AMU Emergency Management Original Public Safety

EDM Wednesday Briefing: Hurricane Michael Makes Landfall As A Major Category 4 Storm

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Emergency and disaster management briefing for October 10 2018: Hurricane Michael makes landfall as the third-strongest hurricane in U.S. history, a mass shooting in Fort Myers leaves 2 people dead and 2 others injured, one person is dead and five others are injured following a building collapse in Dallas, severe weather in the Midwest prompted tornado, thunderstorm, and flood warnings in Oklahoma, the Haitian government issued a plea for humanitarian aid for more than 7,780 families following its 5.9 earthquake Saturday, workers ramp up search efforts after the Indonesian government sets a Thursday search deadline, a zika outbreak has occurred in a popular tourist destination in India, and Tropical Storm Nadine becomes the 14th named storm in the Atlantic Ocean in 2018.

  1. Hurricane Michael strengthened into [link url=”https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT4+shtml/101145.shtml?” title=”a Category 4 hurricane overnight”] and made landfall Wednesday afternoon near Mexico Beach on the Florida Panhandle. Sustained wind speeds were clocked at 155 mph with higher gusts, and the storm had a minimum central pressure of 919 mb making it the third-strongest hurricane to directly hit the United States after the 1935 “Labor Day” Hurricane and Hurricane Camille in 1969. Hurricane strength winds extended out 45 miles, while tropical-storm force winds extended out 185 miles, and [link url=”https://weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/2018-10-10-hurricane-michael-cat4-historic-landfall-gulf-coast-florida” title=”an increase in forward speed”] is expected now that the storm has made landfall.  

  2.  Two people are dead and two others are injured after [link url=”http://www.nbc-2.com/story/39259430/shooting-at-bell-tower-shops-entire-shopping-plaza-closed” title=”a shooting at a shopping center in Fort Myers, Florida, Tuesday evening”]. The incident occurred at the Bell Tower Shops, and the Lee County Sheriff’s Department [link url=”http://www.nbc-2.com/story/39259430/shooting-at-bell-tower-shops-entire-shopping-plaza-closed” title=”believes the shooting was not random”], although they did not state a motive or release the identity of those injured. The suspect escaped, and a group of people gathered at Lee Memorial Hospital for a family member who was undergoing surgery after the shooting.  

  3. One person is dead and five others were injured after [link url=”https://www.cbsnews.com/news/borger-street-dallas-building-collapse-construction-fatality-injuries-today-2018-10-08/?ftag=CNM-00-10aac3a” title=”a building that was under construction collapsed in Dallas, Texas”]. The incident occurred Monday afternoon, after a line of severe weather moved through the area, but officials are uncertain if the weather played a part in the collapse. There were approximately 30 workers on the building site when the collapse occurred, and [link url=”https://www.cbsnews.com/news/borger-street-dallas-building-collapse-construction-fatality-injuries-today-2018-10-08/?ftag=CNM-00-10aac3a” title=”first responders rescued and transported five individuals”] with non-life threatening injuries to the hospital.  

  4. Severe weather rolled through Oklahoma on Tuesday, prompting the [link url=”https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/severe-weather-disrupts-power-flips-vehicles-oklahoma-58388305″ title=”National Weather Service (NWS) to issue tornado, thunderstorm, and flood warnings”]. The severe storms flipped vehicles in Midwest City, which was under a tornado warning, while strong winds caused widespread damages and power outages, including to the Oklahoma City Zoo, which closed temporarily. Other states, including Kansas and Texas, are bracing for more flooding amid forecasted heavy rainfalls, and the [link url=”https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/severe-weather-disrupts-power-flips-vehicles-oklahoma-58388305″ title=”search resumed for four people who went missing in Texas”] over the weekend after heavy rains.  

  5. The 5.9 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Saturday has caused widespread damage and government officials stated that [link url=”https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/world/article/Haiti-quake-death-toll-rises-to-17-as-govt-calls-13293080.php” title=”the death toll has now risen to 17, with another 333 injured”]. The quake damaged multiple homes and buildings in the impoverished nation, including four schools. An [link url=”https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/world/article/Haiti-quake-death-toll-rises-to-17-as-govt-calls-13293080.php” title=”urgent plea for international humanitarian aid to assist 7,780 families in need”] has been issued by the government.  

  6. Citing concerns over disease, [link url=”https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-quake/indonesians-step-up-search-for-quake-victims-to-beat-deadline-as-toll-exceeds-2000-idUSKCN1MJ0I1?utm_source=applenews” title=”the Indonesian government has set a Thursday deadline”] for search teams to locate as many as [link url=”https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidbressan/2018/10/08/sulawesi-earthquake-caused-widespread-soil-liquefaction-and-landslides/#1d6f891a4ac5″ title=”5,000 missing people”] likely buried under debris and mud flows after the major earthquake and tsunami that hit the Sulawesi island on September 28. Foreign aid workers have already been asked to leave the area, and further searches will cease as of Thursday, so workers have ramped up efforts to locate as many of the missing as possible. The official death toll has reached 2,010, and many of the bodies have been recovered in the seaside village of Palu, but workers struggle to scour acres of debris and mud in [link url=”https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-quake/indonesians-step-up-search-for-quake-victims-to-beat-deadline-as-toll-exceeds-2000-idUSKCN1MJ0I1?utm_source=applenews” title=”three areas south of the city that were obliterated by soil liquefaction”]. 

  7.  The Indian government is [link url=”https://www.businessinsider.com/r-india-on-alert-as-zika-virus-hits-tourism-hotspot-of-jaipur-2018-10″ title=”working to contain a zika outbreak”] in the well known tourist destination, Jaipur, which is the capital of the northern state of Rajasthan in India. Officials stated that at least 22 people have tested positive for the disease, which allegedly causes severe birth defects in unborn children. The [link url=”https://www.businessinsider.com/r-india-on-alert-as-zika-virus-hits-tourism-hotspot-of-jaipur-2018-10″ title=”National Health Mission is monitoring pregnant women in the area”] and the government continues to closely monitor the zika outbreak.  

  8. As Florida and other southern states closely monitor the progression of Hurricane Michael, [link url=”https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at3.shtml?cone” title=”Tropical Storm Leslie”] again became a hurricane overnight Tuesday, and [link url=”http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/weather/fl-ne-tropical-storm-nadine-20181009-story.html” title=”Tropical Storm Nadine became the 14th named storm in the Atlantic Ocean for 2018″]. Nadine has maximum sustained wind speeds of up to 50 mph, and is moving to the northwest at about 7 mph. The storm currently poses no threat to land, and weather officials [link url=”http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/weather/fl-ne-tropical-storm-nadine-20181009-story.html” title=”forecast the storm to lose intensity and fall apart”] as it encounters wind shear, drier air, and slightly cooler ocean temperatures on Thursday. 

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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