HEY, FR! Don't Let the Media "Spin" Hurricane Charley Against FL Gov Jeb Bush and GW!

WINK-TV, SW FL ^ | Aug 15, 2004 | summer

[summer]

HEY, FR! Don't Let the Media "Spin" Hurricane Charley Against FL Gov Jeb Bush and GW!

Here are the TRUE facts!

by summer

I have to say I chuckled when I read My Favorite Headache's editorial about people he knows spinning this hurricane disaster against Gov Jeb Bush.

But, tonight on COUNTDOWN on MSNBC TV, I saw a "political analyst" doing the same thing in his interview with Keith Oberman.

Folks, don't let such false "spinning" continue in this important election year. I will tell you the truth here, and anyone in this area who also watched the weather reports right up to the last minute also knows the truth.

This hurricane was predicted by all the experts to make a direct hit onto Sanibel Island, and this prediction was being broadcast by the area's weathermen right up to less than an hour or two before the hurricane hit.

However, at literally the last minute, the weathermen I saw on WINK TV and WBBH TV, the local news stations in this area, suddenly went wild, saying this hurricane has now unexpectedly turned NORTH.

Consequently, instead of slamming into Sanibel Island, which was under a mandatory evacauation, the hurricane proceeded north to Punta Gorda. There were mandatory evacuations all over FL's west coast, but no one thought this hurricane would suddenly turn directly to Punta Gorda, including the expert weathermen tracking this storm just minutes before it it hit land.

Here are some news reports from WINK TV showing you what I am saying is true. This late breaking report still wasn't predicting it would make a direct hit on Punta Gorda, and was instead poredicting "within 20 miles" of that town:

Charley's track will bring it within 20 miles of the coast of Charlotte County, producing 115 mph winds and battering waves, sustained for periods of one hour or more.

They thought it would hit Sanibel:

Critical Police Alert From Sanibel Island Police

All emergency medical and fire services have evacuated Sanibel Island and will not respond until recovery efforts after the storm.

But, the hurricane suddenly swerved and hit Punta Gorda in Charlotte County:

Hurricane Charley struck the Florida mainland at Charlotte Harbor as a dangerous Category 4 storm Friday, pounding west-central Florida with 145 mph winds and a wall of water expected to exceed 10 feet.

People on this forum probably have more news reports and other info they can add to this true sequence of events.

But the evidence with the greatest impact may be the live weather reports as the hurricane was approach in its final hour, with weathermen on tv going crazy seeing their predictions were wrong -- as the hurricane was suddenly turning north at the last minute.

Just be aware that such evidence exists.

Don't let these tv pundits spin this as if Gov Bush was not prepared for this hurricane. He constantly attends hurricane preparedness seminars and he was ordering evacuations up and down the west coast.

As he correctly said in the NYT, a hurricane's path is unpredictable. And, that's what happened here.

PS The response has been quick and thorough. The AP is reporting the following as of Friday HERE:

AP) President Bush declared a major disaster in the state of Florida and says his prayers are with those affected by Hurricane Charley. Bush, who was campaigning in the Northwest, ordered federal aid for the recovery effort just two hours after Charley hit the mainland.

Federal funding will be available to Charlotte, Lee, Manatee and Sarasota counties. People affected by the storm in those areas are eligible for temporary housing grants and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to aid in their recovery.

State and local governments can also receive 75 percent federal funding for debris removal and emergency protective measures. FEMA says more counties and forms of assistance may be designated after the storm's damage is assessed.

The Office of the Governor has declared a Major Declaration for the entire State of Florida for disaster relief as a result of the direct effects of Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley. These events have produced, and are expected to produce, significant damages associated with coastal storm surges, high winds, torrential rainfalls, and inland flooding. This request is for direct federal assistance and emergency protective measures.

The following counties affected are: Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Sarasota, DeSoto, Monroe, Hardee, Manatee, Polk, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Sumter, Lake, Citrus, Marion, Levy, Dixie, Lafayette, Suwannee, Hamiliton, Gilchrist, Alachua, Putnam, Flagler, St. Johns, Clay, Bradford, Union, Columbia, Baker, Duval, Highlands, Osceola, Orange, Seminole, Volusia, Flagler, Nassau

They are also asking for the individual assistance program for those counties listed above which are expected to experience hurricane or tropical storm winds. They are also requesting other additional programs.

Also see www.myflorida.com for many more links to info about Hurricane Charley and its aftermath.

[summer]

I watched that idiot Craig Crawford trying to lay the blame on JEB.

Thanks, scouse. I appreciate you confirming what I saw. It was a pathetic commentary from that guy -- which I do NOT want to see again from anyone!!!

But, I always like to hear from you. :)

[Eastbound]

The anti-Bushers, the anti-Americans, the liberals, the socialists, the demochaotics, the media a$$holes of the nation will do anything, say anything, use anything, invent anything to attain their goal of getting back in power in order to finish destroying the principles upon, and the institutions under which our Republic once prospered.

