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2004 Hurricanes
Home 2005 Hurricanes News Index
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Matthew, downgraded to tropical depression, causes flooding in southeast Louisiana
Service was restored Monday for
residents of a Louisiana city where Tropical Storm Matthew broke a water main,
but residents of some coastal areas were still waiting for a wind shift to
push high water back out to sea. The weakening remnants of the 13th
named storm of the season, downgraded from a tropical storm Sunday, moved
north out of Louisiana on Monday but the weather service continued a coastal
flood warning, saying wind still could push tide levels at least 2 to 4 feet
above normal. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 10/11/04
Matthew regains tropical storm strengh - National Hurricane Center
Matthew had weakened into a tropical depression by morning but regained tropical storm strength in the western Gulf of Mexico on Saturday afternoon. The Hurricane Center issued tropical storm warnings from Intracoastal City, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border. The Hurricane Center said the storm is not expected to strengthen before making landfall at about 4 a.m. CDT (0900 GMT) on Sunday. There is also the possibility the storm will weaken. Reuters_ 10/9/04
Tropical Storm Matthew to hit Florida
Monday
Matthew formed in the Gulf of Mexico but is not expected
to strengthen significantly before crossing ashore over the Florida Panhandle.
Matthew had top sustained winds of 40 mph, just barely over the threshold
to become a named tropical cyclone. Houston Chronicle_ 10/8/04
Final Haiti death toll from Tropical Storm Jeanne floods more than 3,000
Haiti's secretary of state for environment,
Yves Andre Wainright, said those killed in the flooding three weeks ago numbered
3,006 and included 2,826 in the mud-crusted coastal city of Gonaives. Reuters_
10/5/04
Haiti death toll from tropical storm Jeanne rises sharply to 1,970 with 884 still missing
They said several hundred more bodies had been found in Haiti's north-western regions, where mudslides were particularly severe. BBC News_ 10/4/04
Lisa becomes a hurricane again in north Atlantic
Forecasters said it didn't threaten land and expected it to weaken over the day. Hurricane Lisa had top sustained winds of 75 mph, just above the 74 mph threshold to become a hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. At 11 a.m. EST, Lisa was located 585 miles west-northwest of the Azores and moving east-northeast at 30 miles an hour. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 10/2/04
Production is back to approximately 93 per cent of its capacity. Water has now been restored to most large townships and major population centres, while work continues to get the remaining small facilities, mainly in rural or badly damaged areas, back into operation in the shortest possible time. Jamaica Observer_ 10/2/04
2004 Atlantic hurricanes 'once-in-a-lifetime' event - Storm forecaster
October may bring only three more storms, two of which may become hurricanes, said William Gray of Colorado State University in an updated storm forecast. Little hurricane activity is expected in November, he said. The Atlantic season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. "This year has been a once-in-a-lifetime kind of year," Gray said in a written statement. Twelve tropical storms formed in the first four months of the season. Seven turned into hurricanes, with sustained winds of 74 mph (119 kph) or greater, and six of those were "intense" hurricanes with winds of more than 110 mph (177 kph). Reuters_ 10/1/04
September, 2004
Florida hurricanes delay funerals; undertakers look for water, electricity, police escorts
In some places the ground is too soggy for burials, scattered family members cannot be assembled and many undertakers had trouble finding doctors to sign death certificates. They have had to scramble to find electricity to run the refrigerated rooms where bodies are stored. Some have had to struggle just to find water to mix the embalming fluids and cleanse the bodies. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/30/04
If free and it's OK to wear clothes. The Sunsport Gardens resort gets its water from the Seminole Improvement District. Anticipating that the resort would share water with the community, the water district, operated by the owners of Callery Judge Farm, is not charging for it as long as the power is out. But, said resort owner Morley Schloss, expect to encounter nudity. Sun-Sentinel_ 9/30/04
Some of Florida's rural residents struggling to live without running water
In Palm Beach County's rural outposts, cold showers, toilets that won't flush and dishwashers rendered useless are a post-hurricane way of life. Residents who rely on wells and septic tanks need power to run water. And in many of those unincorporated neighborhoods, power lines coiled around trees and widespread flooding will keep electricity from being restored for at least another week, according to Florida Power & Light Co. Sun Sentinel_ 9/30/04
Hurricane Jeanne named after grandmother
Hurricane Jeanne, which raked the northern two-thirds of Florida last weekend, was named 25 years ago after a pacifist Miami grandmother. UPI/Washington Times_ 9/29/04
