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National Situation Update: Saturday, December 16, 2006

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

National Weather Forecast

West
Colder air will move into Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Colorado and with the cold air will come locally heavy snow. Mountains across Utah may see up a foot and a half of snow by Sunday.   A new storm system will evolve over Southern California this weekend. Showers and thundershowers will shift southward along the coast Saturday and into Southern California Saturday evening. Overall rainfall should be light but brief locally heavy rainfall is possible producing flash flooding in the burn areas.
Snow levels will plunge to between 3000 and 4000 feet and could go even lower. Heavy snow will hit the Tehachapi, San Bernardino, and San Gabriel Mountains.  Winds will be gusty at times.

Midwest 
A weak cold front will bring cooler temperatures and spotty precipitation to the Midwest over the weekend.  High temperatures will be a warm 10 to 25 degrees above average ahead of the front which means 50s and 60s. Behind the front, high temperatures will be a little below average in the high Plains ranging from the 20s along the Canadian border to the 30s and 40s elsewhere.

Northeast  
High temperatures should range about 10 degrees above average through early next week. This means a range from 30s and 40s north to the 60s and low 70s in Virginia.  Showers will slowly increase across the Northeast Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday as a cold front approaches. A little snow may fall along the Canadian border.

South    
Foggy from the Florida Panhandle westward to eastern Texas.  Highs in the 70s will dominate with a few 80s in south Texas and the Florida Peninsula. A few showers will cross southern Florida, however.
Sunday should be just as pleasant with temperatures at least in the 70s over most of the region. Temperatures may begin to drop somewhat by late next week. (National Weather Service, media sources)

Major Western U.S. Storm Summary

• Severe winter weather continues to impact the western U.S., primarily in WA and OR.
• As the weekend approaches, rain and mountain snow will also impact southern California.. 
• About 1.3 million customers remain without power in WA (appx. 1M) and OR (240,000).
• Region wide, about 3 million customers were without power at the peak of the storm.
• The Governor of Washington State has proclaimed a state of emergency for Challam, Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, King, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, Pierce, San Juan, Skagit, Snobomish, Thurston, Wahkiakum, and Whatcom counties.
• Washington State has activated its State Emergency Operations Center and its National Guard to assist affected localities.
• Shelters have been opened in Mason, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties in Washington State.
• FEMA Region X continues to monitor the situation, no request for Federal assistance at this time.  (NOAA, Region X)

NORTHCOM Update

• STS-116 Shuttle Discovery Update:   The prime emergency landing site, if required, will be Kennedy Space Center, FL for Saturday, 16 Dec 06, with a landing time of 4:00 PM EST.  NORAD-USNORTHCOM Command Center continues to monitor and participate in daily NASA teleconferences.
  
• C-130 to Support Search for Missing Oregon Hikers:   An Air National Guard C-130 from California has departed and will support the search for the three missing hikers.  The aircraft with 9 personnel onboard has highly specialized imagery equipment to assist in the search.  National media attention is ongoing.  NORAD-USNORTHCOM Command Center continues to monitor.
  
• White Powder Incident at Elementary School:   An elementary school in Willingboro, NJ was evacuated on 14 Dec 06, after an envelope was opened and contained a white powder that was later found not to be hazardous.  As a precautionary measure hundreds of students were quarantined.  A teacher sent to the hospital after complaining about skin irritation on hands and forearms.  A hazardous materials team tested the powder and determined it was not anthrax or any other hazardous substance.  It is unknown what caused the teachers skin irritation, however, it was not related to the suspicious substance.  Incident closed.
  
• Downtown Detroit Explosion:  Michigan State Police reported that a manhole cover "blew" off of its mooring in Detroit in front of a Detroit Police Department Precinct House. No injuries occurred.  A building next to the precinct was evacuated due to the strong stench of sewer gas.  Further reports indicated that the City of Detroit has an antiquated sewer system and that the build-up of sewer gas occurs frequently, causing manhole covers to be "popped" off of their moorings due to pressure from the buildup of accumulating sewer gas.  Incident closed.  (NORTHCOM)

Tropical Weather Outlook

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Earthquake Activity

At 12:38 am EST, December 16, a 3.4 (minor) magnitude earthquake was reported 1 mile west-southwest from Mount St. Helens Volcano, Washington. No damage or injuries were reported.
At 1:14 am EST, December 16, a 4.3 (light) magnitude earthquake was reported 4 miles east-northeast of Coalinga, California.  No damage or injuries were reported.  (USGS, Earthquake Hazards Program, Alaska Earthquake Information Center, Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, and West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Centers)

Preliminary Damage Assessments

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Disaster Declaration Activity

No new activity (FEMA HQ)