1999 triggered thousands of landslides on steep slopes of the Sierra de Avila north of Caracas, Venezuela. In addition to landslides, heavy rainfall caused flooding and massive debris flows that damaged coastal communities in the State of Vargas along the Caribbean Sea. Examination of the rainfall pattern obtained from the GOES-8 satellite showed that the pattern of damage was generally consistent with the area of heaviest rainfall. Field observations of the severely affected drainage basins and historical records indicate that previous flooding and massive debris-flow events of similar magnitude to that of December 1999 have occurred throughout this region. The volume of debris-flow deposits and the large boulders that the flows transported qualifies the 1999 event amongst the largest historical rainfall-induced debris flows documented worldwide.

Towards Direct Simulation of Future Tropical Cyclone Statistics in a High-Resolution Global Atmospheric Model

DOE PAGES

Wehner, Michael F.; Bala, G.; Duffy, Phillip; ...

2010-01-01

We present a set of high-resolution global atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) simulations focusing on the model's ability to represent tropical storms and their statistics. We find that the model produces storms of hurricane strength with realistic dynamical features. We also find that tropical storm statistics are reasonable, both globally and in the north Atlantic, when compared to recent observations. The sensitivity of simulated tropical storm statistics to increases in sea surface temperature (SST) is also investigated, revealing that a credible late 21st century SST increase produced increases in simulated tropical storm numbers and intensities in all ocean basins. Whilemore » this paper supports previous high-resolution model and theoretical findings that the frequency of very intense storms will increase in a warmer climate, it differs notably from previous medium and high-resolution model studies that show a global reduction in total tropical storm frequency. However, we are quick to point out that this particular model finding remains speculative due to a lack of radiative forcing changes in our time-slice experiments as well as a focus on the Northern hemisphere tropical storm seasons.« less

A numerical study of vegetation impact on reducing storm surge by wetlands in a semi-enclosed estuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kelin, Hu; Qin, Chen; Wang, Hongqing

2014-01-01

Coastal wetlands play a unique role in extreme hurricane events. The impact of wetlands on storm surge depends on multiple factors including vegetation, landscape, and storm characteristics. The Delft3D model, in which vegetation effects on flow and turbulence are explicitly incorporated, was applied to the semi-enclosed Breton Sound (BS) estuary in coastal Louisiana to investigate the wetland impact. Guided by extensive field observations, a series of numerical experiments were conducted based on variations of actual vegetation properties and storm parameters from Hurricane Isaac in 2012. Both the vegetation-induced maximum surge reduction (MSR) and maximum surge reduction rate (MSRR) increased with stem height and stem density, and were more sensitive to stem height. The MSR and MSRR decreased significantly with increasing wind intensity. The MSRR was the highest with a fast-moving weak storm. It was also found that the MSRR varied proportionally to the expression involving the maximum bulk velocity and surge over the area of interest, and was more dependent on the maximum bulk surge. Both MSR and MSRR appeared to increase when the area of interest decreased from the whole BS estuary to the upper estuary. Within the range of the numerical experiments, the maximum simulated MSR and MSRR over the upper estuary were 0.7 m and 37%, respectively.

Assessing the Robustness of Green Infrastructure under Stochastic Design Storms and Climate Change Scenarios

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chui, T. F. M.; Yang, Y.

2017-12-01

Green infrastructures (GI) have been widely used to mitigate flood risk, improve surface water quality, and to restore predevelopment hydrologic regimes. Commonly-used GI include, bioretention system, porous pavement and green roof, etc. They are normally sized to fulfil different design criteria (e.g. providing certain storage depths, limiting peak surface flow rates) that are formulated for current climate conditions. While GI commonly have long lifespan, the sensitivity of their performance to climate change is however unclear. This study first proposes a method to formulate suitable design criteria to meet different management interests (e.g. different levels of first flush reduction and peak flow reduction). Then typical designs of GI are proposed. In addition, a high resolution stochastic design storm generator using copulas and random cascade model is developed, which is calibrated using recorded rainfall time series. Then, few climate change scenarios are generated by varying the duration and depth of design storms, and changing the parameters of the calibrated storm generator. Finally, the performance of GI with typical designs under the random synthesized design storms are then assessed using numerical modeling. The robustness of the designs is obtained by the comparing their performance in the future scenarios to the current one. This study overall examines the robustness of the current GI design criteria under uncertain future climate conditions, demonstrating whether current GI design criteria should be modified to account for climate change.

USGS Multi-Hazards Winter Storm Scenario

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cox, D. A.; Jones, L. M.; Perry, S. C.

2008-12-01

The USGS began an inter-disciplinary effort, the Multi Hazards Demonstration Project (MHDP), in 2007 to demonstrate how hazards science can improve a community's resiliency to natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, landslides, floods and coastal erosion. The project engages the user community in setting research goals and directs efforts towards research products that can be applied to loss reduction and improved resiliency. The first public product of the MHDP was the ShakeOut Earthquake Scenario published in May 2008. It detailed the realistic outcomes of a hypothetical, but plausible, magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the San Andreas Fault in southern California. Over 300 scientist and experts contributed to designing the earthquake and understanding the impacts of such a disaster, including the geotechnical, engineering, social, cultural, environmental, and economic consequences. The scenario advanced scientific understanding and exposed numerous vulnerabilities related to emergency response and lifeline continuity management. The ShakeOut Scenario was the centerpiece of the Nation's largest-ever emergency response exercise in November 2008, dubbed "The Great Southern California ShakeOut" (www.shakeout.org). USGS Multi-Hazards is now preparing for its next major public project, a Winter Storm Scenario. Like the earthquake scenario, experts will be brought together to examine in detail the possibility, cost and consequences of a winter storm disaster including floods, landslides, coastal erosion and inundation; debris flows; biologic consequences like extirpation of endangered species; physical damages like bridge scour, road closures, dam failure, property loss, and water system collapse. Consideration will be given to the vulnerabilities associated with a catastrophic disruption to the water supply to southern California; the resulting impacts on ground water pumping, seawater intrusion, water supply degradation, and land subsidence; and a detailed examination on climatic change forces that could exacerbate the problems. Similar to the ShakeOut Scenario, the Winter Storm Scenario is designing a large but scientifically plausible physical event followed by an expert analysis of the secondary hazards, and the physical, social, and economic consequences. Unlike the earthquake scenario, the winter storm event may occur over days, weeks, and possibly months, and the stakeholder community is broadening to include resource managers as well as local governments and the emergency and lifeline management communities. Developing plans for this Scenario will be presented at this session, and feedback will be welcomed.

Defining Coastal Storm and Quantifying Storms Applying Coastal Storm Impulse Parameter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmoudpour, Nader

2014-05-01

What defines a storm condition and what would initiate a "storm" has not been uniquely defined among scientists and engineers. Parameters that have been used to define a storm condition can be mentioned as wind speed, beach erosion and storm hydrodynamics parameters such as wave height and water levels. Some of the parameters are storm consequential such as beach erosion and some are not directly related to the storm hydrodynamics such as wind speed. For the purpose of the presentation, the different storm conditions based on wave height, water levels, wind speed and beach erosion will be discussed and assessed. However, it sounds more scientifically to have the storm definition based on the hydrodynamic parameters such as wave height, water level and storm duration. Once the storm condition is defined and storm has initiated, the severity of the storm would be a question to forecast and evaluate the hazard and analyze the risk in order to determine the appropriate responses. The correlation of storm damages to the meteorological and hydrodynamics parameters can be defined as a storm scale, storm index or storm parameter and it is needed to simplify the complexity of variation involved developing the scale for risk analysis and response management. A newly introduced Coastal Storm Impulse (COSI) parameter quantifies storms into one number for a specific location and storm event. The COSI parameter is based on the conservation of linear, horizontal momentum to combine storm surge, wave dynamics, and currents over the storm duration. The COSI parameter applies the principle of conservation of momentum to physically combine the hydrodynamic variables per unit width of shoreline. This total momentum is then integrated over the duration of the storm to determine the storm's impulse to the coast. The COSI parameter employs the mean, time-averaged nonlinear (Fourier) wave momentum flux, over the wave period added to the horizontal storm surge momentum above the Mean High Water (MHW) integrated over the storm duration. The COSI parameter methodology has been applied to a 10-year data set from 1994 to 2003 at US Army Corps of Engineers, Field Research Facility (FRF) located on the Atlantic Ocean in Duck, North Carolina. The storm duration was taken as the length of time (hours) that the spectral significant wave heights were equal or greater than 1.6 meters for at least a 12 hour, continuous period. Wave heights were measured in 8 meters water depth and water levels measured at the NOAA/NOS tide gauge at the end of the FRF pier. The 10-year data set were analyzed applying the aforementioned storm criteria and produced 148 coastal events including Hurricanes and Northeasters. The results of this analysis and application of the COSI parameter to determine "Extra Ordinary" storms in Federal Projects for the Gulf of Mexico, 2012 hurricane season will be discussed at the time of presentation.

Dissolved Organic Matter Compositional Change and Biolability During Two Storm Runoff Events in a Small Agricultural Watershed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eckard, Robert S.; Pellerin, Brian A.; Bergamaschi, Brian A.; Bachand, Philip A. M.; Bachand, Sandra M.; Spencer, Robert G. M.; Hernes, Peter J.

2017-10-01

Agricultural watersheds are globally pervasive, supporting fundamentally different organic matter source, composition, and concentration profiles in comparison to natural systems. Similar to natural systems, agricultural storm runoff exports large amounts of organic carbon from agricultural land into waterways. But intense management of upper soil layers, waterway channelization, wetland and riparian habitat removal, and postharvest vegetation removal promise to uniquely drive organic matter release to waterways. During a winter first flush and a subsequent storm event, this study investigated the influence of a small agricultural watershed on dissolved organic matter (DOM) source, composition, and biolability. Storm water discharge released strongly terrestrial yet biolabile (23 to 32%) dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Following a 21 day bioassay, a parallel factor analysis identified an 80% reduction in a protein-like (phenylpropyl) component (C2) that was previously correlated to lignin phenol concentration, and a 10% reduction in a humic-like, terrestrially sourced component (C4). Storm-driven releases tripled DOC concentration (from 2.8 to 8.7 mg L-1) during the first flush event in comparison to base flow and were terrestrially sourced, with an eightfold increase in vascular plant derived lignin phenols (23.0 to 185 μg L-1). As inferred from system hydrology, lignin composition, and nitrate as a groundwater tracer, an initial pulse of dilute water from the upstream watershed caused a counterclockwise DOC hysteresis loop. DOC concentrations peaked after 3.5 days, with the delay between peak discharge and peak DOC attributed to storm water hydrology and a period of initial water repellency of agricultural soils, which delayed DOM leaching.

Adverse Respiratory Symptoms and Environmental Exposures Among Children and Adolescents Following Hurricane Katrina

PubMed Central

Rath, Barbara; Young, Elizabeth A.; Harris, Amy; Perrin, Keith; Bronfin, Daniel R.; Ratard, Raoult; VanDyke, Russell; Goldshore, Matthew; Magnus, Manya

2011-01-01

Objectives Children and adolescents are especially vulnerable to environmental exposures and their respiratory effects. Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, residents experienced multiple adverse environmental exposures. We characterized the association between upper respiratory symptoms (URS) and lower respiratory symptoms (LRS) and environmental exposures among children and adolescents affected by Hurricane Katrina. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study following the return of the population to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina (October 2005 and February 2006) among a convenience sample of children and adolescents attending New Orleans health facilities. We used uni-, bi-, and multivariable analyses to describe participants, exposures, and associations with URS/LRS. Results Of 1,243 participants, 47% were Caucasian, 50% were male, and 72% were younger than 11 years of age. Multiple environmental exposures were identified during and after the storm and at current residences: roof/glass/storm damage (50%), outside mold (22%), dust (18%), and flood damage (15%). Self-reported URS and LRS (76% and 36%, respectively) were higher after the hurricane than before the hurricane (22% and 9%, respectively, p<0.0001). Roof/glass/storm damage at home was associated with URS (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.59, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15, 2.21) and LRS (AOR=1.35, 95% CI 1.01, 1.80), while mold growth at home was associated with LRS (AOR=1.47, 95% CI 1.02, 2.12). Conclusions Children and adolescents affected by Hurricane Katrina experienced environmental exposures associated with increased prevalence of reported URS and LRS. Additional research is needed to investigate the long-term health impacts of Hurricane Katrina. PMID:22043101

Adverse respiratory symptoms and environmental exposures among children and adolescents following Hurricane Katrina.

PubMed

Rath, Barbara; Young, Elizabeth A; Harris, Amy; Perrin, Keith; Bronfin, Daniel R; Ratard, Raoult; Vandyke, Russell; Goldshore, Matthew; Magnus, Manya

2011-01-01

Children and adolescents are especially vulnerable to environmental exposures and their respiratory effects. Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, residents experienced multiple adverse environmental exposures. We characterized the association between upper respiratory symptoms (URS) and lower respiratory symptoms (LRS) and environmental exposures among children and adolescents affected by Hurricane Katrina. We conducted a cross-sectional study following the return of the population to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina (October 2005 and February 2006) among a convenience sample of children and adolescents attending New Orleans health facilities. We used uni-, bi-, and multivariable analyses to describe participants, exposures, and associations with URS/LRS. Of 1,243 participants, 47% were Caucasian, 50% were male, and 72% were younger than 11 years of age. Multiple environmental exposures were identified during and after the storm and at current residences: roof/glass/storm damage (50%), outside mold (22%), dust (18%), and flood damage (15%). Self-reported URS and LRS (76% and 36%, respectively) were higher after the hurricane than before the hurricane (22% and 9%, respectively, p<0.0001). Roof/glass/storm damage at home was associated with URS (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.59, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15, 2.21) and LRS (AOR=1.35, 95% CI 1.01, 1.80), while mold growth at home was associated with LRS (AOR=1.47, 95% CI 1.02, 2.12). Children and adolescents affected by Hurricane Katrina experienced environmental exposures associated with increased prevalence of reported URS and LRS. Additional research is needed to investigate the long-term health impacts of Hurricane Katrina.

Hurricane Agnes rainfall and floods, June-July 1972

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bailey, James F.; Patterson, James Lee; Paulhus, Joseph Louis Hornore

1975-01-01

Hurricane Agnes originated in the Caribbean Sea region in mid-June. Circulation barely reached hurricane intensity for a brief period in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm crossed the Florida Panhandle coastline on June 19, 1972, and followed an unusually extended overland trajectory combining with an extratropical system to bring very heavy rain from the Carolinas northward to New York. This torrential rain followed the abnormally wet May weather in the Middle Atlantic States and set the stage for the subsequent major flooding. The record-breaking floods occurred in the Middle Atlantic States in late June and early July 1972. Many streams in the affected area experienced peak discharges several times the previous maxima of record. Estimated recurrence intervals of peak flows at many gaging stations on major rivers and their tributaries exceeded 100 years. The suspended-sediment concentration and load of most flooded streams were also unusually high. The widespread flooding from this storm caused Agnes to be called the most destructive hurricane in United States history, claiming 117 lives and causing damage estimated at $3.1 billion in 12 States. Damage was particularly high in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. The detailed life history of Hurricane Agnes, including the tropical depression and tropical storm stages, is traced. Associated rainfalls are analyzed and compared with climatologic recurrence values. These are followed by a detailed description of the flood and streamflows of each affected basin. A summary of peak stages and discharges and comparison data for previous floods at 989 stations are presented. Deaths and flood damage estimates are compiled.

Unusual twig "twistiness" in pawpaw (Asimina triloba) provides biomechanical protection for distal foliage in high winds.

PubMed

Goodrich, Katherine R; Ortiz, Luis A; Coughlin, David J

2016-11-01

Deciduous woody species invest considerable resources in the growth of new foliage and distal stems. This new growth is at risk for mechanical damage from high winds and storms. Pawpaw has large leaves borne distally on thin twigs. Following a storm, pawpaw branches sometimes exhibit a persistent "flipped" orientation, slowly returning upright over 24 h. We investigated biomechanical properties of pawpaw twigs, comparing them to co-occurring species with similarly high leaf areas and loads, which do not exhibit this "flipping". Our goal was to determine biomechanical and structural properties in these species and how variation in form might relate to functional differences. We measured flexural stiffness, torsional stiffness, and viscoelastic creep in pawpaw and co-occurring trees Liriodendron tulipifera and Carya cordiformis. We also recorded twig/foliage reconfiguration in high winds. We stained thin cross sections of distal twigs and recorded images using fluorescent light microscopy. Flexural and torsional stiffness increased with twig radius in pawpaw and tulip tree, although torsional stiffness increased more slowly in pawpaw. Pawpaw had a high ratio of flexural to torsional stiffness (EI/GJ) across a range of twig radii and significant viscoelastic creep compared with the other species. Biomechanical data showed that pawpaw twigs were "twistier" than the comparison species, which were shown previously to alleviate drag-induced damage by reorienting petioles and leaves. Pawpaw has an unusual strategy of low torsional stiffness in twigs, allowing for reorientation of the entire distal appendage, likely minimizing drag-induced damage in storms. © 2016 Botanical Society of America.

Heavy winter precipitation in southwest Arizona

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guttman, Nathaniel B.; Lee, Jung Jin; Wallis, James R.

During December 1992, according to the Weekly Climate Bulletin of the Climate Analysis Center in Washington, D.C., heavy precipitation inundated parts of Arizona causing more than 400% of normal precipitation to fall in the southwestern part of the state. Heavy precipitation continued to fall during the next 2 months, causing extensive flooding along the Gila River.Phoenix Weather Service Forecast Office monthly storm data reports indicated flooding along the Santa Cruz and San Pedro Rivers on December 29. From January 7 to 20, roads, bridges, homes, businesses, and farmland suffered considerable flood damage from Graham County westward to Yuma County as rivers and streams swelled. Several thousand people were isolated in their homes as flood waters cut off roads. The January storm data report shows that the combination of a northward-displaced subtropical jet stream, with its abundant moisture supply and associated low pressure disturbances and a southward-displaced polar jet stream, with its storm track, led to the abnormally wet period from late December to mid-January. In February, severe flooding was reported in several areas as water rose in the Painted Rock Reservoir; water accumulating behind the dam produced the largest lake in the state. After exceeding the 2.5 million acre-feet capacity of the reservoir, water began spilling over the dam and damaging homes, crops, farmland, roads, and bridges. About 3,500 residents were evacuated, and the National Guard responded to the flooding with various relief efforts including helicopter support operations. The U.S. and Arizona Departments of Agriculture reported flood damage in excess of $50 million.

The major hurricanes of 2005: A few facts: Chapter 2B in Science and the storms-the USGS response to the hurricanes of 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Farris, Gaye S.

2007-01-01

The following is a compilation of storm terminology, categories, and names as well as the meteorological history, damage, and paths of Hurricanes Dennis, Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. This information is taken, except where noted, from the Web site and archives of the National Hurricane Center (NHC), a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service (NWS). Greater details are available at www.nhc.noaa.gov. These facts are presented here to provide the reader background for the articles in this volume describing the storm science of the U.S. Geological Survey, which works with the NWS during hurricanes by providing real-time river stage data used by NWS to forecast river floods.

Dust storm off Western Africa

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

The impacts of Saharan dust storms reach far beyond Africa. Wind-swept deserts spill airborne dust particles out over the Atlantic Ocean where they can enter trade winds bound for Central and North America and the Caribbean. This Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image shows a dust storm casting an opaque cloud of cloud across the Canary Islands and the Atlantic Ocean west of Africa on June 30, 2002. In general it takes between 5 and 7 days for such an event to cross the Atlantic. The dust has been shown to introduce foreign bacteria and fungi that have damaged reef ecosystems and have even been hypothesized as a cause of increasing occurrences of respiratory complaints in places like Florida, where the amount of Saharan dust reaching the state has been increasing over the past 25 years.

Strides made in understanding space weather at Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buonsanto, M. J.; Fuller-Rowell, T. J.

Disturbances on the Sun can produce dramatic effects in the space environment surrounding the Earth. Energetic particle effects become more intense and pose a hazard to astronauts and damage spacecraft electronics; satellite lifetimes are shortened by increased atmospheric drag, and communications and navigation are disrupted by the changing plasma environment.“Space weather” has become the modern idiom for these effects, and periods of high activity are called geomagnetic storms. During a storm the ionosphere can be severely altered. A typical episode may reveal either a large decrease (negative phase) or increase (positive phase) in the normal daily peak ion density (NmF2) or total electron content (TEC). These changes in ion density are sometimes called ionospheric storms, and often persist for more than a day after a period of high geomagnetic activity.

Black Swan Tropical Cyclones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Emanuel, K.; Lin, N.

2012-12-01

Virtually all assessments of tropical cyclone risk are based on historical records, which are limited to a few hundred years at most. Yet stronger TCs may occur in the future and at places that have not been affected historically. Such events lie outside the realm of historically based expectations and may have extreme impacts. Their occurrences are also often made explainable after the fact (e.g., Hurricane Katrina). We nickname such potential future TCs, characterized by rarity, extreme impact, and retrospective predictability, "black swans" (Nassim Nicholas Taleb, 2007). As, by definition, black swan TCs have yet to happen, statistical methods that solely rely on historical track data cannot predict their occurrence. Global climate models lack the capability to predict intense storms, even with a resolution as high as 14 km (Emanuel et al. 2010). Also, most dynamic downscaling methods (e.g., Bender et al. 2010) are still limited in horizontal resolution and are too expensive to implement to generate enough events to include rare ones. In this study, we apply a simpler statistical/deterministic hurricane model (Emanuel et al. 2006) to simulate large numbers of synthetic storms under a given (observed or projected) climate condition. The method has been shown to generate realistic extremes in various basins (Emanuel et al. 2008 and 2010). We also apply a hydrodynamic model (ADCIRC; Luettich et al. 1992) to simulate the storm surges generated by these storms. We then search for black swan TCs, in terms of the joint wind and surge damage potential, in the generated large databases. Heavy rainfall is another important TC hazard and will be considered in a future study. We focus on three areas: Tampa Bay in the U.S., the Persian Gulf, and Darwin in Australia. Tampa Bay is highly vulnerable to storm surge as it is surrounded by shallow water and low-lying lands, much of which may be inundated by a storm tide of 6 m. High surges are generated by storms with a broad spectrum of characteristics in our synthetic database, although no large surge has been recorded historically as only one moderate storm passed by the area. Tampa black swans are identified as those that move northward parallel to the west Florida coast with high intensities and resonant with the Florida-shelf edge waves to generate extreme surges up to 10 m in Tampa Bay. The Arabian Sea area has sea surface temperatures warm enough to support the development of severe TCs, but TC development has been limited by low humidity and high wind shear, and only one recorded TC (super cyclonic storm Gonu in 2007) moved close to the Persian Gulf, making landfall in Oman and Iran. Our analysis shows that black swan TCs can originate within the Persian Gulf and make landfall with high intensities in populous places; extreme surges over 9 m for Abu Dubai and Doha and over 7 m for Dubai are possible. Darwin experienced immense devastation from Cyclone Tracy of 1974, but the damage was mainly due to the strong winds (the surge was only about 1.6 m). Our analysis includes extremely intense black swan TCs that make landfall just south of Darwin, generating surges above 10 m; these results may prompt the city to reconsider its TC risk. We are currently analyzing the join probability of the extreme wind and surge of these black swan TCs to more clearly assess their full damage potentials.

Water in the Balance: A Parking Lot Story

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haas, N. A.; Vitousek, S.

2017-12-01

The greater Chicagoland region has seen a high degree of urbanization since 1970. For example, between 1970-1990 the region experienced 4% population growth, a 35% increase in urban land use, and approximately 454 square miles of agricultural land was mostly converted into urban uses. Transformation of land into urban uses in the Chicagoland region has altered the stream and catchment response to rainfall events, specifically an increase in stream flashiness and increase in urban flooding. Chicago has begun to address these changes through green infrastructure. To understand the impact of green infrastructure at local, city-wide, and watershed scales, individual projects need to be accurately and sufficiently modeled. A traditional parking lot conversion into a porous parking lot at the University of Illinois at Chicago was modeled using SWMM and scrutinized using field data to look at stormwater runoff and water balance prior and post reconstruction. SWMM modeling suggested an 87% reduction in peak flow as well as a 100% reduction in flooding for a 24 hour, 1.72-inch storm. For the same storm, field data suggest an 89% reduction in peak flow as well as a 100% reduction in flooding. Modeling suggested 100% reductions in flooding for longer duration storms (24 hour+) and a smaller reduction in peak flow ( 66%). The highly parameterized SWMM model agrees well with collected data and analysis. Further effort is being made to use data mining to create correlations within the collected datasets that can be integrated into a model that follows a standardized formation process and reduces parameterization.

Seasonal Variations in Survival of Indicator Bacteria in Soil and Their Contribution to Storm-water Pollution

PubMed Central

Van Donsel, Dale J.; Geldreich, Edwin E.; Clarke, Norman A.

1967-01-01

Survival of a fecal coliform (Escherichia coli) and a fecal streptococcus (Streptococcus faecalis var. liquifaciens) was studied through several years at shaded and exposed outdoor soil plots. Death rates for both organisms were calculated for the different seasons at both sites. The 90% reduction times for the fecal coliform ranged from 3.3 days in summer to 13.4 days in autumn. For the fecal streptococcus, 90% reduction times were from 2.7 days in summer to 20.1 days in winter. During summer, the fecal coliform survived slightly longer than the fecal streptococcus; during autumn, survival was the same; and in spring and winter the fecal streptococcus survived much longer than the fecal coliform. Both organisms were isolated from storm-water runoff collected below a sampling site when counts were sufficiently high in soil. Isolation was more frequent during prolonged rains, lasting up to 10 days, than during short rain storms. There was evidence of aftergrowth of nonfecal coliforms in the soil as a result of temperature and rainfall variations. Such aftergrowth may contribute to variations in bacterial count of storm-water runoff which have no relation to the sanitary history of the drainage area. PMID:16349746

Storm surge evolution and its relationship to climate oscillations at Duck, NC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munroe, Robert; Curtis, Scott

2017-07-01

Coastal communities experience increased vulnerability during storm surge events through the risk of damage to coastal infrastructure, erosion/deposition, and the endangerment of human life. Policy and planning measures attempt to avoid or mitigate storm surge consequences through building codes and setbacks, beach stabilization, insurance rates, and coastal zoning. The coastal emergency management community and public react and respond on shorter time scales, through temporary protection, emergency stockpiling, and evacuation. This study utilizes time series analysis, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) test, Pearson's correlation, and the generalized extreme value (GEV) theorem to make the connection between climate oscillation indices and storm surge characteristics intra-seasonally to inter-annually. Results indicate that an El Niño (+ENSO), negative phase of the NAO, and positive phase of the PNA pattern all support longer duration and hence more powerful surge events, especially in winter. Increased surge duration increases the likelihood of extensive erosion, inland inundation, among other undesirable effects of the surge hazard.

Hindcast experiments of the derecho in Estonia on 08 August, 2010: Modelling derecho with NWP model HARMONIE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toll, Velle; Männik, Aarne; Luhamaa, Andres; Rõõm, Rein

2015-05-01

On August 8, 2010, a derecho swept over Northern Europe, causing widespread wind damage and more than 2 million Euros in economic loss in Estonia during its most destructive stage. This paper presents a modelling study of the derecho-producing storm utilising the Hirlam Aladin Research for Mesoscale Operational Numerical Weather Prediction in Europe (HARMONIE) model. The model setup is chosen to mimic near-future, nearly kilometre-scale, operational environments in European national weather services. The model simulations are compared to remote sensing and in situ observations. The HARMONIE model is capable of reproducing the wind gust severity and precipitation intensity. Moreover, 2.5-km grid spacing is shown to be sufficient for producing a reliable signal of the severe convective storm. Storm dynamics are well simulated, including the rear inflow jet. Although the model performance is promising, a strong dependence on the initial data, a weak trailing stratiform precipitation region and an incorrect timing of the storm are identified.

Overview and first results of the Wind and Storms Experiment (WASTEX): a field campaign to observe the formation of gusts using a Doppler lidar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pantillon, Florian; Wieser, Andreas; Adler, Bianca; Corsmeier, Ulrich; Knippertz, Peter

2018-05-01

Wind gusts are responsible for most damages in winter storms over central Europe, but capturing their small scale and short duration is a challenge for both models and observations. This motivated the Wind and Storms Experiment (WASTEX) dedicated to investigate the formation of gusts during the passage of extratropical cyclones. The field campaign took place during the winter 2016-2017 on a former waste deposit located close to Karlsruhe in the Upper Rhine Valley in southwest Germany. Twelve extratropical cyclones were sampled during WASTEX with a Doppler lidar system performing vertical scans in the mean wind direction and complemented with a Doppler C-band radar and a 200 m instrumented tower. First results are provided here for the three most intense storms and include a potential sting jet, a unique direct observation of a convective gust and coherent boundary-layer structures of strong winds.

Storms in Ancient Egypt: the Examples of Historical Natural Disasters Impacts on the Society

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petrova, Anastasia

2013-04-01

Though rain storms are infrequent in Egypt, which is normally a rainless country, some Ancient Egyptian texts give accounts of violent storms and rains. Actually, even small amounts of rain in that area could cause huge impact, as none of the water was absorbed by soil, and, running off, it could create dangerous torrents. The Tempest stele, circa 1550 BC, recounts a highly destructive storm happened during the reign of Ahmose I, the king of Egypt's 18 dynasty. The catastrophy is described in details, including the specific noise, overall darkness, torrent so that no torch could be lit. Many houses were washed into the river, temples, tombs and pyramids damaged and collapsed. The stele commemorates the restoration works made by the king who was able to cope with this great disaster and "re-establish the Two Lands". Some egyptologists believe that this event is related to the Minoan eruption of Thera, but this is unlikely given the description in the stele.

Dynamic interactions between coastal storms and salt marshes: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leonardi, Nicoletta; Carnacina, Iacopo; Donatelli, Carmine; Ganju, Neil Kamal; Plater, Andrew James; Schuerch, Mark; Temmerman, Stijn

2018-01-01

This manuscript reviews the progresses made in the understanding of the dynamic interactions between coastal storms and salt marshes, including the dissipation of extreme water levels and wind waves across marsh surfaces, the geomorphic impact of storms on salt marshes, the preservation of hurricanes signals and deposits into the sedimentary records, and the importance of storms for the long term survival of salt marshes to sea level rise. A review of weaknesses, and strengths of coastal defences incorporating the use of salt marshes including natural, and hybrid infrastructures in comparison to standard built solutions is then presented. Salt marshes are effective in dissipating wave energy, and storm surges, especially when the marsh is highly elevated, and continuous. This buffering action reduces for storms lasting more than one day. Storm surge attenuation rates range from 1.7 to 25 cm/km depending on marsh and storms characteristics. In terms of vegetation properties, the more flexible stems tend to flatten during powerful storms, and to dissipate less energy but they are also more resilient to structural damage, and their flattening helps to protect the marsh surface from erosion, while stiff plants tend to break, and could increase the turbulence level and the scour. From a morphological point of view, salt marshes are generally able to withstand violent storms without collapsing, and violent storms are responsible for only a small portion of the long term marsh erosion. Our considerations highlight the necessity to focus on the indirect long term impact that large storms exerts on the whole marsh complex rather than on sole after-storm periods. The morphological consequences of storms, even if not dramatic, might in fact influence the response of the system to normal weather conditions during following inter-storm periods. For instance, storms can cause tidal flats deepening which in turn promotes wave energy propagation, and exerts a long term detrimental effect for marsh boundaries even during calm weather. On the other hand, when a violent storm causes substantial erosion but sediments are redistributed across nearby areas, the long term impact might not be as severe as if sediments were permanently lost from the system, and the salt marsh could easily recover to the initial state.

