Eau Claire Flood Trends and the Swiss Cheese Model

     I thought the flooding here in Eau Claire was bad, but not much damage was reported in the city (especially compared to that of other areas, see first link below). I read a Leader Telegram article that said it was because of the prevention actions (like buying private land off the river banks) the city took after the 1993 flood.  When I looked into some history on flooding of the Chippewa River, there have been a few really nasty ones. The first one I could find was 1884 at 12.9 feet above the flood stage level. Then the major floods progressively become less and less high. I'm not really sure what this trend shows. Maybe it shows how technological advances help out with flood control or how getting properties off the flood planes reduce damages. Or maybe this is related to global warming in some way.
    One thing I found really interesting after today's lecture on Reason's swiss cheese model was that the Eau Claire flood obviously avoided enough holes, like not getting more rain, warning people of the flood and not having to much destructive flotsom.  But I believe there may have been one "hole" the flood went through, and that would be the National Weather Service's dangerous flood stage level being too high for the Chipewwa. Granted, everyone knew it was incorrect, but it still sort of shows an example of the holes in the swiss cheese model.

Links:

Leader Telegram article on the damages of the floods in Wisconsin:
http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/article_dc21a7e6-cc0c-11df-a057-001cc4c002e0.html

Leader Telegram article on minimal EC flood:
http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/front_page/article_c3722832-cb86-11df-a99e-001cc4c002e0.html?mode=story

history on Eau Claire flooding:
http://emergencymanagement.wi.gov/mitigation/stories/hm-eau_claire_success.pdf

Chippewa River Flood!

     Tons of people had come to look at the river this weekend. Many were confused becuase it had not rained it a while, so why would the river flood?  I'm not sure, but it was probably runoff water from the rains we had a few days earlier. The river was at its highest on Saturday/Sunday, and by Sunday morning it started to go down again.  There was alot of pieces of trees floating down the river as a result of flood damage.

     My friend talked to a police office on Saturday morning who said parts of lower campus had flooded over night. She works at the bookstore in Davis and then had to help get merchandise out of the basement because the water had gotten in there. She said alot of merchandise was waterlogged and pretty gross.

     I talked to another friend who has lived in Eau Claire her whole life and she said she has never seen the river this high before.  So the flood definately was a unique event and one that got the public's attention. 

Article from WEAU on receding water:

http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/103828399.html

Wet Weather in Wisconsin

     Much of western Wisconsin is experiencing heavy rains and flooding today. One of the most severe areas is the city of Arcadia, roughly 50 miles south of Eau Claire. It is a city of 2,400 and some were relocated last night. People are being advised to stay out of the city which is in a state of emergency. No deaths or injuries have been reported yet. There was a very early warning for the flooding (I remember seeing it on the news Wednesday morning.) The police and fire department responded very promptly. The Red Cross has made a church in Arcadia a shelter for residents. Also the National Guard has deployed emergency vehicles to Arcadia to help get people out. Overall, I think the advanced warning and the responce to the floods and rain was very prompt and effective.
     Like I mentioned earlier, I saw this warning on the news Wednesday morning. But I forgot about it because I didn't think it would be that big of a deal and it was a boring news story with graphs and radar images. So when I saw that Arcadia was is a state of emergency with video and pictures of the high rains and flooding, I was alittle shocked. I think this just goes to show we as a society in general are not interested in disasters and weather unless it is happening right now and is severe.

Links:

LaCrosse Tribune article on the State of Emergency in Arcadia:
http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/article_c736a1e0-c6ff-11df-8334-001cc4c002e0.html

WEAU report on the Red Cross setting up shelter in Arcadia:
http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/103606404.html

Crocodiles, Money, and Looting: Following Hurricane Karl

     Today I did a Google search on Hurricane Karl, expecting to find new information on deaths, damages, aid, ect. And while a few stories showed up estimating insured losses of the area, most of the stories are about the many endangered crocodiles that were freed by Karl. Of course, this story is important to protect the public, but I just thought it was funny that this story tended to take prevalence over that of the financial cost or that the president, Felipe Calderon, visited the disaster area. I guess in a way this relates to the idea that journalists are reporting on stories they think people want to hear, but I honestly don't understand why anyone would want to hear more about the crocodiles than the cost or what the president had to say.
     Moving on, as I previously mentioned, many reports are out that the insured losses are worth between 200 and 300 million dollars.  This figure makes me wonder how much uninsured damage was done to the area and what kind of aid will be available for Mexico.
     Another funny story I found was about Felipe Calderon, president of Mexico's, visit to the disaster site. This report claimed that he is  asking for clean water and food for the Veracruz area, but in the same report it mentions that people are "looting" in flooded places for food and alcohol. When does "looting" become an act of survival? If the president is asking for aid in the form of food and water, why does it matter if these people are taking those very provisions where they are available? Even if the looted stores are functional in the future, what are they going to do with all those goods anyway?  I just think it is a somewhat petty thing to worry about at the moment. I can see if it was alcohol or Ipods or jewelry because those things are not necessary for survival, and I am sure not everyone is out stealing alcohol and expensive luxury items. But then again, where is the line drawn between thievery and survival in disaster situations?

