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National Situation Update: Wednesday, December 6, 2006

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

National Weather Forecast

Midwest:
Colder air moving into the northern Plains and Upper Midwest Wednesday will cause lake-effect snow squalls over northern Wisconsin and the U.P. of Michigan by midday and over the remainder of Michigan and northern Indiana by evening.

Gusty winds and flurries will sweep across the northern Plains and northern Minnesota.

Northeast:
Scattered rain and snow showers are expected from the northwest corner of Pennsylvania through far western and northern New York into Northern New England.

South:
Extreme southern Florida could see a shower or two, and may reach the low 80s. Otherwise, most of the South will see maximum temps in the 50s and 60s.
 
West:
Minor precipitation is forecast in the West for Wednesday. Only a scattering of snow showers is likely in the northern Rockies and eastern Montana.

Air stagnation conditions (with plenty of early morning fog and low clouds) will continue in eastern Washington, northern Idaho and north-central Oregon. (NWS, Media Sources)

Illinois Winter Storm Update

Governor Rod R. Blagojevich today declared 49 counties state disaster areas after a large portion of the state was hard hit by a winter storm November 29 that caused heavy snowfall, ice accumulation, frigid temperatures, power outages, and downed trees and branches

The Illinois National Guard has deployed 250 soldiers to Macon County to assess and respond to the immediate needs of those affected. 

Four ARC shelters remain open in the affected areas. 

Current power outages in the State, as of Tuesday evening, stands at 108,470. Completed restoration expected by Thursday or Friday.

State Emergency Management (EM) anticipates that local assessments could be complete towards end of week. (FEMA Region V, Illinois Emergency Operations Center).

Missouri Winter Storm Update

Current power outages in the State, as of Tuesday evening, stands at 77,000.

2,000 linemen are involved in restoration efforts and they expect to have the bulk of the customers back on line by Wednesday (12/06/06), with the remaining by Thursday or Friday.

The number of fatalities due to the storm rose to eleven.

The Missouri State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) is coordinating and monitoring the situation and requests for state assistance.  On Tuesday, SEMA requested a Joint Preliminary Damage Assessment in Iron, Jefferson, St. Francois, St. Louis, and Washington Counties and the City of St. Louis for eligible damages in Public Assistance categories A (debris removal) and B (emergency protective measures).  FEMA has four disaster employees available for the PDA.

Missouri Army and Air National Guard: The Missouri National Guard has 336 personnel on duty performing various missions in the affected counties and expects to start releasing some of them Tuesday.

The American Red Cross ( ARC) reports a Missouri shelter population of 181 Tuesday.  Non-ARC shelters report a population of 219. (FEMA Region VII)

Late Solar Cycle Flare Erupts

A strong radio blackout occurred at 5:35 a.m. EST due to a major flare on the Sun. This flare impacted daylight aviation radio communications, especially high latitude trans-oceanic flights.

Additional activity is likely and could lead to a possibility of higher levels of radiation storms or geomagnetic storms over the next two weeks.  Agencies impacted by solar flare radio blackouts, geomagnetic storms, and solar radiation storms should continue to closely monitor the space environment between now and December 18.

This solar event is being closely monitored with the upcoming Space Shuttle launch scheduled for December 7th. (NOAA, USAF, NASA, NSF, USGS)

Tropical Weather Outlook

There are no tropical cyclones affecting U.S. Territories or interests at this time.  (NOAA, National Hurricane Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center)

Earthquake Activity

A magnitude 3.0 minor earthquake was reported 6 miles from Ocotillo, California. Depth was less than one mile. No reported damage.    (USGS, Earthquake Hazards Program, Alaska Earthquake Information Center, Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, and West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Centers)

Preliminary Damage Assessments

Joint Public Assistance PDAs for five counties and one independent city in Missouri are scheduled to begin on December 6, 2006, as a result of a severe winter storm November 29, 2006 and continuing. (FEMA HQ)

Wildfire Update

The Shekell Complex Fire, which started on December 3rd in Moorpark, California, was fully contained as of December 5th at 9:24 pm EST. Over 1,450 firefighters were on scene at that time. Approximately 13,600 acres have burned. Five residences were damaged and seven destroyed. One commercial property was damaged and two were destroyed. American Red Cross shelters have been closed. The estimated cost of the fire at this time is $4,500,000.

The North East winds are calming down, but Red Flag conditions are expected to remain until 9:00 pm EST, Thursday, December 7, 2006.(Ventura County Fire Department, Media sources)

Disaster Declaration Activity

No new activity (FEMA HQ)