 |
|
A true story of catastrophe and survival at sea, Fatal Forecast is a spellbinding moment-by-moment account of seventy-two hours in the lives of eight young fishermen, some of whom would never set foot on dry land again. On the morning of November 21, 1980, two small Massachusetts lobster boats set out for Georges Bank, a bountiful but perilous fishing ground 130 miles off the coast of Cape Cod. The National Weather Service had forecast typical fall weather, and the young, rugged crewmen aboard the Sea Fever and the Fair Wind had made dozens of similar trips that season. They had no reason to expect that this trip would be any different. But the only weather buoy on Georges Bank was malfunctioning, and the National Weather Service had failed to share this fact with the fishermen who depended on its forecasts. As the two small boats headed out to sea, a colossal storm was brewing to the southeast, a furious maelstrom the National Weather Service did not accurately locate until the boats were already caught in the storm’s grip, trapped in the treacherous waters of Georges Bank. Battered by sixty-foot waves and hurricane-force winds, the crews of the Fair Wind and the Sea Fever (captained by Peter Brown, whose father owned the Andrea Gail of Perfect Storm fame) struggled heroically to keep their vessels afloat. But the storm soon severely crippled one boat and overturned the other, trapping its crew inside. Meticulously researched and vividly told, Fatal Forecast is first and foremost a tale of miraculous survival. Most amazing is the story of Ernie Hazzard, who managed to crawl inside a tiny inflatable life raft and then spent more than fifty terrifying hours adrift on the stormy open sea. By turns tragic, thrilling, and inspiring, Ernie’s story deserves a place among the greatest survival tales ever told. Equally riveting are the stories of the brave men and women from the Coast Guard and the crew of a nearby fishing boat who imperiled their own lives that day in order to save the lives of others. As gripping and harrowing as The Perfect Storm - but with a miracle ending - Fatal Forecast is an unforgettable true story about the collision of two spectacular forces: the brutality of nature and the human will to survive. Order Fatal Forecast: An Incredible True Tale of Disaster and Survival at Sea from Amazon for $5.99 Other Kindle Books of Interest
I followed around Stan Boyner yesterday (May 17, 200 and he was kind enough to let me shoot some of the recovery effort in and around where his home is now located (a full plot south of where the home originally stood. He was able to salvage his grandfather’s shotgun from the rubble immediately under the steel frame that his home was sitting atop of. To answer my father’s question, the EPA has already conducted ground and air quality analysis, as well as sent in the filters from the PM10 collectors to the Dallas office, all results have come back negative for toxicity and particulate matter of Asbestos, Lead and Zinc. John A., a contractor for FEMA, was one of five inspectors allowing residents to place themselves on a federal grant list to receive up to $28,000 USD for living expenses, repairs to homes still standing, and personal effects replacement. While the town is still being bought out by the fed, they’re going to be relocated to any place of their choice, because instead of simply building gov’t housing in Cardin or any of the other neighboring towns, they’ll simply hand ‘em a cheque when they can get to it, and the residents are free to find housing anywhere else in the U.S.A. I’d also like to send a personal shout-out to Geri and Rob in Picher, thanks for your hospitality, and the warm hearts that opened up to allow us into your home at such a greatly emotional time. We had a wonderful evening, and hope to cross paths in the future. Can’t wait to hear from you both soon!
