Surprise! It is a Hurricane

I found myself “surprised” by the imminent arrival of now Tropical Storm Debby, that could strengthen into a hurricane. I like many, have been transfixed by any number of other news events: The Olympics; Israeli assassinations; and, our own national political drama that is playing out. I checked with a couple of other friends and they were also oblivious to a storm bearing down on the continental United States.

But yet, a very dangerous tropical storm is approaching. One that could drop copious amounts of rain and significant storm surge on ocean beaches. The State of Florida is in the bullseye.

Here is what AccuWeather has predicted:

“Debby is now rated a 2 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes for the United States, which warns of moderate flooding, significant wind damage to small buildings, mobile homes and trees, as well as power outages and significant property damage from coastal inundation.

In contrast to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which classifies storms by wind speed only, the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale is based on a broad range of important factors. In order to better communicate a more comprehensive representation of the potential impact of a storm to lives and livelihoods, the scale covers not only wind speed, but also flooding rain, storm surge and economic damage and loss. Some of these hazards such as inland flooding and storm surge in many storms result in more deaths and economic loss than wind.   [This is very appropriate since we have seen many terrible impacts from storms that go beyond windspeed caused damages.]

 “The exclusive AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes has proven itself as an incredibly useful tool, especially in situations such as Debby, where a storm is rated notably higher by AccuWeather Hurricane Experts on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes than the Saffir-Simpson scale, which only considers wind intensity,” explained Porter. “While the wind impact of this storm will be significant and dangerous, especially near the area where Debby makes landfall, this storm may end up being remembered for water dangers, especially in the Carolinas, due to significant storm surge and major flooding. Debby could even become a catastrophic flooding disaster in some places if heavy rain bands persist over the same places for days in a row. Tragically, 85% or more of the direct fatalities from tropical storms and hurricanes have occurred in recent years as a result of these water dangers. Being prepared and taking action, not underestimating the storm’s impacts, truly can save lives!”

Porter says the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale rating could be upgraded as Debby inches closer to the U.S coast.”

I’d like to call out there proactive step of not looking at just windspeeds to classify a hurricane. They are looking at the entire picture, storm surge, windspeed and rainfall amounts. Tornadoes are possible with this particular event. Eventually the National Weather Service will get around to having something similar, but their wheels of change turn much slower.