Hurricane Camille Left Complete Devastation in Her Wake

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Hurricane Camille Left Complete Devastation in Her Wake

Small but mighty… Overview Known as one of the most catastrophic hurricanes of the th Devastating Floods 20 Century, the monstrous storm known as Hurricane Camille left complete devastation in her wake. Entire towns 18th were destroyed, precious lives were lost, and thousands of Camille’s track citizens were left homeless. In 1969, Camille was only the August 14-22, 1969 second Category 5 hurricane to strike the U.S., following 17th behind the “Labor Day Hurricane” in 1935. She was a small Hurricane storm with an exceptionally tight eye and was under- 16th Tropical Depression estimated by forecasters. Camille highlighted the lack of Tropical Storm hurricane preparedness and forecasting technology in the U.S. at that time. The Gulf Coast of Mississippi was torn apart due to Camille’s high wind speed and storm surge, though the true devastation was the amount of lives that may have been saved if evacuation warnings and procedures were adequately developed beforehand. She went on to produce record-shattering rain in Virginia, leaving cities under water and destroyed. Significant Impacts: • 256 U.S. fatalities (143 along Gulf Coast, 113 in Virginia floods) • 24 foot storm surge through Pass Christian, MS – flooded 70% of Dauphin Island (14 mile long island “I saw the bodies of the Williams on Alabama coast) family mingle with several freshly buried coffins, airtight • 11 mile diameter eye boxes, which washed up out of • Wind gusts up to 200 mph near their graves under the intense center and 170 mph sustained winds pressure of the rolling waves.” with a radius of ~15 miles at landfall -66-year-old carpenter Fred DeMetz on Camille • 905 mb intensity at U.S. landfall • $1.42 billion of damage ($9.16 billion Rainfall Accumulation 2016 USD) due to destroyed roads, homes, industries, beach erosion, and bridges swept away • Disastrous floods in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia & West Virginia • 200,000 people left homeless The Gulf Coast Shall Rise Again… 25+ inches dumped in Virginia inches dumped Virginia 25+ in Christina Andress University of Louisville .

Copy Link

Recommended publications

Hurricane and Tropical Storm
State of New Jersey 2014 Hazard Mitigation Plan Section 5. Risk Assessment 5.8 Hurricane and Tropical Storm 2014 Plan Update Changes The 2014 Plan Update includes tropical storms, hurricanes and storm surge in this hazard profile. In the 2011 HMP, storm surge was included in the flood hazard. The hazard profile has been significantly enhanced to include a detailed hazard description, location, extent, previous occurrences, probability of future occurrence, severity, warning time and secondary impacts. New and updated data and figures from ONJSC are incorporated. New and updated figures from other federal and state agencies are incorporated. Potential change in climate and its impacts on the flood hazard are discussed. The vulnerability assessment now directly follows the hazard profile. An exposure analysis of the population, general building stock, State-owned and leased buildings, critical facilities and infrastructure was conducted using best available SLOSH and storm surge data. Environmental impacts is a new subsection. 5.8.1 Profile Hazard Description A tropical cyclone is a rotating, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms that originates over tropical or sub-tropical waters and has a closed low-level circulation. Tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes are all considered tropical cyclones. These storms rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere around the center and are accompanied by heavy rain and strong winds (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA] 2013a). Almost all tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic basin (which includes the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea) form between June 1 and November 30 (hurricane season). August and September are peak months for hurricane development.
[Show full text]
Hurricane Irma Storm Review
Hurricane Irma Storm Review November 11, 2018 At Duke Energy Florida, we power more than 4 million lives Service territory includes: . Service to 1.8 million retail customers in 35 counties . 13,000 square miles . More than 5,100 miles of transmission lines and 32,000 miles of distribution lines . Owns and operates nearly 9,500 MWs of generating capacity . 76.2% gas, 21% coal, 3% renewable, 0.2%oil, 2,400 MWs Purchased Power. 2 Storm Preparedness Activities Operational preparation is a year-round activity Coordination with County EOC Officials . Transmission & Distribution Systems Inspected and . Structured Engagement and Information Maintained Sharing Before, During and After Hurricane . Storm Organizations Drilled & Prepared . Coordination with county EOC priorities . Internal and External Resource Needs Secured . Public Communications and Outreach . Response Plan Tested and Continuously Improved Storm Restoration Organization Transmission Hurricane Distribution System Preparedness System Local Governmental Coordination 3 Hurricane Irma – Resources & Logistics Resources . 12,528 Total Resources . 1,553 pre-staged in Perry, Georgia . 91 line and vegetation vendors from 25 states . Duke Energy Carolinas and Midwest crews as well as resources from Texas, New York, Louisiana, Colorado, Illinois, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Maine and Canada . 26 independent basecamps, parking/staging sites Mutual Assistance . Largest mobilization in DEF history . Mutual Assistance Agreements, executed between DEF and other utilities, ensure that resources can be timely dispatched and fairly apportioned. Southeastern Electric Exchange coordinates Mutual Assistance 4 5. Individual homes RESTORATION 3. Critical Infrastructure 2. Substations 1. Transmission Lines 4. High-density neighborhoods 5 Hurricane Irma- Restoration Irma’s track northward up the Florida peninsula Restoration Summary resulted in a broad swath of hurricane and tropical Customers Peak Customers Outage storm force winds.