Florida's two largest utilities work
to restore power to the 600,000
Hurricane Jeanne blitzed into Florida's Atlantic coast near the city of Stuart late Saturday as a strong category three hurricane, packing winds of more than 111 miles per hour and knocking out power to 2.5 million customers at its peak. Reuters_ 9/29/04
In Gonaives, Haiti, doctors amputate with neither power nor water
Doctors are performing amputations without electricity or running water while waste from this city's shattered sewage system contaminates mud and flood water, infecting wounds that threaten to turn gangrenous. More than a week after the passage of tropical storm Jeanne, the calamity in the northwest city of Gonaives has overwhelmed Haitians and foreign rescue workers. AP/Cnews_ 9/28/04
Weak Tropical Storm Lisa still far from land in open Atlantic
Lisa is the 12th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/28/04
Floridians getting used to feeling powerless and that means sewer problems and no water from wells
Across the state, Floridians lined up for hours for food and water and others searched in vain for generators. In the Tampa Bay area, Polk County especially suffered again, as it did during Charley and Frances. The storm blasted electric grids left weakened by Frances. Nearly 1 million people in Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco and Polk counties remained without power Monday. The lack of power was causing problems for sewer systems in Tampa and Hillsborough. In Hillsborough, roughly 200 pump stations were without power. With the stations not working, sewage built up in lines and made backups possible. County workers used portable generators and pumps to help keep the lines clear. Nine sewage spills were reported on city streets, but didn't seep into homes as it did during past storms. The storm knocked out power to wells supplying southern Hillsborough, creating the threat of low water pressure as residents use more than the weakened system can provide. If pressure falls too much, residents will be forced to boil water for safety. The wells, many running on generators, can provide about 23 million gallons a day, but on Monday south county residents used about 27 million gallons. That meant tapping the 15 million gallons in storage tanks, but if that rate continues the tanks will be depleted soon, utility officials said. Tampa Tribune_ 9/28/04
Jeanne's remnants move up the East Coast
Hurricane Jeanne's remnants moved up the U.S. East Coast, dumping rain on South Carolina and prompting flood warnings and watches in eight southeastern states. Bloomberg_ 9/28/04
Aid workers struggle to provide food and water to 200,000 in Haitian city of Gonaives
Angry men complained at a policy of handing out food only to women, who traditionally care for the feeding of their households, and many women despaired of getting clean water for drinking and cooking, resorting to muddy wells. Reuters_ 9/27/04
Heavy rains strain pumps, water gates in South Florida's canal system
Despite breakdowns and overtaxed canals, district officials sounded fairly satisfied with the way their canals, pumps and gates stood up to a second blast of hurricane-strength rain. Sun-Sentinel_ 9/27/04
Hurricane Jeanne prompts unprecedented recovery plans
At least six people died in the storm which came ashore around midnight Saturday with 120 mph wind, striking its first blow in the same area hit three weeks ago by Hurricane Frances. It remained at tropical storm strength with winds of 45 mph when its center moved over Georgia on Monday morning. Nearly all of Indian River County was without power and residents were told to boil tap water before drinking it to avoid contaminants. About 2.3 million homes and businesses statewide were without power. Georgia Power reported about 20,000 customers without power Monday morning. President Bush declared a major disaster area in Florida while officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the hurricanes represented the largest relief effort in the agency's history, larger than the response to the 1994 earthquake in the Northridge section of Los Angeles. More than 3,000 National Guard troops were deployed to aid relief efforts. Several counties, including Palm Beach and St. Lucie - two of the hardest hit by Jeanne's winds and rain - planned to open distribution sites Monday morning, but the plans were contingent on water and ice supplies being delivered as scheduled by federal officials. AP/Guardian_ 9/27/04
Hurricane Jeanne batters Sunshine State
Jeanne, Florida’s fourth hurricane in six weeks, piled on destruction in already ravaged areas, slicing across the state with howling wind that rocketed debris from earlier storms and torrents of rain that turned streets into rivers. At least six people died. Jeanne came ashore in the same area hit three weeks ago by Hurricane Frances and was heading for the Texas Panhandle, where 70,000 homes and businesses remained without power because of Hurricane Ivan 10 days earlier. Jeanne caused flooding in Haiti that killed more than 1,500 people. Utilities estimated more than 1.3 million homes and businesses in Florida were without power. Jeanne’s predecessors killed at least 70 people in Florida and caused billions of dollars in damage. Scotsman.com_ 9/27/04
