Largely Forgotten, Alabama Also Sits in Hurricane Alley

When we think of hurricanes, names like Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas typically used to come to mind. Occasionally though, and more often now than ever, we do speak of the less usual but equally threatened Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and sometimes the Northeast too. The day this article was begun was one of those days. It was the 2^nd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which of course devastated the New Orleans region in 2005, but, which was the first hurricane of any real power to directly strike the city since Betsy roared ashore in 1965, causing flooding of the Louisiana bayou.

It proves though that these "in between" areas of the U.S. Coast, although not always under the gun, are still well within what I like to call "Hurricane Alley," and they've got to stay just as prepared as those places threatened from year to year. Because their next big storm will strike again, and probably not too far into the near future. Here we'll explore that possibility, I'll give you the perspective from the sidelines on the Northeastern Gulf Coast, and a feel for the cringe we experience too, even inland, when the tropics get cranky.

As a resident of Alabama, I am used to these monsters of wind and thunder coming ominously close and then landing next door; but I am also quite familiar with the "big ones" and the havoc they've caused when that one storm deviated or took the "turn of death" to the north, just past Cuba. All the lull-time can be dangerous to the realization of just how dangerous these storms are too, however. When something pops-up on the radar, people's initial reaction here in Alabama is "we won't even see a drop of rain."

They say that though while buying that extra jug of water at the grocery store...just in case. They know what it was like when Ivan, Opal, and Frederick came this way on a chance and cut the lights off for days on end. Even Katrina sent some of its fury this direction. We had a steady 20-30mph wind or gusts and several inches of rain from its outer bands here in Montgomery, which is in the South-Central part of Alabama, about 600 miles from New Orleans.

Mobile, right there on the Mississippi line, along the coast, had significant flooding from Katrina's storm surge, as did the Florida panhandle even east of there. Unfortunately, with everything so spread out over the years, each of those storms has still come with a loss of life as a result of people's not heeding the warnings to leave the danger zone, having forgotten the close calls from the past. With so many years going by between storms, people forget just how perilous they can be. As for this hurricane season, we seem to have again caught one of the breaks so far.

The big question of course is, "Will it last through the end of the season?" and "Will everyone pay attention?" From a Meteorological perspective, perhaps it will, perhaps it won't. That question tends to keep us on our toes. Now I am not a Meteorologist, but I do believe I have an understanding of the weather basics. I have been a novice with an interest in weather for many years and I keep regular track of it. So please allow me to explain how it all works and why it can be a bit tricky to forecast tropical storms.

Sources for my basic information can be found in common weather knowledge and in a variety of weather-related educational resources, if you are interested. Now in any hurricane season, storms have the potential to form in several key areas. They can brew anywhere, but tend to occur most frequently from the African low-pressure systems rushing off of the coast and into the Atlantic, from areas of disturbed weather moving off the North-Central U.S. mainland and into the Atlantic, or from storms rushing out of South or Central America and over the open Caribbean Sea or Gulf of Mexico.

Throughout this hurricane season, the action has been either far south in the Caribbean or to the far east, in the open Atlantic. One storm did form in the Gulf, but it was so close to land that it did not pack much of a punch. There has been a general trend of storms either forming from the remnants of cold fronts and disconnected low pressure systems over the Atlantic, or from tropical lows moving off the coast of Africa this year.

The North Atlantic storms are usually harmless to land and move out to sea. The ones coming off of Africa, however, typically track west and into the Caribbean. Each time they have during this season, a strong high pressure area over the middle of the Atlantic Ocean has moved in to block those storms from tracking northward. As a result, they tend to take paths into the extreme south and affect either Mexico or Central America. This pattern may change from year to year or month to month, creating a wide-ranging yet discernible consistency of landfall swatches of coastline. The current pattern spares the entire U.S. the brunt of potential destruction, but, the problem is that the predominant weather patterns that exist at the beginning of the season can dramatically change by the time September rolls around; i.e the changes in pattern from month to month.

One of those common changes often includes storms inching further and further east, and eventually northward too as the season moves closer to its end. Last season, 2006, that happened all the same, but luckily other factors hindered storm development until very late, which caused most of the disturbed weather to track out to sea by the time anything significant was able to form.

This year may result in the same, but it could also prove in its second half to be more similar to past seasons like 1995. In 1995 the pattern allowed for storm activity to be steered right toward the U.S. as late as October. Storms were moving more northward or were curving back east. That was the year of Opal. Like Hurricane Dean of 2007, Opal crossed over Mexico at the Yucatan Peninsula. Unlike Dean, however, Opal hit the trailing edge of an October, Autumn cold front that had draped over the western Gulf of Mexico. The front gabbed a hold of Opal and drug it straight into the United States. It also sped the storm up, making it more likely that the storm would make it to landfall as a powerful hurricane, and remain strong further inland. In Opal's case it did just that. Winds passed 100mph over 150 miles inland, reaching 100mph here in Montgomery, AL.

When word of the storm came about, Alabama scrambled into action-the storm was moving so rapidly that it would be here in just a few days. For many youngsters like me, it was a first. Hurricanes were something that hit Florida, not us! The longer you live here, I discovered, the wiser you become! What I remember most was the fact that Opal came through at night. It made the whole thing twice as ominous. We could hear the roof creaking for hours. At about 2AM, the power went down and the rain was so loud that it was difficult to hear the tornado sirens going off outside. As a matter of fact, we had a tornado go right down our street, taking out the tops of several trees. All of it brings great pause to me now! I am concerned that a repeat of the same is in the works and may very well be in the cards now that the National Hurricane Center's forecast is again calling for this season to be "Above Average" in activity. It has been long proven that storms come in cycles too, and by my count, which may not be completely accurate mind you, we're about due for another.