Links:
Insured Loss:
http://www.property-casualty.com/News/2010/9/Pages/AIR-Insured-Losses-From-Hurricane-Karl-Up-To-200M.aspx

President/ looter article:
http://www.voanews.com/english/news/americas/Calderon-Storm-Damaged-Veracruz-Needs-Help-VOA-News-103449904.html

One of many crocodile articles:
http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/6818847-hurricane-karl-leaves-crocs-on-the-loose

Follow Up on Hurricane Karl

     Last Friday I posted a blog about how the hurricane left the Yucatan and gained strength. Karl re-entered Mexico at the coastal city of Veracruz on Friday.  Precautions were taken, and many people were evacuated. The reports claim only 7-12 people were killed, however a lot of material damage was sustained.  Veracruz is a large city in Mexico with much of it economy based on its ports. This hurricane will most likely have a bad effect on this sector of the economy, but most of the municipalities have been placed in a state of emergency and will get some form of aid. However, like we discussed in class, that aid will probably be put towards rebuilding and getting the city functioning as quickly as possible and not much long-term planning will go into it. So therefore next time a hurricane or other disaster hits, the city will have to do the same thing over again. Also, upon doing a quick search, I learned that the president of the municipality of Veracruz is a member of the openly corrupt PRI party, so it will be interesting to see how the clean-up of Veracruz will be handled.
     In addition to the damage sustained in Veracruz, many other Mexican cities are facing Karl's lingering effects. Many areas near Veracruz and further inland are facing heavy rains that could possibly lead to floods or landslides. I have a friend in Northern-central Mexico right now who says the rains are extremely heavy even though she was far enough inland to not face the actual hurricane.

Tropical Storm Karl Becomes a Hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico

     This week there have been several hurricanes and tropical storms forming and moving across the Atlantic towards Mexico. Hurricane Karl is one of these hurricanes. When it reached the Yucatan Peninsula it was a tropical storm, but once it got past the peninsula and into the Gulf of Mexico it became a small hurricane. Right now it is just skimming the coast in some cities.  It is predicted that parts of Mexico's Eastern coast will feel at least some effects of the hurricane, mostly in the form of heavy rains, flooding and landslides in the mountains. There are hurricane warnings for much of the East coast, including the city of Poza Rica which houses an oil-processing center for Pemex. If the hurricane does get worse and precautions are not taken, the effects on the oil industry of this city in particular could be devastating. However, the Eastern Coast of Mexico is not unaccustomed to tropical storms and hurricanes, so the area is knowledgeable of how to deal with these events. To support this claim, the parts of the coast that Hurricane Karl has touched recorded minimal damage and no deaths or injuries.
     I have a few friends that live in the capital city of the Yucatan. I have been trying to contact them to see what the storm was like, but I have not heard back from them yet.


Links:
http://www.salon.com/wires/us/2010/09/16/D9I937L00_tropical_weather/

This video shows Tropical Storm Karl leaving the Yucatan to gain strength in the Gulf.

New Zealand Earthquake 9/4/10

     A 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit the south island of New Zealand on the morning of September 4. This earthquake was an aftershock of the 7.0 earthquake that had hit the evening before.  Of the several cities damaged by the aftershock, Christchurch was one of the worst. Since the 7.1 earthquake, many more aftershock quakes have hit the area. The estimated rebuilding cost is about 4 billion New Zealand dollars just for the city of Christchurch.
     There have been no fatalities so far and only two people injured, but the damage done to the southern island is devastating. Homes are destroyed, cars smashed, and streets broken up. People's lives have been abruptly disrupted by the quake, and the aftershocks are making it hard for an normalcy to return. There were some reports of people robbing shops that had been damaged, but these looters were stopped quickly. Also the rebuilding of Christchurch will take time and a lot of money, which is bound to have a negative impact on the people. All in all, however, the people of the southern island were relatively physically unharmed and, in my opinion, that is what matters most. But the repercussions of this quake and its aftershocks could harm the economy and the people's health, whether it be psychological damage due to witnessing the quake or, as suggested by guardian.co.uk, poisoned groundwater due to a damaged sewer system.
     According to the USGS website, there had been an earthquake the night before in New Zealand, so perhaps people could have been more prepared for the quake. Other than that, New Zealand often experiences earthquakes, and therefore the people know how to handle themselves in that situation, which is apparent because only two people have been severely injured.



Links:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/08/christchurch-new-zealand-_n_708742.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSRTR2HZ86

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iQRjyuI6Pc4hlaaxS-tjgOlct2pw

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/04/earthquake-christchurch-new-zealand