[Show full text]
Background Hurricane Katrina
PARTPART 33 IMPACTIMPACT OFOF HURRICANESHURRICANES ONON NEWNEW ORLEANSORLEANS ANDAND THETHE GULFGULF COASTCOAST 19001900--19981998 HURRICANEHURRICANE--CAUSEDCAUSED FLOODINGFLOODING OFOF NEWNEW ORLEANSORLEANS •• SinceSince 1559,1559, 172172 hurricaneshurricanes havehave struckstruck southernsouthern LouisianaLouisiana ((ShallatShallat,, 2000).2000). •• OfOf these,these, 3838 havehave causedcaused floodingflooding inin NewNew thethe OrleansOrleans area,area, usuallyusually viavia LakeLake PonchartrainPonchartrain.. •• SomeSome ofof thethe moremore notablenotable eventsevents havehave included:included: SomeSome ofof thethe moremore notablenotable eventsevents havehave included:included: 1812,1812, 1831,1831, 1860,1860, 1915,1915, 1947,1947, 1965,1965, 1969,1969, andand 20052005.. IsaacIsaac MonroeMonroe ClineCline USWS meteorologist Isaac Monroe Cline pioneered the study of tropical cyclones and hurricanes in the early 20th Century, by recording barometric pressures, storm surges, and wind velocities. •• Cline charted barometric gradients (right) and tracked the eyes of hurricanes as they approached landfall. This shows the event of Sept 29, 1915 hitting the New Orleans area. • Storm or tidal surges are caused by lifting of the oceanic surface by abnormal low atmospheric pressure beneath the eye of a hurricane. The faster the winds, the lower the pressure; and the greater the storm surge. At its peak, Hurricane Katrina caused a surge 53 feet high under its eye as it approached the Louisiana coast, triggering a storm surge advisory of 18 to 28 feet in New Orleans (image from USA Today). StormStorm SurgeSurge •• The surge effect is minimal in the open ocean, because the water falls back on itself •• As the storm makes landfall, water is lifted onto the continent, locally elevating the sea level, much like a tsunami, but with much higher winds Images from USA Today •• Cline showed that it was then northeast quadrant of a cyclonic event that produced the greatest storm surge, in accordance with the drop in barometric pressure.
[Show full text]
RE-ANALYSIS of 1969'S HURRICANE CAMILLE COMPLETED Catastrophic Hurricane Now Ranks As Second Strongest on Record
RE-ANALYSIS OF 1969’s HURRICANE CAMILLE COMPLETED Catastrophic hurricane now ranks as second strongest on record A re-analysis of the database for Hurricane Camille, an extremely intense hurricane that devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast on the night of August 17, 1969, has been completed. Based upon this reassessment, Hurricane Camille is indicated at landfall on the Mississippi coast to have been a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale with peak sustained winds of 175 mph and a central pressure of 900 mb. This is the same category as analyzed originally, but the peak sustained winds were reduced from 190 mph and the central pressure lowered from 909 mb. Camille is also reanalyzed to have undergone genesis as a tropical cyclone 18 hours earlier than first indicated on August 14, 1969. When comparing Camille with the two other known Category 5 hurricanes that have struck the continental United States since 1900, Camille (900 mb and 175 mph) ranks between the 1935 Labor Day hurricane (892 mb and 185 mph) and 1992’s Andrew (922 mb and 165 mph) as the strongest hurricanes on record at landfall. Hurricane Camille on the afternoon of August 17, 1969, from the ESSA-9 polar orbiting satellite. Revisions to the Camille’s database were accomplished by obtaining the original observations collected – mainly by ships, weather stations, coastal radars, Navy/Air Force/Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA) Hurricane Hunter aircraft reconnaissance planes, ESSA/NASA satellite imagery – and analyzing Camille based upon our understanding of hurricanes today. (The agency ESSA is now the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - NOAA.) Margie Kieper, Jack Beven, Hugh Willoughby, Chris Landsea, and the NHC Best Track Change Committee all made substantial contributions toward the reanalysis of this devastating hurricane.
