drjim's Blog

Whenever a major hurricane like Gustav is moving into the Gulf of Mexico we see a wide variety of reactions from people...from panic to a total lack of caring.  Threre are many people who have never been through a hurricane before and they may feel a sense of fear...while on the other hand there are people who have lived along the Texas Gulf for a long time and there have been many storms that threatened, but maybe they haven't been directly hit by a storm and so when they hear us media types talk about one...they simply don't care.  I can understand all of these feelings, but I just want to make one point.  I don't think people should be too affraid or too uncaring, but they should be cautiously watching so they can make an informed decision if the time comes for one.

Hurricane Rita was a good example about this.  Right after Katrina here comes another huge hurricane and people were scared.  Then the storm moved over about 60 miles and a lot of Houston was spared, but not so just to the east.  This is also an example of why we need to be prepared even when the forecast doesn't have the storm coming directly over us...it could all change at the last minute and let's face it, nobody wants to be surprised by a hurricane!

So during the next few days everybody keep their cool, don't get too excited, don't be too overly uninterested...just keep a responsible cautious watch with us, which is no big deal and when and if we need to ramp up our hurricane response we can do so without any panic.  And if we are spared again then we can be thankful and know that we'll be ready if and when we have to be.  Be safe and have a great holiday weekend.

I was driving into work today and I noticed that the ramp from the Katy (I-10) Freeway to Beltway 8 is open! 

You may have already heard about this, but it was news to me.  I was so excited, I actually called my wife to tell her about it and she was excited about it too.  I know that sounds a little silly, but with more and more lanes opening up on the New I-10 construction...I'm almost looking forward to driving on it again!

Am I crazy, or are you actually excited to see these new lanes, ramps and exits open?

Fay continues to impact Florida and the next couple of days could be a bit rough for that part of the country.  What's getting my attention is what is going to happen with Fay over the weekend.  Check out the forecast from the National Hurricane Center.

By the end of the week the "Cone of Uncertainty" is a big CIRCLE...talk about being uncertain.  There are a number of things that are causing this...first of all there is a stationary front that will slow Fay's progress.  If Fay stalls long enough over Northern Florida...then there is a chance it could actually move back into the Gulf of Mexico.  And of course...that really gets my attention...but don't start your hurricane engines just yet.

The models that do put Fay into the Gulf over the weekend also indicated that it would turn back inland over Mississippi or maybe Alabama...but that isn't too far from Houston so you can count on following it very closely. 

Does anybody want to take any bets on whether Fay will come back into the Gulf by the weekend?

As I was driving into the work to cover Hurricane Dolly I couldn't help but notice all of the traffic...and it got me thinking.

It suddenly hit me...this seems so familiar!

It reminded me of Rita and all of the traffic mess...and now I was driving in for Dolly...BUT

BUT...no this wasn't evacuating traffic for Rita, Dolly, or anything else for that matter.  It was just the normal "daily" evacuation from downtown as people headed for home!  Aren't you glad that nobody had to evacuate for Dolly?

Recently in our bathrooms here at our station these signs appeared asking people to wash their hands and it got me to thinking.  Are that many people NOT washing there hands after their business?  YIKES!

This sign does crack me up a bit though, because it's located right over the urinals (but I always appreciate some good reading material). 

But this sign did remind me of a time when I was younger and touring across Europe.  I had to go to the bathroom and once I got there...the only place to take of the necessary job was a hole next to a little bar where you could balance yourself.  I was horrified...and it only got worse when another guy came in and used the hole down the row.  But the worst part....HE NEVER WASHED HIS HANDS!  I felt so dirty...and to this day I still get the chills!

This sign is on the bathroom doors.  So the question from me and good-ole Uncle Sam is...

DID YOU, OR DO YOU WASH YOUR HANDS? Be honest!

We are getting to the super-hot summer days!  So what are you doing to try and stay cool?

 Is it the pool...or how about a nice nap in the shade?  Upon further review...I think this elephant has a great idea!

Get a garden hose and open wide!  Or how about spending a little time with the kids at one of the many community sprinkler parks...I love them.

So what are you doing to COOL-OFF?

I get asked a lot of questions about the forecast for this year's hurricane season and I almost always answer in the same manner..."It only takes one storm to make our hurricane season a "big" one...or to make this a busy hurricane season!"   