Dynamic interactions between coastal storms and salt marshes: A review

USGS Publications Warehouse

Leonardi, Nicoletta; Carnacina, Iacopo; Donatelli, Carmine; Ganju, Neil K.; Plater, Andrew James; Schuerch, Mark; Temmerman, Stijn

2018-01-01

This manuscript reviews the progresses made in the understanding of the dynamic interactions between coastal storms and salt marshes, including the dissipation of extreme water levels and wind waves across marsh surfaces, the geomorphic impact of storms on salt marshes, the preservation of hurricanes signals and deposits into the sedimentary records, and the importance of storms for the long term survival of salt marshes to sea level rise. A review of weaknesses, and strengths of coastal defences incorporating the use of salt marshes including natural, and hybrid infrastructures in comparison to standard built solutions is then presented.Salt marshes are effective in dissipating wave energy, and storm surges, especially when the marsh is highly elevated, and continuous. This buffering action reduces for storms lasting more than one day. Storm surge attenuation rates range from 1.7 to 25 cm/km depending on marsh and storms characteristics. In terms of vegetation properties, the more flexible stems tend to flatten during powerful storms, and to dissipate less energy but they are also more resilient to structural damage, and their flattening helps to protect the marsh surface from erosion, while stiff plants tend to break, and could increase the turbulence level and the scour. From a morphological point of view, salt marshes are generally able to withstand violent storms without collapsing, and violent storms are responsible for only a small portion of the long term marsh erosion.Our considerations highlight the necessity to focus on the indirect long term impact that large storms exerts on the whole marsh complex rather than on sole after-storm periods. The morphological consequences of storms, even if not dramatic, might in fact influence the response of the system to normal weather conditions during following inter-storm periods. For instance, storms can cause tidal flats deepening which in turn promotes wave energy propagation, and exerts a long term detrimental effect for marsh boundaries even during calm weather. On the other hand, when a violent storm causes substantial erosion but sediments are redistributed across nearby areas, the long term impact might not be as severe as if sediments were permanently lost from the system, and the salt marsh could easily recover to the initial state.

Why is Habitat Restoration Near the Gulf of Mexico Essential?

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Gulf of Mexico coastal wetlands protect coastal areas from storm damage and sea level rise, support tourism, hunting, and fishing, serve as nesting and foraging habitat for wildlife, improve water quality by removing pollutants, and minimize erosion.

Magnitude-Based Postfire Debris Flow Rainfall Accumulation-Duration Thresholds for Emergency-Response Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cannon, S. H.; Boldt, E. M.; Laber, J. L.; Kean, J. W.; Staley, D. M.

2011-12-01

Following wildfires, emergency-response and public-safety agencies can be faced with evacuation and resource-deployment decisions well in advance of coming winter storms and during storms themselves. Information critical to these decisions is needed for recently burned areas in the San Gabriel Mountains of southern California. A compilation of information on the hydrologic response to winter storms from recently burned areas in southern California steeplands is used to develop a system for classifying magnitudes of hydrologic response in this setting. The four-class system describes combinations of reported volumes of individual debris flows, consequences of debris flows and floods in an urban setting, and spatial extents of the hydrologic response. Magnitude 0 events show a negligible response, while Magnitude I events are characterized by small (<1,000 m3) debris flows or low-discharge floods produced from one or two drainage basins. A few culverts and storm drains may be blocked, a few streets may be partially flooded or blocked by water and debris, and a few buildings near the mountain front may be damaged. Magnitude II events are characterized by two to five moderately-sized (1,000 to 10,000 m3) debris flows or one large (>10,000 m3) event. Several culverts or storm drains may be blocked or fail, several streets may be flooded or completely blocked by water and debris, and buildings, streets, and bridges may be damaged or destroyed. Magnitude III events consist of widespread and abundant debris flows of volumes >10,000 m3 and high discharge flooding causing significant impact to the built environment. Many streets, storm drains, and streets may be completely blocked by debris, making many streets unsafe for travel. Several large buildings, sections of infrastructure corridors and bridges may be damaged or destroyed. The range of rainfall conditions associated with different magnitude classes are defined by correlating local rainfall data with the response magnitude information. Magnitude 0 events can be expected when within-storm rainfall accumulations (A) of given durations (D) fall below the threshold A=0.4D0.5. Magnitude I events can be expected when storm rainfall conditions are above the threshold A=0.4D0.5 and below A=0.5D0.6 for durations greater than 1 hour. Magnitude II events will be generated in response to rainfall accumulations and durations between A=0.4D0.5 and A=0.9D0.5 for durations less than one hour, and between A=0.5D0.6 and A=0.9D0.5 for durations greater than one hour. Magnitude III events can be expected in response to rainfall conditions above the threshold A=0.9D 0.5. Rainfall threshold-magnitude relations are linked with potential emergency-response actions as an emergency-response decision chart, which leads a user through steps to determine potential event magnitudes and identify possible evacuation and resource-deployment levels. Use of this information in the planning and response decision-making process could result in increased safety for both the public and emergency responders.

Atmosphere surface storm track response to resolved ocean mesoscale in two sets of global climate model experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Small, R. Justin; Msadek, Rym; Kwon, Young-Oh; Booth, James F.; Zarzycki, Colin

2018-05-01

It has been hypothesized that the ocean mesoscale (particularly ocean fronts) can affect the strength and location of the overlying extratropical atmospheric storm track. In this paper, we examine whether resolving ocean fronts in global climate models indeed leads to significant improvement in the simulated storm track, defined using low level meridional wind. Two main sets of experiments are used: (i) global climate model Community Earth System Model version 1 with non-eddy-resolving standard resolution or with ocean eddy-resolving resolution, and (ii) the same but with the GFDL Climate Model version 2. In case (i), it is found that higher ocean resolution leads to a reduction of a very warm sea surface temperature (SST) bias at the east coasts of the U.S. and Japan seen in standard resolution models. This in turn leads to a reduction of storm track strength near the coastlines, by up to 20%, and a better location of the storm track maxima, over the western boundary currents as observed. In case (ii), the change in absolute SST bias in these regions is less notable, and there are modest (10% or less) increases in surface storm track, and smaller changes in the free troposphere. In contrast, in the southern Indian Ocean, case (ii) shows most sensitivity to ocean resolution, and this coincides with a larger change in mean SST as ocean resolution is changed. Where the ocean resolution does make a difference, it consistently brings the storm track closer in appearance to that seen in ERA-Interim Reanalysis data. Overall, for the range of ocean model resolutions used here (1° versus 0.1°) we find that the differences in SST gradient have a small effect on the storm track strength whilst changes in absolute SST between experiments can have a larger effect. The latter affects the land-sea contrast, air-sea stability, surface latent heat flux, and the boundary layer baroclinicity in such a way as to reduce storm track activity adjacent to the western boundary in the N. Hemisphere storm tracks, but strengthens the storm track over the southern Indian Ocean. A note of caution is that the results are sensitive to the choice of storm track metric. The results are contrasted with those from a high resolution coupled simulation where the SST is smoothed for the purposes of computing air-sea fluxes, an alternative method of testing sensitivity to SST gradients.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Plant debris caused by Hurricane Matthew is strewn across the dune line along the Atlantic shoreline at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Although some sections of shoreline suffered erosion, recently restored portions of beach fared well. Hurricane Matthew, a Category 3 storm, passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion.

Case study: A severe hailstorm and strong downbursts over northeastern Slovenia on June 16th 2009

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korosec, M.

2009-09-01

Introduction A strong isolated storm complex with bow echo feature crossed northeastern Slovenia in the late afternoon hours and caused extensive damage due to severe wind gusts near 30m/s, excessive rainfalls and large hail. Synoptic situation On June 16th 2009, an upper-level ridge persists over southern Europe while a positively tilted short-wave trough, connected to a complex deep trough over northern Europe, crosses central Europe. Accompanied by this trough, a cold front is extending southwestwards towards the Alps. A relatively strong jet steak wraps around the trough axis and creates strong shear environment which overlaps with a narrow band of unstable airmass present ahead of the coming frontal boundary. Behind this trough/front over central Europe, a high pressure area is developing with stable conditions. Over Slovenia, strong surface heating was on going through the day but lack of near-surface convergence zones, limited moisture and strong capping inversion surpressed any storm initiation in the afternoon. Presentation of research This case study will go through a research of damaging bow echo which caused extensive damage due to severe winds, excessive rainfalls and large hail over much of northeastern Slovenia. Numerous trees were down or uprooted and numerous roofs were blown off or were seriously damaged due to severe wind gusts near or exceeding 30m/s. At first stages, when an isolated severe storm entered Slovenia, it had classic high precipitation supercell features while it transformed into a powerful bow echo later on. Very large hail up to 6cm in diameter was first observed in southeast Austria and near the border with Slovenia, while later on the main threat was very strong wind gusts and intense rainfalls. This research paper will show a detailed analysis of the synoptic situation including analysis of satellite, radar and surface observations. Radar imagery clearly showed isolated storm trailing along the near-surface frontal boundary as a bow echo and also satellite imagery showed signs of extremely severe storm as overshooting tops, "cold ring" and "U-shape" features were observed. References - Skywarn Austria forum: (http://www.skywarn.at/forum/) - EARS radar and SFC observations archive (http://www.arso.gov.si) - EARS article: Porocilo o neurjih 16. junija 2009 - OSMER FVG (http://www.meteo.fvg.it) - ESSL/ESWD database (www.essl.org) - ESTOFEX convective maps (www.estofex.org) - EUMETSAT satellite imagery (www.eumetsat.int) - 24ur.com/RTVSLO web portal (www.24ur.com, www.rtvslo.si) - Sobota Info web portal (www.sobotainfo.com) - Pomurje web portal (www.pomurje.si) - Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief, www.sos112.si - Worldwide Skew-t diagrams (http://weather.uwyo.edu/upperair/europe.html)

Dominica Hurricane Damage Mapped by NASA's ARIA Team

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-29

The Advanced Rapid Imaging and Analysis (ARIA) team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and Caltech, also in Pasadena, created this Damage Proxy Map (DPM) depicting areas including the Commonwealth of Dominica, that are likely damaged (shown by red and yellow pixels) as a result of Hurricane Maria (a Category 5 storm at landfall in Dominica on Sept. 18, 2017). The map is derived from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellites, operated by the European Space Agency (ESA). The images were taken before (March 27, 2017) and after (Sept. 23, 2017) the landfall of the storm. The map covers the area within the large red polygon, which measures 53 by 106 miles (85 by 170 kilometers). Each pixel measures about 98 feet (30 meters) across. The color variation from yellow to red indicates increasingly more significant ground surface change. Preliminary validation was done by comparing the data to a crowdsourced map by Clemson Center for Geospatial Technologies and optical satellite imagery feom DigitalGlobe. This damage proxy map should be used as guidance to identify damaged areas, and may be less reliable over vegetated areas. Sentinel-1 data were accessed through the Copernicus Open Access Hub. The image contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA and analyzed by the NASA/JPL-Caltech ARIA team. This research was carried out at JPL under a contract with NASA. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22037

Going home after Hurricane Katrina: Determinants of return migration and changes in affected areas.

PubMed

Groen, Jeffrey A; Polivka, Anne E

2010-11-01

This article examines the decision of Hurricane Katrina evacuees to return to their pre-Katrina areas and documents how the composition of the Katrina-affected region changed over time. Using data from the Current Population Survey, we show that an evacuee's age, family income, and the severity of damage in an evacuee's county of origin are important determinants of whether an evacuee returned during the first year after the storm. Blacks were less likely to return than whites, but this difference is primarily related to the geographical pattern of storm damage rather than to race per se. The difference between the composition of evacuees who returned and the composition of evacuees who did not return is the primary force behind changes in the composition of the affected areas in the first two years after the storm. Katrina is associated with substantial shifts in the racial composition of the affected areas (namely, a decrease in the percentage of residents who are black) and an increasing presence of Hispanics. Katrina is also associated with an increase in the percentage of older residents, a decrease in the percentage of residents with low income/education, and an increase in the percentage of residents with high income/education.