Risk Management Solutions Inc., another storm modeler, estimated losses at $4 billion to $8 billion. Jeanne, a record fourth storm to hit Florida in one year, adds to an estimated $6.5 billion in claims from Charley, $4.4 billion from Frances, and $3 billion to $6 billion from Ivan, which all hit the eastern U.S. in the past six weeks. Jeanne made landfall near Stuart on Florida's east coast about midnight Eastern time with maximum sustained winds near 120 mph. It has moved across the state in a path similar to Frances, though it may cause more damage than the earlier storm because many structures are weakened, both modelers said. Bloomberg_ 9/26/04
Hurricane Jeanne slams Florida
Hurricane Jeanne pummeled Florida with rain and winds of about 85 mph, as the storm moved across the state's peninsula, ripping off roofs, sending debris flying and downing trees and power lines. Jeanne, the fourth hurricane to hit the state in six weeks, made landfall near Florida's Martin County, the same place that Frances came ashore earlier this month. Bloomberg_ 9/26/04
Storm's toll rises to 1,500 in Haiti
U.N. peacekeepers said they were sending reinforcements to help keep order among desperate Haitians, who have been looting aid trucks and mobbing food distribution centers. AP/Washington Post_ 9/26/04
Hurricane Jeanne lashes Florida's East Coast
Hurricane Jeanne pelted Florida with blinding rain and fierce winds on Saturday as it took aim at a coastal region still scarred from Hurricane Frances three weeks ago. The hurricane strengthened and grew rapidly as it strafed the northern Bahamas on its way to deliver a record fourth hurricane strike in one season to densely populated Florida. Reuters_ 9/25/04
Hurricane Jeanne forces Floridans to flee
Hurricane Jeanne got stronger, bigger and faster Saturday, forcing anxious Floridians to hurriedly shutter their homes and buy last-minute supplies as the storm bore down on the state's Atlantic coast with winds near 185 kph (115 mph). Three million people were told to evacuate. AP/The Hindu_ 9/26/04
Hurricane Jeanne hits Abaco island in Bahamas; hundreds take refuge in shelters
Hurricane Jeanne lashed the Bahamas with violent winds and torrential rains Saturday, making a direct hit on Abaco island and threatening the country's second-largest city, Freeport. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/25/04
Florida braces itself for Hurricane Jeanne
For Florida, the hurricane season from hell gets more hellish. Charley, Frances and Ivan - and now Jeanne, a major storm that is due to barrel into the south-eastern part of the state tomorrow. The hurricane is expected to come ashore as a category 2 or 3 hurricane, with winds of 115mph or more. Forecasters then expect it to turn north, threatening more havoc in Georgia and the Carolinas. Independent_ 9/25/04
Dead bodies pose no risk of epidemics - WHO
Citing mass graves being dug in Haiti, where over 1,000 people were killed by tropical storm Jeanne, the World Health Organization (WHO) said it was a wasteful misconception that cadavers caused epidemics. Outbreaks of diseases such as cholera were more likely to be caused by the living, with their sewage and effluence seeping into the drinking water, for example, than by the dead. Reuters_ 9/24/04
Hurricane Jeanne targets Florida for record 4th strike on state
The storm may reach Florida's east coast by Sept. 26, the first time the state has been hit by four hurricanes in one season since records began. Bloomberg_ 9/24/04
Ivan's remnants return as tropical storm; Jeanne menaces Florida
Making an encore appearance in the Gulf of Mexico as a tropical storm, Ivan swirled toward the Texas coast Thursday with a potential for up to 25 centimetres of rain over the weekend. Florida residents also had that oh-no-not-again feeling as 170-kilometre-an-hour hurricane Jeanne appeared to be zeroing in this weekend for what would be the state's fourth thrashing this season. Canada.com_ 9/23/04
Haiti water shortage 'critical'
Aid agencies in Haiti's flooded north-west say there is a "critical lack" of
food and water in an area already facing the threat of disease. The contamination
of water supplies by rotting human and animal corpses was the greatest
danger, said Gordon Weiss, emergencies spokesman at Unicef. The distribution
of clean water, purification chemicals, oral rehydration salts, basic
medical supplies and replacement school materials was the priority for
Unicef, he said. BBC
News_ 9/23/04
Hurricane Isabel one year later: Updating Richmond, Virginia's water system may cost $48 million
A year after Hurricane Isabel left most of the Richmond area without safe drinking water for days, city officials haven't decided whether they can afford to make the system less vulnerable to the loss of electrical power. Whatever they decide will affect more than 500,000 customers in the city and its suburbs because Richmond's Department of Public Utilities is the major source of drinking water for the region and the money would have to come from the rates it charges for water. Richmond Times-Dispatch_ 9/22/04
U.N. peacekeepers fired into the air to keep a hungry crowd at bay Wednesday as aid workers handed out the first food in days for some in this city devastated by floods from Tropical Storm Jeanne. Meteorologists said the storm could strike the United States by this weekend. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/22/04
Haiti floods spark disease fears
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) estimates 175,000 people are without water, food and electricity and in need of help. Rotting bodies float in flooded urban areas, sparking fears of disease. More than 700 dead and 1,000 missing in wake of Tropical Storm Jeanne. BBC News_ 9/22/04
Deadly Hurricane Jeanne could loop back toward the U.S. by this weekend
It is too soon to tell where or if Jeanne would hit, but forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami warned residents from Florida to Maryland to watch the storm, which had 100 mph top sustained winds. AP/USA Today_ 9/22/04
Haiti flood death toll passes 700
At least 1,000 were missing. U.N. officials said drinking water was urgently needed. Reuters_ 9/21/04
But problems persist for some systems still operating without enough pressure. He praised the recovery efforts, noting that nearly a half-million gallons of water was delivered to victim on Sunday alone, after a weekend in which some victims in hard-hit rural south Alabama complained of slow-arriving help and neglect by the government. AP/Ledger-Enquirer_ 9/20/04
More than 550 dead in Haiti from flooding and mudslides triggered by Tropical Storm Jeanne
Aid workers said half of the northern coastal city of Gonaives was still underwater on Monday. Elie Cantave, the government delegate for the Artibonite province, which includes Gonaives, said the region was in dire need of drinking water. Reuters_ 9/20/04
Ivan's disasterous blow stretches into rural Alabama; residents say they feel left behind
As President Bush viewed Hurricane Ivan wreckage on Alabama's coast Sunday, many in its rural hamlets felt they were without not just power and water, but also the government's attention. Inland rural communities are without water, power, homes or jobs. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/19/04
Pensacola, Florida cut down, cut off by Ivan
It could be weeks before power is entirely restored. Lines form for blocks for water. Los Angeles Times_ 9/19/04 (logon required)
Remnants of Hurricane Ivan saturate New York City and send sewage into the streets
Flooding closed parts of the subway system and left streets covered with garbage and muck. Some business owners in New York City said that they are losing business because their neighborhoods are covered with sewage water. The same thing happened earlier this month, when remnants of Hurricane Frances drenched the city. AP/Capital News 9_ 9/18/04
Floods from Tropical Storm Jeanne kill 57 in Haiti
The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami expected Jeanne, which now has top sustained winds of 50 mph, to turn to the northeast, away from the Bahamas by late Monday. That path also would spare Florida, which has been devastated by three hurricanes in the last five weeks. Hurricane Karl strengthened into a fierce Category 4 storm on the five-step scale of hurricane intensity with 135 mph winds. But it was far out in the Atlantic 1,155 miles east of the Caribbean islands of the Lesser Antilles, and was expected to stay far away from land. Another swirling mass of thunderstorms developed into a tropical depression over the eastern Atlantic on Sunday, and could strengthen into Tropical Storm Lisa over the next few days, forecasters said. It posed no immediate threat to land. Reuters_ 9/19/04
Tropical Storm Jeanne heads for the Bahamas, Karl becomes season's 7th hurricane
A strengthened Tropical Storm Jeanne was headed for the Bahamas on Saturday after an assault on the Dominican Republic that left seven people dead and forced thousands from their homes. Far out at sea, Karl strengthened into the seventh hurricane of a relentless Atlantic season that already has battered the Caribbean, Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast, authorities said. Reuters_ 9/18/04
Hurricane Ivan may cost as much as Charley, Frances
Hurricane Ivan, which slammed into the U.S. Gulf coast today, may cost insurers $4 billion to $10 billion, rivaling hurricanes Charley and Frances, Risk Management Solutions Inc. said. Bloomberg_ 9/16/04
Ivan batters Florida, Alabama; leaves 27 dead
Hurricane Ivan spun off deadly tornadoes, swamped streets in storm-weary Florida and battered and bruised the Alabama coast, but largely spared Mississippi, Louisiana and especially vulnerable New Orleans. Hurricane Ivan was the deadliest hurricane to hit the United States since Floyd in 1999. In all, the hurricane was blamed for 70 deaths in the Caribbean and at least 27 in the United States, more than half of them in Florida. More bad news could await: The storm's remnants battered the southern Appalachians on Friday. AP/al.com/Huntsville Times_ 9/17/04
Jamaica's National Water Commission restores more drinking water knocked out by Ivan
THE NWC restored piped water supply to 40 more of its water supply systems across the island, bringing to more than 100 water supply systems that are now back in operation since the passage of Hurricane Ivan last weekend. Jamaica Observer_ 9/17/04
National Hurricane Center: Tropical Storm Jeanne weakens
Tropical Storm Jeanne continued to weaken Friday
after hitting Hispaniola as a hurricane, the National Hurricane Center in
Miami said. At 8 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT), the poorly defined center of Jeanne
was located about 115 miles (190 km) south of Grand Turk, on the northern coast
of the Dominican Republic. Jeanne was a hurricane on Thursday when it first hit
the Dominican Republic and killed at least two people, and the NHC said the storm
could regain hurricane status during the next day or two. Jeanne was moving
toward the west-northwest at nearly 8 miles per hour (13 km/hr). The NHC forecast
a mostly northwestward motion for the next 24 hours. Reuters_ 9/17/04
Florida bears Ivan's brunt but torrents of rain extend all the way to Atlanta, Georgia
Hurricane Ivan slammed into the U.S. Gulf coast on Thursday with furious winds and towering waves that ripped houses off their foundations, sliced bridges in half and cut power to millions. The sixth most powerful Atlantic storm on record, it weakened rapidly into a tropical storm as it carved its way north but the authorities urged people to remain under cover while Ivan continued to dump torrents of rain all the way up to Atlanta, Georgia. Reuters_ 9/16/04
Hurricane Ivan slams Gulf Coast; 20 dead
Hurricane Ivan drilled the Gulf Coast on Thursday with 130-mph winds that inflicted far less damage than feared everywhere except Florida's Panhandle. The storm was blamed for at least 20 U.S. deaths, most of them in Florida. Ivan quickly deteriorated to a tropical storm after coming ashore. But forecasters warned it was not done yet: It threatened up to 15 inches of rain and flooding across the South, already soggy after Hurricanes Charley and Frances over the past month. AP/Pensacola News Journal_ 9/16/04
Tragedy: Pensacola, Florida struggles to comprehend Ivan's legacy
THE VERY LATEST: Updated @ 4:53 p.m. CDT
• Up-to-the-minute: Bridges wrecked, death toll rising, devastation immense
• "There is nothing in our experience that even compares to this"
Pensacola News Journal_ 9/16/04
Hurricane Ivan slams Alabama, Florida
About 3 million people were without power and thousands huddled in shelters. Reuters_ 9/16/04
Weather Channel Update: Hurricane Ivan Warning has been changed to a Tropical Storm Warning and maximum sustained winds have decreased to 75 mph as of 10 a.m. CT. Hurricane Ivan made landfall near Gulf Shores, Ala., at 2 a.m. CT
Maximum rainfall accumulations of 10 to 15 inches with locally higher amounts expected over the southern Appalanchians through Saturday
Tornadoes possible over next 24 hours in eastern Alabama, western Georgia, eastern Tennessee and western South Carolina.
Hurricane Ivan slams into U.S. Gulf Coast in Alabama
Ivan's eye moved ashore at about 2 a.m. CDT (3 a.m. EDT) near Gulf Shores, Alabama, east of New Orleans and just west of Florida's panhandle, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. But the wrath of the Texas-sized storm was felt over a huge stretch of the coast and inland in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida. Thousands of people huddled in shelters and hundreds of thousands were left without power. Ivan's top sustained winds ebbed slightly to 130 miles per hour just before its eye hit land, but it was a major hurricane capable of serious damage. Reuters_ 9/16/04
Eight dead in Florida and Ivan still hammers region
The death toll in Florida rose ominously and early reports of extensive damage emerged this morning after Hurricane Ivan attacked the Gulf Coast under cover of darkness. The brutal storm still lingered over the region. Four hurricane-related deaths were reported in Louisiana. Ivan's toll in the U.S. and the Caribbean now stands at 80. Miami Herald_ 9/16/04 (logon required)
Tropical storm Jeanne becomes a hurricane
Jeanne's sustained winds grew to 80 mph as it walloped Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory that is home to about 4 million people, and the Dominican Republic. It threatens the Dominican Republic, Haiti and hundreds of islands in the northern Caribbean. Reuters_ 9/16/04
Big Easy breathes easier: New Orleans escapes another big hurricane
Hurricane Ivan made landfall to the east early Thursday and left the city with little visible damage -- at least according to first reports. Instead, the Alabama coast paid the heavy toll. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/16/04
Ivan aims at Mobile, Alabama; begins drenching Gulf Coast
Hurricane Ivan and its 135-mph winds churned toward this historic port city with frightening intensity Wednesday as the storm began its assault on the Gulf Coast, lashing the region with heavy rain and ferocious wind, spawning monster waves that toppled beach houses and spinning off deadly tornadoes. "We have never seen a hurricane of this size come into Alabama," Gov. Bob Riley said, who earlier asked President Bush to declare much of the state a disaster area. An 11th-hour shift turned Ivan away from New Orleans, but the sheer size of the storm could create catastrophic flooding in the bowl-shaped city. In the Florida Panhandle near Panama City, tornadoes produced by the storm killed two people. Hurricane-force winds extended out 105 miles from the Category 4 storm, threatening widespread damage no matter where it strikes. After reaching land, Ivan threatened to stall over the Southeast and southern Appalachians, with a potential for as much as 20 inches of rain. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/15/04