[Show full text]
Richmond, VA Hurricanes
Hurricanes Influencing the Richmond Area Why should residents of the Middle Atlantic states be concerned about hurricanes during the coming hurricane season, which officially begins on June 1 and ends November 30? After all, the big ones don't seem to affect the region anymore. Consider the following: The last Category 2 hurricane to make landfall along the U.S. East Coast, north of Florida, was Isabel in 2003. The last Category 3 was Fran in 1996, and the last Category 4 was Hugo in 1989. Meanwhile, ten Category 2 or stronger storms have made landfall along the Gulf Coast between 2004 and 2008. Hurricane history suggests that the Mid-Atlantic's seeming immunity will change as soon as 2009. Hurricane Alley shifts. Past active hurricane cycles, typically lasting 25 to 30 years, have brought many destructive storms to the region, particularly to shore areas. Never before have so many people and so much property been at risk. Extensive coastal development and a rising sea make for increased vulnerability. A storm like the Great Atlantic Hurricane of 1944, a powerful Category 3, would savage shorelines from North Carolina to New England. History suggests that such an event is due. Hurricane Hazel in 1954 came ashore in North Carolina as a Category 4 to directly slam the Mid-Atlantic region. It swirled hurricane-force winds along an interior track of 700 miles, through the Northeast and into Canada. More than 100 people died. Hazel-type wind events occur about every 50 years. Areas north of Florida are particularly susceptible to wind damage.
[Show full text]
Determining the Viability of Recent Storms As Modern Analogues For
The University of Southern Mississippi The Aquila Digital Community Master's Theses Summer 8-2016 Determining the Viability of Recent Storms as Modern Analogues for North-Central Gulf of Mexico Paleotempestology Through Sedimentary Analysis and Storm Surge Reconstruction Joshua Caleb Bregy University of Southern Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses Part of the Atmospheric Sciences Commons, Climate Commons, Geology Commons, Geomorphology Commons, Oceanography Commons, Other Earth Sciences Commons, Other Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons, Sedimentology Commons, and the Stratigraphy Commons Recommended Citation Bregy, Joshua Caleb, "Determining the Viability of Recent Storms as Modern Analogues for North-Central Gulf of Mexico Paleotempestology Through Sedimentary Analysis and Storm Surge Reconstruction" (2016). Master's Theses. 198. https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/198 This Masters Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DETERMINING THE VIABILITY OF RECENT STORMS AS MODERN ANALOGUES FOR NORTH-CENTRAL GULF OF MEXICO PALEOTEMPESTOLOGY THROUGH SEDIMENTARY ANALYSIS AND STORM SURGE RECONSTRUCTION by Joshua Caleb Bregy A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School and the Department of Marine Science at The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science Approved: ________________________________________________ Dr. Davin J. Wallace, Committee Chair Assistant Professor, Marine Science ________________________________________________ Dr. Vernon L. Asper, Committee Member Professor, Marine Science ________________________________________________ Dr. Grant L. Harley, Committee Member Assistant Professor, Geography and Geology ________________________________________________ Dr.
[Show full text]
50 Years After Hurricane Camille: How the Navy Seabees' “Can Do” Spirit
www.cnic.navy.mil/gulfport QUICK EDITION Vol. 2 No. 26 Naval Construction Battalion Center, Gulfport, Mississippi August 19, 2019 50 years after Hurricane Camille: How the Navy Seabees’ “Can Do” spirit helped the Gulf Coast recover By Ryan Labadens NCBC Public Affairs The Gulf Coast region has been no stranger to extreme weather throughout the years, especially during hur- ricane season. More recent storms that spring to mind when people talk about hur- ricanes impacting the Gulf Coast are Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the coast of Mississippi in 2005, and more recently Hurricane Michael, which ripped through the Flor- ida panhandle as a Category 5 storm just last year. One storm that generations past have always referred to as synonymous with desola- tion and destruction was Hurricane Camille. gency management staff, had already reviewed Seabees from the installation – supervised by This Category 5 hurricane made landfall in Pass and implemented hurricane preparation plans, the 20th Naval Construction Regiment – rolled Christian, Miss., 50 years ago on Aug. 17, 1969, and the base opened up shelters on the in- into the surrounding communities to help with and left its mark on the Mississippi Gulf Coast stallation for dependents and base civilians to recovery efforts. Seabees and corpsmen from for years to come. weather out the storm. The captain and staff MCB 121 combed through the ruins of the Vet- The nation was in the middle of the Vietnam also worked with local governments and civil erans Administration Hospital in Gulfport, Miss., War at the time, and U.S. Navy Seabees from defense officials to coordinate their response helping move patients who had sheltered there Naval Construction Battalion Center (NCBC) to the coming hurricane, and later how to deal to ambulances and buses for transportation to Gulfport were rotating battalions in and out of with its aftermath.
