Category: Posts EN

Deadly Flooding Ravages Congolese Capital of Kinshasa!

Written by Team Morecast

 

A torrential overnight rain storm lead to severe flash flooding in Kinshasa on Tuesday, the worst in decades. The flooding is the culmination of months of an unusually wet monsoon. A massive landslide has smothered the main highway connecting Kinshasa to the major port city of Matadi. Nearly 40,000 households were flooded with hundreds completely collapsed and swept away. As of Wednesday night, the death toll is 141 and climbing. This death toll is comparable to those suffered by the nearby countries of Chad and Nigeria in flash flood events in September and October, respectively. Unfortunately, the lengthy rainy season will continue through April.

 

 

 

Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is home to around 15 million residents. One of the fastest-growing cities in the world, the population boom is outpacing residential building by a wide margin. As a result, many Kinshasans live in poorly-built temporary huts and shanties. These structures and those that live in them stand little chance of surviving serious flash flood events like Wednesday’s. These buildings are unauthorized but city officials lack the resources to consistently enforce building codes. Flooding in recent months has also inundated millions of acres of farmland across West and Central Africa. The UN’s World Food Program has warned that nearly 50 million men, women, and children could go hungry in 2023 as a result.

Lake Effect Snow Buries Parts of Upstate New York!

Written by Team Morecast

 

A blinding lake effect snow band has paralyzed communities just south of Buffalo, NY. The band developed on Thursday evening and has been dumping snowfall at rates of 3-5 inches per hour (7-10 cm/hr) ever since. Other than slight wobbles, it has been almost stationary in the past 18-24 hours. The result is accumulations exceeding five feet in some areas with heavy snow still falling (see pictures and videos below).

 

 

 

Lake effect snow occurs when very cold air passes over a relatively warm body of water. The band picks up moisture from the lake surface and deposits it onshore in the form of heavy snow. It tends to be very localized but is highly unstable, even to the point of producing lightning (see satellite imagery below). As long as the wind direction remains constant, the band is stationary, meaning the same locations receive prodigious snow totals. In this case, persistent westerly winds passing over Lake Erie are yielding a stubborn band of snow just south of Buffalo. Amazingly, locations just north or south of the band have received only a few inches (<10 cm). The video below shows how sharp the delineation is at the edge of the snow band.

 

 

 

Models suggest the current snow band will weaken overnight into early Saturday. However, severe disruptions will persist well beyond. Both college and professional football teams in the Buffalo area have cancelled or relocated their games this weekend (see video below showing the current state of the Buffalo Bills stadium). Roads are closed and a state of emergency has been declared in the affected region. Lead photo courtesy Ave Maria Moistlik.

 

Major Hurricane Ian Lashes Florida Peninsula with Devastating Flooding and Winds!

Written by Team Morecast

 

After ravaging western Cuba and the Florida Keys late Monday into Tuesday, Hurricane Ian rapidly intensified early Wednesday. Ian reached high-end Category Four status with sustained winds to 155 mph (250 kph) before making landfall at Cayo Costa, Florida. Social media reports confirm widespread and serious damage around the Naples – Fort Myers – Port Charlotte region.

 

 

 

The large size and intensifying nature of the hurricane increased the surge flood potential as Ian approached landfall Wednesday afternoon. Both Fort Myers and Naples reported their highest surge flooding levels on record, up to 12 feet (3.7 m) in spots. A large swath of central Florida is seeing copious rainfall, up to 20 inches (500 mm) already to this point. This will lead to serious freshwater flooding issues in the next few days. Destructive winds have also leveled trees and powerlines across the area. A weather station in Port Charlotte reported a wind gust to 132 mph (212 kph). More than two million Floridians are without power as of Wednesday evening.

 

 

Hurricane Ian has weakened to Category One status as of Wednesday night but will continue to bring strong winds and flooding to Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas in the next few days. Meanwhile, cleanup efforts will begin in earnest over the landfall zone on Thursday. A full recovery will take weeks if not months. Lead photo courtesy Scott Pena.

Deadly Hurricane Ian Heads Towards Florida

Written by Team Morecast

Hurricane Ian, the ninth storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, is now on a collision course with the central-west coast of Florida. Ian made landfall early on Tuesday morning in the Pinar Del Rio province of western Cuba. The storm roared ashore with winds of 125 mph (201 kph), which toppled power lines and damaged many homes. These winds are also responsible for delivering substantial damage to the heavily prized tobacco crops. The entire nation, or 11 million people, are currently without power in the wake of the storm, as the storm has caused the ailing power grid to fail. Ian is responsible for two deaths across the island so far.

Upon remerging in the Gulf of Mexico after departing Cuba, Ian has now explosively grown into a monster Category 4 storm, packing winds of 140 mph (225 kph). It is certainly possible that further strengthening is possible as Ian churns over water that is extremely warm, ranging from 85-90 degrees F (29-32 C), before a landfall on the west-central coast of Florida later on Wednesday. 2.5 million Floridians have been put under mandatory evacuations as the storm draws near. Ian is expected to bring widespread damaging winds to a large swath of the state, as the storm slows down after landfall. This slowing down will also lead to very high amounts of rain falling. Rainfall amounts between 10-15 inches (254-381 mm), with locally higher amounts of up to 25 inches (635 mm) will cause catastrophic flooding. A storm surge of up to 12 feet (3.6 m) is also possible along the coast.

As a whole, the state of Florida is no stranger to hurricanes, receiving the majority of all landfalls in the United States, however, the central-west coast of the state has been particularly lucky in recent years. Aside from Hurricane Charley, which devastated the Punta Gorda region in 2004, the remainder of the central-west coast has dodged many bullets. Tampa, the second largest city in the state, is a prime example, having not received a direct hit from a hurricane since 1921. It is possible Ian may break that streak, or in the very least bring more damage to the area than seen in quite some time. After leaving Florida in ruins, Ian is forecasted to move northward, and bring flooding rains to Georgia and the Carolinas by the weekend.

When all is said and done, it is very probable that the name Ian will be retired from the list of Atlantic hurricane names, as damages will likely top out in the billions of dollars. If this occurs, it would be the 13th I storm to be retired, falling into the category of most devastating storms in history which include: Ivan,  Irene, and Ida. The letter I has the most retired names associated with it. This is due to it being the ninth letter on the list, which usually coincides with the peak of activity in the season.