Hurricane Ivan pounds U.S. Gulf coastline
Attacking under cover of darkness and swiftly verifying its reputation as a killer storm, Hurricane Ivan crashed into a well-developed, hastily abandoned coastline that stretched from Mississippi to — once again — Florida. Tornados spawned by the storm killed two in Florida and Ivan's death toll now stands at 70. As its core neared the Gulf Coast, Ivan maintained its 130-mph winds and dreadful designation as a Category 4 hurricane. Knight Ridder/Seattle Times_ 9/15/04
Opelousas, Louisiana worried about hurricane causing extended loss of drinking water - again
During Hurricane Lili last year, the city lost power, meaning the city's electric water pumps couldn't operate. People were without water for days, and the sewer system couldn't be operated. The city needs to spend between $80,000 and $100,000 to purchase a back-up generator large enough to keep the water system running. Daily World_ 9/15/04
Jeanne leaves 2 dead in Puerto Rico
Tropical Storm Jeanne killed two people and caused significant flooding in Puerto Rico on Wednesday as it swept over the island on its way to probably becoming the season's sixth hurricane. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said Jeanne could become a hurricane late Wednesday or early Thursday. They said it was likely to brush the northeast coast of the Dominican Republic before rolling through the Bahamas and in the general direction of Florida. But long-range forecasts - subject to large errors - suggested that Jeanne would curve away from the state this weekend and remain well offshore. Knight Ridder/Kansas City Star_ 9/15/04 (logon required)
Hurricane Ivan threatens US coast while Jeanne gathers strength in Caribbean
Much of the southern U.S. Gulf coast is bracing for Hurricane Ivan, while in the Caribbean a second storm of near hurricane intensity, Jeanne, is poised to hit Puerto Rico.
Wednesday morning, Jeanne - with maximum sustained winds near 110 kilometers per hour - was just 115 kilometers southeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Voice of America_ 9/15/04
Faced with nightmare scenario, New Orleans empties ahead of Ivan
More than 1.2 million people in metropolitan New Orleans were warned to get out Tuesday as 140-mph Hurricane Ivan churned toward the Gulf Coast, threatening to submerge this below-sea-level city in what could be the most disastrous storm to hit in nearly 40 years. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/14/04
Hurricane Ivan forces Gulf Coast evacuations
Hundreds of thousands of people along the U.S. coast from New Orleans to northwest Florida were told to leave their homes on Tuesday as deadly Hurricane Ivan roared into the Gulf of Mexico after grazing western Cuba. Ivan, at one point one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes on record, killed at least 68 people on a weeklong rampage through the Caribbean as it caused widespread damage in Grenada, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. Reuters_ 9/14/04
But where is the hurricane going?
The state of hurricane science in the new century: a mix of growing skill and persistent uncertainty, of intuition and algorithms, satellites and erasers. New York Times_ 9/14/04 (logon required)
Cayman Islands damage widespread after hurricane
Hurricane Ivan smashed apartment complexes to bits, washed away many homes and damaged nearly all the roofs in the Cayman Islands, residents of the battered Caribbean offshore finance hub said. There is still no running water or electricity, residents said, and phone service is patchy. Reuters_ 9/14/04
U.S. Gulf of Mexico residents begin flight from Ivan
A hurricane watch is in effect along the Gulf Coast from Morgan City, La., to St. Marks, Fla., a 420-mile stretch that includes New Orleans. Miami Herald_ 9/14/04 (logon required)
Deadly Hurricane Ivan pummels western Cuba
It ripped off rooftops, downed trees and power lines and flooded coastal areas as it grazed the western tip of Cuba on Monday and headed toward U.S. Gulf shores. Reuters_ 9/13/04
The Caymans, with a population of about 43,000, are renowned as a tax haven. There are more than 500 banks and trust companies with deposits of more than $1 trillion in the Cayman Islands, according to the Cayman Monetary Authority. Bloomberg.com_ 9/13/04
Hurricane Ivan swamps Caymans, aims for Cuba
Cayman Islanders clambered onto rooftops and kitchen tables to escape surging floodwaters as Hurricane Ivan battered the British territory with roaring winds and huge seas on Sunday and took aim at Cuba and the United States. Reuters_ 9/13/04
Weather Channel update Sunday morning:
Ivan, which has been oscillating between a category 4 (extreme damage) and 5 (catastrophic damage) storm is battering the Cayman Islands this morning. The eye of the hurricane is passing just south of Grand Cayman, but that probably isn't sparing the island much violence. Ivan appears on a course to slam into far western Cuba tomorrow, then thunder into the southeast Gulf of Mexico by early Tuesday.
