EARTH....

[Number6]

The system isn't very good. It breaks into TV shows and alerts your cell phone for every Amber Alert and predicted bad weather, so people turn it off. Then in the fire it performed badly, sending evacuation warnings to people many miles from the fires. At a minimum, it isn't granular enough.

The system is probably as good as it can get but the real problem is, as you identified, is the people the alerts are going to. I get Amber Alerts, fire alerts, heat warnings, etc., on the county alert app and I read each of them. So far, other than the heat warnings, none have applied to me. If people turn off their alert notifications then I'll emphasize, but not sympathized, with them. It's like someone asking you about a product or service that's a scam and you tell and explain why it's a scam but they go ahead and spend their money on it. Then they complain about being scammed and want someone to do something about it. IMO, you were warned and you didn't heed the warning and now you're paying the price for your stupidity.

[ZoWie]

Two very useful apps that I added when the kids burned down the Palisades were Genasys Protect and Watch Duty.

Genasys is a standard system for evacuation zones, and it gives you the real-time status of yours. Many public safety agencies use it. Watch Duty has real live humans, mostly retired fire fighters with mobile radio scanners, and gives updates and pictures from the ALERT California Wildfire mountain webcam system run out of UCSD down in your neck of the woods. It too uses the Genasys evacuation zones.

Where you are and where I am, this kind of information isn't as critical as in the immediate fire areas, but it enabled me to see things like when a new fire started up downwind and they put half of Santa Monica, all of Brentwood, and a good chunk of Encino on a brief alert. For one night or so, there was an area the size of Rhode Island on alert.

[ap215]

4 dead after flooding in Arizona, including in mining community hit hard by rain

Four people have died after heavy rain caused flooding in Arizona, sending some people in a rural community to their rooftops for safety, officials said Saturday.

Three people died after rain inundated Globe, a city of about 7,250 people about 88 miles (142 kilometers) east of Phoenix, Carl Melford, emergency manager in Gila County, said. Two people were found in a vehicle and another in the floodwaters, he said. They were not immediately identified by authorities.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watc ... n-arizona/

[Number6]

This is an interesting story.

Why did Los Angles release 93 million black balls into a reservoir ?

No, it's not to prevent evaporation but that is a benefit.

It's because of bromide in the water. When you disinfect water with ozone, the ozone and bromide combine to form bromate which is a carcinogenic. After treating the water and sending it to the reservoir, the amount of bromate is below the limit set by regulators. The water company also uses chlorine to disinfect the water and the sunlight causes the remaining bromide to form bromate faster than ozone. The solution to the problem was it eliminate sunlight.

To do that, they bought and released 93 million black, food grade plastic balls into the reservoir. The plastic balls fill themselves with some water and as the float over the water they block the sunlight. They significantly reduce evaporation because there is less water surface exposed to the sun. The black plastic ball also absorb the heat of the sun but the air pocket inside the ball acts as an insulator between the outside of the ball and the water in the ball. The temperature of the water under the plastic balls is cooler than the top of the water. The plastic balls have a life span of 10 years and can be recycled.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/peoplea ... 5bd&ei=133

[ap215]

North Dakota Tornado Upgraded To EF5, Ending Over Decade-Long Drought

The more than decade-long EF5 tornado drought has come to an end.

A tornado that struck Enderlin, North Dakota, on June 20 has been upgraded to an EF5, according to the National Weather Service in Grand Forks.

https://weather.com/news/news/2025-10-0 ... ought-ends

[ap215]

A second powerful earthquake strikes off the Philippines; first one kills at least 5

MANILA, Philippines -- MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Two powerful offshore earthquakes struck the same region in the southern Philippines hours apart on Friday.

The first one, a 7.4 magnitude quake in the morning, killed at least five people, set off landslides, damaged hospitals and schools and prompted evacuations of coastal areas nearby because of a tsunami warning, which was later lifted.

https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireS ... -126385978

[ap215]

Deadly Oct. 10 explosion marks second in nearly 12 years at TN explosives manufacturer

MCEWEN, Tenn. (WSMV) - Emergency crews are searching for any possible survivors following a massive explosion at a Tennessee explosives processing facility in Hickman County on Friday.

