Marines overcome hurdles, aid in storm cleanup
Marine Corps Times
By Gina Harkins
Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Nov 13, 2012
NEW YORK — Jimmy Cioffi has lived in Staten Island, N.Y., for more than 25 years, but he can hardly recognize his own neighborhood.
The smell of rotting trash lingers in the air, wafting from garbage piled 10 feet high in the streets. Power lines hang down onto sidewalks; cars perch in unnatural places. Slippery thick brown mud cakes driveways and basements, brought in by the waves and storm surge caused by Hurricane Sandy, which pummeled the region Oct. 29-30.
Cioffi’s basement filled with water all the way to the ceiling and then up two more feet onto the main floor. His brother’s family, a few blocks away, had to sit in their attic for 15 hours before a boat came and rescued them, the lower levels of their home inundated.
“There was no chance to get out once you saw it coming,” Cioffi said. “When I saw the water coming under the door, I put towels down and they just washed away — it was like a river.”
Within days of the superstorm, which left homes destroyed, cities flooded, millions without power and scores dead, Marines were counting up their capabilities, preparing for a deployment within their own country. But before they could roll in to help, there were bureaucratic hurdles to be cleared. There’s a precarious balance between the quick response of military personnel in the wake of a disaster and the constitutional restrictions they face in getting troops on the ground.
And the Marines were quick to arrive on scene.
read more here
Showing posts with label floodwaters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label floodwaters. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Fort Monmouth Army Post in NJ to House Storm Victims
Army Post in NJ to House Storm Victims
Nov 12, 2012
Associated Press
by Angela Delli Santi
LINCROFT, N.J. -- New Jersey officials were readying a shuttered military base to temporarily house residents displaced by Superstorm Sandy as Gov. Chris Christie announced that gas rationing will end Tuesday morning.
Christie said he was confident the odd-even fuel rationing put in place in 12 northern counties to ease long lines and short tempers at the pumps could end satisfactorily at 6 a.m. Tuesday.
One of the state's biggest challenges, he said, has been restoring rail service because of all the flooding at rail stations and on tracks, and he seemed frustrated by those who are complain of two- to three-hour commutes into New York City.
"Sorry, we had a disaster," he said during a briefing Monday at a federal emergency management site in Monmouth County. "Take the ferry. It won't take you two or three hours. If you insist on doing things the way you've always done them and say, 'I don't care about the disaster,' well, then, you're going to wait."
The governor said Fort Monmouth will be taken out of mothballs and could house 400 to 600 families. Community Affairs Commissioner Richard Constable said families could begin moving in by month's end.
read more here
Nov 12, 2012
Associated Press
by Angela Delli Santi
LINCROFT, N.J. -- New Jersey officials were readying a shuttered military base to temporarily house residents displaced by Superstorm Sandy as Gov. Chris Christie announced that gas rationing will end Tuesday morning.
Christie said he was confident the odd-even fuel rationing put in place in 12 northern counties to ease long lines and short tempers at the pumps could end satisfactorily at 6 a.m. Tuesday.
One of the state's biggest challenges, he said, has been restoring rail service because of all the flooding at rail stations and on tracks, and he seemed frustrated by those who are complain of two- to three-hour commutes into New York City.
"Sorry, we had a disaster," he said during a briefing Monday at a federal emergency management site in Monmouth County. "Take the ferry. It won't take you two or three hours. If you insist on doing things the way you've always done them and say, 'I don't care about the disaster,' well, then, you're going to wait."
The governor said Fort Monmouth will be taken out of mothballs and could house 400 to 600 families. Community Affairs Commissioner Richard Constable said families could begin moving in by month's end.
read more here
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Marine from Jersey City happily deployed to storm relief
Marine from Jersey City happily deployed to storm relief unit in Staten Island
The Jersey Journal
By Anthony J. Machcinski
on November 08, 2012
When he left his Jersey City Heights home for the Marines in 2011, 2nd Lt. Gerard Farao never thought he’d be deployed near his home. Due to Hurricane Sandy, that’s exactly what happened.
When Sandy slammed New Jersey and New York last week, Farao, along with the rest of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, was deployed to Staten Island to help in humanitarian relief efforts.
“I was hoping to be deployed to Afghanistan (when I first joined the Marines),” said Farao, 23, who is stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. “We have to be ready to go anywhere in the world within an hour. I just never thought it’d be here.”
When the storm hit, Farao, a Hudson Catholic graduate, immediately became concerned about family that remained in Jersey City.
“Once (Sandy) got north, I was calling, asking if everyone was all right and if there was electricity,” Farao recalled. “In a weird way, I kind of wished I was home to experience it, just because it’s where I’ve been all my life.”
Since arriving in Staten Island last week, Farao and his unit have helped provide generators, fuel and clean water to aid in disaster relief efforts all over the area.
read more here
The Jersey Journal
By Anthony J. Machcinski
on November 08, 2012
When he left his Jersey City Heights home for the Marines in 2011, 2nd Lt. Gerard Farao never thought he’d be deployed near his home. Due to Hurricane Sandy, that’s exactly what happened.