Japan battered as Asian typhoons take unusual turn
Trees bent over sharply in angry winds, rain lashing empty streets, and mammoth waves battering breakwaters -- all scenes that have been commonplace in Japan this summer, the worst typhoon season on record. The storms, which have recently hit almost once a week, have also wreaked havoc in China, Taiwan and the Korean peninsula. Reuters_ 9/11/04
Rare Category 5 Hurricane Ivan hammers Jamaica, aims at Cuba
Deadly Hurricane Ivan ripped Jamaica with powerful winds, torrential rains and huge waves on Saturday, tearing away houses and washing out roads before heading toward the Cayman Islands and Cuba. Ivan, which has killed at least 34 people -- mostly on the devastated Caribbean island of Grenada -- was upgraded to a rare, top-intensity Category 5 hurricane with winds of 165 mph as it blasted past Jamaica on Saturday afternoon. Reuters_ 9/11/04
Weather Channel update Saturday morning: Ivan increases to a very strong Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph early Saturday as it hangs off-shore and hammers Jamaica. By the end of the weekend, Ivan is forecast to cross western Cuba (a hurricane watch is in effect for the whole island) and then take aim at Florida, still as a major hurricane, Monday and Tuesday.
Hurricane Ivan lashes Jamaica but no direct impact expected: meteorologists
Hurricane Ivan roiled waves two storeys high and tore up power lines, trees and roofs as it grew to fearsome strength, but it stalked Jamaica's coast and is unlikely to make the expected direct hit, meteorologists said. The death toll elsewhere in the Caribbean rose to 37. Ivan's eye ``wobbled toward the west for the past few hours,'' bringing it within 56 kilometres of Kingston but keeping it off the island, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. Canada.com_ 9/11/04
The fierce winds that struck Tuesday pulled apart most roofs and left an acute crisis in Grenada, where more than half the 100,000 residents are homeless and in desperate need of shelter, water and basic supplies. At least 34 people were killed and more than 500 injured in the storm, and hospitals with short supplies were straining to deal with them. AP/San Francisco Chronicle_ 9/11/04
Barrage of hurricanes may just be Florida normality
Sorry Florida. This is normal. The state has been in the crosshairs of this year's superheated hurricane activity, and experts say that, if you take a long-term view of weather, the natural rhythm of cyclone strikes is just reasserting itself after a decades-long break. Reuters_ 9/10/04
Jamaica declares state of emergency as Ivan nears: Grenada still without drinking water and power
Drenching rains and high winds lashed Jamaica as Hurricane Ivan roared closer, after ravaging Grenada and killing 27 people. In the Florida Keys, long lines of tourists and residents streamed out of the 100-mile island chain as Floridians, already bruised by Hurricanes Charley and Frances in the past four weeks, wearily prepared for a possible third big strike in an unusually busy Atlantic storm season. Most of those killed by Ivan as it roared through the Caribbean, were on the devastated spice island of Grenada, which officials said remained without water or power and under a dusk-to-dawn curfew after widespread looting. Reuters_ 9/10/04
Hurricane Ivan roars toward Jamaica
Jamaicans scrambled for supplies and fortified their homes as a ferocious Hurricane Ivan swept nearer with 150 mph winds after killing at least 20 people on the tiny spice island of Grenada. Tourists fled the Florida Keys and residents of the 100-mile island chain prepared for an evacuation as Florida braced for a third hurricane strike in a month, following Charley and Frances. Haiti, an impoverished nation prone to deadly floods and mudslides, the Dominican Republic, Cuba and the Cayman Islands also were readying for a possible Category 5 storm, only a handful of which have ever hit the Atlantic-Caribbean basin. Reuters_ 9/9/04
Frances leaves tens of thousands of households in North Carolina without drinking water
Asheville and at least five other mountain towns remained without drinking water due to washed-out water lines or sanitation systems flooded by the remnants of Hurricane Frances. The storm, downgraded to a tropical depression, drenched western North Carolina and the state's Sandhills region, dropping more than a foot of rain on some mountain communities. AP/Wilmington, North Carolina Star_ 9/9/04
Hurricane Ivan devastates Grenada, strengthens as it heads for Jamaica
