Weather stories from across the Nation

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. While we’ve been dealing with Idalia here in the U.S., one of the South China Sea’s strongest typhoons on record is nearing a strike on land. Typhoon Saola generated sustained wind speeds of 155 mph yesterday, making it the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane (and just…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. Idalia swept ashore as a high-end Category 3 hurricane yesterday morning, its 125 mph winds, flooding rain and storm surge battering homes along Florida’s Big Bend. Idalia then moved inland, clobbering small towns in its path before dumping up to 10 inches of flooding rain on southern Georgia as it…

Good Morning. Hurricane Idalia has rapidly intensified into a Category 4 hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico, and its catastrophic, life-threatening storm surge, hurricane-force winds and flooding rain are nearing Florida’s Big Bend region. If you are in or near the path of this extremely dangerous storm, please heed all evacuation orders given by local authorities. Current…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. Idalia has strengthened into a hurricane and is expected to intensify into what the National Hurricane Center called an “extremely dangerous major hurricane” before making landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday. At 5 a.m. EST, Hurricane Idalia was located about 370 miles south southwest of Tampa, Florida, moving…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. Tropical Storm Idalia is forecast to become a hurricane today and could be near or at major hurricane strength when it reaches the Gulf Coast of Florida by Wednesday. Storm surge and hurricane watches are in effect for portions of the west coast of Florida and the Florida Panhandle…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. In the Eastern Pacific, Hurricane Hilary is now peaking as a Category 4 hurricane. It will weaken as it moves north over cooler water parallel to the Baja Peninsula, but its remnants could still bring significant impacts to parts of the Southwest, including California, where the National…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. After a recent quiet spell in the Atlantic hurricane season, we’re certainly paying attention to the three areas of interest that have been identified for potential development. As meteorologist Chris Dolce wrote in Tuesday’s Brief, 88% of Atlantic hurricane season’s average activity takes place after Aug. 15, so it’s…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. On Monday, I asked our readers to write in and share what signifies the end of summer where they live. For Lori in Burnt Hills, New York, fall begins when the pool closes. For Sis W., “Summer ends when pumpkins show up at the market!” For many others,…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. Or should I say Ahoy, ahoy? That’s the greeting that Alexander Bell insisted people should say when they answered the telephone. On this date 146 years ago, however, Thomas Edison made his suggestion, which ended up prevailing. Edison’s proposed greeting? “Hello.” Weather In Focus (AP Photo/Michael Probst)…

By Chris DeWeese Senior Editorial Writer Good Morning. Our thoughts are with the people of Maui after deadly wildfires fanned by strong winds roared through parts of the Hawaiian island, forcing evacuations, decimating communities and taking at least 36 lives. In the historic district of Lahaina, flames swept through so fast that a dozen people had to be…