IRENE A DISASTER FROM WATER, NOT WIND, IN THE NORTHEAST August 28, 2011 Dr. Walter Hays, Global Alliance For Disaster Reduction

AUG 28: FORECAST OF IRENE’S PATH

NEW YORK CITY AREA Good News and Bad News

AUG 28: IRENE HAD NEW YORK CITY IN ITS SIGHTS

AUGUST 28: LANDFALL Irene made landfall over New York’s Coney Island with winds of 100 kph (65 mph) before reaching New York City at 9 A.M. bringing a storm surge that sent 1 m (3 1/2-ft) of water into New York Harbor.

GOOD NEWS New York City’s risk from the wind field decreased significantly when Hurricane Irene suddenly weakened early on Sunday morning.

BAD NEWS Irene Became a Regional and Local Flooding Event With a Mix of Fresh and Salt Water

NOTE: Water quality is a major factor in health care problems (and solutions), especially after a tropical storm or hurricane

IRENE ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 28th Although Weakened and Downgraded to a Tropical Storm, Irene was still a Dangerous Storm for Cities Located in Front of and Behind the Storm’s Eye

Cities in the northeast (e.g., New York City, Long Island, Philadelphia, Trenton, and others) had to face Irene’s storm surge, rain fall, and New Moon high tides

WHAT NORTHEAST CITIES FACED Storm surge (5-8 ft in NY City), and “new moon” tides (2-3 ft)—, flooding with potential for deaths, especially if people drive through standing water or get trapped in autos or buildings. Overflowing/encroaching rivers--

WHAT NORTHEAST CITIES FACED Rain (2 to 20 in) over a wide area from the eye—major flooding exacerbated by slow runoff Wind (40 + mph)—damage to trees, homes, buildings, and infrastructure

WHAT NORTHEAST CITIES FACED Beach erosion and mudslides-- irreversible loss due to permanent changes in the landscape. Tornadoes---no warning; deadly on the local level

NEW YORK CITY:: Heavy rainfall overflowed sewers, seawater lapped at sidewalks at the edges of the city, and water cascaded toward Wall Street, which had been fortified with sandbags.

AUG 28: FLOODING IN NEW YORK

AUG 28: WATER OVERTOPS THE BOARDWALK

AUG 28: FLOODING IN STATEN ISLAND

MORE BAD NEWS: As Irene approached New York City, the National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for the city and some surrounding counties until 11 a.m.

MAYOR BLOOMBURG CALLS FOR RESTORE AND RECOVERY TO START MONDAY, AUGUST 29 th A Ray of Hope for New York City Drenched, but still Standing

All parts of the East Coast are on high alert for major flooding in the coming days as rivers swell from the Irene’s storm runoff

NOTE: IT WILL TAKE WEEKS FOR THE RAIN TO STOP, THE RUNOFF TO SLOW, AND THE RIVERS TO RECEDE TO NORMAL LEVELS

PRELIMINARY STATUS REPORTS AS OF AUGUST 28 th Over all, Irene’s damage was less than feared; the biggest problem was that it stuck around too long.

OVERALL IMPACTS: The storm that marched up the East Coast on August 27 th had pounded the coast with torrential rains and fierce winds and was blamed for power outages involving more than 6 million homes and businesses.

OVERALL IMPACTS (continued): The storm caused an unprecedented shutdown of the transit systems in Washington, Philadelphia, Boston and New York; It left rail and airline service in the Northeast paralyzed, and hundreds of thousands of people without power.

OVERALL IMPACTS (continued): Government officials issued evacuation orders for about 3 million people along the Eastern Seaboard, ranging from 100,000 people in Delaware to a million people in New Jersey

OVERALL IMPACTS (continued): Irene’s physical effects contributed to at least 19 deaths in seven states.

FEMA WAS READY The Federal Emergency Management Agency had 18 disaster-response teams in place along the East Coast, with stockpiles of food, water and mobile communications equipment ready to go.

A COMMON STATEMENT “This is the worst flooding we’ve ever had,”

IMPACTS IN PHILADELPHIA: Philadelphia, which lies between the Schulkill and Delaware Rivers, was hit hard; parts of the city were flooded, water was as high as street-sign levels in some areas, and flash flood warnings were issued for Eastern and Central Pennsylvania.

AUG 28: SCHUYLKILL RIVER OVERFLOWS BANKS AND INVADES THE TOWN

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN NEW JERSEY Restoration of Trenton, the Capitol, now Under Water, and Restoration of the Beaches are High-Priorities for New Jersey

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN MASSACHUSETS Flooding was a particular threat to towns along the Connecticut River and other waterways in central and western Massachusetts, where roads were closed and low- lying areas evacuated.

IMPACTS IN MASSACHUSETS The heavy rains in western Massachusetts led to an urgent call to monitor the dams.

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN RHODE ISLAND Heavy rain and strong winds with gusts reaching 45 + mph occurred when Irene arrived in Rhode Island on Sunday morning, knocking down trees and power lines, and leaving more than 100,000 homes without electricity.

August 28: Providence Rhode Island’s Hurricane Barrier, a 25-foot- high, 3,000-foot-long structure built in 1966 to prevent floodwaters from damaging the city, was effective.

IMPACTS IN VERMONT: In Vermont, “epic” flooding from Irene’s heavy rainfall put a number of towns in southern Vermont underwater

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND Ocean City Survived Because of the Implementation of Hurricane Risk Reduction Measures

AUG 28: OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN VIRGINIA In Virginia, more than 40 cm (16 in) of rain fell in conjunction with the fourth-highest storm surge on record, and winds reached 140 kph (86 mph), wreaking havoc in towns and cities and causing at least four fatalities.

AUGUST 28: IMPACTS IN NORTH CAROLINA North Carolina’s residents, in the state that took the first hard hit from Irene, woke up to a sun- drenched morning with considerable damage, but less than expected.

AUG 28: HATTERAS ISLAND, NC