August 28, 2005 National Weather Service warning

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August 28, 2005 National Weather Service warning

Postby Webb » Thu Aug 28, 2014 7:34 pm

This is the text of the (US) National Weather Service warning as Hurricane Katrina was about to hit New Orleans.

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URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW ORLEANS LA
1011 AM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005

...DEVASTATING DAMAGE EXPECTED...

.HURRICANE KATRINA...A MOST POWERFUL HURRICANE WITH UNPRECEDENTED
STRENGTH...RIVALING THE INTENSITY OF HURRICANE CAMILLE OF 1969.

MOST OF THE AREA WILL BE UNINHABITABLE FOR WEEKS...PERHAPS LONGER. AT
LEAST ONE HALF OF WELL CONSTRUCTED HOMES WILL HAVE ROOF AND WALL
FAILURE. ALL GABLED ROOFS WILL FAIL...LEAVING THOSE HOMES SEVERELY
DAMAGED OR DESTROYED.

THE MAJORITY OF INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS WILL BECOME NON FUNCTIONAL.
PARTIAL TO COMPLETE WALL AND ROOF FAILURE IS EXPECTED. ALL WOOD
FRAMED LOW RISING APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL BE DESTROYED. CONCRETE
BLOCK LOW RISE APARTMENTS WILL SUSTAIN MAJOR DAMAGE...INCLUDING SOME
WALL AND ROOF FAILURE.

HIGH RISE OFFICE AND APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL SWAY DANGEROUSLY...A
FEW TO THE POINT OF TOTAL COLLAPSE. ALL WINDOWS WILL BLOW OUT.

AIRBORNE DEBRIS WILL BE WIDESPREAD...AND MAY INCLUDE HEAVY ITEMS SUCH
AS HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES AND EVEN LIGHT VEHICLES. SPORT UTILITY
VEHICLES AND LIGHT TRUCKS WILL BE MOVED. THE BLOWN DEBRIS WILL CREATE
ADDITIONAL DESTRUCTION. PERSONS...PETS...AND LIVESTOCK EXPOSED TO THE
WINDS WILL FACE CERTAIN DEATH IF STRUCK.

POWER OUTAGES WILL LAST FOR WEEKS...AS MOST POWER POLES WILL BE DOWN
AND TRANSFORMERS DESTROYED. WATER SHORTAGES WILL MAKE HUMAN SUFFERING
INCREDIBLE BY MODERN STANDARDS.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF NATIVE TREES WILL BE SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. ONLY
THE HEARTIEST WILL REMAIN STANDING...BUT BE TOTALLY DEFOLIATED. FEW
CROPS WILL REMAIN. LIVESTOCK LEFT EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL BE
KILLED.

AN INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS NEAR
HURRICANE FORCE...OR FREQUENT GUSTS AT OR ABOVE HURRICANE FORCE...ARE
CERTAIN WITHIN THE NEXT 12 TO 24 HOURS.

ONCE TROPICAL STORM AND HURRICANE FORCE WINDS ONSET...DO NOT VENTURE
OUTSIDE!

You can't always anticipate human stupidity so no one thought to add, "The Superdome is not safe. Do not attempt to take refuge there."
"Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!" - Sen. John Blutarsky

You know, this used to be a helluva good country. I don't understand what's gone wrong with it. - George Hanson, 1969

A bad day at golf is better than a good day at work.


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Re: August 28, 2005 National Weather Service warning

Postby Apex » Fri Aug 29, 2014 10:46 am

We here in S Florida have been lucky since 2005, the year of Katrina and Wilma, with nothing at us since. Both 2005 storms passed near here, I forget exactly where, and after both I spent 20+ hours cleaning up my yard. I have since gotten rid of all trees within striking distance of my house. The house, which belonged to my parents, has seen every storm pass thru since 1954 with no damage whatsoever to it, altho during Katrina a tree fell a bit too close. We get plenty of warning, usually, certainly nowadays since August 1992 Andrew, which came up on us pretty quickly, but you don't wanna hafta go thru a hurricane, period. Even if there's no damage to your place, there's damage to other places, and the power outage, especially in the summer heat, is another major problem. 2005, only 1-2 days both storms, but Andrew, for me, 7 days. Other areas after Andrew were out for weeks. Andrew was small, fast moving (3 hrs and it was over), but very powerful and caused considerable damage like we never had before. The aftermath of these powerful storms is always pretty bad. And of course there's always the tragic loss of life.
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Re: August 28, 2005 National Weather Service warning

Postby Steve M » Fri Aug 29, 2014 3:39 pm

Katrina, so powerful it made it's way all the way up into Ontario and Quebec. Although it had diminished to heavy rains and winds Katrina still managed to flood my basement, overland more than 1000 miles from its landfall in New Orleans. :obscene-tolietpush:
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