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But surprisingly, not a single major hurricane, defined as a Category 3 storm or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale —with minimum wind gusts of at least 111 mph (178 km/h) — has directly hit the United States in nearly eight years. That's twice as long as any major hurricane landfall "drought" since 1915, and by far the longest on record since data began being collected prior to 1900. As of today (Sept. 12), it's been 2,880 days since Hurricane Wilma, the last major hurricane to strike the United States, made landfall on Oct. 24, 2005. The reasons behind this drought...

Looking like Noah's Ark after the flood, a sleek, 158-foot yacht driven aground by a hurricane lies just offshore, mired for most of the past two years in a dispute with the government over how to free it without doing too much damage to the seagrass. Through it all, the boat's owner, Peter Halmos, has stubbornly insisted on staying aboard or living close by on a cluster of houseboats so he can guard his beloved Legacy against pirates and thieves plying the calm green-and-azure waters off Key West. A Hungarian emigre who made a fortune selling theft protection to credit-card...

This may be the political version of Evolution. The New York Times is out this morning with a story about billing records that show Fred Thompson did indeed charge for his time while helping a pro-choice group. Details from the article below: Billing records show that former Senator Fred Thompson spent nearly 20 hours working as a lobbyist on behalf of a group seeking to ease restrictive federal rules on abortion counseling in the 1990s, even though he recently said he did not recall doing any work for the organization. According to records from Arent Fox, the law firm based...

Why I believe in Creation Posted: December 17, 2004 1:00 a.m. Eastern I was stunned the other day when I asked evolution-believing listeners to my nationally syndicated radio show to call in and tell me why they believed. "Just give me one reason why you accept the theory," I said. "Just give me the strongest argument. You don't have to give me mountains of evidence. Just tell me why I should accept it." Not one evolutionist called in. Meanwhile, the phone banks lit up with dozens of evolution skeptics. Go figure. For more than 40 years, evolution has been taught...

At the Pinitos Learning Center in Boca Raton, disaster workers dressed as "Windy Biggie" and "Sunny" teach 30 preschoolers a song about how the wind is good, even during a hurricane. "Windy Biggie is our friend. "Windy Biggie is strong wind. "She turns, turns, turns, turns around. "She's knocking things to the ground." This is FEMA tax money at work. It's also paying for Hurricane Bingo, puppet shows, "salsa for seniors," and yoga on the beach. Last year, the Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded Florida $22.6 million for "crisis counseling" for victims of hurricanes Wilma and Katrina. Florida's program, called...

Hurricane Wilma damaged their roof and like so many victims of the storm, one South Florida couple had trouble finding a roofer because of a shortage of materials and workers. John and Kathleen Jurewicz finally did get contractor, but it has been anything but smooth sailing. The couple hired McClung contractors to do the work. With their insurance money, the couple paid the company nearly $14,000 for the roofing materials which was suppose to be turned over to ABC supply company. Four months later the supplies still sit in their driveway and the work on the roof was never completed....

BOULDER, Colorado, June 26, 2006 (ENS) - Global warming created about half the extra warmth in the waters of the tropical North Atlantic that stimulated hurricane formation in 2005, while natural cycles were a minor factor, a new study from the National Center for Atmospheric Research demonstrates. The research by world leading climate scientists contradicts recent claims that natural cycles are responsible for the increase in Atlantic hurricane activity since 1995 and adds support to the theory that hurricane seasons will become more active as global temperatures rise. While researchers agree that the warming waters fueled hurricane intensity, they have...

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance has decided to parcel out over a seven-year period the $14.4 million remaining from a record-setting burst of generosity by Presbyterians despite some complaints by hurricane victims in the Gulf Coast states that the denomination has been slow to respond to their needs. The decision to adopt a seven-year plan was made during a recent meeting of PDA's advisory board. The denomination raised $23 million in response to hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. About 70 percent of the contributions were made within 90 days after the storms. Donors were not informed that the distribution of their gifts...

BEAUMONT, Texas -- Thousands of people who received money from the federal government after Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma might be asked to give it back. The Federal Emergency Management Agency started sending letters last week asking people to return money they received in error.

TALLAHASSEE -- Homeowner insurance rates could jump as much as 25 percent a year, without government review, under legislation proposed by House Republican leaders Monday. Backers say their goal is to bolster competition in the state's property insurance market following two hurricane seasons that left insurers with huge shortfalls and record losses.

I live in Palm Beach County and we just received notification of a Lien against our house from the company who put the temporary roof (tarp)on our house for FEMA/Blue Roof after hurricane Wilma.