When Sandy slammed New Jersey and New York last week, Farao, along with the rest of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, was deployed to Staten Island to help in humanitarian relief efforts.
“I was hoping to be deployed to Afghanistan (when I first joined the Marines),” said Farao, 23, who is stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. “We have to be ready to go anywhere in the world within an hour. I just never thought it’d be here.”
When the storm hit, Farao, a Hudson Catholic graduate, immediately became concerned about family that remained in Jersey City.
“Once (Sandy) got north, I was calling, asking if everyone was all right and if there was electricity,” Farao recalled. “In a weird way, I kind of wished I was home to experience it, just because it’s where I’ve been all my life.”
Since arriving in Staten Island last week, Farao and his unit have helped provide generators, fuel and clean water to aid in disaster relief efforts all over the area.
read more here
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Staten Island residents desperate for Marines’ help
Staten Island residents desperate for Marines’ help
NOVEMBER 5TH, 2012
BATTLE RATTLE
POSTED BY GINA HARKINS
NEW YORK – Mounds of garbage and debris are piled along the streets in Staten Island, pick-up being just one of the many services residents haven’t had access to in Hurricane Sandy’s aftermath.
Evidence of people living normal lives just a week ago now line the curbsides of the New York borough devastated by last week’s superstorm. Appliances, furniture, children’s toys and other everyday items are just dumped at the edge of the streets, since residents ran out of garbage bags to pack them into days ago.
The smell of rotting trash lingers in the air. Power lines hang down onto sidewalks.
Cars swept away by the floods sit in unnatural places like the middle of fields or on top of rocks. Slippery, thick, brown mud cakes driveways and basements, brought in by the waves and storm surge that flooded the residential neighborhood so fast that that people barely had a chance to get to safe places. Some, unfortunately, never did.
But still, when you walk through the streets of Staten Island, what you see isn’t outward anger or sorrow. People are just getting to work, cleaning out their homes and helping each other. Residents from nearby communities drove or walked the streets, offering hot food, water and clothing to those left with next to nothing.
read more here
Our chance to help
US Marines proudly on the job
New York Post
By GREGORY HUNT
November 6, 2012
Normally, I get fuel pumped into military vehicles; now I’m pumping water out of houses and apartment buildings in the Rockaways.
I’m a lance corporal in the United States Marine Corps, a bulk-fuel specialist with the 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics group based out of Camp Lejeune, NC. We’re here to help, for as long as we’re needed.
Ten days ago, as we watched the path Hurricane Sandy was supposed to take, my heart sunk. I was born and raised in Bloomfield, NJ; I knew the storm was going to be bad — but nobody knew how bad.
For the following week, I’d watch the news each night and see the devastation and destruction of places where I had many childhood memories. So when I was given word that within 24 hours I’d be going home to help, there were no words to explain how happy I was.
I just got back in September from Afghanistan, my first deployment, where my job was to supply fuel to the convoys that patrolled the area of operation. I was hoping to get put right on my next deployment — but I never thought that it would be to New York, the city I visited so often with my dad as a kid.
read more here
NOVEMBER 5TH, 2012
BATTLE RATTLE
POSTED BY GINA HARKINS
NEW YORK – Mounds of garbage and debris are piled along the streets in Staten Island, pick-up being just one of the many services residents haven’t had access to in Hurricane Sandy’s aftermath.
Evidence of people living normal lives just a week ago now line the curbsides of the New York borough devastated by last week’s superstorm. Appliances, furniture, children’s toys and other everyday items are just dumped at the edge of the streets, since residents ran out of garbage bags to pack them into days ago.
The smell of rotting trash lingers in the air. Power lines hang down onto sidewalks.
Cars swept away by the floods sit in unnatural places like the middle of fields or on top of rocks. Slippery, thick, brown mud cakes driveways and basements, brought in by the waves and storm surge that flooded the residential neighborhood so fast that that people barely had a chance to get to safe places. Some, unfortunately, never did.
But still, when you walk through the streets of Staten Island, what you see isn’t outward anger or sorrow. People are just getting to work, cleaning out their homes and helping each other. Residents from nearby communities drove or walked the streets, offering hot food, water and clothing to those left with next to nothing.
read more here
Our chance to help
US Marines proudly on the job
New York Post
By GREGORY HUNT
November 6, 2012
Normally, I get fuel pumped into military vehicles; now I’m pumping water out of houses and apartment buildings in the Rockaways.
I’m a lance corporal in the United States Marine Corps, a bulk-fuel specialist with the 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics group based out of Camp Lejeune, NC. We’re here to help, for as long as we’re needed.
Ten days ago, as we watched the path Hurricane Sandy was supposed to take, my heart sunk. I was born and raised in Bloomfield, NJ; I knew the storm was going to be bad — but nobody knew how bad.
