Hurricane Katrina at 10: Covering The Storm Live
On August 24, 2005, AccuWeather.com decided to do something unprecedented for a website -- send a news team into the path of the storm. It was the heyday of "Streaming Video" -- for the kids, that's low-bandwidth reception of video based on your available bandwidth (anybody remember "Buffering...?") Here's a cheesy 2005 website and flip-phone screenshot:
The AccuWeather website circa 2005. The mobile phone site was actually a mockup - it didn't look that good
All My Hurricane Katrina at 10 Blogs:
AccuWeather.com Special Reports: Remembering Hurricane Katrina 10 Years Later
So, AccuWeather.com News Director Steve Penstone and Videographer Vern Horst headed off to Florida to watch Tropical Storm Katrina come ashore. They then followed her track through Florida and onto the Mississippi coast. Never-before-seen B-roll footage from their trip is shown here (their hotel's facade falls off around the 2-minute mark).
At the last minute the night before Hurricane Katrina was to come onshore near New Orleans, and because of the looming Category 5 landfall, AccuWeather pulled the plug on the coastal reporting (wisely) for safety reasons, and the team got out of Mississippi and holed up in Mobile, Alabama. It was supposed to be far enough away from the storm to be safe but they still got some incredible footage as trees fell, downtown went under water, and their hotel was torn apart by high winds. The success of the trip painted the way for us to cover future hurricanes in the (insane) 2005 Hurricane Season.
I thought it was important, on the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, to bring back a tape of their live reports (transmitted in 240p but fortunately archived in their native 480p resolution for your viewing pleasure).
Below are Steve Penstone's blogs for AccuWeather.com, which had been offline for some time, but I have now resurrected for you, the readers.
What's left of Tropical Depression 10 just isn't going away, and now it's got us thinking of activating the AccuWeather Hurricane team. Ten and a seperate wave are getting pretty chummy, and Joe Bastardi and the other meteos I've been talking to are thinking this activity is headed towards Florida by as early as Friday. Does it become Katrina, or is it just a rainmaker? That is the question that has yet to be answered. When JB admits the pattern for the next 7-10 has him in a quandry, that's gotta make you concerned!
The Hurricane Hunter plane is headed out today, so we should have a better idea of what this mess is up to later in the day.
In addition to the action in the islands there's a pair of waves headed east from Africa. Hmm, better pack some extra clothes!
Brief blog today, because the AccuWeather Hurricane Team is gearing up to head to South Florida.
On this 13th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew's arrival in South Florida Tropical Depression 12 became Tropical Storm Katrina, the 11th named system of the season. At 8:00 AM EDT Katrina was about 70 miles SE of Nassau, and about 250 miles ESE of the south coast of Florida.
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the northern Bahamas, where they're expecting 4-8" of rain. South Florida is under a Tropical Storm Watch from The Keys to Vero Beach.
Right now winds have moved above 40 mph as Katrina moves NE at about 7 mph, but she's expected to gain strength over the next 24 hours.
Joe Bastardi thinks Katrina could be up to hurricane strength by the time it gets to south Florida late tomorrow night or early on Friday, and from there she heads into the Gulf. Joe Lundberg tells me if Katrina stays close to Florida's west coast, the bathwater in the Gulf will give it a chance to really pick up some strength before it gets to the Florida panhandle. By the looks of the track, Vern Horst and me will likely be heading from South Beach to Ft. Walton Beach, our home during Hurricane Dennis.
I'll be updating the blog as time permits. Hope you enjoy our video coverage from Florida -- if JB is right, #12 could be right on Kat's heels, and we could be down there for a while!
BUT WHERE'S THE SUN?
8:00 AM EDT on the Katrina Watch
It's great working for a company that says to you "Hey, pack a bag because you're leaving for Florida this afternoon." Too bad that every time I get down here the weather blows -- literally! But then, if it didn't I wouldn't be here.
Folks down here are waiting for Katrina -- already this morning we're getting rain here in Ft. Lauderdale, but the heaviest rain is east of Katrina's center and won't be over Florida until late tonight into Friday morning.
Officials aren't taking chances -- schools in Miami-Dade and Broward counties are on a snow -er- hurricane day. Broward County has issued a non-mandatory evacuation order for residents of the barrier islands and mobile home communities, and shelters will be opening this afternoon.
The big concern is flooding -- South Florida has been swamped this summer -- especially on the west side. Ft. Myers has received 19.17" since July 1! That's about 18% above normal. Katrina's expected to dump up to a foot by the time she's done.
OK -- off to shoot our first update (after a good breakfast, of course). More to come later!
MID-DAY REPORT
Kids down here sure know what to do when school gets cancelled == SURF'S UP DUDE! Hollywood Beach was pretty much deserted, except for two guys who were enjoying the waves. You can check out our report from the beach and my chat with the boogie-boarders.
Further to the north Dania Beach was definitely the place to hang out -- or hang ten. A good crowd of kids -- but most of them were just sitting on their boards -- as Verne says, "they're waiting for the perfect wave, dude!" A few actually got up on both feet, and one actually made it close to shore.
As for Katrina, her impact so far has been mostly rain -- the wind was more of a stiff breeze at the noon hour -- although the 1 PM update puts about 40 miles ENE of Ft. Lauderdale, with winds of 65 mph and gusts to 75.
Don't forget to check out the video updates -- also available to Verizon and Sprint wireless customers.
More later in the day -- and likely into the night.
KAT NO KITTEN
9:00 PM update from Gainesville, FL -- home of the Swamp and them Gators.
OK, so the title was a reach, but it's been a long couple of days! Tough to keep the blog updated when there's no power, and hence no internet access! So here's a look at what we observed in Ft. Lauderdale.
I don't think there's any doubt that Hurricane Katrina caught pretty much everyone in South Florida by suprise -- me included. If you take at look at our early reports from Thursday we talked about how there was little wind and lots of rain. How quickly that changed!
As we drove around the Ft. Lauderdale area during the day it struck me that people really didn't seem to be too concerned about Katrina. I didn't see the boarded homes and businesses that we saw in Ft. Walton Beach in advance of Dennis. The word that comes to mind is nonchalant -- perhaps because Broward County hadn't taken a direct hit from a Hurricane in 41 years -- perhaps because all of the reports, including mine, said Katrina was a pretty tame hurricane. WRONG!
I saw much more damage this morning from Category 1 Katrina than I saw along the Florida Panhandle in the aftermath of Dennis, which was a Category 3 storm when it struck last month. Go figure! Downed trees, power poles and power lines made driving difficult -- tragically three people were killed by falling trees and another died when his car struck a tree. The total death toll in South Florida is six -- but five family members feared missing while sailing to the Keys were found safe on an island.
Flooding was a big problem, especially in Miami-Dade County. And an overpass under construction is now an underpass -- the span was knocked down onto the Dolphin freeway near Miami.
Power was out almost everywhere - a million and a half Florida Power & Light customers were in the dark, and probably will be for a day or more.
After slamming South Florida Kat moved into the Gulf and took aim at the Keys today, dumping more than a foot of rain as she churned all the way back up to Category 2 strength. Looks like it'll be Cat-3 or even stronger by the time she gets to the Gulf Coast.
Right now it looks like we may be headed back to Ft. Walton Beach, but it's possible Kat may go further west towards Biloxi or even the Big Easy. No matter, we'll be bringing you more video reports on "Kat - Part Deux!"
Time to wrap it up -- we're hitting the road early in the morning.
KATRINA'S WRATH
7:30 AM CDT Monday update from Mobile, AL.
Trying to keep the blog updated is going to be hit or miss as I type around the power outages here at our hotel in Mobile. When I woke at about 4:30 conditions weren't too bad -- lots of rain but the wind was fairly benign. Since then it's gone to hell in a handbasket.
Katrina's eye has come ashore south of New Orleans, and here 130 miles or so to the east conditions are worsening by the minute. The wind gust are only in the 60's, the rain is horizontal and stings us as we shoot outside the hotel lobby. I don't think we're going to shoot from anywhere else anytime soon -- it's simply to unsafe to drive.
Saw a report that Hwy 90 in Gulfport is under water this morning. We shot some reports from there on Saturday and Sunday -- I hope our hosts at the Holiday Inn Beachfront got out in time.
Parts of Mobile are already flooding -- we're on high ground so we should be OK. Further south on Dauphin Island, where we shot last night's video, the flooding is much more severe.
Further to the east there's evacuations in the Pensacola area. As we've been saying all along, Katrina is impacting the entire Gulf Coast, and in fact the entire South.
I'll update later -- if I can.
IN THE WAKE OF KATRINA
8:00 AM CDT Tuesday update from Montgomery, AL.
Up too early this morning to file updates with our friends at 1010 WINS in NYC, but the early rise has given me a chance to try and grasp the absolute catastrophe that is Hurricane Katrina.
The death toll has climbed above 60 and will no doubt soar as search crews get into the flood ravaged areas along the Gulf Coast, especially in Mississippi.
One official in Biloxi called the deaths "avoidable" -- I hate to sound callous, but the cop in me makes me ask what part of GET OUT did the victims not understand?
Talked to a Mississippi Power Co. employee at our hotel this morning. She's from Gulfport, and is worried because she can't get in touch with her family. Hoping that it's just because phone service is out, and I hope that they were able to get to safety. She also told me that one of her two homes is gone, and the massive Copa Casino has also been wiped out. After seeing the size of that place it's hard to get my mind around that. And I have to wonder if the other Gulf Coast casinos in Gulfport and Biloxi suffered simliar fates. Today was to be the grand opening of the Hard Rock Casino in Biloxi.
Have to wonder about a number of sports teams -- most notably the New Orleans Saints. Part of the Superdome roof was blown away -- will it be deemed safe for any events. The Mississippi Sea Wolves of the East Coast Hockey League play at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum right across from the beach where we shot one of our updates. Then there's Tulane U. in New Orleans, and of course all of the high school football teams in the south that will have their schedules, and indeed their lives, disrupted.
On a lighter note, the folks at Gulfport's Marine Life Oceanarium moved their dolphins to the pool at the Holiday Inn, and they came through just swimmingly!
And a tip of the cap to the management of the Embassy Suites here in Montgomery. They turned this incredible hotel into a pet-friendly facility -- a great relief to the evacuees. I guess you could say that's two hotels we've been in that have gone to the dogs!
Finally, a big thanks to Vern Horst for his great camera and editing work. Thanks to all of the meterologists for keeping us up to date, especially when our internet service went out. And thanks to the IT gang led by Gene Dupler and Brad Pike -- they went the extra mile to help us get our video reports online.
If you have any bouquets or brickbats about our coverage of Katrina, send me an e-mail
BUT DOES ANYONE CARE?
10:00 AM CDT Tuesday update from the Mothership.
Biloxi Mayor AJ Holloway equates the situation along the Gulf Coast to the devastation caused by last December's tsunami in South Asia, and rightly so. And with floodwaters rising in New Orleans a grim situation is getting even more desperate. Mayor Ray Nagin said this morning it could be three to four months before residents will be allowed to return -- but what will they have to return to?
New Orleans is a city on the verge of anarchy -- looting is rampant, even under the eyes of the overstressed cops and National Guardsmen. Bodies are being pushed aside as rescuers try to reach anyone still trapped, although that number may be dwindling. How many people have perished waiting to be rescued by crews that simply couldn't get to them?
Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco has ordered a complete evacuation of the city -- reports this morning that those who have been staying in the Superdome are going to be relocated to the Houston Astrodome, where at least the air conditioning will be working.
Same situation further east in places like Bay St. Louis, Gulfport and Biloxi -- even as far as Mobile. Total devastation and a refugee situation unlike any in recent memory. Camille devastated the coast in 1969, but the economic impact of Katrina will likely be far, far greater than even Hurricane Andrew.
The threat of a health catastrophe is unthinkable -- rotting corpses combining with the toxic soup of sea water, sewage and who the heck knows what else will contaminate the South Coast for months and perhaps even longer!
So that leads me and others to ask this question -- where are the offers of assistance from other nations? When catastrophes like the December tsunami strike impoverished nations it's the U.S. that leads the way in rescue and recovery efforts, but should there be a quid pro quo? Canada has stepped up, according to a government statement:
"On behalf of all Canadians, I wish to extend our heartfelt condolences to those who have lost loved ones as a result of Hurricane Katrina, as well as our sympathies to those who have suffered great losses and personal hardship," said Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan. "During this difficult time, we are offering our support to our friends and neighbours."
The Deputy Prime Minister added that she has contacted U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and advised him that Canada stands ready to provide assistance if needed. In addition, the Minister of Health, Ujjal Dosanjh, has directed the Public Health Agency of Canada to contact the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and offer any assistance that may be helpful, such as emergency medical supplies contained in the National Emergency Stockpile System.
Let's hope that other nations follow suit.
GET OUT
I've received one e-mail taking me to task for my comment yesterday about what one official described as "avoidable" deaths in Biloxi. Clayton Price of New York City says "those who didn't are the very poor, who simply haven't the means to get moving like the rest of the more fortunate of us."
You are right Mr. Price, but my point was that there were "last resort" shelters set up all along the coast, and as my colleague Jesse Ferrell said this morning "even the poorest folks can walk to higher ground." Jesse is a North Carolinian, and knows a heck of a lot more about hurricanes than I do.
Believe me when I say I sympathize with the victims but let me quote Terry Ebbert, Chief of Homeland Security for New Orleans -- "Some of them it was their last night on Earth. That's a hard way to learn a lesson"
LESSONS FROM HISTORY
Elliot Abrams has provided me with something he wrote on Sept. 28, 1998 after Hurricane Georges struck the Gulf Coast:
In the wake of a devastating storm like Georges, the people who live in the affected area have to deal with big disruptions in their lives. Little things we take for granted become major inconveniences and some of them are potentially dangerous. These effects last long after the TV crews have departed and the sound bites are stored away for station promos.
Some examples: 1. The hurricane winds and flying debris have cut thousands of power lines. These have to be restrung one and at a time...and in cases where houses and buildings have been destroyed, there's nothing to string them to. 2. In early days, buildings in the deep south were constructed to take advantage of breezes. There was no air conditioning, and so cross ventilation in southern homes was essential for any hope of comfort. The main population surge in the south did not occur air conditioning became available. Once air conditioning became widespread, the old designs were abandoned and now many buildings have inadequate ventilation if the air conditioning goes out. In the existing heat and humidity heat, this is not only uncomfortable, but potentially life threatening. 3. At the same time, many water systems are affected by contamination from flooding and seawater. Pollution from overtaxed storm sewers enters waterways, lakes and beach areas. In the hardest hit areas, just the simple act of finding a bathroom and maintaining cleanliness becomes a major chore. 4. Without power, of course, there is no refrigeration, and tons of food wind up worthless. Restaurants without backup power have the same problem, and health officials have to monitor to make sure tainted food is not served. Sump pumps don't work and basements get flooded. 5. In the puddles and ponds left behind by the storm rains, extra insects flourish, and these become extra annoying. In areas with heavy damage or no power, people cannot close their windows, and so extra mosquitoes and other pests become a real nuisance. Improper handling of rotting food creates an extra attraction for these unwelcome visitors, and causes additional health hazards. 6. Snakes, some poisonous, come out of nowhere to terrorize and threaten pets and people. 7. Millions of carpets, drapes and articles of clothing received water damage, and now mold and mildew become widespread where the items can't be dried fast enough. 8. Where businesses have been destroyed, employment is disrupted as well as schedules for just about all other activities. 9. There's a day care nightmare. Parents have even more to do because of the cleanup and the efforts to secure food and water. At the same time, all the debris adds extra danger for children picking through the rubble and shattered shards of glass. The normal routine of calling friends and relatives or getting a baby sitter becomes a frustrating experience as phone service is disrupted.
THANKS SAM!
Finally today, I mentioned several behind the scenes members of the AccuWeather team who helped Vern Horst and I while we were in the South covering Katrina, but I forgot to thank one of the most important team members. Samantha Speicher is AccuWeather's Travel Coordinator -- she went above and beyond to get us flights and hotels on short notice, especially once the evacuations were underway.
QUESTIONS ABOUND
A week after Katrina's devastating arrival on the Gulf Coast and the blame game continues at a fever pitch. I'll leave it to others to debate the issue to great depths, but I will say that there is enough blame to go around. All three levels of government should be held accountable for what will undoubtedly be the greatest natural disaster in U.S. history.
What is truly scary is that the nation was led to believe that emergency procedures were improved post-9/11 -- obviously that isn't the case.
The reporting from New Orleans and other devastated cities has been incredible, but I'm sure that many of the reporters and anchors are going to need some post traumatic stress counselling.. Part of me wishes that Vern Horst and I could have stayed to report on the aftermath -- part of me is glad that we didn't. We don't have the resources available to the 24/7 news networks, so I think management's decision to get us back was the right one.
Jesse Ferrell's Community Blog contains some incredible images and info on Katrina's impact. Vern and I stayed at the Holiday Inn just off the beach in Gulfport, and we were told that a casino wound up on top of that hotel. I couldn't believe that because the closest casino to the hotel was the Copa. Although it was destroyed it was still where it was before Katrina. Turns out it was the President Casino in Biloxi that floated almost a mile before settling on a Holiday Inn Express!
NASA's Earth Observatory and DigitalGlobe.com are just two of the many websites that offer some amazing before and after satellite images of the devasted region.
FOUR HORSEMEN(WOMEN)
Katrina is obviously going to impact this nation for a long, long time -- let's hope another hurricane doesn't get in the way of relief and recovery efforts.
The tropics continue to be troubling, with Hurricane Maria and Tropical Storm Nate already named, and Ophelia is likely to be the latest named storm. Maria was briefly up to Cat-3 strength overnight, but is now back to Cat-2, Nate is SSW of Maria and could cause some problems for Bermuda, but both storms are expected to stay out in the Atlantic.
Then there's this nasty critter stirring about off the Florida coast, right about where Katrina got formed up. Still hasn't been named Ophelia, but as Dr. Joe Sobel says -- "If it walks like a duck...".
This system is already bringing rain to South Florida, and the onshore flow will bring strong surf, beach erosion and the danger of rip currents.
Don't want to be alarmist, but the feeling among the AccuWeather experts is that this one could loosely follow Katrina's path to the Gulf Coast.
The fourth horseman is also in the Gulf -- and there's a couple of waves pouring off the African coast that bear watching as well.
MARKET WATCH
Good to see the markets calming down -- bringing down the price of a barrel of oil today. Doesn't mean you'll be back to paying under $2 a gallon, but the pump prices are expected to come down a little over the next few days.
The federal Minerals Management Service reported on Monday that offshore oil production is back to 32% of normal capacity, and Forbes.com says at least 10% of US refining capacity remains shut down.
Your sweet tooth could take a hit, too. Katrina flattened much of Louisiana's sugar cane crops and shut down two refining facilities in New Orleans. Louisiana accounts for 16% of the nation's annual sugar production.
ON A LIGHTER NOTE.....
Carl Schaad spent the weekend doing the same thing as me -- painting!
I'll have to take this up with the good people at the next Hom Pot I visit. The photos are hopefully a small way to bring some levity to what is obviously a very serious catastrophe, so I hope that you take them in that vein.
BROWN FALLS ON HIS SWORD
No big suprise in this afternoon's news that FEMA Director Michael Brown has tendered his resignation. Brown became the fall-guy for the left's view that the Bush administration dropped the ball in the wake of Hurricane Katrina's devastating impact on the Gulf Coast. Clearly this was a cluster you-know-what of massive proportions, but as far as New Orleans is concerned the blame begins at the local level and passes through the Governor's office before it gets anywhere near the White House.
But that's just my humble opinion -- your mileage may vary!
AND FINALLY....
I've been critical of New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco in the wake of the Katrina disaster, but I'm happy to see the Mayor's press conference this morning in which he outlined the plan to start re-opening some parts of the Crescent City. It's a small step in the right direction.
As the Mayor and Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said - it's amazing what can happen when everyone gets on the same page!
Report a Typo
