LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
Did you know that according to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, in the past 300 years, approximately 66 tropical storms and hurricanes, 44 tornadoes and associated flooding have swept through Virginia?
Now is the time for families to get themselves and their homes ready for the upcoming hurricane season, June 1 through Nov. 30.
"The most common weather threats to the Langley community during the summer season are thunderstorms and hurricanes," said Maj. Elizabeth Boll, 1st Operations Support Squadron Weather Flight commander. "Area thunderstorms have gusty winds up to 50 mph, lightning, hail, and the occasional tornado. Hurricanes bring strong winds up to 150 mph, heavy rain, which causes flooding, coastal storm surges and embedded thunderstorms."
In August 2006, Tropical Storm Ernesto's high winds and flooding killed seven people and left Virginia with $118 million in damages, and left Langley with $384,400 in damages, according to Brenda Cook, deputy base civil engineer.
While the Commonwealth's 2006 hurricane season was limited to the landfall of Tropical Storm Ernesto, the Department of Atmospheric Science Tropical Meteorology Project at Colorado State University predicts an above-average active hurricane season for 2007.
Officials at CSU are forecasting at least nine hurricanes, 17 named storms, 85 named storm days, 40 hurricane days, five intense (Category 3-4-5) hurricanes and 11 intense hurricane days. The average hurricane season has 5.9 hurricanes, 9.6 named storms, 49.1 named storm days, 24.5 hurricane days, 2.3 intense hurricanes and 5 intense hurricane days.
"The best thing the Langley community can do is to pay attention to weather alerts and stay up-to-date with city and base evacuation plans as well as develop a personal hurricane plan," Major Boll said.
Though August through October are considered to be the most active months of the season, according to the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, a hurricane or hurricane-related weather conditions can occur as early May. In fact, Subtropical Storm Andrea was the first named storm of 2007 as it treaded off the coasts of Florida and Georgia May 9 - three weeks shy of the actual start of the season.
The Weather Flight is in constant contact with the National Hurricane Center, which is the lead agency for current hurricane information for the United States, Major Boll said. The National Hurricane Center is located in Miami and is the division of National Weather Service's Tropical Prediction Center. The center's mission is to "save lives, mitigate property loss, and improve economic efficiency by issuing the best watches, warnings, forecasts and analyses of hazardous tropical weather, and by increasing understanding of these hazards."
"Once we receive word of hurricane activity (from the National Hurricane Center), we communicate the hurricane track to the installation commander. We try to give the base at least 96 hours notice," Major Boll said. "This allows base members to get themselves and their families to a safe location before the storm makes landfall."
For those who may be unfamiliar with what hurricane preparations may entail, several national organizations, such as the American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency and NOAA, have Web sites that contain useful information.