Flood of July 27-31, 2006, on the Grand River near Painesville, Ohio

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ebner, Andrew D.; Sherwood, James M.; Astifan, Brian; Lombardy, Kirk

2007-01-01

Two separate weather systems produced storms resulting in more than 11 inches of rain in parts of Lake County, Ohio, on July 27-28, 2006. As a result of the storms and ensuing flooding caused by the weather systems, the counties of Lake, Geauga, and Ashtabula were declared Federal and State disaster areas, with damages estimated at $30 million and one fatality in Lake County. About 600 people were evacuated in Lake County. The U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station at Grand River near Painesville, Ohio (station 04212100), had a record peak stage of 19.35 feet (elevation, 614.94 feet), with a record peak streamflow of 35,000 cubic feet per second, and an estimated recurrence interval of approximately 500 years. This report describes the meteorological factors that resulted in severe flooding on the Grand River near Painesville from July 27 to July 31, 2006, and addresses the damages caused by the storms and flooding. Peak-stage, peak-streamflow, and recurrence-interval data are reported for the Grand River near Painesville. A plot of high-water marks is also presented for the Grand River in a reach that includes the City of Painesville, Painesville Township, the Village of Fairport Harbor, and the Village of Grand River.

Storm-generated coral fragments - A viable source of transplants for reef rehabilitation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Garrison, V.; Ward, G.

2008-01-01

Coral reefs throughout the world have been damaged by storms, diseases, coral predators, temperature anomalies, and human activities. During the past three decades, recovery has been limited and patchy. Although a damaged coral reef cannot be restored to its original condition, interest in reef restoration is increasing. In a pilot project in the Caribbean (US Virgin Islands), storm-produced fragments of Acropora palmata, A. cervicornis, and Porites porites were collected from donor reefs and transplanted to nearby degraded reefs. Sixty coral fragments were attached to dead-coral substrate (usually A. palmata skeletons), at similar depths from which they had been collected (1-3.5 m), using nylon cable ties. Seventy-five intact colonies were designated as controls. Study colonies were assessed at 6-month intervals for 2 years (1999-2001) and annually thereafter (through 2004). One-fourth of the 135 colonies and fragments monitored were alive at the conclusion of the 5-year study. Survival of control and transplanted A. cervicornis and P. porites was very low (median survival 2.4 and 1.8 years, respectively), with no significant differences between transplant and control colonies. Site and depth did not contribute significantly to A. palmata colony survival, but colony size and transplant/control status did. Probability of survival increased with colony size. Median survival for A. palmata was 1.3 years for transplant and 4.3 years for natural colonies when not controlled for size. A. palmata was the only viable candidate for reef rehabilitation. Storm swells were the primary cause of mortality.

Restoration of freshwater Cypress-Tupelo Wetlands in the southeastern U.S. following severe hurricanes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Conner, William H.; Krauss, Ken W.; Shaffer, Gary P.; Stanturf, John A.; Madsen, Palle; Lamb, David

2012-01-01

Freshwater forested wetlands commonly occur in the lower Coastal Plain of the southeastern US with baldcypress (Taxodium distichum [L.] L.C. Rich.) and water tupelo (Nyssa aquatica L.) often being the dominant trees. Extensive anthropogenic activities combined with eustatic sea-level rise and land subsidence have caused widespread hydrological changes in many of these forests. In addition, hurricanes (a common, although aperiodic occurrence) cause wide-spread damage from wind and storm surge events, with impacts exacerbated by human-mediated coastal modifications (e.g., dredging, navigation channels, etc.). Restoration of forested wetlands in coastal areas is important because emergent canopies can greatly diminish wind penetration, thereby reducing the wind stress available to generate surface waves and storm surge that are the major cause of damage to coastal ecosystems and their surrounding communities. While there is an overall paucity of large-scale restoration efforts within coastal forested wetlands of the southeastern US, we have determined important characteristics that should drive future efforts. Restoration efforts may be enhanced considerably if coupled with hydrological enhancement, such as freshwater, sediment, or sewage wastewater diversions. Large-scale restoration of coastal forests should be attempted to create a landscape capable of minimizing storm impacts and maximizing wetland sustainability in the face of climate change. Planting is the preferred regeneration method in many forested wetland sites because hydrological alterations have increased flooding, and planted seedlings must be protected from herbivory to enhance establishment. Programs identifying salt tolerance in coastal forest tree species need to be continued to help increase resilience to repetitive storm surge events.

Clustering of European winter storms: A multi-model perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renggli, Dominik; Buettner, Annemarie; Scherb, Anke; Straub, Daniel; Zimmerli, Peter

2016-04-01

The storm series over Europe in 1990 (Daria, Vivian, Wiebke, Herta) and 1999 (Anatol, Lothar, Martin) are very well known. Such clusters of severe events strongly affect the seasonally accumulated damage statistics. The (re)insurance industry has quantified clustering by using distribution assumptions deduced from the historical storm activity of the last 30 to 40 years. The use of storm series simulated by climate models has only started recently. Climate model runs can potentially represent 100s to 1000s of years, allowing a more detailed quantification of clustering than the history of the last few decades. However, it is unknown how sensitive the representation of clustering is to systematic biases. Using a multi-model ensemble allows quantifying that uncertainty. This work uses CMIP5 decadal ensemble hindcasts to study clustering of European winter storms from a multi-model perspective. An objective identification algorithm extracts winter storms (September to April) in the gridded 6-hourly wind data. Since the skill of European storm predictions is very limited on the decadal scale, the different hindcast runs are interpreted as independent realizations. As a consequence, the available hindcast ensemble represents several 1000 simulated storm seasons. The seasonal clustering of winter storms is quantified using the dispersion coefficient. The benchmark for the decadal prediction models is the 20th Century Reanalysis. The decadal prediction models are able to reproduce typical features of the clustering characteristics observed in the reanalysis data. Clustering occurs in all analyzed models over the North Atlantic and European region, in particular over Great Britain and Scandinavia as well as over Iberia (i.e. the exit regions of the North Atlantic storm track). Clustering is generally weaker in the models compared to reanalysis, although the differences between different models are substantial. In contrast to existing studies, clustering is driven by weak and moderate events, and not by extreme storms. Thus, the decision which climate model to use to quantify clustering can have a substantial impact on the risk assessment in the (re)insurance business.

Hurricane Ike: Field Investigation Survey (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ewing, L.

2009-12-01

Hurricane Ike made landfall at 2:10 a.m. on September 13, 2008, as a Category 2 hurricane. The eye of the hurricane crossed over the eastern end of Galveston Island and a large region of the Texas and Louisiana coast experienced extreme winds, waves and water levels, resulting in large impacts from overtopping, overwash, wind and wave forces and flooding. Major damage stretched from Freeport to the southwest and to Port Arthur to the northeast. The effects of the hurricane force winds were felt well inland in Texas and Louisiana and the storm continued to the interior of the US, causing more damage and loss of life. Through the support of the Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute (COPRI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) a team of 14 coastal scientists and engineers inspected the upper Texas coast in early October 2008. The COPRI team surveyed Hurricane Ike’s effects on coastal landforms, structures, marinas, shore protection systems, and other infrastructure. Damages ranges from very minor to complete destruction, depending upon location and elevation. Bolivar Peninsula, to the right of the hurricane path, experienced severe damage and three peninsula communities were completely destroyed. Significant flood and wave damage also was observed in Galveston Island and Brazoria County that were both on the left side of the hurricane path. Beach erosion and prominent overwash fans were observed throughout much of the field investigation area. The post-storm damage survey served to confirm expected performance under extreme conditions, as well as to evaluate recent development trends and conditions unique to each storm. Hurricane Ike confirmed many previously reported observations. One of the main conclusions from the inspection of buildings was that elevation was a key determinant for survival. Elevation is also a major factor in the stability and effectiveness of shore protection. The Galveston Seawall was high enough to provide protection from much of the storm surge, although there was some overtopping and debris was washed over Seawall Boulevard. In contrast, the geotextile tubes that were in used on Bolivar Peninsula and west Galveston were too low to provide an effective barrier to extreme storm surge or to prevent overtopping. Scour and wave erosion were noticeable for all structures, removing sand from the jetties at Rollover Pass, eroding backfill from the west end of the Galveston Seawall and dislocating toe stone and causing rotation of some geotextile tubes. Material for this presentation draw upon the forthcoming ASCE Report, A Report of Field Observations made 3 - 6 October 2008 and “Field investigation of Hurricane Ike impacts to the upper Texas coast” (Ewing et al. 2009) References ASCE Hurricane Ike Field Investigation Team (in production) A Report of Field Observations made 3 - 6 October 2008; sponsored by Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute and Geotechnical Institute of American Society of Civil Engineers. Ewing, Lesley., Donald K. Stauble, Paul A. Work, Billy L. Edge, Spencer M. Rogers, Mandy U. Loeffler, James M. Kaihatu, Margery Overton, Jeffery P. Waters, Kojiro Suzuki, Robert G. Dean, Marie H. Garrett, Eddie Wiggins, and Garry H. Gregory (2009) “Field Investigation of Hurricane Ike Impacts to the Upper Texas Coast” Shore & Beach, vol. 77(2) 9 - 23.

Evaluation of a Socio-Hydrologic Model for the Rebuilding of Biloxi, Mississippi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Calhoun, J. L.; O'Donnell, F. C.; Burton, C. G.

2017-12-01

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast of the United States causing billions in damage. The storm cost the City of Biloxi, Mississippi $355 million in infrastructure repair, which is being constructed with funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Approximately 30% of the city's storm systems including storm drains, bridges and culverts are being replaced and updated utilizing FEMA Hazard Mitigation funding to lessen the impact of future natural disasters. The infrastructure is being upgraded from conveying a 4% annual chance storm event to a 1% annual chance storm event. An extensive socio-economic data set of the impacts of Hurricane Katrina along the Mississippi Gulf Coast was used to analyze recovery in the area. The recovery data set assessed the area directly after the storm in 2005 thru 2010 with an analysis of recovery five years after the storm. This study uses a dynamic socio-hydrologic model with modifications to relate the change in flow capacity of engineered structures and socio-economic processes. The results will be used to assess the hypothesis that raising flood protection increases the base flood elevation levels and therefore requires a higher level of flood protection. The increase in flood protect eases the fears of the community leading them to not require additional flood protection when developing in flood prone areas and strengthening the socio-hydrologic association. The results will also be evaluated to create a tool for the City of Biloxi to improve their resilience from future hurricanes and storm surge events.

The effect of a class IV hurricane on emergency department operations.

