belgareth
09-24-2004, 12:29 PM
350,000 Asked to Evacuate As Jeanne Nears
By JILL BARTON, Associated Press Writer
WEST PALM BEACH,
Fla. - Hurricane Jeanne trekked westward Friday on a path that could lead to Florida's east coast by Sunday,
setting off another round of storm preparations in a state still reeling from three earlier strikes.
Jeanne was already blamed for more than 1,100 deaths in Haiti, where
it hit over the weekend as a tropical storm and caused major flooding. More than 350,000 people were asked to
evacuate in three Florida counties hit hard by Frances on Sept. 5, and crews along the state's coast worked to
remove debris still remaining after that storm, though some said it was a losing battle.
"With another hurricane, there's just too much there — we just
don't have the manpower to get it all done," Martin County spokesman Greg Sowell said.
He estimated that nearly 80 percent of debris remained from Frances,
and some streets had "debris piled up 5 to 6 feet high."
Jeanne
could drop up to 10 inches of rain along its route, the weather service said, and fears of more flooding, flying
debris and power outages sent shoppers scurrying to grocery and hardware stores for supplies that had run low before
the last storms. State and federal officials geared up for another disaster response.
"I know people are frustrated, they're tired of all this," Gov. Jeb
Bush said Friday. "Trust me, their governor is as well."
A hurricane
watch was issued early Friday for most of the state's eastern coast, from Florida City to St. Augustine. A watch
means hurricane conditions with wind of at least 74 mph are possible within 36 hours.
Jeanne could hit just over a week after Hurricane Ivan thrashed the
Panhandle Sept. 16. Ivan and its predecessors, Charley and Frances, caused billions of dollars of damage and were
blamed for at least 70 deaths in the state.
The only other time four
hurricanes have been known to hit the same state in one season was in Texas in 1886, National Hurricane Center (news
- web sites) Director Max Mayfield said.
An exasperated Margaret
McFarlane of Greenacres, who was without power for 12 days after Hurricane Frances, found herself back at the store
to stock up on water and food.
"We've already refilled our
refrigerators, gotten the debris out of the streets and it's going to happen all over again. I'm not sure how much
more people can take," she said.
At 2 p.m., Jeanne was centered
about 455 miles east of Miami, moving west at 12 mph, the hurricane center in Miami said. The storm had 100 mph wind
and could strengthen as it reaches warmer water closer to Florida's coast. Hurricane-force wind extended 45 miles
from the center, and tropical storm wind extended 150 miles.
An
eventual turn to the northwest was predicted, but it was unclear if that would happen before Jeanne reached Florida.
Computer models showed possible landfall anywhere from South Florida to Cape Canaveral and then a path up the shore,
meaning "it's going to make an impact throughout the state," said Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the hurricane
center.
The Kennedy Space Center (news - web sites) was closed
Friday to all nonessential personnel, and the Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers were considering changing the
start time of Sunday's 1 p.m. game.
Palm Beach, Martin and St.
Lucie counties — also hit hard by Frances on Sept. 5 — issued voluntary evacuations for more than 350,000 people
living in barrier islands, low-lying areas and mobile homes Friday. Mandatory evacuations were expected Saturday
morning.
Retiree Larry Ruby spent Friday morning patching holes in
the roof of his mobile home on Hutchinson Island, as a bulldozer cleared Frances' debris.
"I was one of the luckier ones, but this time, who knows?" Ruby
said. "I ain't going anywhere unless they make me. I don't think you can get away from it."
Bush noted Jeanne could threaten during Yom Kippur, the holiest day
on the Jewish calendar, which begins at sundown Friday and ends at sundown Saturday. During that period, observant
Jews usually do not work or carry cash and many do not travel by car, which could hamper their storm preparations.
"We ask those who are keeping their faith and their strict Orthodox
practices to prepare early," Bush said.
After looping into the
Atlantic and back into the Gulf of Mexico following its initial strike on the Alabama-Florida coast as a hurricane
last week, Tropical Storm Ivan washed ashore near the Texas-Louisiana line Thursday night, bringing heavy rain to
both sides of the border.
While the storm was expected to dissipate
as it drifts into Texas this weekend, its rains are expected to persist and cause problems, and flood-prone Houston
is in its projected path.