Authorities confirmed multiple people are dead after the blast leveled the Accurate Energetic Systems facility near Bucksnort. At least 19 other people are missing, as of Friday afternoon.

https://www.wsmv.com/2025/10/10/deadly- ... ufacturer/

[ZoWie]

Unfortunately there's no one left that would have seen anything to tell what happened. It was way off by itself in the woods, presumably for just such an occasion. The building and all the people in it have vaporized. There is nothing left there. No debris, and even the top layer of ground cover has been blown off. Everything is simply gone.

Didn't even leave a crater. There's simply nothing left, as if someone had prepared a construction site.

Obviously something went wrong. There had been problems there before.

[ap215]

SoCal weather: Severe thunderstorm watch issued; flooding concerns trigger evacuation orders

A strong storm moving across Southern California is bringing a significant amount of rain on Tuesday, triggering a flash flood watch for much of the region.

As rain drenches the region, debris flows are possible. There are specific concerns of mud flows in the burn scar areas of the January wildfires.

https://abc7.com/live-updates/socal-wea ... /18000020/

[ap215]

Strong Monday storms, microburst leave devastation in parts of Tempe

TEMPE, AZ — Many businesses, homes, vehicles and other properties across Tempe were damaged during Monday's severe storms.

The National Weather Service confirmed a microburst hit some of the areas.

https://www.abc15.com/news/region-south ... ed-through

[Number6]

SoCal weather: Severe thunderstorm watch issued; flooding concerns trigger evacuation orders

A strong storm moving across Southern California is bringing a significant amount of rain on Tuesday, triggering a flash flood watch for much of the region.

As rain drenches the region, debris flows are possible. There are specific concerns of mud flows in the burn scar areas of the January wildfires.

https://abc7.com/live-updates/socal-wea ... /18000020/

Just had a "Marine Alert" over the TV From San Mateo Point to the Mexican Border. Winds 10 -20 kt with gusts up to 30 kt with highest winds late morning through early afternoon. Seas 4-8 ft from 10 - 60 nautical miles.

This is the first storm of the season which began on Oct 1st. We haven't had much in the way of rain over the last year and this storm should drop between .3 -.5 inches of rain along coastal San Diego. I noticed mid-morning the wind was blowing hard and about half an hour ago we had a small smattering of rain. Well, I have a book to start so today's a good day to stay inside and read.

[ZoWie]

This has to be the first time in years that New York and LA both had storms at the same time in early October.

Last 5 or so years in LA, the first big storm has come more like in February.

[ap215]

Saturday morning storms knock out power for more than 100K in Houston area

More than 100,000 homes and businesses in the Houston area lost electricity early Saturday morning as the region was struck by strong overnight thunderstorms.

Another wave of rainfall was in the forecast for later Saturday, starting in the afternoon, along with wind gusts of up to 20 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/arti ... -flooding/

[ap215]

Statistic graphics on Hurricane Melissa

[ZoWie]

That thing better not merge with a noreaster and do a Sandy.

[ap215]

Hurricane Melissa death toll nears 50, mostly in Jamaica and Haiti, as focus turns to recovery

The rumble of large machinery, whine of chain saws and chopping of machetes echoed through communities across the northern Caribbean as they dug out from the destruction of Hurricane Melissa and surveyed the damage it left behind.

The storm was being blamed for at least 45 deaths, mostly in Haiti and Jamaica. It also hit Cuba hard.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricane- ... d-bermuda/

[ap215]

5.4 magnitude earthquake shakes southern Alaska

A magnitude 5.4 earthquake shook an area 45 miles east of Homer, Alaska, in Fox River, on Thursday morning, and there is no tsunami danger, according to the National Tsunami Warning Center.

The quake, which occurred around 9:33 a.m., Alaska Standard Time (AKST), was reportedly felt in Anchorage, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

https://komonews.com/news/local/alaska- ... mer-juneau

[ap215]

More than 85 dead as typhoon wreaks havoc in the Philippines

At least 85 people have been killed while hundreds of thousands fled their homes as one of strongest typhoons this year ripped through the central Philippines, authorities say.

