Major Hurricane Helene

[blueheels2]

48 minutes ago, Hotair said:

Last image of a wife and husband in Asheville, NC sheltering from the flood on a roof. The roof would soon collapse, causing them and their 6 year old grandchild to drown.Their daughter and mother of the child took the photograph. When the roof collapsed, she got wedged between debris and was able to be rescued an hour later.
 

 

As a parent I can’t imagine the pain this woman must feel.  God help her to cope and recover.

[bobbutts]

We obsess over wind but loss of life is usually the result of flooding. 

[SnoSki14]

19 minutes ago, bobbutts said:

We obsess over wind but loss of life is usually the result of flooding. 

Wind is more of a cool, aesthetic factor but yes the real culprit is almost always storm surge & flooding. 

[NeonPeon]

27 minutes ago, SnoSki14 said:

Wind is more of a cool, aesthetic factor but yes the real culprit is almost always storm surge & flooding. 

I think part of the reason is that the media (and some enthusiasts) keep score via wind due to how storms are categorized.

In terms of damage "almost always" isn't needed here. It's always water.

[wthrmn654]

56 minutes ago, NeonPeon said:

I think part of the reason is that the media (and some enthusiasts) keep score via wind due to how storms are categorized.

In terms of damage "almost always" isn't needed here. It's always water.

Yeah but if there's water with no wind, for salt areas it's just a flood, add wind to that, u got wave action. When water is moving or crashing it's 10 time more destructive then say water coming up from crazy high tide but not really any wind.  

[Brian5671]

17 hours ago, cheese007 said:

And then there's the non-zero possibility of a second storm taking a similar path not too long from now...

The water is likely churned up there-wonder how long that would last and how it could inhibit strengthening?

[WxWatcher007]

 

[MANDA]

https://x.com/i/status/1841151548589552072

[MANDA]

Great animation of Helene life cycle.

https://x.com/i/status/1840879894680780985

[jm1220]

3 hours ago, NeonPeon said:

I think part of the reason is that the media (and some enthusiasts) keep score via wind due to how storms are categorized.

In terms of damage "almost always" isn't needed here. It's always water.

There should be some kind of recategorization of hurricanes to take into account potential for flooding. I remember in Sandy people downplaying it before hitting because “it won’t even be a hurricane” (which has since been addressed) and it only being officially a Cat 1 despite the gigantic size and pressure in the low 940s. The wind caused significant damage but the devastation and vast majority of deaths was also because of water. Since floods cause the most deaths, maybe the category should be more based on the potential for flooding. 

[Nibor]

https://appalachiantrail.org/news/hurricane-helenes-impacts-on-the-appalachian-trail-and-nearby-communities/

This is tangentially related to everything going on with the catastrophe. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is saying this is the worst natural disaster to impact the AT in it's 100 years of existence. It's not just the trail itself but the "trail towns" along its route. The AT is such an integral culture along these mountain towns and it will never be the same.

[the_other_guy]

33 minutes ago, jm1220 said:

There should be some kind of recategorization of hurricanes to take into account potential for flooding. I remember in Sandy people downplaying it before hitting because “it won’t even be a hurricane” (which has since been addressed) and it only being officially a Cat 1 despite the gigantic size and pressure in the low 940s. The wind caused significant damage but the devastation and vast majority of deaths was also because of water. Since floods cause the most deaths, maybe the category should be more based on the potential for flooding. 

There’s really no way to do that. There’s so many factors at play. Speed of movement, terrain, ground saturation and the amount of precip.

 

For intensive purposes, this is so bad because it is a mountainous region. This level of precip would be bad anywhere, but it’s especially bad when you add in landslides and mudslides due to the mountains. 

[CoastalWx]

This also wasn't all directly related to the Hurricane. You had a PRE event give 6-14" of rain in the area prior to the hurricane's bands moving in. 

[gallopinggertie]

Maybe there should be a second tier of flash flood watch for especially dangerous/unusual events.

[jburns]

4 minutes ago, CoastalWx said:

This also wasn't all directly related to the Hurricane. You had a PRE event give 6-14" of rain in the area prior to the hurricane's bands moving in. 