Just look at how much damage they are doing when they are NOT in power and multiply that by 10. This election is more than about personalities. This election will decide the fate of the nation -- and it will have a terrifying effect on the entire world if it goes wrong.

[dc27]

I totally believe that liberals have a mental disorder. I work with a flaming liberal. His two most recent comments were that we need to quit pissing off the rest of the world, particularly the middle east. The second was that Sandy Berger did nothing wrong.

[tbpiper]

I had a few people at work who were saying Jeb needed to be fired for telling people if they didnt leave, he wasnt sending in people to save them

My sympathies. You work with some really stupid people. I agreed completely with Jeb.

[tbpiper]

This MSNBC analyst was saying stuff like this: "Well, people want to know why JEB didn't know the hurricane would hit Punta Gorda.

They've got more horsesh*t than the Kentucky Derby.

[dandi]

I live in North Florida and was following it closely and even I wasn't sure where it was going. From what I understand it took a "wobbly" path and so was difficult to predict. At one point its projected path was straight towards my area and I stocked up on gas and got extra cash from the ATM, but as it turned out we got more bad weather from the cold front moving in than we did from Charley.

I don't put anything past some of these kooks. In fact, I'm suprised no one has accused Cheney and Halliburton of engineering the whole thing.

[Gabz]

Both of your commentaries tonight have been right on.

The idiocy of some people just never ceases to amaze me.

[Gabz]

This is not a political issue, this is a community issue

That sums it up very nicely.

[Gabz]

Prays for them all and that you hear from him soon.

[Eastbound]

I truly believe the U.S. has more enemies within than it has without. They are coming out of the woodwork like maggots, believing the house is about ready to crumble.

[doc30]

I live in one of the mandatory evacuation areas near St. Petersburg in Pinellas County. Everyone here is aware of how unpredictable hurricanes can be. On Thurs morning, came to work expecting it to be a regular day and the news hit that Charley was heading straight for the Tampa Bay area. We shut down our operations and prepared the facility as best as possible for the hurricane. When I was getting ready to head home, the mandatory evacuation order hit and a lot of friends were worried. It has been about 80 years since the bay area had a direct hit (1921).

My wife and I got the hurricane shutters over the windows, got the cars full of gas, loaded a dog, 3 cats and 2 parrots and precious family items into our two cars and headed out. It took 1.5 hours to cross the Howard Franklin bridge (I-275) from St Pete to Tampa and we headed north to Citrus COunty to stay with friends. Most traffic headed west to Orlando or Polk County, about 70 miles inland.

All Thursday night and Friday morning, all we could do was pray the storm weakened or changed course because the predicted track was centered on our neighborhood. We didn't know if we would have a home to return to or if my employer would still exist (it's located on the water).

Since hurricanes are unpredictable, we didn't know where it would hit for sure. Since Charley was approaching the coast at such a shallow angle, a shift of couple of degrees could change landfall by many dozens of miles. And sure enough, its track shifted to the east and made landfall farther south. We returned today and found many homes in the neighborhood with taped windows or were still boarded up. Our shutters are coming down tomorrow when the rain stops. The cold front that shifted Charley's track is bringing us heavy thunderstorms.

Tomorrow, my wife and I are volunteering at the local SPCA to help with the transfer of animals from the shelters in devastated counties.

My point is that if you live in Florida, you have to be hurricane prepared. You need to have your home protected and you have to have a plan to evacuate. Hurricane Andrew taught FLorida many lessons in terms of preparation and in terms of disaster response. The state was prepared. The state had practiced worst case senarios like this and knows what to expect and what to do in the disater areas. Recovery will be smoother and faster than for ANdrew, even with the greater damage from Charley. Anybody that says Bush didn't have Florida ready doesn't know sh!t about Florida.

[doc30]

My neighbor didn't want to evacuate. I told him that we were in a mandatory evacuation zone. If he didn't get out now, he won't be able to get out during the storm and no one would be able to get in. There would be no telephones and 911 would be nonexistent. He and his family wold be 100% on their own in the middle of a projected Cat 3 hurricane. He started packing immediately.

What Jeb Bush said is accurate. Responders cannot risk their lives to help, in the middle of the storm, some idiot that thought they could ride it out.

[spunkets]

" To see pundits blame this on Gov Bush is disgraceful, just disgraceful."

You shouldn't be surprised, dumb idiotic comments driven by the same quality of thinking are what Ds are best at. If they keep it up, Jeb should go sarcastic and announce, he believes them, is disconnecting FL emergency data, mgmnt and response from the fed science depts and hiring these guys:

For only a little over $125 he could have had detailed, 99.5% accurate forcasting and mappings of the charley's demeanor and path. He might have even been able to strike a deal with them on a spell to deflect it back out to sea.

If he's worried that this is a TX outfit, there's plenty in FL.

[CARDINALRULES]

Jeesh, what a bunch of morons.

Storms and hurricanes in the Gulf are known to be very unpredictable and change course very quickly.

One just has to look at the track Hurricane Elena took Labor Day weekend 1985.

