Notices by AI6YR Ben (ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org), page 4

Tropical Storm Milton now expected to be a strong hurricane (ie Cat 3+) when it reaches Florida. The computer models for intensity-- not official, not reliable--are spitting out everything form TS to Cat 5 now, but an indication of the potential. I'd most certainly be scrambling to prep and be ready to evacuate if necessary in that cone for sure. #Milton #TSMilton #FLwx #HurricaneMilton

** me: "they're going to evacuate your school and county too late, you should just get on a plane today"
them: "but, we have classes still! I can't miss classes"
(the next day, after airports close)
them: "they cancelled classes! We have to shelter in place!"
(during hurricane)
them: "dad, what do we do, there is water coming in through the light fixtures!!!"

No evacuations yet for Florida. Place your bets for how long it takes them to pull the trigger.

(one of my kids just finished school in Florida, and the rule there was "evacuation after the airport is closed and all flights cancelled, and you can't get out of the hurricane zone in time by driving") #FLwx #Milton

More support for my contention that generators are mostly not useful in a "worst disaster in a generation" type storms:

"Fuel generators were nearly worthless after a few days because people ran out of gas. "

https://mastodon.social/@AlexanderMars/113249611174698229

#DisasterPreparedness #disasters #power

Interview with the main net controller for the ham radio net which has been handling health and welfare traffic in the Hurricane Helene impacted areas of North Dakota, K2DMG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jXb9zwnO70

#hamradio #NCSTRONG #NCwx #Helene

***The folly of humans. We know this is an ancient landslide. The City of Rancho Palos Verdes says the slide has been moving since 1956 (its most recently start of sliding). The City spends $1M a year resurfacing streets there. The utility have to move lines. WHY DO PEOPLE STILL LIVE THERE?!?! https://www.rpvca.gov/1591/Background

ABC7: SoCalGas cuts service indefinitely for 135 Rancho Palos Verdes homes amid land movement https://abc7.com/post/amid-land-movement-gas-shut-off-135-homes/15117149/ #PortugueseBend

Few of the people living there I suspect were living there before 1956. There's always the possibility, too, that there is a big rain combined with a big earthquake and it all goes "FLOOMP!" into the Pacific. #hubris https://www.rpvca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/22333/2024-GPS-Survey---July-PDF

@me_valentijn @HayiWena That's interesting, never thought about property boundaries. Maybe a question for @mappingsupport on how you manage property boundaries when your house is slip sliding away into the Pacific, LOL. (he knows a lot about mapping out property boundaries)

Elderly relatives traded in their (paid for) car--fairly new-- to start leasing (because they want the "latest and greatest safety features"), and I am seriously wondering about their decision making skills. 😬

Disaster Preparedness Lessons (so far) from observing the disaster in Western North Carolina the last few days:

1. Stay on top of emergency water supply. Lack of drinking water is the biggest issue (and continues to be an issue) in Western North Carolina, people without anything to drink after a flood. This would be an issue in California after a major earthquake, too.

2. Write down the phone numbers for out of the area contacts and put them with emergency supplies. A number of outbound messages were not delivered due to incorrect phone numbers and inability to remember/pull up phone numbers from phones/etc.
(continued) #DisasterPreparedness #disasters

CBS: Hurricanes indirectly cause thousands of deaths for nearly 15 years after a storm, study finds https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricanes-deaths-15-years-after-a-storm-study/ #disasters #health #hurricanes

City of Asheville:

WATER UTILITY SERVICE

When will service be restored?

Tropical Storm Helene severely damaged the production and distribution system of the City of Asheville’s water system. Extensive repairs are required to treatment facilities, underground and aboveground water pipes, and to roads that have washed away.

That repair process has already begun and critical materials arrived at North Fork and Mills River on Tuesday (10/1) and are already being worked into the distribution system.

Although providing a precise timeline is impossible, it is important to note that restoring service to the full system could potentially take weeks.

#Asheville #Helene #NCSTRONG #NCwx #water

City of Asheville

CELLULAR SERVICE

Temporary Verizon cellular satellite trailers are located at the Family Justice Center at 35 Woodfin Street and Groce United Methodist Church at 954 Tunnel Road. These towers offer limited cellular reception within several city blocks of where it is parked. Additionally, T-Mobile has set up satellite cellular on light trucks in Asheville, providing cellular service along with Wi-Fi and charging stations at: Asheville Middle School at 211 S French Broad Ave, and Dr. Wesley Grant Sr. Southside Community Center at 285 Livingston St.

#Asheville #Helene #NCSTRONG #NCwx #BuncombeCounty

City of Asheville

10/2/24 9:30am update

The City has received water supplies and is distributing at the locations below. Resources continue to be limited and residents are advised to conserve.

Distribution Locations:

Pack Square Park (70 Court Plaza): Bring your own water container, 2 gallons per person/day, walk-up

Asheville Middle School (211 S. French Broad Ave): 1 case of bottled water per family/day, drive thru

https://www.ashevillenc.gov/news/tropical-storm-helene-recovery-resources/
#Helene #Asheville #NCSTRONG #NCwx #BuncombeCounty

I have had a lot of people ask about the test to becoming a ham radio operator, one resource is http://hamstudy.org/

The test is a multiple choice test, with the answers already published, plus a few simple math formulas. I have heard of people studying for a week or two and cramming the question/learning the formulas and getting their license immediately. I personally recommend getting the license FIRST before worrying about operating the radio/etc., as it's a lot easier to have a license and have someone guide you through the actual operation after you can transmit on the air.

Mules (!) being used to pack supplies to some communities in North Carolina. #NCwx #helene #NCSTRONG

@itnomad Heard on the broadcastify stream for the local West North Carolina repeater. There apparently is someone in Weaverville arranging a mule train for supplies to the harder hit areas https://www.broadcastify.com/webPlayer/43107

City of Asheville (9/30/24 2:43pm ET) #Asheville #NCwx #NC #NCSTRONG #Helene

Arstechnica:

"As of Monday morning, if one wanted to grasp the historic nature of flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Helene in western parts of North Carolina and the surrounding areas, the logical place to begin is at the National Climatic Data Center.

This federal office maintains the world's largest climate data archive and provides historical perspective to put present-day weather conditions and natural disasters into context in a warming world due to climate change.

Unfortunately, the National Climatic Data Center is based in Asheville, North Carolina. "

https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/09/were-only-beginning-to-understand-the-historic-nature-of-helenes-flooding/

#ClimateEmergency #disasters #climate #NCSTRONG #Asheville