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National Situation Update: Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

Significant Weather

Midwest:
Periods of light snow and winds will continue across the northern plains on Wednesday but snowfall amounts will be light.  The lower Great Lakes and Ohio Valley will have periods of rain and thunder on Wednesday.

The eastern Ohio Valley may see a few showers into Thursday.

South:
Rain and thunderstorms are forecast across parts of Texas on Wednesday.  Severe thunderstorms are possible from coastal Louisiana westward to central Texas.  Hail and damaging winds from the thunderstorms are possible in Louisiana and eastern Texas.  A chance of hail and damaging winds, with the possibility of a few tornadoes are forecast for central Texas.

Rain and strong thunderstorms are in the forecast for the south Thursday and Friday.  A storm will develop east of the Rockies by Thursday and move eastward across the stationary front later Friday and Saturday bringing more heavy rain and possibly severe thunderstorms from west to east across the region.

Red flag warnings are in effect from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. CDT Wednesday for all of southeast New Mexico and west Texas.

West:
A storm system that will produce lower elevation rain and mountain snow is predicted for the Northwest and northern Rockies.  Snow across the northern Rockies may produce lightning and thunder.

Rainfall totals may reach an inch west of the Cascades of Washington and Oregon, but should remain one inch over interior valleys.  Snow accumulations may be in the 12 to 24 inch range in the mountains through Thursday morning.    (NWS, Media Sources)

Red River Flood Preparations

States
Minnesota (Region V)

  • EOC partially activated - 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CDT, anticipates full activation on March 25, 2009.
  • The Governor declared a State of Emergency March 20 for seven counties.
  • NG operations are focused on levee patrolling and performing traffic control points.
  • State and local agencies area conducting sandbag operations in Moorhead, MN and erecting flood walls in East Grand Forks, MN.
  • Sandbagging operations are ongoing in Clay, Kittson, Marshall and Wilkin counties.
  • A mobile home park in Dilworth (Clay County) was evacuated and residents are sheltered with family and friends.
  • Voluntary evacuations have been issued in Crookston (Polk County) for residents in low lying areas.
  • ARC has opened a shelter at the University of Minnesota-Crookston with an unknown population.
  • ARC has opened a shelter at Silver Bay Area (Lake County) with an unknown population.
  • Concerns are failure of dikes and overland flooding. (Reg V DSAR, MN HSEM, FEMA VTC Mar 24)

North Dakota (Region VIII)

  • EOC is at Level II; 24/7
  • The Governor declared statewide flood emergency March 13.
  • The state has requested an expansion of the operating area for the Predator UAS. This is due to additional flooding in Bismarck and other areas of the state.
  • Priorities are to resolve the two ice jams along the Missouri river in Bismarck; 1 ice jam to the north and 1 to the south and to provide shelter for displaced persons.
  • Advanced Explosive Demolition (AED) team to arrive in Bismarck March 25 to exercise the explosives demolition of the two ice jams.
  • USACE is providing two sandbag machines due to arrive Wednesday, March 25.
  • City of Jamestown in Richland County is being evacuated.
  • Grand Forks AFB identified as potential staging area for resource support.
  • The Old Town part of Linton, ND west of Highway 83 is completely underwater.
  • Mandatory evacuations were in effect for Fox Island and South Port subdivisions in southwest Bismarck and Burleigh County.
  • Shelters: Beulah with 12 occupants, Crookstone with approximately 75 occupants.
  • National Guard troops assisting with sandbagging, patrolling of dikes and Traffic Control Points.
  • The NWS has forecast the river in Fargo will continue rising to between 39 and 41 feet by March 28. (Reg VIII DSAR, Reg VIII DoD Director, FEMA VTC Mar 24)

Mount Redoubt Volcano

Mt. Redoubt started erupting on March 23, 2009. The Alaska Volcano Observatory raised the aviation color code to "RED" and the alert level to "Warning."

There have been six eruptions of Mt Redoubt since March 22. Ash fell in some communities in the Susitna Valley.  Drift River oil storage facility has been evacuated. No new reports of damages or impacts to infrastructure.  Last night's eruptions caused additional melting of the Drift glacier and greatly increased discharge down the Drift River.
The FAA has issued the following flight restrictions; only relief aircraft operations under the direct control of ARTCC at and below 60,000 MSL and 20 nautical miles. No other aircraft are authorized until further notice by the FAA.