I remember watching Channel 8 for days, with them predicting it would make landfall, then a few hours later say it changed course again and was moving away from the coast, only for them to say a few hours later that it was moving toward shore. It was a wild week while tornadoes were being spawned all over the place, flooding and then later sinkholes.

Spent most of the time in the hallway when not in front of the tv. Only ventured outside a few times, the last time was when Elena was off the coast of my county , winds were high and a large branch came flying off a tree and smacked me in the back of the head. ;-`) Good thing I had a hard head even as a child.

[summer]

I want to write back to everyone, but I though you might find this especially interesting, Miss Marple; from Drudge:

Charley's Force Took Experts by Surprise

Hurricane Charley's 145-mph force took forecasters by surprise and showed just how shaky a science it still is to predict a storm's intensity - even with all the latest satellite and radar technology.

"Most major hurricanes become major by going through a rapid intensification. This is the Number 1 area to research. I think that there is the perception out there because of the satellite photos and aircraft data, people do have faith in the technology and sometimes that faith is too much," Max Mayfield, National Hurricane Center director, told reporters Saturday in Miami, 24 hours after Charley slammed into Florida's western coast.

"A lot of people think we can give them a near perfect forecast. We know we can't give them a near perfect forecast."

Charley quickly grew from a Category 2 to a Category 4 storm Friday and its course took a sharp turn to the right, which put it some 70 miles south of the originally projected bull's-eye.

With so much media focus on Tampa and St. Petersburg, many residents in and around Punta Gorda were caught unprepared. The hurricane left at least 15 people dead in its wake - a wake that might not have been nearly as big if the storm had stuck to its original path and struck the big evacuated cities farther up the coast. [Note from summer: Original path was eventually deemed to be farther south, with landfall at: Sanibel]

All along, the hurricane center had issued warnings for coastal residents from the Keys all the way up to Tampa Bay, said hurricane center meteorologist Robbie Berg.

"We're kind of surprised that people were caught by surprise," he said.

Although Charley's path had the storm heading toward the Tampa area, Berg said the warning swath encompassed a much larger area - as far south as Punta Gorda, in fact. The swath takes into account any errors, he said.

"We were not saying Tampa. We were saying the west coast of Florida," Berg said. The media's fixation with "Tampa, Tampa, Tampa," gave the public the wrong idea, he noted.

Everyone had "ample warning," Berg said. "It's just unfortunate that certain people didn't evacuate."

Charley's turn to the right was not a big deviation, but because the hurricane was moving parallel to the coast, it ended up making a big difference in the landfall area, Berg said. The difference wouldn't have been nearly as extreme if the storm had been moving perpendicular to the coast, he said.

As for its sudden strength, it's not uncommon for storms in the Gulf of Mexico to rapidly intensify, Berg said. "We're just not that good with it yet. Satellites don't help.

"We always wish we could have more, better guidance," he said. "But with what we had, we did the best we could. Errorwise, we really weren't that bad. It's just that the storm happened to be so intense, that it made a big difference in landfall."

Just a week ago, NASA announced the extended operation of a storm-monitoring satellite through this year's hurricane season. The space agency had sought to decommission the aging Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite, used for studying hurricanes and other severe storms, but granted a temporary reprieve at the request of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

[ladyinred]

INCREDIBLE!

[redangus]

We have been watching a lot of the coverage on CNN, MSNBC and FOX and I can tell you that the talking heads are trying to find someway to blame this on the Bush Brothers. MSNBC's latest has been to question whether there is enough National Guard personel and equipment in FL because of the war in Iraq. CNN earlier had a talking head on saying that if Jeb asks W to come to the state it will obviously be seen as politicing because he won't ask Kerry to come too. Geez.

[WFTR]

The rapid intensification seemed to result from a huge "puddle" of warm ocean water between Cuba and Tampa. I work with a guy who has extensive flying and sailing experience, and he says that the warm water is what makes hurricanes intensify. I noticed on the Weather Underground website that there was a great deal of warm water on the west side of Florida, and my friend mentioned the warm water as a problem.

We had two in rapid succession in 2002 over here in Louisiana, but we were lucky. The first one wasn't too bad, and it flushed enough cool water into the Gulf to weaken the second one. Right now, we have a huge patch of warm water extending from Mississippi to Mexico. If Dawn comes through the gulf and heads this way, it will hit Texas, Louisiana, or Mississippi pretty hard.

Bill

[My Favorite Headache]

Well...Kerry will say the ole line of "we were all affected by Hurricane Charley...he crossed two of my yachts and 2 summer homes in Mass as a tropical storm...your prayers and thoughts are appreciated at this tragic time"...go for it John..you know you want to.

[Amelia]

Today I saw a convoy of 20-30 trucks, Duke Power's Storm Response Team, heading south on I-95 from North Carolina. Also saw a convoy of those tree-trimming bucket trucks but couldn't tell where they were from, and several big trucks from storm restoration companies, all headed south.

Help is on the way, from many places. I think Georgia Power sent its crews out Friday night or Saturday morning.