True, but Helene will be what is remembered.  In WWII we bombed Hiroshima for over two years. Which bombing do you remember>

[CoastalWx]

Just now, jburns said:

True, but Helene will be what is remembered.  In WWII we bombed Hiroshima for over two years. Which bombing do you remember>

Helene put everything over the edge, is what I mean. I'm just stating that the 1-2 punch of the PRE and Helene is what really made this historic. Obviously people will associate it with Helene.

[jburns]

2 minutes ago, CoastalWx said:

Helene put everything over the edge, is what I mean. I'm just stating that the 1-2 punch of the PRE and Helene is what really made this historic. Obviously people will associate it with Helene.

I agree with you 100%.  That’s why I started my post with, “True”. 

[andyhb]

Without the deep moisture feed from Helene's circulation, the PRE wouldn't have been as crippling in its own right.

[tunafish]

Tons of up to date info on resources here for anyone who might need it (or can share it).

https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/d/154hYrmMKWNKWIwcTkUP8GhcAn4z4LXnFr2AKMgv3Qik/mobilebasic?pli=1

[andyhb]

Now 57 dead in Buncombe Co. NC (Asheville and vicinity) alone.

[MattPetrulli]

6 hours ago, andyhb said:

Without the deep moisture feed from Helene's circulation, the PRE wouldn't have been as crippling in its own right.

Yep, kinda similar to Joaquin and the 2015 South Carolina floods

[WishingForWarmWeather]

The impacts and devastation are just so widespread. Also I recommend going to that tweet and reading the entire thread. They continue on documenting how bad it was for them. 

[USCG RS]

9 hours ago, WishingForWarmWeather said:

The impacts and devastation are just so widespread. Also I recommend going to that tweet and reading the entire thread. They continue on documenting how bad it was for them. 

Unfortunately, this looks'good' compared to the western portion of the state and, of course, WNC. Some areas are literally just... Gone. There's no other way to put it. It's... Indescribable. 

[WishingForWarmWeather]

50 minutes ago, USCG RS said:

Unfortunately, this looks'good' compared to the western portion of the state and, of course, WNC. Some areas are literally just... Gone. There's no other way to put it. It's... Indescribable. 

Yes, that definitely isn’t lost upon me. I guess I was trying to express that the devastation - regardless of level felt or perceived - is so widespread. I definitely didn’t mean it as a competition or anything. 

[HIPPYVALLEY]

From a friends Facebook page:

 

[eyewall]

Yesterday I helped load pallets of supplies for western NC to be taken out there by aircraft via operation airdrop. They are also going to portions of SC/TN as well. It became pretty clear this was going to end up being the real story of this hurricane. I am seeing stories of body recovery happening in riverbeds, homes, mudslides/debris flows, and even in trees where the water was that high. I also saw a story of horrific conditions in a long term care facility. That death toll is unfortunately going to climb even more.

[Amped]

The damage reports are reminding me a lot of Hurricane Maria. The steep terrain in a lot of these areas enhanced the wind and flooding damage, and is also obstructing relief efforts.

[andyhb]

On 10/1/2024 at 9:11 AM, bobbutts said:

We obsess over wind but loss of life is usually the result of flooding. 

Most of the deaths in GA and SC were from wind, mind you. Helene was really bad wind wise further inland, just not right at the landfall point.

[Normandy]

1 hour ago, andyhb said:

Most of the deaths in GA and SC were from wind, mind you. Helene was really bad wind wise further inland, just not right at the landfall point.

This was a rare hurricane where all three phases were deadly.  

- Deadly surge at the coast over a tremendous area soaking a hundred+ miles
- Deadly wind that translated inland over hundreds of miles.  thankfully said wind didn’t hit any major metro centers at the coast (which is the only saving grace of this cane)

- deadly flooding which at this point is reach historic and unseen before levels

[Met1985]

This storm and the whole event was a catastrophe.  Never have I or anyone else experienced anything like this in our lives. The flood, the wind, and yes even tornados in the area all created a perfect environment for the worst natural disaster we've seen in the modern area. It will take years to get back to normal.  We all saw record river crest on the Pigion and the French broad.  The state and federal government is here but there are communities that are completely cut off from everyone. This is still a very serious situation and will be for weeks. No water, no school,  no power and limited cell service still in areas.