PubMed

Sheppa, C M; Stevens, J; Philbrick, J T; Canada, M

1993-09-01

The objective of this study was to determine the impact on emergency department (ED) operations of Hurricane Hugo, a class IV hurricane that struck Charleston, South Carolina, on September 21, 1989. The study design was a retrospective record-based descriptive study and mail survey of the ED of a 300-bed regional medical center directly in the path of the storm. During the 3 weeks after the storm, ED patient volume increased 19% over that of the 3 weeks before the storm. Increased visit volumes were evident for at least 3 months. Compared with a similar period of the previous year, there was an increase in the proportion of patients seen for lacerations of all types, puncture wounds, stings, and falls. Sixty-two percent of physician offices were still closed 7 days after the storm. The direct effects of a class IV hurricane on ED operations included major alterations in the volume and types of patient visits. Because of the evacuation of approximately 40% of the coastal population and storm damage hindering travel, the increase in visit volume was less in magnitude but of longer duration has been reported in class III hurricanes.

After the Disaster: Restoring Library Service.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffith, J. W.

1983-01-01

Discusses precautions which can be taken to minimize loss or damage to library buildings and collections resulting from natural disasters (fires, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, storms). Preventive measures (alarm systems, interior protection), salvage efforts, restoration of collection and library facility, rebuilding collection and…

Total Lightning and Radar Storm Characteristics Associated with Severe Storms in Central Florida

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Steven J; Raghavan, R.; Buechler, Dennis; Hodanish, S.; Sharp, D.; Williams, E.; Boldi, B.; Matlin, A.; Weber, M.

1998-01-01

This paper examines the three dimensional characteristics of lightning flashes and severe storms observed in Central Florida during 1997-1998. The lightning time history of severe and tornadic storms were captured during the on-going ground validation campaign supporting the Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) experiment on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). The ground validation campaign is a collaborative experiment that began in 1997 and involves scientists at the Global Hydrology and Climate Center, MIT/Lincoln Laboratories, and the NWS Forecast Office at Melbourne, FL. Lightning signatures that may provide potential early warning of severe storms are being evaluated by the forecasters at the NWS/MLB office. Severe storms with extreme flash rates sometimes exceeding 300 per minute and accompanying rapid increases in flash rate prior to the onset of the severe weather (hall, damaging winds, tornadoes) have been reported by Hodanish et al. and Williams et al. (1998-this conference). We examine the co-evolving changes in storm structure (mass, echo top, shear, latent heat release) and kinematics associated with these extreme and rapid flash rate changes over time. The flash frequency and density are compared with the three dimensional radar reflectivity structure of the storm to help interpret the possible mechanisms producing the extreme and rapidly increasing flash rates. For two tornadic storms examined thus far, we find the burst of lightning is associated with the development of upper level rotation in the storm. In one case, the lightning burst follows the formation of a bounded weak echo region (BWER). The flash rates diminish with time as the rotation develops to the ground in conjunction with the decent of the reflectivity core. Our initial findings suggest the dramatic increase of flash rates is associated with a sudden and dramatic increase in storm updraft intensity which we hypothesize is stretching vertical vorticity as well as enhancing the development of the mixed phase region of the storm. We discuss the importance of these factors in producing both the observed extreme flash rates and the severe weather that follows in these storms and others to be presented.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

A damaged construction trailer and several pieces of associated debris, aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, are seen in front of the Mobile Launcher in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

Effects of acid rain and sulfur dioxide on marble dissolution

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schuster, Paul F.; Reddy, Michael M.; Sherwood, Susan I.

1994-01-01

Acid precipitation and the dry deposition of sulfur dioxide (SO2) accelerate damage to carbonate-stone monuments and building materials. This study identified and quantified environmental damage to a sample of Vermont marble during storms and their preceding dry periods. Results from field experiments indicated the deposition of SO2 gas to the stone surface during dry periods and a twofold increase in marble dissolution during coincident episodes of low rain rate and decreased rainfall pH. The study is widely applicable to the analysis of carbonate-stone damage at locations affected by acid rain and air pollution.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

A damaged construction trailer and several pieces of associated debris, aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, are seen near the Mobile Launcher in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-18

Damaged construction trailers and several pieces of associated debris, aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, are seen in front of the Mobile Launcher in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assessments and repairs are in progress at various structures and facilities across the spaceport, part of the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

KSC-04pd1842

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-09-18

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe looks at equipment moved from the Thermal Protection System Facility to the RLV Hangar. AT right is Martin Wilson, manager of TPS operations for United Space Alliance. O’Keefe and NASA Associate Administrator of Space Operations Mission Directorate William Readdy are visiting KSC to survey the damage sustained by KSC facilities from Hurricane Frances. The Thermal Protection System Facility (TPSF), which creates the TPS tiles, blankets and all the internal thermal control systems for the Space Shuttles, is almost totally unserviceable at this time after losing approximately 35 percent of its roof in the storm, which blew across Central Florida Sept. 4-5. Undamaged equipment was removed from the TPSF and stored in the hangar. The Labor Day storm also caused significant damage to the Vehicle Assembly Building and Processing Control Center. Additionally, the Operations and Checkout Building, Vertical Processing Facility, Hangar AE, Hangar S and Hangar AF Small Parts Facility each received substantial damage. However, well-protected and unharmed were NASA’s three Space Shuttle orbiters -- Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour - along with the Shuttle launch pads, all of the critical flight hardware for the orbiters and the International Space Station, and NASA’s Swift spacecraft that is awaiting launch in October.

KSC-04pd1843

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-09-18

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - - NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe (right) looks at equipment moved from the Thermal Protection System Facility to the RLV Hangar. At left are United Space Alliance technicians Shelly Kipp and Eric Moss. O’Keefe and NASA Associate Administrator of Space Operations Mission Directorate William Readdy are visiting KSC to survey the damage sustained by KSC facilities from Hurricane Frances. The Thermal Protection System Facility (TPSF), which creates the TPS tiles, blankets and all the internal thermal control systems for the Space Shuttles, is almost totally unserviceable at this time after losing approximately 35 percent of its roof in the storm, which blew across Central Florida Sept. 4-5. Undamaged equipment was removed from the TPSF and stored in the hangar. The Labor Day storm also caused significant damage to the Vehicle Assembly Building and Processing Control Center. Additionally, the Operations and Checkout Building, Vertical Processing Facility, Hangar AE, Hangar S and Hangar AF Small Parts Facility each received substantial damage. However, well-protected and unharmed were NASA’s three Space Shuttle orbiters - Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour - along with the Shuttle launch pads, all of the critical flight hardware for the orbiters and the International Space Station, and NASA’s Swift spacecraft that is awaiting launch in October.

Hydrodynamic Restoration to Vulnerable Marsh Ecosystems to Improve Response to Sea Level Rise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orescanin, M. M.; Hamilton, R. P., Jr.

2016-12-01

Rising sea levels pose imminent threats to low-lying marsh ecosystems owing to delicate balances between water levels, salinity, and sediment transport. Further complications arise from human modifications to these low-lying coastal areas that modify topography, thus altering tidal exchanges. The Milford Neck Conservation Area, near Milford, DE, is a salt marsh system on Delaware Bay that has undergone morphological modifications owing to both human activity and natural processes resulting in damage to the surrounding marsh habitats. A century-old abandoned canal acted as a physical barrier to any tidal exchange for upland marsh for decades, allowing land at low elevations to be dry and used for agricultural activities. However, a breach to the system in the 1980s created a link to Delaware Bay that flooded salt hay fields, creating a large area of open water. Owing to tidal restrictions in the system, it has been difficult to transport sufficient sediment and water into the system to promote natural marsh growth. At the same time, the eroding barrier beach increases vulnerability to sea level rise and storms of increasing severity and frequency, and places upland forest at risk of episodic salt intrusion. To increase the effectiveness of this area as a barrier to sea level rise, it is necessary to increase marsh resiliency. Hydrodynamic measurements collected during fall 2015 and spring/summer 2016 show tidal choking in the system that limits exchange of salt water from Delaware Bay and prevents drainage from storm runoff. Numerical model results using the hydrodynamic model, CMS-flow, confirm tidal choking in this system and suggest localized areas are responsible for the most significant reduction in tidal exchange between the marsh and Delaware Bay. Analysis of hypsometry of the area combined with potential for improving tidal flushing suggest the possibility of restoring close to 400 acres of open water and damaged marsh.

Study of Extreme Weather Hazards Using GRACE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Y.; Shum, C. K.; Shang, K.; Guo, J.; Schwartz, F. W.; Akyılmaz, O.; Feng, W.; Forootan, E.; LIU, G.; Zhong, M.

2017-12-01

Extreme weather events significantly affect humans and economics in the region. Synoptic and timely observations of these abrupt meteoro-hydrological hazards would benefit disaster management and improve storm forecasting. Contemporary processing of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) twin-satellite data at monthly sampling would miss or under-sample abrupt events such as large ice storms with durations much shorter than a month. Here, we employ the energy balance approach processing GRACE Level 1 data, which is flexible to allow sub-monthly solutions at daily sampling covering the genesis and evolution of large winter storms. We studied the 2008 Southeast China snow and ice storm, which lasted from mid-January to mid-February, and affected 21 out of China's 34 provinces with heavy snows, ice and freezing rains, caused extensive damage and transportation disruption, displaced nearly 1.7 million people, and claimed 129 lives. We also investigated the devastating North America blizzard which occurred during late January through mid-February 2010. The massive accumulations of snow and ice in both storms slightly changed the gravity field of the Earth, and were sensitive to the GRACE satellite measurements, manifested as transient terrestrial water storage (TWS) change. We compared our solutions with other available high temporal frequency GRACE solutions. The GRACE observed total storage change for both storms are in good agreement with in situ precipitation measurements, and with GRACE observations clearly show the complex genesis, decline, strengthening and melting phases depicting the detailed evolution of these example large snow storms.

Flood Protection Through Landscape Scale Ecosystem Restoration- Quantifying the Benefits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pinero, E.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey illustrated the risks associated with storm surges on coastal areas, especially during severe storms. One way to address storm surges is to utilize the natural ability of offshore coastal land to dampen their severity. In addition to helping reduce storm surge intensity and related damage, restoring the land will generate numerous co-benefits such as carbon sequestration and water quality improvement. The session will discuss the analytical methodology that helps define what is the most resilient species to take root, and to calculate quantified benefits. It will also address the quantification and monetization of benefits to make the business case for restoration. In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita damaged levees along the Gulf of Mexico, leading to major forest degradation, habitat deterioration and reduced wildlife use. As a result, this area lost an extensive amount of land, with contiguous sections of wetlands being converted to open water. The Restore the Earth Foundation's North American Amazon project intends to restore one million acres of forests and forested wetlands in the lower Mississippi River Valley. The proposed area for the first phase of this project was once an historic bald cypress forested wetland, which was degraded due to increased salinity levels and extreme fluctuations in hydrology. The Terrebonne and Lafourche Parishes, the "bayou parishes", communities with a combined population of over 200,000, sit on thin fingers of land that are protected by surrounding wetland swamps and wetlands, beyond which is the Gulf of Mexico. The Parishes depend on fishing, hunting, trapping, boat building, off-shore oil and gas production and support activities. Yet these communities are highly vulnerable to risks from natural hazards and future land loss. The ground is at or near sea level and therefore easily inundated by storm surges if not protected by wetlands. While some communities are protected by a levee system, the Terrebonne and Lafourche Parishes remain vulnerable to the impacts of flooding and hurricanes.