So how does Alabama prepare for the long-term potential of tropical troubles? What are we doing given the possibility of disaster, knowing that we are struck with a tropical cyclone in some form every couple of years? Certainly everyone is not taking a look at the tropics every minute, but there are plenty of people working diligently in Alabama to keep an eye on the situation. Everyone within the public whom are most concerned are doing the little things that can ease the preparations when something does head our way too. People are starting to remove dangerous trees from their yards in droves. Some are choosing longer lasting and more durable roofing when replacing them on their homes. One problem that always surfaces in a crunch is the shortage of batteries, flashlights, and other necessities. Given our familiarity with thunderstorms and the availability of these products, many people start stocking up on them when hurricane season begins.

I almost always hear someone who says something about getting a deal on flashlights or having stored some extra batteries in case a hurricane or outbreak of tornadoes approaches in the summertime. Lots of canned food drives and other charitable programs directly related to weather-related disasters are always popping-up too, and local news and TV stations have long participated in programs designed to pass out weather-related information, hurricane tracking charts, and encourage the creating of disaster safety plans, all 169 miles from the coast. Montgomery, which you may have figured out is my hometown, has often acted as a key hub of FEMA and the Red Cross to get supplies and relief to hard-hit areas too. Traditionally, the local and state governments have also taken a cautious approach to storms and have made good preparations for evacuations and rebuilding efforts that have returned Alabama to prosperity after the blow, and which have definitely saved lives. In the past few landfalls near here, evacuation orders were flying early, days in advance, and when an evacuation is ordered, all roadways are immediately turned northward and the state goes into disaster mode, with everyone farther north pitching-in to keep the highways moving smoothly.

As a result, traffic jams are shorter and there is more time to prepare since the evacuations have been long-issued before the storms arrive. Now I don't have exact statistics to back that up, and I'm not suggesting that other states don't do a great job at protecting their citizens too. What I am saying is that even though Alabama is not under as constant a threat from deadly hurricanes as some areas of the country, that our government has done a good job of making sure that its citizens are prepared all the time and getting relief to the people who needed it. When Ivan ripped-through, for example, the state did well to call in help from as far away as it had to in order to get power, water, and utilities restored sooner than later. Lights came back on twice as quickly as they did the last time in many areas, with a clearly more robust effort. The governor was touring the damages from Ivan just one day after it hit and EMS and other officials were already on the coast, combing the beeches and cordoning-off damaged structures as well. Some municipalities as well as state and county shelters in danger zones also stored supplies so that food, water, and or assistance could be provided before outside help arrived.

Clearing the main highways of debris began almost immediately too. There is always some immediate action, and I'm glad to see that from our state, on top of what Federal help may later arrive. One final though on that: I also want commendations to go out to cities farther in the north too that take other steps to protect the people, like implementing temporary curfews during nighttime hours of the storms, offering shelters and even inviting evacuees to take refuge there. I don't know how other states do it, but in Alabama, tornado drills go hand-in-hand with fire drills and the desires and obligations to help people in disasters are well ingrained. All schools have long been required to hold tornado drills at certain intervals, and special weather days are built into the school year to prevent unexpected losses of school days if the weather forces closings during the year.

Calamity aside, are there any benefits that may be obtained from a tropical system striking Alabama? It would seem not, but there are many other considerations, and tropical cyclones are natural and do benefit the Earth, and, they are also not always destructive. For one, Alabama has been for over a year in one of the worst droughts it has seen in a long time. Not long ago, some of if not the worst drought conditions in the entire nation, perhaps on the continent, existed in Alabama. A tropical depression with minimal winds but lots of rain would greatly alleviate the sever damages that drought has caused to Alabama's agricultural industry. The state is in constant overdrive just trying to find enough hay to feed our livestock, since most of the grasses have shriveled up months ago. Although we have been spared a large outbreak, we have seen a few sizable forest fires too. Literally just over the river in Georgia, several huge fires burned for weeks back in early summer, sending thick smoke and haze that you could see and smell over 100 miles into Alabama. I awoke every morning to my cup of tea and a billowing, choking drive to work. I really can't count the number of people who actually said to me that they would rather deal with a tropical menace than the drought. Personally, I'm a gardener, but I prefer the helping rains without the damage.

So what lies ahead? As I wrote this article, Felix was upgraded, to a Category 5 Hurricane! One of the better computer models had the storm tracking pretty far north too. 'Is this it?" I though. It wasn't, fortunately, but you can count on one thing: I'll be tracking Felix and the next one after until they are over land, dissipating, and Alabama will be prepared if one heads our way.

Some Tips:
Live near water? Get flood insurance now. Hurricanes can form in just a few days and strengthen within hours. Don't rely on your home owner's insurance to cover your other damages. Home owner's insurance often does not cover damage to things that are not part of your home, like your car. Try not to leave things outside to fly around in the wind either. If that debris makes its way into someone else's yard, the insurance nightmare created may cost you more. Don't met the eye of the storm fool you. Stay inside until the rest of the hurricane passes by! Don't return to hurricane damaged areas until public officials give the all-clear. Many household objects like refridgerators are extreme bio and toxic substance hazards. Imagine mom's pot roast after being left behind for a week un-refridgerated. Sewage may exist in standing water too and roads may be impassable, leaving you hundreds of miles from home or your original evacuation destination, without a way to get back to a hotel that night. Boil all water you use when returning home until local officials tell you that it is clean. Many treatment plants are tainted by tropical storms. That includes bath water and the water you use to brush your teeth!