For the following week, I’d watch the news each night and see the devastation and destruction of places where I had many childhood memories. So when I was given word that within 24 hours I’d be going home to help, there were no words to explain how happy I was.
I just got back in September from Afghanistan, my first deployment, where my job was to supply fuel to the convoys that patrolled the area of operation. I was hoping to get put right on my next deployment — but I never thought that it would be to New York, the city I visited so often with my dad as a kid.
read more here
Sunday, November 4, 2012
New Jersey residents thank Marines for help
Jersey residents thank Marines for help
NOVEMBER 4TH, 2012
BATTLE RATTLE
BOAT OPERATIONS LIFE AT SEA MEU OPERATIONS
POSTED BY GINA HARKINS
HOBOKEN, N.J. — Residents of a community ravaged by this week’s super storm had some unexpected guests landing in one of their parks today in Super Stallion-style.
About 20 Marines and sailors left the amphibious assault ship WASP this morning and traveled to a city hit hard by Hurricane Sandy to help restore a ferry terminal that hasn’t been functional since the storm hit. The Marines were with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., which deployed Thursday in support of disaster relief efforts.
NOVEMBER 4TH, 2012
BATTLE RATTLE
BOAT OPERATIONS LIFE AT SEA MEU OPERATIONS
POSTED BY GINA HARKINS
HOBOKEN, N.J. — Residents of a community ravaged by this week’s super storm had some unexpected guests landing in one of their parks today in Super Stallion-style.
About 20 Marines and sailors left the amphibious assault ship WASP this morning and traveled to a city hit hard by Hurricane Sandy to help restore a ferry terminal that hasn’t been functional since the storm hit. The Marines were with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., which deployed Thursday in support of disaster relief efforts.
Hoboken residents riding their bikes and walking their dogs spotted the troops and stopped over to say thank you.
Marines in New Jersey
read more here
Friday, November 2, 2012
War veterans hit Sandy's front lines for rescues, cleanup
War veterans hit Sandy's front lines for rescues, cleanup
By Bill Briggs
NBC News contributor
Up to his armpits in flood water, flanked by darkened buildings and submerged vehicles, Iraq veteran Peter Meijer felt oddly at home Monday night as he trudged through the streets of Brooklyn at the height of Sandy's fury: "The right place at the right time with the right mission."
With a fellow veteran at his side, Meijer had driven a van from a Brooklyn high school-turned-evacuation shelter to the Gerritsen Beach neighborhood, stopping only when the van's tires met the storm surge. From there, the pair went on foot. With 911 phone lines down, the Army reservist was trying to reach and rescue a man who had climbed into his attic with his dog to escape the rising tide. Back at the shelter, the man's wife — who had been on the phone with him — pleaded Meijer to try to save him.
read more here
By Bill Briggs
NBC News contributor
Up to his armpits in flood water, flanked by darkened buildings and submerged vehicles, Iraq veteran Peter Meijer felt oddly at home Monday night as he trudged through the streets of Brooklyn at the height of Sandy's fury: "The right place at the right time with the right mission."
With a fellow veteran at his side, Meijer had driven a van from a Brooklyn high school-turned-evacuation shelter to the Gerritsen Beach neighborhood, stopping only when the van's tires met the storm surge. From there, the pair went on foot. With 911 phone lines down, the Army reservist was trying to reach and rescue a man who had climbed into his attic with his dog to escape the rising tide. Back at the shelter, the man's wife — who had been on the phone with him — pleaded Meijer to try to save him.
read more here
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Marines help save 14 New Yorkers trapped by Hurricane Sandy
Marines help save 14 New Yorkers trapped by Hurricane Sandy
Marine Forces Reserve
Story by Cpl. Michael Ito
NEW ORLEANS - Winds, close to 80 mph, whipped the 14-foot floodwaters through the streets of New York Monday night as Hurricane Sandy bore down on the city. During the height of the storm, a detective from the New York Police Department approached the duty noncommissioned officer of 6th Communications Battalion, 4th Marine Logistics Group in Brooklyn, N.Y., and requested assistance for a rescue operation.
A transformer in the Queens neighborhood of Rockaway Beach burst, triggering a house fire that soon spread to adjacent buildings. Because of the fire and the rising floodwaters, many residents were trapped.
First responders attempted to help stranded residents, but they were also trapped, bringing the number of those marooned to 14. The water was too deep for the emergency services units, so the NYPD called on the Reserve Marines for support.
“We were just checking (our training center) for damage because the storm was getting pretty bad,” said Sgt. Jorge Negron, a ground radio repairman with 6th Communications Battalion. “The police showed up at the gate and, after getting approval, there was no hesitation. It was just ‘yeah, of course we’ll help.’”
Lt. Col. Richard Bordonaro, Inspector-Instructor for the 6th Communications Battalion, authorized the use of two 7-ton trucks, as well as the service of three Marines and one Navy corpsman, to conduct rescue assistance under the authority of the Defense Support of Civil Authorities directive.
