Hurricane!
Hurricane Andrew Live
1992 |
Television and
radio news operations provide vital information and advice for the public when dangerous
storms approach.
TV News History
Preparing
for Gilbert:
Hurricane on the Texas Gulf Coast
Planning ahead is the key to the entire coverage. Everything from stockpiles
of extra water to secure microwave locations must be set in advance.
Gilbert was an extraordinarily powerful storm that hit in 1988.
Here's how news managers got ready for it.
TV News History
Hurricane Floyd,
Extensive Flooding Presented Newsgathering Challenges Afterward
First Hurricane Dennis battered the Outer Banks and portions of the
mid-Atlantic not once, but twice in 1999. Then, Hurricane Floyd
threatened the region with its high winds. Although it had dropped from the powerful
Category 4 it was as it approached, it was a huge hurricane as it made
landfall.
Floyd dumped an extraordinary amount of rain on eastern North Carolina. Flooding was
at record levels, and the rivers and bays stayed full for days afterward.
For days, news operations presented extended on air coverage of the aftermath.
Many roads were impassable. Power was out. Life was disrupted. Public health was
endangered.
TV News History
Hurricane Hugo: Killer Storm
September 10-22, 1989: Hurricane Hugo generated a
20-foot storm tide in South Carolina. Hugo battered Charlotte, North Carolina (which is
about 175 miles inland), with gusts to near 100 mph, downing trees and power lines and
causing massive disruption.
TV
News:
Covering A Hurricane
Television newspeople can save lives providing the information and advice that will allow
viewers to escape and survive a hurricane. Here is a brief essay on how it is done
TV News History
Hurricane Isabel: Expanded Coverage,
Simulcasts, Call-ins, Fundraisers
When Isabel came ashore on the Outer Banks in 2003, it was only a Category 2 hurricane,
but the large storm still did extensive damage and left millions of people without power.
The storm surge pushed up nine feet of water in areas along the Atlantic and Chesapeake
Bay. Baltimore officials say some areas got the kind of surge experts predicted they'd get
in a Category 4 or 5 storm that was a direct hit.
Here is how broadcasters prepared for and recovered from Isabel.
Poll: Many ignore the threat
Several polls have shown a somewhat startling lack of preparedness in communities
vulnerable to hurricanes. Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates in April and May, 2000
queried more than 1,200 residents of coastal states from Massachusetts south along the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts to Texas.
The poll was conducted to gauge residents' knowledge of storm safety and damage
prevention, in order to more successfully tailor the initiative to address specific needs.
- Seventy-seven percent in the North and 57 percent in the South have not
prepared a hurricane disaster supply kit.
- Sixty percent in the north and 34 percent in the south have no
predetermined location they would evacuate to, and even fewer have actually prepared an
evacuation plan.
Expert's forecasts are online
Check the predictions of Colorado
State University hurricane forecaster William Gray and his team. He has been
successful anticipating storm activity. His forecasting tools range from analyzing West
African rainfall to monitoring upper level stratospheric winds.
See also:
 Weather Specials Provide Expanded
Information
In New York, WABC-TV managers have had great success with weather specials
that provide viewers with extensive briefings on key subjects. It's certainly an
idea that could work well for you, yielding revenue at the same time you're boosting a
vital segment of your service.
Expanded Project Examines
Beach Erosion, Waterfront Construction
Gannett television stations and newspapers in Florida looked at the population
growth along the coasts and its many consequences. The 2002 undertaking brought
together 67 journalists at three TV stations, three newspapers, and two news bureaus.
They produced an in-depth report about erosion and its impact on lifestyles,
politics, economics and environment.
Duke
University's Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines
This is a valuable effort that includes documentation of the government money spent
to replenish beaches.
Since 1981, The Rundown has reported weekly on local television
news, programming, and community service projects. This material now fills
a massive archive of 7,000 pages --- easily the largest record of hometown television's
activities.
Here's information you need to subscribe
to The Rundown and also contact us via
electronic mail.
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UM
Weather Forecasts
This site provides access to thousands of forecasts, images, and a large collection of
weather links.
Latest
Storm Information
National Hurricane Center
updates and path projections.
Today's Dangerous Weather
Latest briefing from disastercenter.com
Tampa
Bay Hurricane Guide
Comprehensive advice and
information from WTSP-TV,
St. Petersburg Times.
CBS News
Disaster Links
A good, varied collection.
Surviving the Storm
From the CDC:
Flying debris
is the big threat.
Protect
Yourself
After The Storm
From the CDC:
Protecting your health and safety
are just as important after
a hurricane as during one.
Red Cross
Hurricane Advice
People will do much better if they know about the health hazards and have prepared for
them.
Weather
Matrix
A worldwide organization of
weather enthusiasts --
meteorologists, storm chasers
and observers.
Storm Event Database
The world's largest active archive
of weather data, according to NCDC.
Hurricane
Floyd Background
at disastercenter.com
Reports, photos, maps.
St.
Petersburg Times
Hurricane Gallery
Here are photographs and articles
that show just how powerful
hurricanes can be.
Historic New Jersey Hurricanes
and Northeasters
Rutgers marine experts have compiled facts of many storms for more than a century.
You can get Jay
Barnes' hurricane history books at amazon.com
North
Carolina Hurricanes and Florida
Hurricanes are available.
Covering Live
the Big Snow Storms
The
Blizzard of 1993
Television news operations battled the snow, cold and wind to report on power outages,
highway hazards and the storm's impact.
The Perfect Storm
The Halloween 1991 northeaster was a storm of enormous intensity.
The fishing boat Andrea Gail sank carrying its six-man crew with it. An Air National
Guardsman died when his rescue helicopter had to ditch in the raging seas after it ran out
of fuel while trying to aid a sailboat.
The story was told in the non-fiction Perfect
Storm by Sebastian Junger and was captured
on film by Warner Brothers. See Coast Guard photos by Chief
Petty Officer Scott Vriesman.
Stockton Coastal Research
New Jersey beaches documented at length by a project at Richard Stockton College.
Ohio River Flood 1997
At least 24 lives lost. Hundreds homeless. More than $400 million in damage. The
Cincinnati Enquirer covered it all.
Subscribers Only
Establish and Promote
Your Weather Franchise
For many viewers, the weather --- daily forecasts and emergency coverage --- is the most
important reason to watch television newscasts. Here are ideas for serving
your public while making clear that your station is the place to turn for superior weather
coverage.
The importance of the Long Island Sound and the serious environmental threats facing it
are the subject on a summer-long project of two stations. WNBC-TV, New York and WVIT-TV,
Hartford are working together. The idea was generated by the two general managers. Tom O'Brien and Dennis Swanson explained the details to The Rundown.
Successful
Television
A series of "How To" articles emphasize proven
techniques for producing newscasts.
 You can quickly locate information anywhere throughout the public
portion of our site using a full-text search engine.
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