A tree fell in the forest, and SPREE heard it: seismic recording of the 2011 St. Croix Valley Blowdown

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolin, E.; van der Lee, S.

2016-12-01

As part of the Superior Province Rifting Earthscope Experiment (SPREE), 82 broadband seismic stations from the EarthScope Flexible Array pool were deployed by the SPREE team from April 2011 through October 2013, to explore the deep structure of the Mid-Continent Rift System (Stein et al., 2011). The deployment included two crosslines with approximate station spacing of 10 km centered near the northern Minnesota-Wisconsin border. Analysis of long-period noise reveals strong seasonal and diurnal variations (Wolin et al., 2015). On 1 July 2011, a severe thunderstorm system swept over the St. Croix Valley, passing directly over the dense SPREE array. This storm system was accompanied by a series of downbursts that generated straight-line winds in excess of 100 km/hr, resulting in extensive damage to hundreds of thousands of acres of forest. Seven SPREE stations were located in the path of the storm, with two stations in the center of areas that were heavily damaged by downbursts. The stations remained in operation throughout this extreme weather event, capturing a unique record of ground noise generated by the storm system. We compare available radar reflectivity data with seismic noise power spectra throughout the event and show that storm cells generated significant broadband seismic signals as they passed over the region. Relative to typical background seismic noise levels, power between 0.05-10 Hz increased by 5-20 dB during the storm. Seismic noise levels can be compared to available wind speed data to provide a detailed record of wind speeds during the weather event. We also explore the long-period coherence of energy across the array, which is potentially useful to help constrain near-surface velocity structure at the array sites as well as to better characterize how atmospheric processes couple into the solid earth during severe weather events.

Evaluation of the impact of storm event inputs on levels of gross primary production and respiration in a drinking water reservoir

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samal, N. R.; Pierson, D. C.; Staehr, P. A.; Pradhanang, S. M.; Smith, D. G.

2013-12-01

Episodic inputs of dissolved and particulate material during storm events can have important effects on lake and reservoir ecosystem function and also impact reservoir drinking water quality. We evaluate the impacts of storm events using vertical profiles of temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, conductivity and chlorophyll automatically collected at 6 hour intervals in Ashokan Reservoir, which is a part of the New York City drinking water supply. Storm driven inputs to the reservoir periodically result in large input of suspended sediments that result in reservoir turbidity levels exceeding 25 NTU, and substantial reductions in the euphotic depth. Dissolved materials associated with these same storms would be expected to stimulate bacterial production. This study involves the use of a conceptual model to calculate depth specific estimates of gross primary production (GPP) and ecosystem respiration (R) using three years of data that included 777 events that increased reservoir turbidity levels to over 25 NTU. Using data from before, during and after storm events, we examine how the balance between GPP and R is influenced by storm related increases in turbidity and dissolved organic matter, which would in turn influence light attenuation and bacterial production. Key words: metabolism, primary production, GPP, respiration, euphotic depth, storm event, reservoir

Treatment performance of a constructed wetland during storm and non-storm events in Korea.

PubMed

Maniquiz, M C; Lee, S Y; Choi, J Y; Jeong, S M; Kim, L H

2012-01-01

The efficiency of a free water surface flow constructed wetland (CW) in treating agricultural discharges from stream was investigated during storm and non-storm events between April and December, 2009. Physico-chemical and water quality constituents were monitored at five sampling locations along the flow path of the CW. The greatest reduction in pollutant concentration was observed after passing the sedimentation zone at approximately 4% fractional distance from the inflow. The inflow hydraulic loading, flow rates and pollutant concentrations were significantly higher and variable during storm events than non-storm (baseflow) condition (p <0.001) that resulted to an increase in the average pollutant removal efficiencies by 10 to 35%. The highest removal percentages were attained for phosphate (51 ± 22%), ammonium (44 ± 21%) and phosphorus (38 ± 19%) while nitrate was least effectively retained by the system with only 25 ± 17% removal during non-storm events. The efficiency of the system was most favorable when the temperature was above 15 °C (i.e., almost year-round except the winter months) and during storm events. Overall, the outflow water quality was better than the inflow water quality signifying the potential of the constructed wetland as a treatment system and capability of improving the stream water quality.

DART Support for Hurricane Matthew

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-13

Members of the Disaster Assessment and Recovery Team (DART) work on flooring repairs to the Beach House at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The effort is part of the spaceport’s ongoing recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which passed to the east of Kennedy on Oct. 6 and 7, 2016. The center received some isolated roof damage, damaged support buildings, a few downed power lines, and limited water intrusion. Beach erosion also occurred, although the storm surge was less than expected.

Effects of Stress After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on Pubertal Disorders in Children

PubMed Central

Ponnapakkam, Adharsh; Gensure, Robert

2008-01-01

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused widespread damage that resulted in increased stress levels for families living in the New Orleans area. This study examined the relationship between this stress and the onset of puberty in children by conducting a retrospective chart review of patients referred before and after the storm to a pediatric endocrine practice in New Orleans. The total number of new patients referred and the incidence of diagnoses that are unlikely to be affected by stress (ie, thyroid disease and premature adrenarche) were essentially unchanged. On the other hand, the incidence of central precocious puberty decreased by 52% after the storm, while the incidence of pubertal delay increased by 9% in the post storm period. This study thus provides evidence that stress delays the onset of puberty in children. PMID:21603464

The impacts of tropical cyclones on the net carbon balance of eastern US forests (1851-2000)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fisk, J. P.; Hurtt, G. C.; Chambers, J. Q.; Zeng, H.; Dolan, K. A.; Negrón-Juárez, R. I.

2013-12-01

In temperate forests of the eastern US, tropical cyclones are a principal agent of catastrophic wind damage, with dramatic impacts on the structure and functioning of forests. Substantial progress has been made to quantify forest damage and resulting gross carbon emissions from tropical cyclones. However, the net effect of storms on the carbon balance of forests depends not only on the biomass lost in single events, but also on the uptake during recovery from a mosaic of past events. This study estimates the net impacts of tropical cyclones on the carbon balance of US forests over the period 1851-2000. To track both disturbance and recovery and to isolate the effects of storms, a modeling framework is used combining gridded historical estimates of mortality and damage with a mechanistic model using an ensemble approach. The net effect of tropical cyclones on the carbon balance is shown to depend strongly on the spatial and temporal scales of analysis. On average, tropical cyclones contribute a net carbon source over latter half of the 19th century. However, throughout much of the 20th century a regional carbon sink is estimated resulting from periods of forest recovery exceeding damage. The large-scale net annual flux resulting from tropical cyclones varies by up to 50 Tg C yr-1, an amount equivalent to 17%-36% of the US forest carbon sink.

Riding the storm--landslide danger in the San Francisco Bay Area

USGS Publications Warehouse

Adams, Karen

2007-01-01

Movie Synopsis: --A catastrophic 1982 rainstorm triggered 18,000 landslides in the Bay Area, claiming 25 lives and causing $66 million in property damage. --The combination of steep slopes, weak rocks, and intense winter storms make Bay Area uplands an ideal setting for landslides. --Landslides include both swift, potentially deadly debris flows and slower, but destructive deepseated slides. --Learn what USGS scientists have discovered about landslide dynamics and which slopes are most susceptible to sliding. --Hear the devastating stories of Bay Area residents affected by landslides and learn to recognize the danger signs.

Examining the causes of a devastating debris flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balcerak, Ernie

2014-08-01

Storm-triggered landslides cause loss of life, property damage, and landscape alterations. For instance, the remnants of Hurricane Camille in 1969 caused 109 deaths in central Virginia, after 600 millimeters of rain fell in mountainous terrain in 6 hours. More recently, on 8 August 2010, a rainstorm-induced landslide devastated the Chinese county of Zhouqu, causing more than 1000 deaths. A new modeling study by Ren examines the multiple factors, natural and human caused, that came together to produce this event. Three things contribute to storm-triggered landslides: geological condition, surface loading and vegetation roots, and extreme precipitation.

NOAA Photo Library - Other NOAA Photo Sites

Science.gov Websites

National Marine Mammal Laboratory Resource Assessment and Conservation Engineering Fish Photos by Family Florida - Melbourne: Post Storm Damage Surveys and Summaries Florida - Tallahassee: Virtual Office Tour Kentucky - Jackson: Virtual Tour Kentucky - Louisville: Photo Album Kentucky - Paducah: Photo Gallery

Hurricane Harvey Building Damage Assessment Using UAV Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeom, J.; Jung, J.; Chang, A.; Choi, I.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey which was extremely destructive major hurricane struck southern Texas, U.S.A on August 25, causing catastrophic flooding and storm damages. We visited Rockport suffered severe building destruction and conducted UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) surveying for building damage assessment. UAV provides very high resolution images compared with traditional remote sensing data. In addition, prompt and cost-effective damage assessment can be performed regardless of several limitations in other remote sensing platforms such as revisit interval of satellite platforms, complicated flight plan in aerial surveying, and cloud amounts. In this study, UAV flight and GPS surveying were conducted two weeks after hurricane damage to generate an orthomosaic image and a DEM (Digital Elevation Model). 3D region growing scheme has been proposed to quantitatively estimate building damages considering building debris' elevation change and spectral difference. The result showed that the proposed method can be used for high definition building damage assessment in a time- and cost-effective way.

Systems resilience for multihazard environments: definition, metrics, and valuation for decision making.

PubMed

Ayyub, Bilal M

2014-02-01

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction reported that the 2011 natural disasters, including the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, resulted in $366 billion in direct damages and 29,782 fatalities worldwide. Storms and floods accounted for up to 70% of the 302 natural disasters worldwide in 2011, with earthquakes producing the greatest number of fatalities. Average annual losses in the United States amount to about $55 billion. Enhancing community and system resilience could lead to massive savings through risk reduction and expeditious recovery. The rational management of such reduction and recovery is facilitated by an appropriate definition of resilience and associated metrics. In this article, a resilience definition is provided that meets a set of requirements with clear relationships to the metrics of the relevant abstract notions of reliability and risk. Those metrics also meet logically consistent requirements drawn from measure theory, and provide a sound basis for the development of effective decision-making tools for multihazard environments. Improving the resiliency of a system to meet target levels requires the examination of system enhancement alternatives in economic terms, within a decision-making framework. Relevant decision analysis methods would typically require the examination of resilience based on its valuation by society at large. The article provides methods for valuation and benefit-cost analysis based on concepts from risk analysis and management. © 2013 Society for Risk Analysis.

Floods of 2011 in New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lumia, Richard; Firda, Gary D.; Smith, Travis L.

