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National Situation Update: Thursday, April 16, 2009

Homeland Security Threat Level: YELLOW (ELEVATED).

Significant National Weather

Midwest:
Much of the Plains from Kansas to the Dakotas will see scattered showers and thunderstorms ahead of a strong western upper low. A few thunderstorms are possible in the high Plains of eastern Colorado, western Kansas and southwest Nebraska. The Great Lakes and Ohio Valley will be dry and sunny today into Friday with highs well above average, in the 60s and 70s, from the upper-Mississippi Valley to the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley through the end of the week.
South:
Severe thunderstorms are possible over portions of west Texas and western Oklahoma. Hail, strong winds and a chance of isolated tornadoes will be the main threat. Tonight heavy rain and thunderstorms will move east toward the central parts of Texas and Oklahoma and will continue through Friday. Some of the showers and thunderstorms are forecast to move as far east as Arkansas and Louisiana.
West:
Snow will continue in northeast Nevada, Utah, southeast Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado. A powerful cold upper-level storm will continue in the Rockies. Lower elevations, including Salt Lake City, Utah and Grand Junction, Colorado will see a mix of rain and snow. A Winter Storm Watch is in effect for Denver and the nearby foothills and the Palmer Divide. Temperatures will be 10-20 degrees below average for portions of Montana and Wyoming south to Arizona and New Mexico.
Northeast:
A few lingering showers are possible in southeast Virginia early today but the rest of the northeast will be sunny and dry into Friday. (National Weather Service, Various media Sources)

Region IV Flooding, Tornadoes and Severe Weather

  • RRCC at Watch/Steady State, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. EDT
  • RIV IMAT deployed to FL EOC; will return to Region on April 16
  • FEMA LNOs deployed to GA EOC and to FL EOC
  • Approximately 23,000 customers remain without power in Georgia, Alabama and Florida (NICC)

Florida (Severe Storms and Flooding beginning March 26):

  • State EOC Level II (Partial Activation), 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. EDT
  • Governor requested a major disaster declaration on April 10
  • 2 confirmed fatalities (Okaloosa County)
  • Joint IA and PA PDAs ongoing
  • IA PDAs for 10 counties have been completed and 4 are ongoing
  • PA PDAs for 15 counties have been completed and 3 are ongoing
  • FEMA response liaison is at FL EOC
  • Voluntary evacuations continue for low lying areas in 6 counties
  • 2 shelters open (Madison and Suwannee); population 15

Tennessee (Tornadoes and Severe weather April 10):

  • State EOC activated to Level IV (Localized Emergency/Minor Disaster)
  • Several confirmed tornado touchdowns in Murfreesboro (Rutherford County) occurred April 10
  • Tennessee EMA reported damages in several locations affecting 13 counties
  • 11 IA PDAs began on April 14, 2009
  • 11 PA PDAs began on April 15, 2009

Georgia (Severe Storms and Flooding beginning March 26):

  • EOC activated Level III (Normal Operations)
  • 56 counties impacted
  • 1 confirmed fatality / 2 injuries
  • 1 shelter open in Madison; 1 shelter open in Suwannee/population 15
  • IA PDAs for 17 counties have been completed and 9 are ongoing
  • PA PDAs for 41 counties have been completed and 1 is ongoing

Alabama (Severe Weather and Tornadoes April 10):

  • State EOC remains at Level III (Partial Activation; 24 hours with select staff)
  • Damages reported in 31 counties (downed trees and power lines); structural damage in 21 counties
  • PA PDAs have been completed for 22 counties; IA PDAs have been completed for one county with two on-going

Region VI Severe Weather and Wildfires:

  • RRCC at Watch/Steady State, 7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. CDT

Texas Fires

  • State SOC is at Level I
  • 6 FMAGs approved Friday, April 10
  • 3  FMAG wildfires contained; 3 are 75-90% contained
  • Joint IA PDAs are ongoing for Montague County (Montague Complex Fire)

Red River Flood Preparations

Region VIII:

  • RRCC activated at Level III, 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. MDT; ESF-15 and DCE activated with NWS liaison on-call   

North Dakota:

  • State EOC activated at Level I, 24/7
  • Fargo EOC has stood down all operations and coordination meetings have been discontinued while waiting for Red River to crest (35.5 feet projection) on April 14
    • All levees and dikes will remain in place until next week when the Red River starts to decline
  • 2 fatalities/223 injuries
  • The stage of the Red River at Fargo, ND was 33.96 feet as of 1:00 a.m. EDT April 16.  The river is forecast to crest April 18 at 35.5 feet.  The emergency levee is at 46 feet.
  • The Sheyenne River at Valley City, ND was at 20.28 feet as of 2:00 p.m. EDT April 15, and is expected to crest at 21.5 feet on April 18, and then hold steadily rise for several days due to reservoir releases from Baldhill Dam.  The emergency levee is at 28.7 feet. 
  • National Guard is supporting with sandbagging operations.
  • Barnes County EM requesting 50 one ton sandbags for Valley City and ND National Guard is dropping sandbags on the Clausen Springs Dam
  • Valley City (Barnes County) issued a voluntary evacuation for approximately 2,000 people (population 6,826) due to overland flooding
  • Kathryn City (Barnes County) issued a voluntary evacuation for 62 people on April 15 due to the erosion of the spillway on the Clausen Springs Dam
    • 40% of the dam's spillway has been eroded
    • USACE is assessing the damage and the impacts of overtopping in the event of a complete failure of the dam
  • Lisbon City (Ransom County) self-evacuated 160 people due to a leaking flood control protection device along the Sheyenne River
  • Total Asset Visibility delivered five trailers of commodities to the National Guard Armory, Valley City Staging Area:
    • 15,552 liters of water (1 trailer)
    • 50,400 meals (1 trailer)
    • 1,636 cots (2 trailers)
    • 4,050 blankets (1 trailer)
  • 1 IA PDA (tribal) scheduled; completion date unknown
  • 40 PA PDAs requested; 2 have been completed and 38 were scheduled to begin on April 15
  • Cottonwood Creek Dam; spillway erosion and possible evacuations
  • Dickey County EM reported preparations to evacuate the city of Oakes is underway as a result of James River flooding; city water and sewer may be compromised
  • 3 Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) open

Region V

  • RRCC activated at Level III, 24/7
  • Two FEMA LNOs at MN EOC conducting 24/7 Operations
  • Forward Deployed Element of IMAT deployed to MN SEOC

Minnesota:

  • State EOC is fully activated (24/7) 
  • 11 PA PDAs were scheduled to be completed by April 16, 2009
  • 2 DRCs open; one fixed DRC in Moorhead, one MDRC in Breckenridge

Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG)

No activity  (FEMA HQ)   

Pagan Volcano

  • Volcano Alert Level has been elevated to ADVISORY and the Aviation Color Code elevated to YELLOW for the Pagan Volcano in the Mariana Islands due to a plume of intermittent puffs of steam extending about 20 nautical miles west of the summit at an altitude of 6,000 feet. No ash has been observed.

Tropical Weather Outlook

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

  • A swarm of approximately ten earthquakes, ranging in magnitude from 3.0-3.4, at depths ranging from 3.8-68 miles, occurred over the past 24 hours at a distance of 18-66 miles off the northwest coasts of the US and British Virgin Islands. No reports of injury or damage and no tsunami was generated.
  • A magnitude 4.7 earthquake occurred at 12:18 a.m. EDT on April 16, 2009, 251 miles from Barview, Oregon (333 miles from Portland, Oregon) at a depth of 6.2 miles. No reports of injury or damage and no tsunami was generated.
  • A magnitude 4.8 earthquake occurred at 1:06 a.m. EDT on April 16, 2009, 58 miles from Elfin Cove, Alaska (453 miles from Anchorage, Alaska) at a depth of 5 miles. No reports of injury or damage and no tsunami was generated.  (USGS, Earthquake Hazards Program, Alaska Earthquake Information Center  and West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Centers)

Preliminary Damage Assessments

No new activity (FEMA HQ)

Wildfire Update

National Fire Activity
National Preparedness (as of April 15)

  • Level: 1 (Minimal Activity)
  • States affected:  OK, TX, & NM 
  • Initial attack activity:  Light (76 new fires)
  • New Large Fires:  1
  • Large Fires Contained:  4
  • Uncontained Large Fires:  18(National Interagency Fire Center)

Disaster Declaration Activity

  • Arkansas request for Major Disaster Declaration as a result of Severe Storms and Tornadoes that occurred on April 9, 2009.  Request is for Individual Assistance for Miller, Polk and Sevier Counties and for Hazard Mitigation statewide.
  • Amendment No. 2 to FEMA-1830-DR-MN (Severe Storms and Flooding beginning March 16 and continuing) adds eight counties for Public Assistance. (FEMA HQ)

Last Modified: Thursday, 04-Jun-2009 16:25:42 EDT