Monday, November 7, 2011

batten down the hatches.

The windows are boarded up.  The yard is empty.  There is a contingency plan for the chickens (they will be bedding down in a hay-filled pickup bed {camper covered--of course}.  We will be spending the night at Sadie's godparents' house.  Why all the fun?  On Tuesday night the Seward Peninsula is going to get hit by a very large storm.  Probably one of the largest on record.  The last time one of these hit was the year before we moved to Nome.  That storm flooded Front St., washed boulders from the seawall into buildings, and knocked the back deck off our house.  The city is coming up with an evacuation plan today--but since I am married to Loren--who stalks the NOAA weather channels, we have been getting ready for this bad boy all weekend.  So come hell or high water {possibly both with winds up to 70mph and 9 foot storm surge} we are ready to weather out the storm.
Look how deceptively peaceful it looks today.  The calm before the storm.
Here is the weather statement that NOAA has issued:

Special Weather Statement

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
414 PM AKST MON NOV 7 2011

AKZ207>214-090115-
CHUKCHI SEA COAST-LOWER KOBUK AND NOATAK VALLEYS-
BALDWIN PENINSULA AND SELAWIK VALLEY-
NORTHERN AND INTERIOR SEWARD PENINSULA-
SOUTHERN SEWARD PENINSULA COAST-
EASTERN NORTON SOUND AND NULATO HILLS-
ST LAWRENCE ISLAND AND BERING STRAIT COAST-YUKON DELTA-
INCLUDING...POINT HOPE...SHISHMAREF...KIVALINA...ESPENBERG...
NOATAK...KIANA...RED DOG MINE...KOTZEBUE...SELAWIK...NOORVIK...
BUCKLAND...DEERING...CANDLE...COUNCIL...HAYCOCK...
PILGRIM SPRINGS...SERPENTINE HOT SPRINGS...TAYLOR...NOME...
WHITE MOUNTAIN...GOLOVIN...UNALAKLEET...STEBBINS...ST MICHAEL...
ELIM...KOYUK...SHAKTOOLIK...GAMBELL...SAVOONGA...BREVIG MISSION...
TELLER...WALES...DIOMEDE...MOUNTAIN VILLAGE...EMMONAK...
ALAKANUK...KOTLIK...PILOT STATION...ST MARYS...SCAMMON BAY...
MARSHALL...NUNAM IQUA...PITKAS POINT
414 PM AKST MON NOV 7 2011

...SEVERE BERING SEA STORM EXPECTED TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY...

A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING STORM LOCATED ABOUT 600 MILES SOUTHWEST
OF SHEMYA THIS AFTERNOON WILL INTENSIFY INTO ONE OF THE
MOST SEVERE BERING SEA STORMS ON RECORD AS IT MOVES NORTHWARD
ACROSS THE CHUKOTSK PENINSULA TUESDAY NIGHT. THIS STORM
HAS THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE WIDESPREAD DAMAGE.

THE STORM WILL PRODUCE WIDESPREAD WINDS OF 40 TO 55 MPH
WITH HIGHER GUSTS OVER THE WEST COAST TUESDAY NIGHT INTO
WEDNESDAY EVENING. STRONG WEST WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE
OVER ST LAWRENCE ISLAND WEDNESDAY NIGHT. GUSTS TO 70 MPH CAN BE
EXPECTED ALONG THE CHUKOTSK PENINSULA AND IN AREAS NEAR KOTZEBUE.
WINDS OF 60 TO 75 MPH ARE EXPECTED OVER ST LAWRENCE ISLAND AND
THE BERING STRAIT COAST. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO APPROACH HURRICANE
FORCE OVER THE CHUKCHI SEA AND NORTHERN BERING SEA. THE STRONG
WINDS WILL GENERATE SEAS TO AS HIGH AS 20 FEET OVER THE CHUKCHI
SEA...AND TO 15 TO 25 FEET OVER THE NORTHERN BERING SEA.

THE STRONG WINDS WILL PUSH LARGE AMOUNTS OF WATER INTO NORTON
SOUND...RAISING SEA LEVELS TO AS HIGH AS 8 TO 9 FEET ABOVE NORMAL
TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. THE HIGH SEA LEVELS
COMBINED WITH HIGH WAVES WILL PRODUCE SEVERE BEACH EROSION AND
MAJOR COASTAL FLOODING ALONG THE NORTHERN AND EASTERN SHORES OF
NORTON SOUND AND ALONG THE BERING STRAIT COAST. HIGH WATER
LEVELS WILL PRODUCE COASTAL FLOODING ALONG THE SOUTHERN
SHORE OF NORTON SOUND. STRONG WINDS AND WAVE ACTION MAY PUSH
ICE IN NORTON BAY ON SHORE.

MODERATELY ELEVATED SEA LEVELS AND HIGH WAVES WILL CAUSE
SEVERE BEACH EROSION AND MAJOR COASTAL FLOODING ALONG THE
SOUTH AND WEST FACING COASTS OF ST LAWRENCE ISLAND TUESDAY
THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT.

ALONG THE CHUKCHI SEA COAST FROM CAPE KRUSENSTERN NORTHWEST...
SOUTHEAST WINDS GUSTING TO A HIGH AS 70 MPH WILL PRODUCE HIGH
WAVES AND SOME ELEVATION OF SEA LEVELS...RESULTING IN SEVERE
BEACH EROSION AND MAJOR COASTAL FLOODING. THE VILLAGE OF
KIVALINA WILL BE HIGHLY VULNERABLE TO DAMAGE CAUSED BY
BEACH EROSION AND COASTAL FLOODING.

THE STORM WILL ALSO PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL AND BLIZZARD
CONDITIONS OVER ALMOST ALL OF THE WEST COAST TUESDAY NIGHT
AND WEDNESDAY. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF AS MUCH AS 14 INCHES
ARE EXPECTED ALONG THE SOUTHERN SEWARD PENINSULA COAST AND
IN PARTS OF THE INTERIOR SEWARD PENINSULA.

AGAIN...THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING
STORM WHICH WILL BE ONE OF THE WORST ON RECORD OVER THE BERING
SEA AND THE WEST COAST.

7 comments:

  1. Wow! Wish I were up there for the excitement! =) Stay safe!

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  2. I thought about the calm before the storm too today when we were on a walk. Had to get a walk in today before all the craziness hits! Sure is nice out right now :)

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  3. good luck!!! sounds terrifying. :(

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  4. ^Yeah, like a hurricane and a blizzard all rolled into one.

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  5. It wouldn't be as horrible of a storm if it was later in the winter and the sea ice was already frozen. I think it is the open water that will be the biggest problem. But the wind is gonna be whippin' too--so its a good time to stay indoors I guess!

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  6. It's absolutely beautiful here too. It's almost like the movies that show the big bad clouds coming in terror as the villagefolk run for their lives. I sure really really sure hope it's not like that. My husband stalks NOAA too! haha. So, we've been stocking up on propane for the heaters and slowly filling the three tubs and bunches of totes with water. Sigh... Let's hope it comes and goes, and we go on with life as usual up here!

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