Sgts. Allan Donaire, Michael Roy and Jorje Negron along with Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew Pulitano, a hospital corpsman, responded to the police department’s request at approximately 10:15 p.m.
read more here
Marine Forces Reserve
Story by Cpl. Michael Ito
Aerial views of the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy to the New Jersey coast taken during a search and rescue mission by 1-150 Assault Helicopter Battalion, New Jersey Army National Guard, Oct. 30, 2012.
(U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Mark C. Olsen/Released)
“The bravery and dedication I saw was so great,” said Negron. “Everyone was riding in our truck and then the police would hop into their raft and go to a family in need and the fire department would get in their (rafts) and go straight to a fire.”
NEW ORLEANS - Winds, close to 80 mph, whipped the 14-foot floodwaters through the streets of New York Monday night as Hurricane Sandy bore down on the city. During the height of the storm, a detective from the New York Police Department approached the duty noncommissioned officer of 6th Communications Battalion, 4th Marine Logistics Group in Brooklyn, N.Y., and requested assistance for a rescue operation.
A transformer in the Queens neighborhood of Rockaway Beach burst, triggering a house fire that soon spread to adjacent buildings. Because of the fire and the rising floodwaters, many residents were trapped.
First responders attempted to help stranded residents, but they were also trapped, bringing the number of those marooned to 14. The water was too deep for the emergency services units, so the NYPD called on the Reserve Marines for support.
“We were just checking (our training center) for damage because the storm was getting pretty bad,” said Sgt. Jorge Negron, a ground radio repairman with 6th Communications Battalion. “The police showed up at the gate and, after getting approval, there was no hesitation. It was just ‘yeah, of course we’ll help.’”
Lt. Col. Richard Bordonaro, Inspector-Instructor for the 6th Communications Battalion, authorized the use of two 7-ton trucks, as well as the service of three Marines and one Navy corpsman, to conduct rescue assistance under the authority of the Defense Support of Civil Authorities directive.
Sgts. Allan Donaire, Michael Roy and Jorje Negron along with Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew Pulitano, a hospital corpsman, responded to the police department’s request at approximately 10:15 p.m.
read more here
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
National Guard troops mobilized for Sandy response
3 minutes ago
National Guard troops mobilized for Sandy response
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Tribune Washington Bureau
Published: October 31, 2012
WASHINGTON — More than 10,000 National Guard troops in 13 states have been mobilized to assist in the response to Hurricane Sandy, including more than 2,200 who are assisting with recovery efforts in New York, the Pentagon said Wednesday.
Eric Durr, a spokesman for New York’s Division of Military and Naval Affairs, said that 650 National Guard soldiers and air personnel are deployed on Long Island, while another 400 are in New York City, with another 400 on the way.
The Guard is using Humvees and trucks to clear debris, rescue stranded people and to help transport local officials in flooded areas.
“They’re taking cops and fireman around in Humvees helping to rescue people,” Durr said.
Thirty guard personnel are helping to lug fuel to the 13th floor of Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, where the facility’s emergency generators are located, he said.
Ten Black Hawk helicopters and other aircraft are being used for aerial surveillance and are assisting local first responders, he said.
read more here
National Guard troops mobilized for Sandy response
By DAVID S. CLOUD
Tribune Washington Bureau
Published: October 31, 2012
WASHINGTON — More than 10,000 National Guard troops in 13 states have been mobilized to assist in the response to Hurricane Sandy, including more than 2,200 who are assisting with recovery efforts in New York, the Pentagon said Wednesday.
Eric Durr, a spokesman for New York’s Division of Military and Naval Affairs, said that 650 National Guard soldiers and air personnel are deployed on Long Island, while another 400 are in New York City, with another 400 on the way.
The Guard is using Humvees and trucks to clear debris, rescue stranded people and to help transport local officials in flooded areas.
“They’re taking cops and fireman around in Humvees helping to rescue people,” Durr said.
Thirty guard personnel are helping to lug fuel to the 13th floor of Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, where the facility’s emergency generators are located, he said.
Ten Black Hawk helicopters and other aircraft are being used for aerial surveillance and are assisting local first responders, he said.
read more here
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
National Guard Called Into Hoboken
National Guard Called Into Hoboken; 15,000 Without Power
Mayor Dawn Zimmer called in the national guard around 10 p.m. on Monday night. As of 3 a.m. on Tuesday they had not arrived in Hoboken.
By Claire Moses
October 29, 2012
UPDATED 2:45 a.m.—Flood water started receding in Hoboken around midnight, but not after causing major flooding, power outages and damage all over town.
Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer called in the National Guard on Monday night for extra assistance as raging floodwaters from Tropical Storm Sandy ravaged Hoboken. Roughly 15,000 people were without power as of 9:45 p.m. on Monday night, with two substations in town underwater.
The national guard did not make it to Hoboken, as of 3 a.m. Tuesday.