[Show full text]
Hurricanes Are a Regular Threat to the SCIPP Gulf Coast and Average Amount of Time That Passes Between Hurricane Events at Should Be Planned for Each Season
SCIPP HURRICANE CLIMATOLOGY: The NHC defines the Atlantic hurricane season as the period from part of the hurricane season, landfall occurrences shift from the June 1 to November 30. Tropical cyclones occur with greatest Gulf Coast to the U.S. east coast. frequency during that time period, which is when the sea surface temperatures are warmest, but can still occur outside of the The relative return frequency of hurricane landfalls can give us a official season. statistical idea of just how often we can expect a hurricane at a specific spot along the Gulf Coast. A return period represents the Hurricanes are a regular threat to the SCIPP Gulf Coast and average amount of time that passes between hurricane events at should be planned for each season. Of the top 10 deadliest and any one location based on the historical record. Figure 3 depicts top 10 costliest (adjusted for inflation, 2006) tropical cyclones to the return frequency for some notable beaches in the SCIPP make U.S. landfall, five in each list have occurred along the domain, from 1900-2005 records. For all of the beaches analyzed SCIPP coast. From 1851-2006 128 hurricanes have affected the in the study, a tropical cyclone can by expected every 3-5 years Texas, Louisiana, or Mississippi coastline, 58 of them have been and a hurricane every 7-15 years. Major hurricanes are much major hurricanes of Category 3 or greater. more rare and, based on past storm events, have a return period of 26 or 52 years for most of the beaches.
[Show full text]
1.1 the Climatology of Inland Winds from Tropical Cyclones in the Eastern United States
1.1 THE CLIMATOLOGY OF INLAND WINDS FROM TROPICAL CYCLONES IN THE EASTERN UNITED STATES Michael C. Kruk* STG Inc., Asheville, North Carolina Ethan J. Gibney IMSG Inc., Asheville, North Carolina David H. Levinson and Michael Squires NOAA National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC landfall than do weaker storms. For these reasons, the 1. Introduction primary impact areas of tropical cyclones are generally found along coastal (or near coastal) regions. Most In the United States, the impacts from tropical previous studies involving the inland-extent of tropical cyclones often extend well-inland after these storms cyclones have generally focused on their expected or make landfall along the coast. For example, after the modeled rate of decay post landfall (e.g., Tuleya et al. passage of Hurricane Camille (1969), more than 150 1984, Kaplan and DeMaria 1995; Kaplan and DeMaria casualties occurred in the state of Virginia, some 1300 2001), while others have focused on recurrence km inland from where the storm originally made landfall thresholds or probabilities of landfalls along a given along the Louisiana coast (Emanuel 2005). According to portion of the United States coastline (e.g., Bove et al. Rappaport (2000), a large portion of fatalities often occur 1998; Elsner and Bossak 2001; Gray and Klotzbach inland associated with a decaying tropical cyclone’s 2005; Saunders and Lea 2005). Results from Kaplan winds (falling trees, collapsed roofs, etc.) and heavy and DeMaria (1995) showed an idealized scenario for flooding rains. In the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s, freshwater the maximum possible inland wind speed of a decaying floods accounted for 59 percent of the recorded deaths tropical cyclone based on both intensity at landfall and from tropical cyclones (Rappaport 2000), and such forward motion for the Gulf Coast and southeastern floods are often a combination of meteorological and United States, and for the New England area (Kaplan hydrological factors.
[Show full text]
The Gulf Coast Shall Rise Again!