Seismic activity at the volcano is currently relatively low, and no activity is observed in partly cloudy web camera images. Pilot reports and satellite images indicate that a steam plume is currently rising to at least 20,000 ft ASL and drifting at least 40 miles to the northwest. There are no indications that the volcano is currently emitting ash, though explosive activity could resume with little or no warning. (AVO, NWS)

Oil Terminal a Concern as Alaska Volcano Rumbles

An Alaska volcano continued to rumble Tuesday amid new concerns that eruptions and mud flows will damage a nearby oil terminal where about 6 million gallons of crude are stored. The 10,200-foot Mount Redoubt volcano, about 100 miles southwest of Anchorage, erupted Sunday night. Since then there have been five more explosions; the latest, on Monday night, shot an ash plume into the air that was 40,000 to 50,000 feet high.

The volcano has been relatively quiet since, but that is not expected to continue, said a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. The last time Redoubt erupted was in 1989, when there were more than 20 explosions as magma pushed to the surface and formed domes that later collapsed and sent ash plumes into the air.

"This is very typical for volcanoes of this type," the geologist said. "These domes ooze out of the earth. They are very thick, like toothpaste."  "When this type of volcano is in the dome-building phase, as it is now, things can happen quickly, making it difficult to warn people about any explosions."

Mud flows from the volcano have downed hundreds of trees and filled the Drift River Valley with debris, said a USGS research geologist. Ash collected near the volcano is fairly coarse, with some pieces measuring 3 inches across, she said. There is evidence that magma has reached the surface.
On Monday, 11 people were evacuated by helicopter from the Drift River Terminal, a Chevron-owned facility near the base of the volcano. The terminal has been shut down but oil remains in two of its seven tanks.

The Coast Guard is working with the state Department of Environmental Conservation and the Cook Inlet Pipeline Co. to determine if the oil should be removed and how it could be done, said a Coast Guard spokeswoman.

The spokeswoman said a flyover of the facility on Monday afternoon indicated that the storage tanks are not damaged. Earthen berms that surround each tank also appear to be OK, though water appeared to have flowed over a berm that surrounds the tank farm.  "The tank farm is entirely intact, no sheen or spill has been sighted," she said. "All the tanks are quite distant from any mud or debris."

Cook Inletkeeper, a conservation group, on Tuesday called on Chevron and state and federal agencies to remove the oil from the tanks to protect Cook Inlet's valuable fisheries.  The group's executive director said there is flooding and a lot of debris moving into the area near the terminal.  "Everything is pretty much in flux," he said. "We feel Chevron has an obligation to protect those fisheries."

An Alaska Native from the lower Cook Inlet village of Nanwalek, said people depend on inlet fisheries to feed their families.  "It makes no sense to store oil at the base of an erupting volcano," he said.
Alaska Airlines resumed flights to and from Alaska on Tuesday after ash clouds from eruptions this week forced the cancellation of 35 flights.  The airline's jets at the Anchorage airport were wrapped in a protective plastic sealant and unsealed Tuesday morning. The airline says the sealant protects aircraft from abrasive ash particles, which post a significant danger to engines.  Further eruptions could alter scheduled flights.  (Media Sources)

Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG)

No activity.  (FEMA HQ)

Tropical Weather Outlook

Atlantic/Caribbean:
No current tropical cyclone warnings. (NOAA, HPC, National Hurricane Center, Central Pacific Hurricane Center and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center)

Eastern Pacific:
There are no current tropical cyclone warnings. (NOAA, HPC, National Hurricane Center, Central Pacific Hurricane Center and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center)

Western Pacific:
No tropical cyclone activity affecting U.S territories in the Western Pacific.(NOAA, HPC, 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)

Disaster Declaration Activity

North Dakota: On March 24, 2009 the president signed FEMA-1829-DR for the State of North Dakota as a result of severe storms and flooding during the period of March 13 and continuing. Approval was granted for Public Assistance for 34 counties and 2 Native American reservations, for emergency protective measures (Cat B) including direct Federal assistance. (FEMA HQ)

Last Modified: Thursday, 04-Jun-2009 16:26:41 EDT