Much of the west side was in the dark, as of 10:30 p.m. It's unclear when power will be restored.
Zimmer said Public Service Electric and Gas workers were attempting to get to Hoboken to restore power, but weren't able to enter the city due to widespread flooding, Zimmer said.
A swollen Hudson River overflowed on Newark, First and Second Street from Garden through Grand.
"It was like a river," according to one city employee. "In all my life, this is the worst I have seen it."
read more here
Mayor Dawn Zimmer called in the national guard around 10 p.m. on Monday night. As of 3 a.m. on Tuesday they had not arrived in Hoboken.
By Claire Moses
October 29, 2012
UPDATED 2:45 a.m.—Flood water started receding in Hoboken around midnight, but not after causing major flooding, power outages and damage all over town.
Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer called in the National Guard on Monday night for extra assistance as raging floodwaters from Tropical Storm Sandy ravaged Hoboken. Roughly 15,000 people were without power as of 9:45 p.m. on Monday night, with two substations in town underwater.
The national guard did not make it to Hoboken, as of 3 a.m. Tuesday.
Much of the west side was in the dark, as of 10:30 p.m. It's unclear when power will be restored.
Zimmer said Public Service Electric and Gas workers were attempting to get to Hoboken to restore power, but weren't able to enter the city due to widespread flooding, Zimmer said.
A swollen Hudson River overflowed on Newark, First and Second Street from Garden through Grand.
"It was like a river," according to one city employee. "In all my life, this is the worst I have seen it."
read more here
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Australian flood teen's sacrifice to save brother
Australian flood teen's sacrifice to save brother
By Bryony Jones, CNN
January 13, 2011 2:45 p.m. EST
Jordan Rice was swept to his death when floodwaters surrounded his family's car in Toowoomba.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Family trapped on roof of car as floodwaters rose in Toowoomba
Teenager pleads with rescuers to save his younger brother first
Mother and son swept to their deaths in the torrent
(CNN) -- A teenager who was scared of water drowned in the Queensland floods after begging rescuers to save his younger brother first.
Jordan Rice, 13, and his mother Donna, 43, were swept away as a wall of water hit the town of Toowoomba on Monday afternoon.
His family has hailed the youngster's selfless actions.
"Jordan can't swim and is terrified of water," his father, John Tyson, told local newspaper The Toowoomba Chronicle. "But when the man went to rescue him, he said 'save my brother first.'
"I can only imagine what was going on inside to give up his life to save his brother, even though he was petrified of water. He is our little hero."
read more here
Australian flood teen's sacrifice to save brother
By Bryony Jones, CNN
January 13, 2011 2:45 p.m. EST
Jordan Rice was swept to his death when floodwaters surrounded his family's car in Toowoomba.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Family trapped on roof of car as floodwaters rose in Toowoomba
Teenager pleads with rescuers to save his younger brother first
Mother and son swept to their deaths in the torrent
(CNN) -- A teenager who was scared of water drowned in the Queensland floods after begging rescuers to save his younger brother first.
Jordan Rice, 13, and his mother Donna, 43, were swept away as a wall of water hit the town of Toowoomba on Monday afternoon.
His family has hailed the youngster's selfless actions.
"Jordan can't swim and is terrified of water," his father, John Tyson, told local newspaper The Toowoomba Chronicle. "But when the man went to rescue him, he said 'save my brother first.'
"I can only imagine what was going on inside to give up his life to save his brother, even though he was petrified of water. He is our little hero."
read more here
Australian flood teen's sacrifice to save brother
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Soldier killed after being swept away by levee break in Afghanistan
Soldier killed after being swept away by current
© 2010 The Associated Press
July 24, 2010, 3:37PM
EL PASO, Texas — A soldier from El Paso has died from injuries suffered when he was swept away by the current when a levee broke near his military vehicle in Paktika, Afghanistan.
The death Friday of Army Pfc. James J. Oquin, 20, was not combat related, according to statements from the Department of Defense and Fort Campbell, Ky.
read more here
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7123330.html
© 2010 The Associated Press
July 24, 2010, 3:37PM
EL PASO, Texas — A soldier from El Paso has died from injuries suffered when he was swept away by the current when a levee broke near his military vehicle in Paktika, Afghanistan.
The death Friday of Army Pfc. James J. Oquin, 20, was not combat related, according to statements from the Department of Defense and Fort Campbell, Ky.
read more here
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7123330.html
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Dam fails in eastern Iowa, causing massive flooding
Dam fails in eastern Iowa, causing massive flooding
By the CNN Wire Staff
July 24, 2010 5:58 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
A dam failed in eastern Iowa on Saturday, forcing residents nearby to flee
National Weather Service reported a 30-foot-wide gap in the berm alongside the dam
The breach was caused by "massive rain" of 10 inches in 12 hours, officials say
Hopkinton, population 700, is evacuated and Monticello under flood warning
(CNN) -- A dam on an eastern Iowa lake suffered a "catastrophic" failure Saturday, sending a massive amount of water into nearby communities and forcing residents to flee, officials said.
