Tag Archives: hurricanes

Reuters reports: The U.S. federal disaster agency FEMA has sharply reduced training for state and local emergency managers ahead of the start of the hurricane season on June 1, according to current and former officials, memos seen by Reuters, and three sources familiar with the situation. The training cutbacks could leave storm-prone communities less prepared to handle the often devastating …

Florida Politics reports: Gov. Ron DeSantis likes DOGE so much he ripped it off for his own policy proposals this year, starting a DOGE Task Force of his own. But he’s voicing some criticisms of how the federal effort is operating. During a talk in Idaho, DeSantis cited what he called a “dustup about the National Weather Service,” referring to …

The Associated Press reports: With massive job cuts, the National Weather Service is eliminating or reducing vital weather balloon launches in eight more northern locations, which meteorologists and former agency leaders said will degrade the accuracy of forecasts just as severe weather season kicks in. The normally twice-daily launches of weather balloons provide information that forecasters and computer models use …

The Pensacola News-Journal reports: AccuWeather predicts that Hurricane Sara could form as early as Friday morning, shortly after it becomes a tropical storm. From there, it’s expected to take less than 24 hours for the storm to become a major hurricane. Where could Hurricane Sara ultimately end up? Florida, of course. Sara will likely be a major Category 3 hurricane …

The Washington Post reports: There’s a growing chance that a new storm will form in the Caribbean late this week. And, while uncertainty remains, the system could strengthen into a hurricane by this weekend and emerge in the Gulf of Mexico next week. It’s an ominous sign for this late in the hurricane season, which has already featured five U.S. …

USA Today reports: Tropical Storm Rafael strengthened Tuesday on its path toward the Cayman Islands and Cuba as weather officials in the U.S. monitored the storm for potential impacts to the Gulf Coast. Rafael swiped Jamaica on Tuesday and is forecast to intensify into a hurricane near the Cayman Islands and gain more steam ahead of its expected landfall in …

The Pensacola News-Journal reports: The National Hurricane Center has increased the chances of a tropical disturbance furthering development in the southwestern Caribbean Sea over the next seven days. A tropical depression could develop over the weekend or early next week as the system drifts into the central or western Caribbean, where conditions will likely be conducive for further strengthening. Tropical …

USA Today reports: A storm system in the Caribbean rapidly escalated Saturday from a tropical storm into Hurricane Oscar, the 10th hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Forecasters said Oscar’s winds were much stronger than previously thought and declared the system a hurricane at 2 p.m. ET. Oscar’s maximum sustained winds were about 80 mph with stronger gusts, which …

The Tallahassee Democrat reports: Flesh-eating bacteria cases have surged in the last few weeks since Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton swept through, according to data from the Florida Department of Health. Vibrio vulnificusa, a naturally occurring but potentially fatal bacterial infection, thrives in warm floodwaters when hurricanes and tropical storms push brackish water along the coast and into rivers and …

NBC News reports: Fresh off the one-two punch of Helene and Milton, hurricane victims in Florida — even those with insurance — face a challenging recovery. The insurance industry is categorizing the storms as two separate events, meaning anyone who did not or could not document damage from Helene could face even greater odds that their claim will be denied …

Florida Politics reports: More than 1.5 million remain without power almost three days after feeling the first effects of Hurricane Milton. Most major utility providers have now provided timelines for when service should come back online. Outages include more than 581,000 Duke Energy customers, almost 428,000 Florida Power & Light (FPL) accounts and more than 420,000 Tampa Electric Company (TECO) …

Reuters reports: The brutal wind and torrential rainfall of Hurricane Milton that killed 16 people in Florida this week were worsened by human-caused climate change, a team of international scientists said on Friday. Global warming made wind speeds around 10% stronger and rainfall greater by between 20% and 30%, according to an analysis by World Weather Attribution. Previous scientific analyses …

USA Today reports: As of Friday morning, 2.2 million Floridians were still without power, according to the USA TODAY power outage tracker. The west-central coast continues to be the hardest hit, with 483,225 residents in Hillsborough County and another 460,544 in Pinellas County still in the dark. In Pasco County, 113,745 power outages were reported. Further south, 152,471 residents in …

CNN reports: The eye of Hurricane Milton, which traveled overnight from near the Tampa Bay area east toward Orlando and Cape Canaveral, is now moving past the Florida peninsula and exiting the east coast, according to CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam. But the storm – currently a Category 1 hurricane – is still slamming parts of the coast with onshore …

Ars Technica reports: On Tuesday evening during a measurement flight, the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center dropped the ashes of Peter Dodge, a longtime radar scientist and hurricane hunter, in the eye of Hurricane Milton. The drop honored Dodge’s 44-year career and his contributions to radar meteorology and tropical cyclone research. As the powerful and dangerous storm bears down on Florida, …

The Weather Channel reports: H​urricane Milton will make landfall in Florida tonight into early Thursday where it poses a major threat to life and property as it hammers the state with destructive storm surge, devastating wind damage, potentially catastrophic flooding rainfall and several tornadoes. Bands of heavy rain containing strong wind gusts are spreading across parts of the state well …

Deadline reports: The White House has launched a Reddit account to provide information on Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The account — user name u/whitehouse — went live this afternoon, including a photo of President Biden receiving a briefing on the situation, and an update on federal disaster assistance resources. The social media account also is being started as the White …

ABC News reports: Hurricane Milton strengthened to a Category 5 storm on Monday as it takes aim at Florida’s west coast. Landfall is expected as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. Milton is closing in as Floridians are still recovering from the devastation unleashed by Hurricane Helene. A record-breaking storm surge of 8 to 12 feet …

The Weather Channel reports: Hurricane Milton has rapidly intensified into a strong Category 3 and hurricane and storm surge watches are now posted along Florida’s western Gulf Coast, where the storm poses threats of life-threatening storm surge, destructive winds and flooding rainfall by midweek. “Milton will be a historic storm for the west coast of Florida,” the National Weather Service …

The Weather Channel reports: Milton has rapidly intensified into a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, as of Sunday afternoon. The storm is expected to continue to strengthen before making landfall as a major hurricane threat on the west coast of Florida sometime on Wednesday. Much of the current computer guidance suggests that a stronger hurricane threat for Florida is …