2014-01-01

Record rainfall combined with above-average temperatures and substantial spring snowmelt resulted in record flooding throughout New York during 2011. Rainfall totals in eastern New York were the greatest since 1895 and as much as 60 percent above the long-term average within the Catskill Mountains area and the Susquehanna River Basin. This report documents the three largest storms and resultant flooding during the year: (1) spring storm during April and May, (2) Tropical Storm Irene during August, and (3) remnants of Tropical Storm Lee during September. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the cost of these three storms exceeded $1 billion in Federal disaster assistance. A warm and wet spring in northern New York resulted in record flooding at 21 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) active streamgages during late April to early May with the annual exceedance probabilities (AEPs) of 11 peak discharges equaling or exceeding 1 percent. Nearly 5 inches of rain during late April combined with a rapidly melting snowpack caused widespread flooding throughout northern New York, resulting in many road closures, millions of dollars in damages, and 23 counties declared disaster areas and eligible for public assistance. On May 6, Lake Champlain recorded its highest lake level in over 140 years. Hurricane Irene entered New York State on August 28 as a tropical storm and traveled up the eastern corridor of the State, leaving a path of destruction and damage never seen in many parts of New York. Thirty-one counties in New York were declared disaster areas with damages of over $1.3 billion dollars and 10 reported deaths. Storm rainfall exceeded 18 inches in the Catskill Mountains area of southeastern New York with many other areas of eastern New York receiving over 7 inches. Catastrophic flooding resulted from the extreme rainfall in many locations, including Schoharie Creek and its tributaries, the eastern Delaware River Basin, the Ausable and Bouquet River Basins in northeastern New York, and several other stream basins throughout southeastern New York. Downstream reaches of the Mohawk River also had substantial flooding. Sixty-two USGS streamgages throughout eastern New York documented record high stream flows and elevations with AEPs of 25 peak discharges equaling or exceeding 1 percent. The USGS streamgage for the Schoharie Creek at Prattsville recorded its greatest peak discharge in 109 years of record at 120,000 cubic feet per second (greater than the 0.2-percent AEP discharge) on August 28. The peak water-surface elevation at the streamgage in Prattsville was 5 feet higher than its previous record in 1996. USGS personnel surveyed 184 high-water marks (HWMs) at 30 locations along an 84-mile reach of Schoharie Creek and compared the elevations to those published by FEMA for the 10-, 2-, 1-, and 0.2-percent AEP floods. Elevations in the lower reaches of the basin exceeded published elevations for the 0.2-percent AEP flood. Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee brought a third major storm to New York in September 2011. Moisture from Lee began moving into New York on September 7 and intensified over the already saturated Susquehanna River Basin. Most of the rain fell on September 8 with storm totals nearing 13 inches in some areas (12.73 inches at Apalachin in Tioga County). Major disaster declarations were issued for 15 counties in and around central New York, making them eligible for individual or public assistance. Ten USGS streamgages within the Susquehanna River Basin documented record-high stream discharges and elevations on September 8, and all were greater than the 1-percent AEP discharge. USGS personnel surveyed 20 HWMs at 18 locations along a 114- mile reach of the Susquehanna River and compared the elevations to those published by FEMA for the 10-, 2-, 1-, and 0.2-percent AEP floods. Several of the surveyed HWMs exceeded published elevations for the 0.2-percent AEP flood.

Dissemination of Earth Remote Sensing Data for Use in the NOAA/NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Molthan, Andrew; Burks, Jason; Camp, Parks; McGrath, Kevin; Bell, Jordan

2015-01-01

The National Weather Service has developed the Damage Assessment Toolkit (DAT), an application for smartphones and tablets that allows for the collection, geolocation, and aggregation of various damage indicators that are collected during storm surveys. The DAT supports the often labor-intensive process where meteorologists venture into the storm-affected area, allowing them to acquire geotagged photos of the observed damage while also assigning estimated EF-scale categories based upon their observations. Once the data are collected, the DAT infrastructure aggregates the observations into a server that allows other meteorologists to perform quality control and other analysis steps before completing their survey and making the resulting data available to the public. In addition to in-person observations, Earth remote sensing from operational, polar-orbiting satellites can support the damage assessment process by identifying portions of damage tracks that may be missed due to road limitations, access to private property, or time constraints. Products resulting from change detection techniques can identify damage to vegetation and the land surface, aiding in the survey process. In addition, higher resolution commercial imagery can corroborate ground-based surveys by examining higher-resolution commercial imagery. As part of an ongoing collaboration, NASA and NOAA are working to integrate near real-time Earth remote sensing observations into the NOAA/NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit. This presentation will highlight recent developments in a streamlined approach for disseminating Earth remote sensing data via web mapping services and a new menu interface that has been integrated within the DAT. A review of current and future products will be provided, including products derived from MODIS and VIIRS for preliminary track identification, along with conduits for higher-resolution Landsat, ASTER, and commercial imagery as they become available. In addition to tornado damage assessments, the team is also investigating the use of near real-time imagery for identifying hail damage to vegetation, which also results in large swaths of damage, particularly in the central United States during the peak growing season months of June, July, and August. This presentation will present an overview of recent activities, challenges and successes, best practices, and opportunities for future work and collaboration

Evolution of potentially eroding events along the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasilla Álvarez, D.; García Codrón, J. C.

2009-09-01

The anthropogenic global warming is expected to result in a rise in sea-level, accompanied by changes in extreme climate events, such as the frequency and intensity of storms. Such scenario would result in an acceleration of coastal erosion. The aim of the present study is to assess the temporal evolution of potentially eroding events along the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula during the second half of the 20th century, and to investigate changes in forcing processes such as the frequency and magnitude of storm surges and high wave events. To characterize the potentially eroding events, the total elevation of the water level was selected, being calculated as the sum of the contributions of the average water level, wave run up and the storm surges. Potentially eroding events were identified and quantified following a two-step procedure. Through the first step the potential flood induced by a given storm was estimated by simulating its effects on a theoretical beach profile (intermediate) using an empirical parameterization for extreme run-up approach. The second step consisted on characterizing the maximum storm surge registered during a storm. Those parameters were calculated from hindcasted data (storm surge, wave heights and period, wind speed and direction), retrieved from the SIMAR-44 database (Puertos del Estado), and validated against actual tide gauge measurements and buoy data (RedMar and RedExt networks). Analyses of total water levels showed a long term increase since 1958, resulting from the increase of mean sea level; conversely, a reduction of the frequency and the intensity of the storm events were deduced from the analysis of meteorological records. Since the impact of the storms on macro- and meso- tidal coast closely depend on the tides, a storm impact index was computed taking into account the storm surge magnitude, the wave heights and time duration during which a predefined threshold was exceeded by the sea level. The results are consistent with the analysis of the shoreline evolution on a specific sector of Cantabria (Oyambre) through the comparison of aerial photographs taken between 1957 and 2005. From the late 50´s to late 70’s, the shoreline significantly retreated, in correspondence with the period of maximum storm activity. Conversely, shoreline retreat slowed down during the late 1980s and 1990s while storm activity considerably decreased. Thus long-term coastal erosion, due to the occurrences of high water levels embedded into a long trend term of sea level rise, has been balanced by the reduction of the frequency and intensity of the Atlantic storms. Since relative sea-level will continue rising in the future, most of the coastal morphologies will probably be more frequently reached by the sea, increasing the flooding risk in low-lying sectors and promoting landslides along the cliffs.

The Meteorological Setting of Narrow Bipolar Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanley, M. A.; Suszcynsky, D. M.; Heavner, M. J.

2003-12-01

Narrow Bipolar Events (NBEs) are an impulsive form of electrical breakdown in storms which emits strong VHF radiation. It is well known that these events can be readily detected by VHF receivers in orbit and thus may provide a highly practical means to globally monitor storm activity. However, relatively little is known about how NBEs relate to the convective phase of storms and of how good a predictor they are of severe weather events such as large hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes. On June 10, 2002, numerous energetic NBEs were detected over Kansas by the Los Alamos National Laboratory Edot array, which is primarily located in Florida. These NBEs were also detected by a VHF receiver on-board the SVN 54 GPS satellite. The NBEs were associated with severe thunderstorms which produced softball size hail exceeding 11 centimeters in diameter and a weak F0 tornado. In another case study, several F2 tornadic Florida storms were analyzed for March, 2001. Unlike the Kansas storms, the NBEs of the Florida tornadic storms were spread out over a much wider area and exhibited considerable variability in both frequency of occurrence and predominant polarity of vertical charge transfer. To further explore the significance of the NBE rate variability, we will analyze NEXRAD radar volume scans in conjunction with Edot 3-dimensional locations to better understand how NBEs correlate with the thunderstorm life-cycle.

The contribution of sting-jet windstorms to extreme wind risk in the North Atlantic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hart, Neil C.; Gray, Suzanne L.; Clark, Peter A.

2016-04-01

Windstorms are a major winter weather risk for many countries in Europe. These storms are predominantly associated with explosively-developing extratropical cyclones that track across the region. A substantial body of literature exists on the synoptic-scale dynamics, predictability and climatology of such storms. More recently, interest in the mesoscale variability of the most damaging winds has led to a focus on the role of sting jets in enhancing windstorm severity. We present a present-era climatology of North Atlantic cyclones that had potential to produce sting jets. Considering only explosively-developing cyclones, those with sting-jet potential are more likely to have higher relative vorticity and associated low-level wind maxima. Furthermore, the strongest winds for sting-jet cyclones are more often in the cool sector, behind the cold front, when compared with other explosively-developing cyclones which commonly have strong warm-sector winds too. The tracks of sting-jet cyclones, and explosively-developing cyclones in general, show little offset from the climatological storm track. While rare over Europe, sting-jet cyclones are relatively frequent within the main storm track with up to one third of extratropical cyclones exhibiting sting-jet potential. Thus, the rarity and, until recently, lack of description of sting-jet windstorms is more due to the climatological storm track location away from highly-populated land masses, than due to an actual rarity of such storms in nature.

Physical aspects of Hurricane Hugo in Puerto Rico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Scatena, F.N.; Larsen, Matthew C.

1991-01-01

On 18 September 1989 the western part ofHurricane Hugo crossed eastern Puerto Rico and the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF). Storm-facing slopes on the northeastern part of the island that were within 15 km of the eye and received greater than 200 mm of rain were most affected by the storm. In the LEF and nearby area, recurrence intervals associated with Hurricane Hugo were 50 yr for wind velocity, 10 to 31 yr for stream discharge, and 5 yr for rainfall intensity. To compare the magnitudes of the six hurricanes to pass over PuertoRico since 1899, 3 indices were developed using the standardized values of the product of: the maximum sustained wind speed at San Juan squared and storm duration; the square of the product of the maximum sustained wind velocity at San Juan and the ratio of the distance between the hurricane eye and San Juan to the distance between the eye and percentage of average annual rainfall delivered by the storm. Based on these indices, HurricaneHugo was of moderate intensity. However, because of the path of Hurricane Hugo, only one of these six storms (the 1932 storm) caused more damage to the LEF than Hurricane Hugo. Hurricanes of Hugo's magnitude are estimated to pass over the LEF once every 50-60 yr, on average.