The Lake Delhi dam, about 45 miles north of Cedar Rapids, failed as a result of "massive rain -- a very unusually high amount this season," according to Jim Flansburg, communications director for Gov. Chet Culver.
Culver told CNN that nearly 10 inches of rain had recently fallen in a 12-hour period in the area and was "too much water for the dam to hold."
read more here
Dam fails in eastern Iowa
By the CNN Wire Staff
July 24, 2010 5:58 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
A dam failed in eastern Iowa on Saturday, forcing residents nearby to flee
National Weather Service reported a 30-foot-wide gap in the berm alongside the dam
The breach was caused by "massive rain" of 10 inches in 12 hours, officials say
Hopkinton, population 700, is evacuated and Monticello under flood warning
(CNN) -- A dam on an eastern Iowa lake suffered a "catastrophic" failure Saturday, sending a massive amount of water into nearby communities and forcing residents to flee, officials said.
The Lake Delhi dam, about 45 miles north of Cedar Rapids, failed as a result of "massive rain -- a very unusually high amount this season," according to Jim Flansburg, communications director for Gov. Chet Culver.
Culver told CNN that nearly 10 inches of rain had recently fallen in a 12-hour period in the area and was "too much water for the dam to hold."
read more here
Dam fails in eastern Iowa
Friday, June 11, 2010
16 dead in Arkansas flooding
16 dead in Arkansas flooding
By the CNN Wire Staff
June 11, 2010 6:18 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Obama orders FEMA to be in contact with local officials
36 people remain missing after campground flood
Hospital treating five flood victims
Scores could be trapped in area, authorities say
Local coverage of flash flood from KARK
(CNN) -- At least 16 people died at a federal campground in Arkansas after heavy rain and flash flooding Friday, and many more could be trapped in the area, state authorities said.
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said there's word from the Red Cross that there could have been as many as 300 people in the rugged Albert Pike campground area, a part of the U.S. Forest Service, in western Arkansas, but he said there is no registration that would show the precise number. Emergency management officials had put the death toll at 20 but revised the figure to 16 later Friday.
Nick Hofert awoke just after 2 a.m. to screams from families, some with children as young as 4, hurrying up a hill toward his cabin, looking for higher ground. He filed them into his home and went back out, trying to find those family members who were separated from the group.
read more here
16 dead in Arkansas flooding
By the CNN Wire Staff
June 11, 2010 6:18 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Obama orders FEMA to be in contact with local officials
36 people remain missing after campground flood
Hospital treating five flood victims
Scores could be trapped in area, authorities say
Local coverage of flash flood from KARK
(CNN) -- At least 16 people died at a federal campground in Arkansas after heavy rain and flash flooding Friday, and many more could be trapped in the area, state authorities said.
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said there's word from the Red Cross that there could have been as many as 300 people in the rugged Albert Pike campground area, a part of the U.S. Forest Service, in western Arkansas, but he said there is no registration that would show the precise number. Emergency management officials had put the death toll at 20 but revised the figure to 16 later Friday.
Nick Hofert awoke just after 2 a.m. to screams from families, some with children as young as 4, hurrying up a hill toward his cabin, looking for higher ground. He filed them into his home and went back out, trying to find those family members who were separated from the group.
read more here
16 dead in Arkansas flooding
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Samaritans are helping in Hiram Georgia
Helping flood victims 1:29
Some good Samaritans are helping one Hiram, Georgia, family whose home was hit hard by floods. CNN's Catherine Callaway reports.
Helping Flood Victims
Some good Samaritans are helping one Hiram, Georgia, family whose home was hit hard by floods. CNN's Catherine Callaway reports.
Helping Flood Victims
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Mother recalls night flood changed everything
Mother recalls night flood changed everything
Story Highlights
Flash flood rips family home off foundation and leaves 2-year-old boy dead
Mother clings to tree for six hours, clasping her other son to her chest
A serene creek was transformed into an 18-foot-deep torrent
A community rallies around the family, trying to make sense of it all
By Jessica Ravitz
CNN
CARROLLTON, Georgia (CNN) -- A clanking noise woke Bridgett Crawford after midnight on Monday. She was sleeping on the couch with her 1-year-old son, Cooper, as rain pounded their mobile home off Horsley Mill Road near Snake Creek.
Where was this strange sound coming from? Bridgett got up and stepped into the kitchen -- where water covered her feet. Peering outside, she saw one of the family's cars half-submerged.
As Bridgett rushed around the home, her husband, Craig, came out of the bedroom, where he'd fallen asleep with their other son, 2-year-old Preston Slade. They looked in the boys' room. It was flooded.
Bridgett placed a frantic call to Craig's parents, who live just up the hill. "You have to come get us!" she told them. Within two minutes, the young mother and father had thrown clothes on their boys, and they were ready to escape. Bridgett looked outside again and watched as floodwater whisked the car away.
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Mother recalls night flood changed everything
Story Highlights
Flash flood rips family home off foundation and leaves 2-year-old boy dead
Mother clings to tree for six hours, clasping her other son to her chest
A serene creek was transformed into an 18-foot-deep torrent
A community rallies around the family, trying to make sense of it all
By Jessica Ravitz
CNN
CARROLLTON, Georgia (CNN) -- A clanking noise woke Bridgett Crawford after midnight on Monday. She was sleeping on the couch with her 1-year-old son, Cooper, as rain pounded their mobile home off Horsley Mill Road near Snake Creek.
Where was this strange sound coming from? Bridgett got up and stepped into the kitchen -- where water covered her feet. Peering outside, she saw one of the family's cars half-submerged.
As Bridgett rushed around the home, her husband, Craig, came out of the bedroom, where he'd fallen asleep with their other son, 2-year-old Preston Slade. They looked in the boys' room. It was flooded.
Bridgett placed a frantic call to Craig's parents, who live just up the hill. "You have to come get us!" she told them. Within two minutes, the young mother and father had thrown clothes on their boys, and they were ready to escape. Bridgett looked outside again and watched as floodwater whisked the car away.
read more here
Mother recalls night flood changed everything
Monday, September 21, 2009
Five reported dead in Georgia flooding
Five reported dead in Georgia flooding
Story Highlights
NEW: Girl who was swept from father's arms is among those killed
At least four other people missing in Georgia; one presumed dead in Tennessee
300 people in Trion, Georgia, evacuate homes amid fears levee might fail
Hundreds of roads closed, official says; more rain expected before finally ending
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Georgia creeks and rivers, swollen by days of rain, burst their banks Monday, and at least five people were killed in flooding in the state, officials said.
At least four others were thought to be missing, said Wes Tallon, spokesman for fire and emergency management services in Douglas County, west of Atlanta.
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/09/21/southeast.floods/index.html#cnnSTCText
Story Highlights
NEW: Girl who was swept from father's arms is among those killed
At least four other people missing in Georgia; one presumed dead in Tennessee
300 people in Trion, Georgia, evacuate homes amid fears levee might fail
Hundreds of roads closed, official says; more rain expected before finally ending
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Georgia creeks and rivers, swollen by days of rain, burst their banks Monday, and at least five people were killed in flooding in the state, officials said.
At least four others were thought to be missing, said Wes Tallon, spokesman for fire and emergency management services in Douglas County, west of Atlanta.
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http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/09/21/southeast.floods/index.html#cnnSTCText
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Flood took away everything, FEMA let her down, town picked her up!
Lewis Co. flood victim: 'I'd lost hope'
By Marlee Ginter Watch the story
WINLOCK, Wash. - For nearly two years, a flood victim hasn't had a place to call home after she was turned down repeatedly by FEMA and had to seek out help on her own.
Finally it was the community and some helpful public servants who came together to help Pam Lytle, who lost her home in the 2007 floods in Lewis County.
She now is living in a mobile home with three bedrooms and two baths. Volunteers removed the panels, cleaned up the home and got it ready for its new owner.
She considers it a palace.
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/53750997.html
By Marlee Ginter Watch the story
WINLOCK, Wash. - For nearly two years, a flood victim hasn't had a place to call home after she was turned down repeatedly by FEMA and had to seek out help on her own.
Finally it was the community and some helpful public servants who came together to help Pam Lytle, who lost her home in the 2007 floods in Lewis County.
She now is living in a mobile home with three bedrooms and two baths. Volunteers removed the panels, cleaned up the home and got it ready for its new owner.
She considers it a palace.
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/53750997.html
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Volunteers rush to save animals at shelter during flood
Several animals drown as shelter floods, 600 others moved to fairgrounds
05:07 PM EDT on Wednesday, August 5, 2009
WHAS11 coverage
(WHAS11) - Witnesses say it took only minutes for floodwaters to rise nearly waist deep inside Louisville’s animal shelter.
But with only a dozen people, and nearly 600 animals, shelter workers couldn't get them all to safety in time.
Watch this story
Authorities say one dog and nearly a dozen cats drowned Tuesday afternoon as the record breaking rains flooded many parts Louisville and Southern Indiana.
Grabbing as many as they could hold at once, workers and volunteers plucked animal after animal from dark, damp rooms and kennels, trying to rescue as many as they could of the nearly 600 animals that were at the shelter when floodwaters started pouring in.
Volunteers were trying to stack crates on top of each other to get animals out of the water, since the water level rose more than halfway up on the bottom row of cages.
"At this point, the problem is just trying to move everything, dry everything, then bring them back," said Dr. Gilles Meloche, Director of Metro Animal Services.
read more here
Several animals drown as shelter floods
05:07 PM EDT on Wednesday, August 5, 2009
WHAS11 coverage
(WHAS11) - Witnesses say it took only minutes for floodwaters to rise nearly waist deep inside Louisville’s animal shelter.
But with only a dozen people, and nearly 600 animals, shelter workers couldn't get them all to safety in time.
Watch this story
Authorities say one dog and nearly a dozen cats drowned Tuesday afternoon as the record breaking rains flooded many parts Louisville and Southern Indiana.
Grabbing as many as they could hold at once, workers and volunteers plucked animal after animal from dark, damp rooms and kennels, trying to rescue as many as they could of the nearly 600 animals that were at the shelter when floodwaters started pouring in.
Volunteers were trying to stack crates on top of each other to get animals out of the water, since the water level rose more than halfway up on the bottom row of cages.
"At this point, the problem is just trying to move everything, dry everything, then bring them back," said Dr. Gilles Meloche, Director of Metro Animal Services.
read more here
Several animals drown as shelter floods
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Reburying the dead a grim task in Ike's wake
Reburying the dead a grim task in Ike's wake
The hurricane's storm surge washed hundreds of caskets out of their graves
IN THE MARSH OF CAMERON PARISH, La. - Joe Johnson craned his neck from the airboat as it circled a patch of brown marsh grass. The runaway coffin was not where it was supposed to be.
Johnson pulled up to a pile of rocks, killed the motor and hopped out. After a few minutes of scouring along the tall, reedlike grass, he flagged down two fishermen.
"Can you possibly take me along the shoreline?" Johnson asked. "I'm looking for a casket."
The hurricane's storm surge washed hundreds of caskets out of their graves
IN THE MARSH OF CAMERON PARISH, La. - Joe Johnson craned his neck from the airboat as it circled a patch of brown marsh grass. The runaway coffin was not where it was supposed to be.
Johnson pulled up to a pile of rocks, killed the motor and hopped out. After a few minutes of scouring along the tall, reedlike grass, he flagged down two fishermen.
"Can you possibly take me along the shoreline?" Johnson asked. "I'm looking for a casket."
"Our mother came out for Rita, and now she came out for Ike," said Debra Dyson, a commercial fisher whose house in Cameron was destroyed by Ike.
Dyson said coffins holding her brother-in-law and cousin also were heaved out by Rita. Ike was worse — the storm thrust out caskets containing her mother, brother-in-law, cousin, niece, three uncles and two aunts.
go here for more
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27266147/
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Ike's Missing May Have Just Washed Away
Ike's Missing May Have Just Washed Away
By JUAN A. LOZANO and MONICA RHOR, AP
GALVESTON, Texas (Sept. 18) - The death toll from Hurricane Ike is remarkably low so far, considering that legions of people stayed behind as the storm obliterated row after row of homes along the Texas coast. But officials suspect there are more victims out there and say some might simply have been swept out to sea.
Exactly how many is anybody's guess, because authorities had no sure way to track those who defied evacuation orders. And the number of people reported missing after the storm, whose death toll stands at 17 in Texas, is fluctuating.
Search-and-rescue crews cleared out Wednesday after plucking survivors from Galveston and the devastated Bolivar Peninsula, and authorities are relying on Red Cross workers and beach patrols to run welfare checks on people named by anxious relatives.
"We don't know what's out there in the wilds," said Galveston County medical examiner Stephen Pustilniks. "Searchers weren't looking for bodies; they were looking for survivors."
As the hurricane closed in, authorities in three counties alone estimated 90,000 people ignored evacuation orders. Post-storm rescuers in Galveston and the peninsula removed about 3,500 people, but another 6,000 refused to leave.
Nobody is suggesting that tens of thousands died, but determining what happened to those unaccounted for is a painstaking task that could leave survivors wondering for months or years to come.
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By JUAN A. LOZANO and MONICA RHOR, AP
GALVESTON, Texas (Sept. 18) - The death toll from Hurricane Ike is remarkably low so far, considering that legions of people stayed behind as the storm obliterated row after row of homes along the Texas coast. But officials suspect there are more victims out there and say some might simply have been swept out to sea.
Exactly how many is anybody's guess, because authorities had no sure way to track those who defied evacuation orders. And the number of people reported missing after the storm, whose death toll stands at 17 in Texas, is fluctuating.
Search-and-rescue crews cleared out Wednesday after plucking survivors from Galveston and the devastated Bolivar Peninsula, and authorities are relying on Red Cross workers and beach patrols to run welfare checks on people named by anxious relatives.
"We don't know what's out there in the wilds," said Galveston County medical examiner Stephen Pustilniks. "Searchers weren't looking for bodies; they were looking for survivors."
As the hurricane closed in, authorities in three counties alone estimated 90,000 people ignored evacuation orders. Post-storm rescuers in Galveston and the peninsula removed about 3,500 people, but another 6,000 refused to leave.
Nobody is suggesting that tens of thousands died, but determining what happened to those unaccounted for is a painstaking task that could leave survivors wondering for months or years to come.
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