Cancun struggles to recover from Wilma By Claire Marshall BBC News, Cancun The sun is shining, and the sea is a beautiful deep azure. But nearly two months after Hurricane Wilma, the beach is out of bounds and Cancun's main strip looks like a building site. The beach is now out of bounds Cranes dot the horizon. Piles of rubble lie by the side of the road. There seem to be more construction workers than tourists here. For the moment, the jewel of Mexico's tourism industry has definitely lost its sparkle. The president's pledge of having the resort fully up...

Keep in mind that Time's "Person of the Year" is supposed to be the person who "most affected the news and our lives, for good or for ill, and embodied what was important about the year." Given this criteria, I scratch my head over some of these nominees. Steve Jobs Pope Benedict XVI Bill and Melinda Gates The Google Guys J.K. Rowling Rick Warren Condoleezza Rice Valerie Plame Bono Mother Nature George W. Bush Lance Armstrong

Hurricane season finally ending, but next year could be bad, too By JOHN PAIN Associated Press Writer November 29. 2005 4:27PM The busiest and costliest Atlantic hurricane season on record officially - and mercifully - draws to a close Wednesday, with hundreds of thousands of Americans still dealing with the devastation wrought by Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Despite the end of the June 1-to-Nov. 30 season, hurricanes could still form over the next few months. In fact, a tropical storm took shape in the Atlantic on Tuesday. But no hurricane has been known to hit the United States between December...

PAHOKEE, Fla. -- Ernesto and Carmen Vasquez are staying home for the holidays this year despite the SUV-sized hole in their living-room ceiling -- a calling card left by Hurricane Wilma -- and the red "X" on their door marking the mobile home as condemned. It's been one month since Wilma struck their Everglades mobile home park in western Palm Beach County, flattening many of their neighbors' homes, but the couple have yet to be visited by aid workers or local officials. Shelters here are scarce, so they plan to remain in their two-bedroom trailer with their two children --...

PAHOKEE, Fla. (AP) -- Ernesto and Carmen Vasquez intend to celebrate the holidays at home despite the SUV-sized hole in their living-room ceiling - a calling card left by Hurricane Wilma - and the red "X" on their door marking the trailer as condemned. It's been one month since Wilma whipped through their Everglades mobile home park in western Palm Beach County, flattening many of their neighbors' homes, but the couple have yet to receive a visit from aid workers or local officials. Shelters here are scarce, so they plan to remain in their two-bedroom trailer with their two children...

Its stated goals are broad and rarely ever fully reached: planning for, responding to and mollifying disasters. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has drawn fire for more than a year on several fronts, from the fraud that followed last year's Florida hurricanes to the unbearably slow response to Hurricane Katrina's victims. When Hurricane Wilma barreled across southern Florida in October, the agency faced a familiar test. Millions lost power. Hundreds lost homes. Local governments grappled with clearing beach sand, countless trees and other detritus from roads. Nearly a month later across Southwest Florida, most residents have recovered from the Category...

As desperation climbs and confusion spreads in the drawn-out aftermath of Hurricane Wilma, crowds encircling relief trucks and threatening its workers have forced police to escort supply vans out of hard-hit neighborhoods. For three straight days, Red Cross relief vans trying to visit victims of Hurricane Wilma have been confronted by unruly crowds. skip On Wednesday, an angry crowd surrounded a relief truck entering a neighborhood in Sunrise until police cars escorted volunteers out. The same scene played out in Pompano Beach the next day. skip The aggressive encounters have forced Red Cross officials to change the way they distribute...

New Orleans Levee Failure Analysis - Part V Contents Introduction and Basic Levee Construction, Section and Elevation Details Section 1. Pre-Landfall Flooding in Kenner and Western Metairie of East Jefferson Parish Section 2. Analysis of the 17th Street and London Canal Breaches and Post Katrina Flood Sequence in Downtown New Orleans Section 3. Surge Sequence for the Industrial Canal Basin, Analysis of the Five Major Breaches and east Orleans Parish Flooding Section 4. Flood Sequence for St. Bernard Parish and the Lower Ninth Ward, MRGO Reach Failure Analysis Section 5. Contributory Causality, Political and Funding Issues Leading to Levee Failures...

The number of homes broken by Hurricane Wilma swelled Wednesday, as state officials blamed an older building code for the severe damage to Broward County apartment complexes, mobile homes and businesses. State officials have surveyed Wilma's damage in South Florida and said the major problems were in structures built before Hurricane Andrew sparked tougher codes. "The damage was in older and weaker buildings," said Rick Dixon, executive director of the Florida Building Commission in Tallahassee. "Remember, this is the first time that area has been hit directly in some time. ... They will have to be redone to meet the...