Typhoon Kalmaegi has flooded entire towns on the most populated central island of Cebu, where at least 49 of the fatalities were located. There are 75 others missing and 17 injured, officials said on Wednesday.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgmx4yjkzj4o

[Number6]

Atmospheric river to hit Southern California today through Sunday. In San Diego County, we're expecting 1.5 - 2 inches along the coast and 1 - 1.5 inches inland. San Diego averages about 12 inches of rain an year and this storm will provide about 1/6 of our total annual rain fall. San Diego is a desert climate so heavy rain will cause flooding. Flood warnings have been posted for the usual areas. January of 2024 we had a huge storm that dumped 2.7 inches of rain in one day causing the flood channel in the Mountain View area, by Naval Base San Diego, to flood about 1,000 homes. Most of the fault for the flooding was caused by the city not clearing out the flood channels allowing weeds, trees, and debris to clog the channels. This time, the city has cleared those channels and don't expect any problems.

[ZoWie]

The Nooz has gone off the edge on this one. There are no normal rain seasons in LA. It's usually either too much rain or not enough rain. One storm might drop more than some of our recorded season totals, since some of those are in fractions of an inch. I doubt it will beat the all time season records, which are measured in feet.

We'll just have to see. Right now, I feel like it's mostly a word game to goose up their TV ratings.

[Number6]

The Nooz has gone off the edge on this one. There are no normal rain seasons in LA. It's usually either too much rain or not enough rain. One storm might drop more than some of our recorded season totals, since some of those are in fractions of an inch. I doubt it will beat the all time season records, which are measured in feet.

We'll just have to see. Right now, I feel like it's mostly a word game to goose up their TV ratings.

After the January 2024 storm unexpectedly dumped 2.7 inches of rain in a couple of hours causing major flooding, the local news isn't taking this storm lightly and I don't blame them. Southern California's infrastructure isn't built to handle major storms.

[ZoWie]

The thing in LA is that the mountain areas cycle between years with no rain, which causes fires, followed by years with too much rain, which causes mud slides and floods. There is no average season, except as a mathematical construct.

In this particular case, I was referring to several statements made on the Nooz in which the talking heads reading their lines off the Teleprompters said in their best Voice of Doom tones that we were going to get a season's worth in a few days.

I remember seasons where you could put the total rainfall in your glass and drink it with dinner. I can also remember ones where houses washed into the sea. Somewhere I have a piece of rotting wood which came from a pile on the beach the year Santa Monica Pier was partially wiped out. (They rebuilt it, now it's a theme park and major tourist attraction.)

As with everything else in L.A., there is no normal, only alternating extremes.

It's a meaningless statement because the concept of a season is an abstraction in itself.

[Number6]

The thing in LA is that the mountain areas cycle between years with no rain, which causes fires, followed by years with too much rain, which causes mud slides and floods. There is no average season, except as a mathematical construct.

In this particular case, I was referring to several statements made on the Nooz in which the talking heads reading their lines off the Teleprompters said in their best Voice of Doom tones that we were going to get a season's worth in a few days.

I remember seasons where you could put the total rainfall in your glass and drink it with dinner. I can also remember ones where houses washed into the sea. Somewhere I have a piece of rotting wood which came from a pile on the beach the year Santa Monica Pier was partially wiped out. (They rebuilt it, now it's a theme park and major tourist attraction.)

As with everything else in L.A., there is no normal, only alternating extremes.

It's a meaningless statement because the concept of a season is an abstraction in itself.

Southern California goes through those cycles every couple of years. Not enough rain leads to the brush and forests drying out creating wildfire conditions. When we get too much rain, areas already burnt don't have the vegetation needed to prevent mud slides. Another problem with too much rain is it also encourages vegetation to thrive after the rainy months only to dry out and become a fire problem again. I guess it's something we should be used to by now but for some reason most people don't recognize this cycle or they've forgotten it and blindly go about their lives making the same mistakes all over again.

[ap215]

Atmospheric river douses Southern California, threatening rockslides in LA's fire-ravaged areas

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An unusually strong storm system called an atmospheric river was dousing Southern California on Friday and was expected to continue dumping heavy rain over the region for days as forecasters warned of rockslides and debris flows especially in the Los Angeles areas that were ravaged by wildfires earlier this year.

More than four inches of rain fell over coastal Santa Barbara County early Friday as the storm moved south toward Los Angeles, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters also warned of damaging winds and possibly even a tornado could form as they urged people to stay indoors.

https://www.removepaywall.com/search?ur ... 184111.php

[ZoWie]

Here we got 2.25 inches, well short of the predicted 4-5. No wind at all. I'm sure there were mudslides in the Palisades and Malibu, but that happens most years anyway.