As you can see with this map...it's only a matter of time before we have another chance to experience the full force of nature.  So in the meantime...let's just make sure we're ready and we have our hurricane plans in place so when the time comes...all we have to do is react and not panic! 

Do you have your hurricane plan ready?

I love a good thunderstorm as much as anybody and Frank Jacobus sent me this video and while it wouldn't work as a weather window...it works great in my blog!  Enjoy the show!  Since this is the first time I've uploaded video...I hope this works!

This past weekend I became a new member of ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service) and I'm pretty excited about it...and the organization!

This is a picture of me getting my identification badge...don't I look happy!  Here's the deal about ARES and why I'm happy about being a member.  These are people who are licensed Amateur Radio operators (HAM) and they volunteer their personal time, skill and equipment to serve in the public interest.  This really becomes important during hurricane season when storms can dramatically impact an area.

On Saturday I gave a talk to a group from ARES and we spent some time discussing some of the flooding concerns for the Houston area.  There are two types of flooding concerns duirng a hurricane.  First of all the storm surge that happens along the coastline and also in low lying areas near the coast.  The second is flooding from the heavy rains...and that can happen anytime...so we had lots to talk about.

If you would like to know more about ARES, or how to become a member, or getting your Amateur Radio License...here's a link:  http://www.harriscountyares.org/ 

On Thursday it was my pleasure to join the other chief meteorologists from the other local stations at a meteorologist roundtable organized by Councilman Adrian Garcia.  It was attended by officials from Homeland Security, Emergency Management, Houston Fire and Police, the National Weather Service, the Mayor's office and more.  A very distinguished group of people.

This is Councilman Garcia and Mayor White just as the Mayor had to leave for another meeting.

This is a picture of some of the people attending the roundtable...

We also got a tour of the Houston Emergency Center and this is the gigantic call center where the 911 phone calls come into the center.  This place was amazing!

This is the war-room where just about any type of emergency can be handled by local officials.  It's more like a command center and this is where the Mayor and many other officials would spend most of their time during a hurricane.

The building itself is built to withstand winds over 170mph and it's considered one of the strongest building in the whole area. 

Overall the roundtable was a way for many of us to talk about the coming season and make certain we can help everybody be safe if a hurricane or tropical storm strikes.  One important issue that we talked about at length was the fact that we should be good neighbors and check up on each other.  It's a great idea to have a little community or neighborhood meeting to have a hurricane plan in place for where you live.  We might also want to check on anybody that may have special needs during a hurricane or may need help evacuating if that's needed.  I thought that was a great idea and it was a very interesting roundtable.  By the way...have you gove over your hurricane plan for the season and do you know what you're going to do if a storm does move close to us?

On Saturday I had the opportunity to take part in a breakout session during the Hurricane Workshop at the GRB Convention Center.  I joined the other chief meteorologists in a "Ask your local tv meteorologist" session.

Cecilia Sinclair was the moderator for the session and even Bill Read (new director of the National Hurricane Center) made an appearance.

We do work in a very competitive business, which is something that I do like, but what was great about Saturday was that we were all together talking about something that's important to all of us...being prepared for hurricanes and other storms.  It was a great afternoon with all of us working together...and I hope the audience had as much fun as we did.

I've worked in a lot of places and it's always been funny to me how many people think that the different meteorologists in the market are so competitive that they don't like each other.  In some cases that may be true...and yes, we are competitive, but what I appreciate about this area is that the greater concern is protecting the public and doing our part to pass along information to help them make good decisions.  So I just had to take a moment and share...if you want to see more pictures from the workshop...go check out the photo gallery.

This has been a great week for me.  From Brownsville to Port Aurthur, I've had a chance to see most of the Texas coastline and think about the different hurricane threats for each location.  In Port Aurthur they face similar challenges that we face in Houston, but only on a slightly smaller scale.  They don't have the millions of people, but they do have a bottle neck where people must go through if they're evacuating from any tropical storms.

Of course we did have some fun in Port Aurthur.  Officer Robinson stopped by our live-shot location to make sure we'd be a safe distance from the road and he stayed for a while.  Actually, it was nice having his car there, because people did slow down and for some reason not nearly as many people honked or yelled at us when we were doing our live-shots...and I think his police car was a big help.

Anyway, he asked me what the forecast was for the coming hurricane season and he didn't like it when I answered we were expecting another active year!  It may be hard for some of you to believe, but this is the first time I've ever been put in handcuffs!  By the way, if you want to see a close-up of Kristine's toes...or maybe Satellite Truck Operator Allen getting arrested too...just click on over to my photo gallery.

Officer Robinson made the trip to Port Aurthur something I won't forget.  As far as the Hurricane Tour...at least for me I've gained a new perspective on the different challenges each of our communities face during a hurricane or tropical storm and it will help me when I'm forecasting for those areas.  Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst is my moto this year...so let's be safe and in the meantime let's all enjoy this Texas HEAT!

Now we're getting a little closer to home as we continue our Hurricane Tour along the Texas Coast.  One thing kept coming to mind was how different the coast seems from Corpus Christi to Galveston.  First of all there are a lot more homes, vacation homes, and hotels or other resort type places.  The other thing is the number of large industrial sites increases as we go North.

There are all kinds of reinferies, ports, fishing spots and the list seems to go on and on.  What strikes me about this is how much all of these things can be shut down for extended periods of time due to tropical storms and/or hurricanes.

There is so much money and manpower assciated with all of these industries that having a direct hit from a hurricane does have country-wide if not global effects.  The other thing that keeps coming to mind is that it has been quite a while since Galveston took a direct hit from a "major" storm and that always makes me a little nervous because I don't want people to become less concerned about their hurricane risk...simply because it hasn't happened for quite a while.

later in the day we did meet a few people that remember Alicia and I was surprised to hear that each one of them said that after that storm, they would never ride one out again and so they just always evacuate.  I'm not saying everybody needs to evacuate at the hint of a storm, but I think it's very wise that each of these families have already made their hurricane plan and they simply put it into effect when a storm threatens.  That's very smart in my humble opinion!

We've got one more stop on our Hurricane Tour...now on to the extreme SE portion of Texas!

Our Gulf Coast Hurricane Tour rolled into Corpus Christi and I have to admit that the city has a special place in my heart since this is where I started my career here years ago.  The first thing you notice is how beautiful the downtown area is and the marina is really NICE!

You can see the other pictures of the seawall and the marinia in my photo section. 

As far as being prepared for hurricanes...Corpus Christi is a great example of what a city should do.  They've spent years building their seawall and taking other steps like having good evacuation routes so the whole city feels prepared for any storm.  The only worry I have for Corpus is that people may be a little too over confident in their hurricane readiness.  For one thing most of the people I spoke with said they didn't need to worry about tropical weather, becasue it never really hits their city.  That's never a good idea to me, because history proves that's it's only a matter of time before any location along the Texas Coast will be hit by another hurricane.  The city's preparations are great, but people still need to be wise when thinking about their hurricane plan...and I have a feeling that a lot of people in Corpus Christi don't have a plan simply because they think the city has taken care of them.

One of the reasons we're doing this tour is to show people the different types of hazards we face during hurricane season.  Last year here in Corpus Tropcial Storm Erin made landfall just to the north...and while winds weren't the largest concern, flooding was.  I don't want to scare people, but I do want them to take a moment and think about what they'll do during different storm events and take a few precautions now.  It doesn't have to be a big deal...but these simple measures now can become almost impossible when a real storm threatens.  Okay, I'll get off my soapbox now!

Overall, Corpus Christi is doing a great job in being prepared for the season and it's good to see.  Now on to Galveston!

Our first stop on our Gulf Coast Hurricane Tour is in Brownsville...and this area has seen it's share of tropical storms over the years.  If you want to learn more about them and also see some of the pictures click on over to our weather page and the tropical weather area.

I learned a couple of interesting things while visiting Brownsville.  First of all I noticed how flat the land is...especially out near the coast, which tells me if a strong hurricane hits, and it has a big storm surge, then there is going to be a lot of trouble.  There is nothing to slow the storm or the surge down, which means it could really wipe out a good portion of Brownsville.  I can see why evacuating is probably the best plan if a major storm is coming and it's not a bad idea if a minor hurricane is approaching too.

The other thing I understand better now about Brownsville is also how the Rio Grande could pose some other issues during a major tropical storm.  If the storm and the storm surge move up the Rio Grande just right, it could also wipe out a good portion of the city...and there really isn't anywhere to run if you haven't evacuated.  If I lived in Brownsville, I would have my evacuation plan all laid out and I wouldn't hesitate to put that plan into action if I thought it was necessary.

All in all, it was very interesting to see Brownsville and now I feel better equipped to forecast damage possiblities based on the strength of coming hurricanes.  Now on to Corpus Christi!