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National Situation Update: Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

Tropical Storm Beryl

At 5:00 am EDT the center of Tropical Storm Beryl was located near latitude 34.7 north, longitude 73.7 west or about 110 miles east-southeast of Cape Hatteras North Carolina.

A Tropical Storm Watch remains in effect for the eastern coast of North Carolina from north of Cape Lookout northward to south of Currituck Beach Light.

Beryl is moving toward the north near 7 mph and this motion is expected to continue today and tonight.

Maximum sustained winds are near 40 mph with higher gusts some slight strengthening is possible during the next 24 hours.

Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 70 miles from the center.

An Air Force Hurricane Hunter Aircraft recently reported a minimum central pressure of 1005 mb or 29.68 inches of mercury. (National Hurricane Center)

Significant National Weather

West: Most of the West will be hot and dry but scattered to isolated thunderstorms are forecast for the Southwest, parts of California and southern Wyoming. High temperatures will range from the 60s along the north Pacific beaches to over 110 in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts.

Midwest: A Pacific cold front will move across the northern Plains into the Upper Midwest bringing cooler temperatures to much of the Dakotas. This frontal system will produce thunderstorms over parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, northern Iowa and eastern South Dakota. Isolated storms are also forecast for the upper Ohio Valley. High temperatures will range from the 70s near Lake Superior to over 100 in the central Plains and most of Missouri.

South: Tropical Storm Beryl will be moving along the North Carolina coast (see http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ for the latest information) producing increasing winds and surf. Elsewhere look for high heat and humidity and scattered thunderstorms in the Gulf Coast states, Florida, the southern Appalachians and eastern North Carolina. High temperatures will reach into the 90s and 100s except the Florida Peninsula staying relatively cool in the 80s.

Northeast: Behind a weak cold front most of the Northeast will have fair weather. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are forecast from southwestern New England southwestward through parts of Pennsylvania into Virginia and West Virginia. High temperatures are forecast to range from the 70s in Maine to the low 90s in southern Virginia.(NWS, Media Sources)

California Wildfire Update

Per California State Office of Emergency Services (OES), as of 7:45 a.m. PDT (10:45 a.m. EDT) Tuesday July 18:  The Sawtooth-Millard-Heart Complex Fire has burned a total of 84,710 acres.  This was comprised of the Sawtooth Complex Fire (61,700 acres burned), the Millard Complex Fire (22,210 acres burned) and the Heart Fire (800 acres burned).

The Sawtooth Complex Fire is 85-percent contained, with containment expected by Tuesday evening July 18.  The Millard Complex Fire is 49-percent contained with no estimated containment date. No estimated containment date is projected for the Heart Fire.

Flash flooding is possible in recently burned areas, and the State is examining strategies for public education and outreach.

50 residences and 171 outbuildings have been destroyed, and 12 structures have been damaged.
21 evacuees reported in shelter as of Tuesday morning July 18, with a second shelter on standby. No limiting factors identified in state's capability to implement operations.

There has been no request for FEMA assistance other than the Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) # 2653, approved July 12, 2006(National Interagency Fire Center, Region IX, California Dept. of Forestry and Fire Protection, ,California OES)

Tropical Weather Outlook

Atlantic/Gulf of Mexico/Caribbean Sea: 
No significant systems except for Tropical Storm Beryl discussed above.

Eastern Pacific:
Hurricane 5-E (Daniel) is 1000 miles southwest of Baja in the Pacific moving to the west and slowly intensifying. Based on the current warning this system does not pose a threat to the U.S. or its territories.

Western Pacific:
Tropical Storm 06W has passed south of Guam and is forecast to continue moving to the northwest as it slowly intensifies. Based on the current warning this system does not pose a threat to U.S. territories. (USDOC/NOAA/NWS, 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 Preparedness Level 3 (On a scale from 1 to 5)

Initial attack activity was heavy nationally with 342 new fires reported.

Fifteen new large fires were reported, three each in the Northern California, Southwest, and Eastern Great Basin Areas, two each in the Northern Rockies and Southern California Areas, and one each in the Western Great Basin and Rocky Mountain Areas.

Three large fires were contained in the Northern Rockies, Northern California and Southern Areas.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Arizona, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Idaho and Wyoming. (National Interagency Fire Center)

Disaster Declaration Activity

Amendment # 6 to FEMA-1649-DR-PA has been signed.  One county, Carbon, was added for Individual Assistance.

Amendment #7 to FEMA-1649-DR-PA added 24 counties for Public Assistance.

Amendment #1 to FEMA-1655-DR-VA changed the FCO. (FEMA HQ)