All About The Gulf Coast Shall Rise Again! In the 30th Anniversary reporting of Camille, Sun Herald Chronicler, Kat Bergeron recalled that she was one “among the 239,786 fortunate souls of 1969, who survived the eight-hour storm period. Injured casualties were as high as 9,500. From the three Mississippi Gulf Coast counties, a roll call of 128 names were identified and matched with 128 storm-battered bodies. Additionally, there were three unidentified females who were symbolically buried at Gulfport, named – Faith, Hope, and Charity – bringing the total to 131 dead. Presumed to have been swept out to sea with the receding storm surge waters were at least 27 more victims who continue to be listed as missing. To many Coastians, August 17, 1969, was The Day the World Stopped! During the immediate past decade, community progress and personal economic stability has greatly improved. However, when the Gulf Coast entered the ‘70s and the ‘80s, economic conditions for many was still that of hardship – endured throughout a long and beleaguered recovery. Not since the Reconstruction Days and the Big Depression of the ‘30s, had Gulf Coast residents been so challenged. New Orleaneans who had always made their escape to the Mississippi Gulf Coast opted instead for new playgrounds further east. In 1970, Interstate 10 was opening up stretches of completion. Thousands of Louisianians from New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas, having been denied their customary coastal playgrounds due to Camille's destruction, sought new Gulf Coast territories. It was a four hour drive to Florida, but this didn't stop the weekend migrations.
[Show full text]
Hurricane Preparedness Guide (PDF)
hurricanes... Unleashing Nature’s Fury FEMA Hurricane Floyd, 1999/NOAA A PREPAREDNESS GUIDE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Weather Service Revised August 2001 What is a Hurricane? The term hurricane has its origin in the indigenous religions of old civilizations. The Mayan storm god A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone–an organized was named Hunraken. A god considered evil by rotating weather system that develops in the tropics. the Taino people of the Caribbean was called Huracan. Hurricanes rotate counterclockwise in the Northern Hurricanes may not be considered evil but they Hemisphere. Tropical cyclones are classified as follows: are one of nature’s most powerful storms. Their ■ Tropical Depression—An organized system of potential for loss of life and destruction of property persistent clouds and thunderstorms with a closed is tremendous. Those in hurricane-prone areas low-level circulation and maximum sustained winds need to be of 38 mph (33 knots) or less. prepared for hurricanes and ■ Tropical Storm—An organized system of strong tropical storms. thunderstorms with a well defined circulation and Even inland areas, maximum sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph well away from (34-63 knots). the coastline, ■ Hurricane—An intense tropical weather system can experience with a well defined circulation and sustained winds destructive winds, of 74 mph (64 knots) or higher. In the western North tornadoes and Pacific, hurricanes are called typhoons, and similar floods from storms in the Indian Ocean are called cyclones. tropical storms and hurricanes. Hurricane Iniki/NOAA 1998 Atlantic Ocean Hurricane Season Summary/NOAA 2 Tropical depressions and tropical storms, while generally less dangerous than hurricanes, still can be deadly.
[Show full text]
Hurricane Camille - August 1969
; *W? ram HI 'A J--:.1 HP Hi IT.W 'C r.1M XXM '-. i\ :*?>t,yv- ^H National Bureau of Standards Library, E-01 Admin. Bldg. MITED STATES APR 8 1971 MRTMENT OF bMMERCE NBS TECHNICAL NOTE 569 Iblication ,k y\ U.S. HTMENT OF )MMERCE National Bureau of ndards 7 I/' — NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS 1 The National Bureau of Standards was established by an act of Congress March 3, 1 901 . The Bureau's overall goal is to strengthen and advance the Nation's science and technology and facilitate their effective application for public benefit. To this end, the Bureau conducts research and provides: (1) a basis for the Nation's physical measure- ment system, (2) scientific and technological services for industry and government, (3) a technical basis for equity in trade, and (4) technical services to promote public safety. The Bureau consists of the Institute for Basic Standards, the Institute for Materials Research, the Institute for Applied Technology, the Center for Computer Sciences and Technology, and the Office for Information Programs. THE INSTITUTE FOR BASIC STANDARDS provides the central basis within the United States of a complete and consistent system of physical measurement; coordinates that system with measurement systems of other nations; and furnishes essential services leading to accurate and uniform physical measurements throughout the Nation's scien- tific community, industry, and commerce. The Institute consists of a Center for Radia- tion Research, an Office of Measurement Services and the following divisions: Applied Mathematics—Electricity—Heat—Mechanics—Optical Physics—Linac Radiation 2—Nuclear Radiation 2—Applied Radiation 2—Quantum Electronics 3— Electromagnetics 3—Time and Frequency 3—Laboratory Astrophysics 3—Cryo- 3 genics .
[Show full text]