National Situation Update: Sunday, September 28, 2008

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

National Weather

Midwest
A cold front moving from the western Dakotas to eastern Great Lakes and Ohio Valley may bring showers and thunderstorms today.  Flood Warnings continue for numerous rivers in Illinois and Indiana.  Highs will range from the upper 60s in the Upper Midwest to the 80s across the central Plains.
Northeast
A Hurricane Watch remains in effect for the coast of Maine from Stonington eastward to Eastport.  A Tropical Storm Warning remains in effect along the coast of Maine from Port Clyde eastward to Eastport.
A Tropical Storm Watch remains in effect for the coast of Maine south of Port Clyde to Cape Elizabeth, including the Portland area.
An upper level system may bring showers and scattered thunderstorms to the Mid-Atlantic and the remainder of the Northeast. 
High temperatures will range from the 60s in Maine to the upper 70s south of the Mason-Dixon Line.
South  
Most of the region will be dry except for a few showers or thunderstorms in the Carolinas and scattered thunderstorms over the Florida Peninsula.  A Red Flag Warning is in effect from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. EDT for most of the Florida Big Bend due to expected long durations of relative humidity below 35 percent.  Numerous Flood Warnings remain in effect for portions of Texas, Florida, Arkansas and Louisiana.  High temperatures will range from the 80s in most of the region to the 90s in Texas.
West  
Most of the region will be dry with a few isolated thunderstorms in the Nevada Great Basin and Four Corners region.  Temperatures will range from the 50s in the mountains to the 100s in the Desert Southwest. (NOAA, National Weather Service, Various Media Sources)

Tropical System to Impact Maine: Preparedness Underway

State
With hurricane and tropical storm watches posted for portions of the State of Maine, the Maine Emergency Management Agency is urging all Mainers to take appropriate safety and preparedness steps, and is coordinating with county, local and federal authorities to ensure that the State is prepared for the storm.

Governor Baldacci and senior members of his Administration participated in a conference call this afternoon with the National Weather Service, US Coast Guard, State Emergency Response Team, public utilities, County and local emergency management officials. The following actions have been taken by the Governor, state, federal and local agencies to prepare for the storm:

  • Department of Conservation Incident Management Team and mobile command post prepositioned to Washington County
  • County EMAs have fanned out emergency information to all communities, and are working with island communities to identify any individuals with medical needs who may need to be relocated before the storm
  • Maine DOT, MEMA and coastal counties are coordinating with State Ferry Service regarding any suspension of service to the island communities.
  • Potential shelter locations have been determined, and American Red Cross chapters and volunteers are on standby to operate shelters as needed
  • Power utilities have crews on standby, and have made contingency plans to call in crews from partner utilities if needed.
  • National Guard teams are prepared to deploy to support county and local officials if needed
  • Close coordination is ongoing with FEMA Region One.
    (Excerpt taken from www.maine.gov/mema/mema_news_display.shtml?id=62013)

 FEMA Region I

  • FEMA Region I RRCC is activated at Modified Level III
  • Remainder of FEMA Region I RRCC staff on alert
  • FEMA Region 1 ERT-A is on alert
  • There are no requests for federal assistance at this time.(Region I, FEMA HQ)

Puerto Rico Heavy Rainfall

  • PREMA EOC remains activated
  • 5 fatalities; no injuries reported
  • 12 shelters; population 314 (Region II Sitrep, Sep 27)
  • The National Guard remains activated.
  • 37 main roads remain closed.
  • Joint FEMA/State IA and PA PDAs were completed for all 39 municipalities affected by the storm.
  • No new requests for assistance are anticipated at this time.
  • 98% of electric power has been restored. (Region II Sitrep, Sep 27, FEMA HQ)

Federal / State Response for Hurricane Ike and Midwest Storms

Region V
Ohio

  • Joint Preliminary Damage Assessments scheduled to begin on Oct 6. (Region V)
    Illinois
  • PA PDAs are scheduled to begin Sep 29 (Region V)
    Indiana
  • PDAs are ongoing in southern counties.  (Region V)

FEMA Region VI
Louisiana

  • GOSHEP activated at Level III (Emergency Operations).
  • 5 fatalities; no injuries
  • 6 shelters; population 363 (NSS as of 9:00a.m. EDT Sep 27)
  • 9 DRCs and 10 MDRCs (7 open MDRCs) located throughout affected areas.
  • No critical issues or shortfalls at this time. (Region VI)

Texas

  • SEOC activated at Level I, 24/7.
  • 46 Shelters; population of 3,522. (NSS as of 9:00a.m. EDT Sep 27)
  • 366,939 customers remain without power. (DOE  as of 6:00 p.m. EDT Sep 27)
  • 19 fatalities; no injuries
  • There are 35 Rights of Entry (ROE) collection sites open, and 16,388 ROEs have been received to install Blue Roofs.  (TX JFO Report)
  • 4 state-run PODS remain open
  • 12 DRCs and 26 MDRCs/4 MRICs (18 open) located throughout affected areas. (FEMA DAD)

Tropical Weather Outlook

Atlantic/Caribbean:
Hurricane Kyle
At 5:00 a.m. EDT, the center of Hurricane Kyle was located about 205 miles south-southeast of Nantucket, MA.  Kyle is moving toward the north near 24 mph.  A turn toward the north-northeast is expected later today.  On this forecast track, the center of Kyle is forecast to pass east of Cape Cod, MA later today and approach the coast of Maine and the Canadian Maritimes tonight or early Monday.  Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 75 mph, with higher gusts.  Kyle is a Category One hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale.  No significant change in strength is forecast during the next 12 hours, with gradual weakening expected thereafter.
Area 1 - Low Potential for Tropical Cyclone Development
A broad area of low pressure over the Yucatan Peninsula and the northwestern Caribbean Sea continues to produce a large disorganized area of cloudiness and showers. Some slow development of this system is possible during the next couple of days as if drifts northward. 
Eastern Pacific:
No tropical cyclone activity affecting United States Territories.
Western Pacific:
No tropical cyclone activity affecting United States Territories. (NOAA, HPC,  National Hurricane Center, Central Pacific Hurricane Center and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center)

Earthquake Activity

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Preliminary Damage Assessments

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Wildfire Update

National Fire Activity as of Saturday, September 27, 2008:
National Wildfire Preparedness Level: 2
Initial attack activity: Light (92)
New large fires: 0
Uncontained large fires: 6
Large fires contained: 0
States with large fires: CA, OR  (NIFC)

Disaster Declaration Activity

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Last Modified: Monday, 29-Sep-2008 08:19:14 EDT