|
blondgecko
Moderator
Feb 1, 2011, 1:46 AM
Post #51 of 72
(1393 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 2, 2004
Posts: 7666
|
Ho-ley-freaking-hell that thing's big!
Latest satellite image. I've overlaid Hurricane Katrina, to scale.
|
|
Attachments:
|
Yasi_vs_Katrina.jpg
(97.9 KB)
|
|
|
|
|
kachoong
Feb 1, 2011, 1:52 AM
Post #52 of 72
(1392 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 23, 2004
Posts: 15304
|
blondgecko wrote: Ho-ley-freaking-hell that thing's big! Latest satellite image. I've overlaid Hurricane Katrina, to scale.
|
|
|
|
|
blondgecko
Moderator
Feb 1, 2011, 1:57 AM
Post #53 of 72
(1389 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 2, 2004
Posts: 7666
|
kachoong wrote: blondgecko wrote: Ho-ley-freaking-hell that thing's big! Latest satellite image. I've overlaid Hurricane Katrina, to scale. The States is probably about 20% larger than you have it there, but still that's a whopper cyclone! Crikey!
Possibly - I did it very quick-and-dirty. Google image search for an overlaid map of Australia and US, Google image search for Katrina, overlay the three images and scale. to each other. But yeah - I don't think I'd enjoy being in Cairns right now.
|
|
|
|
|
philbox
Moderator
Feb 1, 2011, 4:17 AM
Post #54 of 72
(1375 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 27, 2002
Posts: 13105
|
Back to the floods down around SE Queensland and their aftermath.
I've walked a couple of the creek lines and am absolutely in awe of what nature has accomplished in such a short time. The bottom of the creeks have been dredged out to end up being another metre to two metres deeper. It looks as though ten D9 dozers side by side have pushed everything out of the creeks. The bed rock is showing whereas before a lot of sand and silt and lots of large standing trees were in evidence.
The geology and hydrology on show has to be seen to be believed.
A report came in to the recovery and relief centre that a shipping container was caught on a coppers radar gun doing 78 kilometres and hour. That is pretty much 40 knots. A father and daughter were washed away, the baby was discovered a couple of hundred metres down the creek and the father was discovered 87 kilometres away.
There are mountains of sand and silt spread out over productive farm land which needs now to be shifted. There are vast plumes of building rubble and household items strewn down the creeks.
Whilst walking up a creek I climbed up cliff only to see more flood debris far above me caught up in the trees. I felt very small.
This event is a once in 500 year flood and could even be a once in a thousand year flood. We have seen evidence to suggest that a flood of this nature has not occurred in at least 300 years. A huge old Moreton Bay Fig was torn off at the base.
Down at Helidon further downstream from where I have been working on the recovery the flood was at least ten metres high by 100 metres wide at it's deepest and over 500 metres wide overall and travelling extremely quickly. A reinforced concrete pump house was simply blown apart and the steel reinforcing was just wrenched from the foundations.
Grantham though was particularly badly hit with half the town looking like Cyclone Tracy had hit. A lot of people still missing but would you believe it that the environment department (DERM) of the Queensland Government is now stepping in and stopping any sort of a creek cleanup. Madness and the locals are getting really angry.
|
|
|
|
|
traddad
Feb 1, 2011, 8:27 PM
Post #55 of 72
(1360 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2001
Posts: 7129
|
Several NASA satellites have been monitoring the growth of powerful and massive Cyclone Yasi and providing data on clouds, rainfall and intensity to forecasters as it nears Queensland, Australia. NASA data shows where the heaviest rainfall is occurring, frigid temperatures at the top of its thunderstorms and the size of Yasi's eye.
Tropical cyclone Yasi became much more powerful and was upgraded to a dangerous category fpur tropical cyclone on the Saffir Simpson scale on February 1, 2011.
A Cyclone Warning is now in effect for Queensland, Australia for coastal areas from Cape Melville to Sarina, extending inland to east of Croydon to Hughenden. A Cyclone Watch is in effect for coastal areas from Lockhart River to Cape Melville, and in the tropical interior north of Winton to Sarina
http://www.eurekalert.org/...2/nsfc-nsr020111.php
|
|
|
|
|
blondgecko
Moderator
Feb 1, 2011, 8:51 PM
Post #56 of 72
(1356 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 2, 2004
Posts: 7666
|
Actually, it's up to category 5 now. Winds up to 300 km/h. Damn - terminal velocity in the standard skydiving position is only about 200 km/h.
They've totally evacuated the Cairns hospital and spread the patients around hospitals here in Brisbane. Also doing mandatory evacuations of all low-lying areas along the affected coast. Cairns CBD is expected to be more or less totally flooded by the storm surge.
Man, this is bad.
|
|
|
|
|
traddad
Feb 1, 2011, 8:54 PM
Post #57 of 72
(1354 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2001
Posts: 7129
|
Good luck everyone down there. I'll be crossing my fingers.
|
|
|
|
|
airscape
Feb 1, 2011, 9:02 PM
Post #58 of 72
(1347 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 26, 2001
Posts: 4240
|
Wowser, I didn't realize there was that thing on the way.
I hope everyone will be ok.
|
|
|
|
|
traddad
Feb 1, 2011, 11:48 PM
Post #59 of 72
(1338 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2001
Posts: 7129
|
blondgecko wrote: Actually, it's up to category 5 now. Winds up to 300 km/h. Damn - terminal velocity in the standard skydiving position is only about 200 km/h. They've totally evacuated the Cairns hospital and spread the patients around hospitals here in Brisbane. Also doing mandatory evacuations of all low-lying areas along the affected coast. Cairns CBD is expected to be more or less totally flooded by the storm surge. Man, this is bad.
Two words: Human kite. Grab your harness and a chest harness, a 70m rope.....
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
philbox
Moderator
Feb 2, 2011, 8:00 AM
Post #61 of 72
(1316 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 27, 2002
Posts: 13105
|
Looks like the cyclone took out Willis Island. No more radar or other weather telemetry coming from that weather station. By all reports the few people on the island had been evacuated. I wonder if the island will look the same when they go out there after this is over.
Yasi is a massive storm. It will still be a category 1 cyclone after it has traveled a thousand kilometres inland. The eye is reported to be 50 kilometres wide. It is influencing the weather over many thousands of square miles. The storm surge is reportedly going to be up to 6 metres high.
That reminds me of the cyclone that swept in at the end of the nineteenth century and wiped out the pearling fleet in Princess Charlotte Bay. Hundreds died and many many ships wrecked with some never being seen ever again. Dolphins were found 20 foot up in trees 5 miles inland.
|
|
|
|
|
blondgecko
Moderator
Feb 2, 2011, 9:14 AM
Post #62 of 72
(1309 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 2, 2004
Posts: 7666
|
If you want to see something really crazy, check out the forecast map for the next few days. It has the monsoon trough pushing all the way down to Alice Springs. Alice, where the average February rainfall is 40-50mm, and where the all-time record annual rainfall is 800mm - getting the freaking monsoon.
What worries me with respect to our region is what's going to happen next week. The entire inland region is turning into one great big trough, and that's going to head our way. It looks worryingly like the conditions that spawned the floods just past.
|
|
|
|
|
philbox
Moderator
Feb 2, 2011, 9:37 AM
Post #63 of 72
(1304 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 27, 2002
Posts: 13105
|
The deserts of inland Australia have become green oasis' due to all the rain they have had over the last 12 months or so. This is also feeding the wet weather we have been having lately. There are a great many lakes now in inland Oz that haven't been in existence for a hundred years. It's called the red center but not at the moment, it is all green.
Latest info is that the storm surge will last for half a day and be up to 7 metres. and it will surge inland for kilometres. Weatherzone forums are interesting at the moment.
|
|
|
|
|
kachoong
Feb 2, 2011, 2:51 PM
Post #64 of 72
(1295 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 23, 2004
Posts: 15304
|
philbox wrote: Looks like the cyclone took out Willis Island. No more radar or other weather telemetry coming from that weather station. By all reports the few people on the island had been evacuated. I wonder if the island will look the same when they go out there after this is over. Yasi is a massive storm. It will still be a category 1 cyclone after it has traveled a thousand kilometres inland. The eye is reported to be 50 kilometres wide. It is influencing the weather over many thousands of square miles. The storm surge is reportedly going to be up to 6 metres high. That reminds me of the cyclone that swept in at the end of the nineteenth century and wiped out the pearling fleet in Princess Charlotte Bay. Hundreds died and many many ships wrecked with some never being seen ever again. Dolphins were found 20 foot up in trees 5 miles inland.
Wow Phil, you really are an old bugger!
|
|
|
|
|
traddad
Feb 2, 2011, 3:29 PM
Post #65 of 72
(1289 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2001
Posts: 7129
|
kachoong wrote: philbox wrote: Looks like the cyclone took out Willis Island. No more radar or other weather telemetry coming from that weather station. By all reports the few people on the island had been evacuated. I wonder if the island will look the same when they go out there after this is over. Yasi is a massive storm. It will still be a category 1 cyclone after it has traveled a thousand kilometres inland. The eye is reported to be 50 kilometres wide. It is influencing the weather over many thousands of square miles. The storm surge is reportedly going to be up to 6 metres high. That reminds me of the cyclone that swept in at the end of the nineteenth century and wiped out the pearling fleet in Princess Charlotte Bay. Hundreds died and many many ships wrecked with some never being seen ever again. Dolphins were found 20 foot up in trees 5 miles inland. Wow Phil, you really are an old bugger!
You had doubts? ...and isn't that supposed to be buggerer?
|
|
|
|
|
philbox
Moderator
Feb 2, 2011, 7:43 PM
Post #66 of 72
(1279 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 27, 2002
Posts: 13105
|
kachoong wrote: philbox wrote: Looks like the cyclone took out Willis Island. No more radar or other weather telemetry coming from that weather station. By all reports the few people on the island had been evacuated. I wonder if the island will look the same when they go out there after this is over. Yasi is a massive storm. It will still be a category 1 cyclone after it has traveled a thousand kilometres inland. The eye is reported to be 50 kilometres wide. It is influencing the weather over many thousands of square miles. The storm surge is reportedly going to be up to 6 metres high. That reminds me of the cyclone that swept in at the end of the nineteenth century and wiped out the pearling fleet in Princess Charlotte Bay. Hundreds died and many many ships wrecked with some never being seen ever again. Dolphins were found 20 foot up in trees 5 miles inland. Wow Phil, you really are an old bugger!
Fell into that didn't I.
|
|
|
|
|
wideguy
Feb 4, 2011, 4:04 AM
Post #67 of 72
(1255 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 9, 2003
Posts: 15046
|
Looks like Yasi maxed around 650Km wide, almost identical to Katrina's peak at 670 Km wide... and really, 10K they are pretty much the same size... and We're Still recovering from Katrina..
damn.
|
|
|
|
|
blondgecko
Moderator
Feb 4, 2011, 4:28 AM
Post #68 of 72
(1249 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 2, 2004
Posts: 7666
|
wideguy wrote: Looks like Yasi maxed around 650Km wide, almost identical to Katrina's peak at 670 Km wide... and really, 10K they are pretty much the same size... and We're Still recovering from Katrina.. damn.
Yeah. But, while the damage bill will be enormous, there's yet to be a single fatality - apart from the idiot who suffocated himself after the fact by running a diesel generator in an enclosed room. Given the 3 babies that were born in the emergency shelters, we're actually up by two. Amazing.
|
|
|
|
|
philbox
Moderator
Feb 4, 2011, 4:47 AM
Post #69 of 72
(1243 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 27, 2002
Posts: 13105
|
We dodged the bullet because Yasi diverted from the large population centres at the last hour or so. Cardwell and Mission Beach got stomped on hard and various other centres got a hammering. The bana crops and sugar cane fields got flattened but as bg says no fatalities bar one who really was almost a Darwin Award statistic.
Pretty amazing seeing all the trees totally stripped of ever leaf. The hills look brown instead of their usual tropical verdant green.
|
|
|
|
|
airscape
Feb 4, 2011, 6:40 AM
Post #70 of 72
(1239 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 26, 2001
Posts: 4240
|
blondgecko wrote: wideguy wrote: Looks like Yasi maxed around 650Km wide, almost identical to Katrina's peak at 670 Km wide... and really, 10K they are pretty much the same size... and We're Still recovering from Katrina.. damn. Yeah. But, while the damage bill will be enormous, there's yet to be a single fatality - apart from the idiot who suffocated himself after the fact by running a diesel generator in an enclosed room. Given the 3 babies that were born in the emergency shelters, we're actually up by two. Amazing.
You guys are really organized with the disasters. And it seems to me that people work together to fix things.
We had some flooding here in Dec/Jan which was insignificant compared to what you guys experienced and almost 200 people died.
And no one helps with anything, eveyone just stands around waiting for someone else to come and fix things.
Wow, that cyclone is massive! it's strange that 2 disasters in a row hit almost exactly the same place.
I bet the insurance companies are going to cry.
|
|
|
|
|
airscape
Feb 4, 2011, 6:41 AM
Post #71 of 72
(1235 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 26, 2001
Posts: 4240
|
philbox wrote: We dodged the bullet because Yasi diverted from the large population centres at the last hour or so. Cardwell and Mission Beach got stomped on hard and various other centres got a hammering. The bana crops and sugar cane fields got flattened but as bg says no fatalities bar one who really was almost a Darwin Award statistic. Pretty amazing seeing all the trees totally stripped of ever leaf. The hills look brown instead of their usual tropical verdant green.
That is good.
|
|
|
|
|
wideguy
Feb 4, 2011, 7:02 PM
Post #72 of 72
(1221 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 9, 2003
Posts: 15046
|
That is good to hear. Very good. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
