2009 Shareholders Report
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Volume 9, Issue 1 March 2010 Shareholders’ Report 2009 National Weather Service • Weather Forecast Office • Peachtree City, Georgia Status Quo is Not an Option! Lans P. Rothfusz bulk of the rain fell at a less- Meteorologist in Charge than-ideal time (in the middle of the night, at the end of a Big News Items of 2009 ike any Weather Fore- weekend). Forecasting such a cast Office (WFO) in the small-scale, rare and epic event • Historic Flooding (pages 6 and National Weather Ser- with reasonable lead time is un- 10) L vice (NWS) after a ma- fortunately beyond the state of • WFO Wins DOC Silver Medal jor weather event, the Peach- today’s science. Even if it were (page 3) tree City WFO looks carefully for possible, the public must still ways in which warning services respond appropriately. 24-hour rainfall ending September 21st • Decision Support Program and public response might be showing >16” bulls-eye (yellow) over Evolves (page 10) Douglas County. Warnings were in effect, improved. This was the case As you will see in this yet eight people perished in this area. after the deadly September newsletter, ours is not an office floods in North Georgia— that sits still. We pride reduce the loss of life and In Fiscal Year 2009, especially the fateful morning of ourselves in learning from every September 21 when flooding property over time, but they do Congress appropriated event we work. We will con- take time to develop. claimed the lives of ten people. tinue improving our science and $958,900,000 to the NWS To say this was an epic event is skills. We’re collaborating with While we regret the loss of life not hyperbole. Receiving >16” emergency managers to de- which equates to an and property to any weather of rain in a 24-hour period is be- velop innovative changes in phenomon, we want you to “investment” of $3.21 per yond a 10,000 year event, flood warning procedures. So- know that such losses only meaning there is much less cial scientists and other human U.S. citizen. drive us harder. Read on and than 0.01% chance of such a behavior experts are helping us learn how we accomplished rainfall event occurring in any address public response. some of this in 2009. ☼ This Shareholders’ Report given year. On top of that, the These steps will undoubtedly provides an accounting of what the NWS office in Severe Weather 2009 Peachtree City is doing with Robert Beasley & Laura Griffith mid-November. Eight-one flash tornado on record for our area Meteorologists flood events and 154 warnings touched down on October 15th. its portion of your investment. Verona Murrell were the most for WFO FFC Senior Meteorologist since 2003. Flash flooding For the second consecutive occurred in every month except year, February proved to be a Inside this issue: espite 2009 bringing January, February, April and significant severe weather the most warnings June. Tornadoes were not month, with ten tornadoes Georgia Weather Overview 4 ever to WFO FFC lacking either. Although down occurring on February 18th. (1,748 severe Severe Weather Performance 6 D slightly from the record 38 After a relatively quiet March, thunderstorm and tornado tornadoes of 2008, 34 two major severe weather Hydro & Fire 7 warnings), the year will best be tornadoes affecting 44 counties events in April brought 14 (April remembered for the Aviation, CWSU 8, 10 were confirmed in 2009, well 10) and two (April 19) catastrophic late September above the 14-year annual tornadoes. The April 10th event Forecast Performance 9 flooding. Not only was the average of 14. Thirty tornadoes followed just three days after a lingering three-year drought (88% of annual totals) occurred period of record cold weather, Web Site Status 12 completely erased, the flooding during the first four months. freezing temperatures, and was exacerbated by frequent Outreach 14 After this flurry, no tornadoes even some snow! On the heavy rain events October occurred in the Peachtree City contrary, May and July, often Systems 14 through December, including a CWA until mid-October when late season hurricane Ida in Coop Observer Program 15 only the second October (Continued on page 3) Page 2 Shareholders’ Report 2009 Top 25 North and Central Georgia Weather Events for 2009 Date Counties Cause Damage Deaths Injuries Cost 20-Sep to Flood/Flash Catastrophic flash flooding and flooding resulted in 6 deaths and damage to 1 Douglas 7 0 20.01M 23-Sep Flood hundreds of homes and businesses, many totally destroyed. North & High Wind Winds of 50 to 60 mph caused widespread damage to trees, power lines, and 2 13-Apr 1 3 3.15M West GA (max 50 kt) structures. One person died when a tree struck his vehicle. Hancock, An EF3 tornado touched down in Hancock county and continued into Warren 3 18-Feb Warren & Tornado (EF3) and Glascock counties. A church, 2 site-built homes, and 4 mobile homes were 1 3 0.50M Glascock destroyed, resulting in 1 fatality and 3 injuries. Catastrophic flash flooding and flooding resulted in significant damage to 21-Sep to Flood/Flash 4 Gwinnett homes, businesses and roads. A woman died when her vehicle was washed 1 0 25.02M 23-Sep Flood away in the flood waters. 