Hurricane Ivan made a direct hit on Grenada with ferocious winds, causing "incalculable damage" and killing at least nine people as it turned concrete homes into rubble and hurled hundreds of the island's trademark red zinc roofs through the air, officials said Wednesday. The most powerful storm to hit the Caribbean in 14 years reportedly devastated Grenada's capital, St. George's, and damaged homes in Barbados, St. Lucia and St. Vincent. Thousands were without water, electricity and telephone service just days after Hurricane Frances rampaged through. AP/CNN_ 9/8/04
Before traveling to Florida, Bush signed emergency funding that will provide $2 billion in assistance to help the state recover from hurricanes Charley and Frances. Aides said Bush would ask the U.S. Congress for additional money in the coming days based on an assessment of damage from Frances. Reuters_ 9/8/04
Thousands in Florida join long lines for water, ice and fuel in wake of Hurricane Frances
Power outages affected 2 million homes and businesses -- about a quarter of the state's 16 million people. Nearly 400,000 customers of Georgia Power, in Florida's neighbor state, were also without electricity, including about 270,000 in the Atlanta area. But the big issues were water and ice. Even before distribution centers opened in Florida's Brevard County, people stood in line in the subtropical heat waiting for water and ice. Reuters_ 9/7/04
Caribbean
braces for Hurricane Ivan, the fourth major storm of the season
Hurricane warnings were issued for Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and
the Grenadines and Grenada. Martinique was place under a hurricane watch,
while Trinidad and Tobago were under a tropical storm warning. Islanders
rushed to buy supplies like lanterns, kerosene, bottled water, canned
food, flashlights and batteries. Long lines formed at gas stations.
AP/ABC News_ 9/6/04
Hurricane
Frances leaves half of Hallandale Beach, Florida without water
The problem was affecting 10,000 homes. City officials are hoping water
service will be restored by today or Tuesday, City Manager Mike Good said.
Miami Herald_ 9/6/04
Hurricane
Frances downgraded to tropical storm; May increase again as it heads toward
Florida Panhandle
With the late afternoon advisory, the National Hurricane Center has downgraded
Frances to a tropical storm, with sustained winds of 70 mph. After re-emerging
over the Gulf of Mexico this evening, Frances is expected to intensify
to a minimal hurricane. Meanwhile, in the tropical central Atlantic, Hurricane
Ivan is intensifying explosively. With sustained winds of 125 mph it already
is a major hurricane (the fourth of the season) and is also the strongest
hurricane on record for such a low latitude (10 degrees north) in the
Atlantic Basin. Ivan is forecast to assault the Lesser Antilles as early
as Tuesday, and a hurricane watch has been issued for the island of Barbados.
In the eastern Pacific, Tropical Depression Howard continues to dissipate
off the Mexican west coast. In the western Pacific, powerful Typhoon Songda
(125 mph) is pulling away from Okinawa now; winds on the island gusted
as high as 80 mph as the eye of the typhoon passed by just to the north.
Songda is forecast to turn northward and target southern Japan (Kyushu)
by late tomorrow (U. S. time) as a slightly weaker but still dangerous
typhoon. Meanwhile, a strengthing tropical storm, Sarika (70 mph), is
swirling WNW through the Mariana Islands. The Weather Channel_ 9/5/04
August, 2004
The flu–like virus is caused by consuming fecal–contaminated water or food, or coming into contact with someone who is infected, said Melissa Costello, a doctor at the Federal Emergency Management Agency mobile emergency room in Punta Gorda. Hurricane Charley shut down water service in the county. Until it is declared safe, county residents need to boil water for three minutes before using it. Herald Tribune_ 8/24/04
Water scarce in Havana from Hurricane Charley's passage
City workers distributed water in tanker trucks and urged some 1.4 million residents of the Cuban capital with no running water to remain calm four days after Hurricane Charley roared through the area. A government official in a car with loudspeakers on the roof urged residents to conserve water and said it could take several days to restore services to 70 percent of the city with no water. The Aguas de La Habana water company said the hurricane had disrupted power supplies needed to pump water into the city of 2 million from outlying areas and eight Havana districts were without running water. Reuters_ 8/16/04
