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 Previous: Amateur Radio BPL Team to Stress Credibility |  Next: Space Station Tour Providing Lots of Reading Time, Astronaut Tells Youngsters |
NEWINGTON, CT, Aug 12, 2004--Hurricane Charley has been upgraded to a Category 2 storm packing sustained winds of nearly 105 MPH with higher gusts. With the storm expected to make landfall somewhere along Florida's Gulf Coast, Amateur Radio Emergency Service teams in the ARRL West Central Florida Section are already activated or preparing to activate. Forecasters says Charley could develop into a Category 3 storm by the time it comes ashore.
"It is a nice sunny Florida day today here in Sarasota," said ARRL West Central Florida Section Manager Dave Armbrust, AE4MR. "Hard to imagine that we may be looking at a totally different picture tomorrow." It's still not clear just where Hurricane Charley will make landfall, but Armbrust says emergency management officials in Pinellas and Sarasota counties have called for mandatory evacuations of some areas. Schools are expected to be closed August 13 throughout the region. As of 1800 UTC, Charley was 190 miles south-southeast of Havana, Cuba, moving northwesterly at nearly 17 MPH.
"Charlotte County emergency officials have declared a state of emergency as well," Armbrust reports, "and will be evacuating all of the county's barrier islands and mobile home parks. Voluntary evacuations have also begun in Manatee County as well."
Armbrust is encouraging all Florida ARES members to be ready in case they're needed in their communities or for mutual aid in another affected county elsewhere in the state. He said he's also been in touch with Northern Florida SM Rudy Hubbard, WA4PUP, and Southern Florida SM Sherri Brower, W4STB. Southern Florida Section Emergency Coordinator Jim Goldsberry, KD4GR, reported that a special session of the South Florida ARES Net (SFAN) was called up on 7242 kHz early this afternoon.
Tropical Storm Bonnie came ashore earlier today near Apalachicola, but as of this afternoon, no evacuations under way in Northern Florida. Forecasters say remnants of the two storms could follow each other up the Eastern Seaboard this weekend. Heavy rain rather than high winds is the main fear from Bonnie, although forecasters have raised the possibility of isolated tornadoes.
The Hurricane Watch Net continues operation on 14.325 MHz, working in cooperation with WX4NHC at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The HWN Web site contains links to current NHC forecasts. HWN Manager Mike Pilgrim, K5MP, says that given the storm's potential path into Florida, the net may need to stay running through August 14 "at a minimum." The HWN activated August 11 as Charley threatened the southern coast of Jamaica. WX4NHC Amateur Radio Coordinator John McHugh, K4AG, said the station was expected to maintain operations through August 13.
During hurricane emergencies trained HWN members provide essential communication support to WX4NHC, which disseminates storm updates via the net. The HWN also collects observed or measured weather data and post-storm damage reports via Amateur Radio in the affected areas and relays that information to forecasters via WX4NHC, which also gathers similar data via the Internet from non-Amateur Radio sources. The ground-level weather data assists NHC forecasters in predicting a storm's path and behavior.
Georgia SEC Mike Boatright, KO4WX, says the Georgia State Operations Center (SOC) was operational earlier today and in the monitoring stage, although state officials anticipate activation August 13 depending on conditions.
"Even if Georgia does not suffer significant damage or flooding, remember that many residents of North Florida may be evacuated into shelters in Georgia, and we may still need to respond to support health and welfare traffic," he said in a message to Georgia SM Susan Swiderski, AF4FO, for relay to emergency coordinators. "Although the storm itself--assuming its current track--will most likely affect only Southeast District counties, we should prepare for a statewide response," he said.
North Carolina also has been preparing for anticipated heavy rainfall from the two storms. ARRL North Carolina Section Manager John Covington, W4CC, said North Carolina Emergency Management was expected to activate its Eastern Branch Office emergency operations center today.
"The Amateur Radio station at the Eastern Branch Office will be staffed, but no word yet whether the Tar Heel Emergency Net will be activated beyond its regular schedule," Covington told ARRL. "It's too early to tell if it will be needed. We are alert, aware and preparing, just in case."
Meanwhile, the government of Cuba has issued a hurricane warning for several western provinces. In Cuba, International Amateur Radio Union Region 2 Area C Emergency Coordinator Arnie Coro, CO2KK, reports amateurs there already have activated emergency nets and have been in contact with the HWN. Emergency nets in Cuba are operating LSB between 7040 and 7090 kHz and also on 7110 kHz during daylight hours. Nighttime operations will shift to between 3710 and 3750 kHz.
The NHC says storm surges of 2 to 4 feet are expected in the Florida Keys and 6 to 10 feet along Florida's southwestern coastline. The hurricane could generate 4 to 8 inches of rain, resulting in flash floods and mudslides.
The American Red Cross was expected to open five special-needs shelters in the Miami area. The Salvation Army has announced it's preparing for both Bonnie and Charlie with a three-front disaster response in Florida. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) announced Wednesday that it would activate on 14.265 MHz when needed to assist in providing emergency communication into the affected area as well as to handle health-and-welfare inquiries.
Forecasters say the two-storm scenario is a rare occurrence that hasn't happened for at least 50 years.
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