___
On the Net:
National Hurricane Center:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov
By JILL BARTON, Associated Press Writer
WEST PALM BEACH,
Fla. - Hurricane Jeanne trekked westward Friday on a path that could lead to Florida's east coast by Sunday,
setting off another round of storm preparations in a state still reeling from three earlier strikes.
Jeanne was already blamed for more than 1,100 deaths in Haiti, where
it hit over the weekend as a tropical storm and caused major flooding. More than 350,000 people were asked to
evacuate in three Florida counties hit hard by Frances on Sept. 5, and crews along the state's coast worked to
remove debris still remaining after that storm, though some said it was a losing battle.
"With another hurricane, there's just too much there — we just
don't have the manpower to get it all done," Martin County spokesman Greg Sowell said.
He estimated that nearly 80 percent of debris remained from Frances,
and some streets had "debris piled up 5 to 6 feet high."
Jeanne
could drop up to 10 inches of rain along its route, the weather service said, and fears of more flooding, flying
debris and power outages sent shoppers scurrying to grocery and hardware stores for supplies that had run low before
the last storms. State and federal officials geared up for another disaster response.
"I know people are frustrated, they're tired of all this," Gov. Jeb
Bush said Friday. "Trust me, their governor is as well."
A hurricane
watch was issued early Friday for most of the state's eastern coast, from Florida City to St. Augustine. A watch
means hurricane conditions with wind of at least 74 mph are possible within 36 hours.
Jeanne could hit just over a week after Hurricane Ivan thrashed the
Panhandle Sept. 16. Ivan and its predecessors, Charley and Frances, caused billions of dollars of damage and were
blamed for at least 70 deaths in the state.
The only other time four
hurricanes have been known to hit the same state in one season was in Texas in 1886, National Hurricane Center (news
- web sites) Director Max Mayfield said.
An exasperated Margaret
McFarlane of Greenacres, who was without power for 12 days after Hurricane Frances, found herself back at the store
to stock up on water and food.
"We've already refilled our
refrigerators, gotten the debris out of the streets and it's going to happen all over again. I'm not sure how much
more people can take," she said.
At 2 p.m., Jeanne was centered
about 455 miles east of Miami, moving west at 12 mph, the hurricane center in Miami said. The storm had 100 mph wind
and could strengthen as it reaches warmer water closer to Florida's coast. Hurricane-force wind extended 45 miles
from the center, and tropical storm wind extended 150 miles.
An
eventual turn to the northwest was predicted, but it was unclear if that would happen before Jeanne reached Florida.
Computer models showed possible landfall anywhere from South Florida to Cape Canaveral and then a path up the shore,
meaning "it's going to make an impact throughout the state," said Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the hurricane
center.
The Kennedy Space Center (news - web sites) was closed
Friday to all nonessential personnel, and the Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers were considering changing the
start time of Sunday's 1 p.m. game.
Palm Beach, Martin and St.
Lucie counties — also hit hard by Frances on Sept. 5 — issued voluntary evacuations for more than 350,000 people
living in barrier islands, low-lying areas and mobile homes Friday. Mandatory evacuations were expected Saturday
morning.
Retiree Larry Ruby spent Friday morning patching holes in
the roof of his mobile home on Hutchinson Island, as a bulldozer cleared Frances' debris.
"I was one of the luckier ones, but this time, who knows?" Ruby
said. "I ain't going anywhere unless they make me. I don't think you can get away from it."
Bush noted Jeanne could threaten during Yom Kippur, the holiest day
on the Jewish calendar, which begins at sundown Friday and ends at sundown Saturday. During that period, observant
Jews usually do not work or carry cash and many do not travel by car, which could hamper their storm preparations.
"We ask those who are keeping their faith and their strict Orthodox
practices to prepare early," Bush said.
After looping into the
Atlantic and back into the Gulf of Mexico following its initial strike on the Alabama-Florida coast as a hurricane
last week, Tropical Storm Ivan washed ashore near the Texas-Louisiana line Thursday night, bringing heavy rain to
both sides of the border.
While the storm was expected to dissipate
as it drifts into Texas this weekend, its rains are expected to persist and cause problems, and flood-prone Houston
is in its projected path.
___
On the Net:
National Hurricane Center:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov