October 2011 Weather News!
The quote for the month is so good your fine staff at Blue Duck Weather chose to begin this month’s introduction with it. When asked a question by a reporter in the Rose Garden in 1948, President Harry Truman responded “Son, remember this: Never kick a cow turd on a hot day.” Can you imagine anyone saying this in today’s p/c bullshit world?
October weather was fairly mild worldwide. It seems there are more animal stories reported than weather ones. The big weather story is the severe, month long flooding in Thailand and the other is “Snow-tober”, the freak storm that paralyzed the North East at the end of the month with many towns cancelling Halloween.
However in this somewhat boring edition of Blue Duck Weather (aren’t they all?) you will read about more news from Japan’s deadly tsunami last March and the lingering after effects, why Arizona was the number one state last year for insurance claims due to weather, the slow agonizing death of a whale shot by some idiot in New Jersey, NASA dispatches rubber ducks for science, a red tailed hawk survives being shot by a nail gun (how did the bastard get that close?), PETA accuses Sea World of violating captive killer whale’s 13th amendment rights, a young dog that survives a gas chamber, an amazing underground wildfire in Georgia and yes, shrinking animal sizes in the last half century due to “global warming.”
The average temperature on The Land was 73.80 degrees. Some folks would call that ideal weather I suppose but fourteen days had highs over ninety degrees. The average temperature at Talking Trees and Antelope Hill in New Mexico was 50.90 degrees. There were two mornings there in the twenties.
The Land received .11 inches of rain on October 4th. The total rainfall for the year is 3.42 inches. Phoenix stands at 2.75 inches.
The big lakes that matter in Arizona are looking pretty dismal and we better get some much needed rain this winter. Pleasant is down to 38% and my beloved Roosevelt has shrunk to 62%. Thankfully for the Southwest Mead is growing from a pisshole to a toilet at 51% and the mighty Lake Powell is at 72% capacity. Now let us get to all of news that makes news!
10-1- This summer’s monsoon season brought 1.06” of rain officially to Phoenix. The average is 2.71”.
Ophelia is now a hurricane with 120mph winds. It is expected to pass east of Bermuda.
Japan lifts some evacuation advisories around the tsunami devastated nuclear plant to reassure tens of thousands it is safe to go home. A twelve mile banned zone still surrounds the plant.
Southern England’s high of 85.8 degrees was the hottest on record for this date. The average maximum temperature is 59 degrees.
Typhoon Nalgae, the second in a week pounds the rain soaked Philippines.
10-2- Because of the hailstorm last October 5th Arizona is the number one state among those suffering insured natural disaster claims losses in 2010. 150,000 cars, homes and other property was damaged to the tune of 2.7 billion dollars.
The death toll from Typhoon Nalgae and Nesat combined is 59 in the Philippines.
Hurricane Ophelia is has sustained winds of 110mph and is expected to pass over Newfoundland, Canada.
10-3- A hail storm in Flagstaff three weeks ago has resulted in millions of dollars in damage to buildings and property.
10-4- A deadly dust storm in southern Arizona made national news today. Being a local I thought it extremely rare and unusual that it happened at noon instead of late in the day. It seemed to come out of nowhere and the clouds followed dropping some rain late in the day. “A blinding” dust storm today caused three different pileups along I-10 in southern Arizona near Pichacho. 25 vehicles were involved. One person dead, two extremely critical and 15 hurt. Near zero visibility prevented rescue helicopters and the injured had to be transported by ambulance.”
The Tanner Fire that began on August 20th near Young, Arizona has burned 5500 acres and is nearly 72% contained. It was allowed ,for the most part, to be a controlled burn without aggressive fire fighting.
Near Boise, Idaho a passerby and his daughter fought off a mule deer buck attacking a woman on a stroll. The two grabbed its antlers and beat it with a hammer after the buck raked her body with his rack and gored her legs.
Two grown mountain lions are filmed in a yard in a L.A. suburb outside the San Gabriel Mountains. (They looked like they owned the place and I doubt if anyone living in the house would argue.)
10-5- First snow of the season on the San Francisco Peaks in northern Arizona. Eight inches expected tomorrow.
More national news coverage of yesterday’s deadly dust storm in southern Arizona. “Looked like war zone.”
A strong storm in Fresno, California dumped more than an inch of rain in a short period of time. 40 to 50% of raisin crops exposed to mold from the rain and may damage them.
Federal officials are looking for the person who shot a whale at sea near New Jersey. The whale wandered around for a month before it beached itself in New Jersey and died. It starved slowly due to a bullet lodged in its jaw causing and infection that left the poor beast unable to eat.
10-6- Three inches of snow at the Snow Bowl in northern Arizona. The high in Phoenix was 76 degrees. The last time that happened (for a high this low) was in 1916. The high on The Land was 70 degrees. The temperature on Mount Graham with the wind chill was 27 degrees.
First freeze of the fall at Talking Trees and Antelope Hill with an average temperature of 37 degrees.
20,000 acres of farmland has burned in central Nebraska near the town of Stapleton. The fire began two days ago by exhaust heat from a combine harvesting beans.
Tropical Storm Jova forms in the Pacific off the coast of Mexico while Tropical Storm Irwin “swirls” around in the Pacific.
Hurricane Philippe is far off the U.S. coast and not expected to threaten land.
10-7- Wolf Creek, Colorado receives three feet of snow. The earliest opening on record for ski resorts tomorrow.
A biologist in Alaska said this is the first time in history three killer whales have been spotted in fresh water in the state. The three swam thirty miles up the Nushagak River.
10-8- The prime minister of Thailand is warning that rising floodwaters have done much damage across the nation are now threatening the captial city Bangkock. The death toll from monsoon rains since July is up to 253. “The water volume is extraordinary and is beyond expectations.
10-9- Two hundred factories have been closed due to floods in Thailand. 261 folks are dead, 2.3 million affected and the worst flooding in 50 years.
Hurricane Jova is strengthening in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
“Scientists stunned as birds power through hurricane.” They just couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Two shore birds, the size of pigeons, tracked with tiny transmitters flew through 115mph winds of Hurricane Irene.
10-15- Heavy rains in Central America and mudslides and flooding kill 36 this monsoon season. In El Salvador 4,000 people are evacuated. 6 folks are dead in Honduras.
The United States sends Marines to evaluate Thailand’s “worst” ever flood killing 297. Two thirds of the country has been deluged by rain since July.
10-16- The death toll from six days of heavy flooding up to 66 in South America. El Salvador has received 7.9’’ of rain in twelve hours. In Honduras 9 dead, 2500 homes damaged, eight bridges and twenty nine roads.
Efforts to rescue an ill engineer from the South Pole have been delayed by a bad storm. She may be suffering from a stroke.
10-17- Engineer rescued after seven weeks by a cargo plane that could fly in “warmer” weather.
One of the worst places to be this year for a farmer is west of the Mississippi River. Arkansas and Louisiana experienced both drought and flooding and the cost of inclement weather could reach one billion dollars.
A new study suggests many of Earth’s species are shrinking in size. The authors believe it is probably due to global warming. 38 of 55 animal and plant species showed a documented reduction of size in the last 40 years, including the massive polar bear.
And here is a story warm to my heart: “Nasa Dispatches Rubber Ducks For Science.” When an elaborate and sophisticated science probe failed to return any data about whether pools of melted glacial ice were showing up in the ocean a NASA researcher turned to a decidedly low tech solution; a brigade of rubber ducks!
10-18- Rainfall is way below normal for the year in Phoenix with a deficit of 3.56 inches, Flagstaff 1.56 inches.
A Haboob in Texas? 70mph winds kicked up dust 8,000 feet high near Lubbock with zero visibility today.
The death toll from heavy rain in Central America this past week is up to 84 folks.
In Thailand the Flood Relief Operation Center has ordered all factories in the oldest part of Thailand, north of Bangock, to halt all work and prepare for evacuations. Of the 307 folks dead most have drowned.
A bear cub is caught on video walking on top of the produce section in a grocery store in Alaska. The brute was caught and set free. (Smart bear.)
10-19- 60 mph winds and ten foot waves on Lake Michigan blows windows out of one building in Chicago.
The National Weather Service has confirmed a tornado damaged twenty homes in West Broward, Florida today.
Three hundred and seventeen are dead and Thailand’s prime minister admits the government is overwhelmed by the flooding.
The town of Zanesville, Ohio is in lock down after dozens of wild animals are let loose from an animal farm. The owner let them go before committing suicide. Forty eight animals have been shot by authorities including 18 endangered Bengal tigers, 17 lions and 2 grizzlies.
10-20- So far 14 days in October have been above ninety degrees in Phoenix.
Death toll from sixty inches of rain in ten days up to 105 in Central America.
A wildlife rescue group in San Francisco has spent a third day trying to capture a red tailed hawk that has been shot in the head with a nail gun. Observers got close enough to see the nail extending from a cheek through the front of the head. Even wounded severely the hawk was eating a gopher.
10-21- Floodwaters are encroaching into Bangkock’s outer districts and some areas are knee deep in water. The government took a risky chance and opened several key floodgates to let built up water flow through the capital’s cananls toward the sea. The prime minister has warned the city of nine million to get ready to move their belongings to higher ground if necessary.
A bear broke into a candy store in Gatlinburg, Tennessee by knocking a hole in a glass door. The bruin feasted on pecan logs, carmel apples and spread candy wrappers on the floor.
10-22- The Dobson family of Chandler, Arizona has ended its one hundred year old tradition of taking thousands of sheep twice a year to the White Mountains. Each year they would walk the 220 miles with the sheep on the Heber- Reno Trail for the cooler climate and wool production. Overhead costs for the expidition have become so high that the tradition is over.
A federal appeals court has upheld a law prohibiting roads on 50 million acres of national forest lands. The 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule was challenged by lawyers for Wyoming and the Ccolorado Mining Association.
10-23- Baseball size hail plummets Ada, Oklahoma.
The governor of Bangkok has issued a dramatic warning to residents of the Thailand capitol to prepare for floodwaters to come deeper into the capital from suburbans that are already flooded.
A California man has been shot and killed in Oregon by a hunter after being mistaken for a bear. He and a friend were hiking through a field on the way to Silver Creek Falls Park.
A Great White shark has killed an American diver off the coast of southwest Australia. It is the third of a string of fatal attacks since September 4th.
10-24- Record high of 80 degrees in Denver today. In two days the high is predicted to be 30 degrees with snow.
Hurricane Rina forms and is growing faster than expected. It is moving toward Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and beach resorts.
A massive amount of debris, the size of Texas, from the Japan tsunami in March is headed toward the United States in the Pacific with millions of tons of trash.
The Red tailed hawk that was shot in the head with a nail gun last week has been captured and is recovering “very well.”
Volunteers will be turning over the Zanjero Park in Gilbert as a home for displaced burrowing owls. Nobody knows the number of owls that have been impacted by development in the Valley. The rescue efforts work in partnership with home developers.
10-25- Rina is now a Category 2 hurricane headed for Cancun.
Floodwaters seep into a second airport in Bangkok, closing it. “ A five day holiday is declared to allow residents to prepare to evacuate.” The floods have caused seven industrial parks to close leaving 650,000 people without work.
10-26- After two days of record high temperatures up to eight and a half inches of snow has fallen in the Denver area today causing wide spread power outages to 87,000 people. Up to twenty two inches in Rocky Mountain National Park and roads in the mountains and eastern plains are closed.
Flash floods kill nine in Italy and six are missing. Flood waters cut off roads and bridges and several towns in Liquria are cut off from the outside world.
And from the we don’t make this shit up file: PETA is accusing Sea World of keeping five Killer Whales in conditions that violate the 13th amendment ban on slavery. Peta’s counsel has spent eighteen months preparing for the case to present to a federal court. (What has this fucking world come to?)
First windchill of the season at The Land! 74 degrees plus a 13mph wind= 72 ooshy degrees!
The governor of Thailand urges evacuations from Bangkok and tens of thousands are fleeing the capital city. Water from two to six feet expected.
Hurricane Rina moves toward several Mexican beach resorts causing evacuations. The local government has advised vistors to stay away. A huge storm surge is expected to raise the levels seven feet above normal along the coast. (Surfers get ready!)
10-27- 50,000 armed forces are standing by in Bangkok with one thousand boats and vehicles to help evacuate people. There will be evacuation centers in eight provinces that could take up to 200,000 people.
Rescuers in Italy search for survivors in mud filled villages.
10-28- The country band Sugarland returns to Indianapolis to honor the people that were killed by a powerful wind storm last summer.
Rina weakens to a Tropical Depression after knocking out power and downing trees on the Caribbean coast.
Panic causes Bangkok residents to buy all available life jackets and 3,000 rubber boats. (How about rubber ducks?)
10-29- A rare October snowstorm has knocked out power to 1.5 million in the densely populated North East. New York City broke an October snowfall record with 1.3’’ in Central Park. It has only snowed four times in October there in over a century of record keeping.
Remnants of Hurricane Rina pushing up moisture from the south triggered much colder temperatures to swing down from the far north.
Twice as much radioactive substances were released by the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan last March than previously estimated.
A stray dog was dropped outside an Alabama pound. His young life was supposed to end in a gas chamber. Instead the dog emerged scared but healthy. Now he is being called a miracle dog. He has been relocated to New Jersey where a rescue group hopes to find him a home.
10-30- Due to heavy snow in the North East some cities are urging residents to delay (?) Halloween trick or treating. Three million are without power from Maine to Maryland. Record rainfall with 27’’ in Plainfield, Mass.
A six month old wildfire sparked by lightning has burned 309,199 acres in Savannah, Georgia. Being swamp land most of the fire is burning below ground. (Something I have never heard of.) The undergound fire is fueled by dead and decaying plant matter. It’s burning deeply enough that a tree will simply fall over when the peat is burned out around it.
A surfer in Monterey, California is treated at a local hospital from shark wounds in the neck and arm.
10-31- Half of Central Park in New York City damaged by snow downed trees.
Two million are still without power in the North East. Not have this many people been without power at once since Hurricane Katrina. Halloween cancelled in some cities due to the “freak storm.” Sixty million people have been affected. Snow accumulations are 31’’ in north east New England. Eleven people have died as a result of the storm.
Parts of Florida have received seven inches of rain in last two days.
Angry Bangkok residents argue with security forces to attempt to open a flood gate that has flooded their homes. The tensions at the Klong San Wa floodgate shows the rising anger in some neighborhoods that have been allowed to flood to keep Bangkok’s business district dry.
An elk hunter is injured by a bear attack in the Grand Teton National Park. The 32 year old man tried the common safety recommendations including carrying pepper spray and dropping to the ground and covering his head. He had not fired upon the bear and he had not killed an elk which would have possibly provoked the attack.
And there you have it my faithful readers. The song of the month is appropriately titled “Weather Beaten Soul” by Reckless Kelly.
Until next month remember Pioneers took bullets. Settlers took land.
The distinguished, honorary, full of shit, Professor MR Blueduck.