21-Sep to Flood/Flash Record flash flooding and flooding resulted in damage to homes, businesses 5 Carroll 1 0 22.95M 23-Sep Flood and roads. A child died when a mobile home washed away in the flood waters. Significant flash flooding and flooding caused the Chattooga River to breach 21-Sep to Flood/Flash 6 Chattooga levees, flooding Trion. Dozens of homes and businesses sustained significant 1 0 11.98M 23-Sep Flood damage. A teenager died in an attempt to rescue a person from flood waters. An EF1 tornado touched down near Woodstock. More than 120 homes were 7 19-Apr Cherokee Tornado (EF1) 025.0M damaged, 12 were completely destroyed. Two residents were injured by debris. North & Strong Wind Wind gusts of 35 to 45 mph, associated with a cold front, caused damage to 8 7-Jan 0295.0K Central GA (Max 39 kts) trees and powerlines in 11 counties, resulting in 2 injuries. An EF3 tornado touched down in Hancock county, destroying 1 site-built home 9 10-Apr Hancock Tornado (EF3) and 1 double-wide mobile home, and damaging 4 others. One person suffered 0 1 0.75M serious injuries. Nine homes were struck by lightning. Two strikes resulted in fires. One 10 21-Aug Paulding Lightning 0 1 0.25M individual was injured as a result of a lightning strike. An EF1 tornado touched down west of Eatonton and lifted at the Hancock county 11 18-Feb Putnam Tornado (EF1) 0 1 0.20M line, destroying 3 commericial buildings. One person was injured from debris. Minor flooding was observed on some roads in the county. A male was injured 12 21-Sep Floyd Flood 0115.0K in a storm drain when raging high water attempted to carry him downstream. 13 18-Feb Spalding Lightning A person was struck and injured by lightning. 0 1 0 14 28-Feb Harris Lightning A woman was stuck and injured by lightning. 0 1 0 A woman, at her residence in Lawrenceville, suffered non-life threatening 15 12-Jul Gwinnett Lightning 010 injuries after lightning struck a nearby tree. 16 4-Aug Gwinnett Lightning A teenage girl suffered minor injuries as a result of a nearby lightning strike. 0 1 0 Record flash flooding and flooding caused significant damage to hundreds of 21-Sep to Flood/Flash 17 Cherokee homes, apartments, and businesses. Some culverts and bridges were washed 0 0 53.04M 23-Sep Flood out and several roads were closed, including Interstate-575 near Woodstock. Catastrophic flash flooding and flooding resulted in damages to hundreds of 21-Sep to Flood/Flash 18 Cobb homes, apartments, and businesses. A number of culverts and bridges were 0 0 29.95M 23-Sep Flood washed out and several roads were closed. 19-Sep to Flood/Flash Record flash flooding and flooding caused damage to hundreds of homes, 19 DeKalb 0 0 10.04M 23-Sep Flood apartments, businesses and roads. 19-Sep to Flood/Flash Extensive flash flooding and flooding resulted in significant damage to dozens of 20 Walker 009.0M 23-Sep Flood homes. At least 20 roads were closed. 21 18-Feb Fayette Hail Baseball-sized hail caused extensive damage to homes and cars. 0 0 8.0M 22 18-Feb Clayton Hail Baseball-sized hail caused extensive damage to homes and cars in Jonesboro. 0 0 6.0M 19-Sep to Flood/Flash Record to catastrophic flash flooding and flooding resulted in damage to 23 Paulding 004.0M 23-Sep Flood hundreds of homes, apartments, businesses, and roads. 24 18-Feb Coweta Hail Softball-sized hail caused extensive damage to homes and vehicles. 0 0 4.0M An EF1 tornado moved into Columbus after touching down in Phenix City, AL. 25 19-Apr Muscogee Tornado (EF1) Columbus State Unversity's campus sustained significant damage. Over 100 003.0M structures suffered minor to moderate damage. Volume 9, Issue 1 Page 3 Severe Weather 2009 (Continued from page 1) saturated ground fell in several from 527 events in 2008. The west and north Atlanta metro 81 flash flood events were the the most convectively active counties (Carroll, Douglas, most since 2003, when 196 months, were unusually quiet Paulding, Cobb, Fulton, DeKalb, such events occurred. The with only 49 severe convective and Gwinnett) between 9 pm number of severe convective 2009 Deaths and Injuries events in May (average is 86) September 20th and 10 am events was 88% of the 14-year Event Deaths Injuries and six severe convective September 21st.