Actual Report from the National Weather Service via The New York Times. August 28, 2005 000 WWUS74 KLIX 282139 NPWLIX URGENT–WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW ORLEANS LA 413 PM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005 …EXTREMELY DANGEROUS HURRICANE KATRINA CONTINUES TO APPROACH THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER DELTA… …DEVASTATING DAMAGE EXPECTED… MOST OF THE AREA WILL BE UNINHABITABLE FOR WEEKS…PERHAPS LONGER. AT LEAST ONE HALF OF WELL CONSTRUCTED HOMES WILL HAVE ROOF AND WALL FAILURE. ALL GABLED ROOFS WILL FAIL…LEAVING THOSE HOMES SEVERELY DAMAGED OR DESTROYED. THE MAJORITY OF INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS WILL BECOME NON FUNCTIONAL. PARTIAL TO COMPLETE WALL AND ROOF FAILURE IS EXPECTED. ALL WOOD FRAMED LOW RISING APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL BE DESTROYED. CONCRETE BLOCK LOW RISE APARTMENTS WILL SUSTAIN MAJOR DAMAGE…INCLUDING SOME WALL AND ROOF FAILURE. HIGH RISE OFFICE AND APARTMENT BUILDINGS WILL SWAY DANGEROUSLY…A FEW TO THE POINT OF TOTAL COLLAPSE. ALL WINDOWS WILL BLOW OUT. AIRBORNE DEBRIS WILL BE WIDESPREAD…AND MAY INCLUDE HEAVY ITEMS SUCH AS HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES AND EVEN LIGHT VEHICLES. SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES AND LIGHT TRUCKS WILL BE MOVED. THE BLOWN DEBRIS WILL CREATE ADDITIONAL DESTRUCTION. PERSONS…PETS…AND LIVESTOCK EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL FACE CERTAIN DEATH IF STRUCK. POWER OUTAGES WILL LAST FOR WEEKS…AS MOST POWER POLES WILL BE DOWN AND TRANSFORMERS DESTROYED. WATER SHORTAGES WILL MAKE HUMAN SUFFERING INCREDIBLE BY MODERN STANDARDS. THE VAST MAJORITY OF NATIVE TREES WILL BE SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. ONLY THE HEARTIEST WILL REMAIN STANDING…BUT BE TOTALLY DEFOLIATED. FEW CROPS WILL REMAIN. LIVESTOCK LEFT EXPOSED TO THE WINDS WILL BE KILLED. AN INLAND HURRICANE WIND WATCH IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS NEAR HURRICANE FORCE…OR FREQUENT GUSTS AT OR ABOVE HURRICANE FORCE…ARE POSSIBLE WITHIN THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS. JEFFERSON–LOWER LAFOURCHE–LOWER PLAQUEMINES–LOWER ST. BERNARD–LOWER TERREBONNE–ORLEANS–ST. CHARLES–ST. JAMES–ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST–ST. TAMMANY–TANGIPAHOA–UPPER JEFFERSON–UPPER LAFOURCHE–UPPER PLAQUEMINES–UPPER ST. BERNARD–UPPER TERREBONNE– 413 PM CDT SUN AUG 28 2005 …INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT… HURRICANE KATRINA CONTINUES TO APPROACH THE AREA. TROPICAL STROM FORCE WINDS ARE CURRENTLY MOVING INTO THE COASTAL MARSHES AND WILL PERSIST FOR THE NEXT 26 TO 28 HOURS. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WILL ONSET AROUND MIDNIGHT NEAR THE COAST AND BY 3 AM CLOSER TO THE NEW ORLEANS METRO AREA AND PERSIST FOR 9 TO 15 HOURS. MAXIMUM WIND GUSTS AROUND 175 MPH ARE LIKELY IN THE WARNED AREA BY DAYBREAK MONDAY. DO NOT VENTURE OUTDOORS ONCE TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ONSET! $$ BATON ROUGE–EAST FELICIANA–IBERVILLE–PEARL RIVER–PIKE–POINTE COUPEE–ST. BATON ROUGE–WEST FELICIANA–WILKINSON– 413 PM CDT SUM AUG 28 2005 …INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT… HURRICANE KATRINA CONTINUES TO APPROACH THE AREA. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE CURRENTLY MOVING INTO THE COASTAL MARSHES AND WILL SREAD (sic) NORTHWESTWARD INTO THE GREATER BATON ROUGE AREA AND SOUTHWEST MISSISSIPPI LATER THIS EVENING. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO ONSET AROUND 9 PM TONIGHT AND PERSIST FOR 22 TO 26 HOURS. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WILL ONSET AROUND DAYBREAK AND PERSIST FOR ABOUT 5 TO 10 HOURS. MAXIMUM WIND GUSTS OF 80 TO 90 MPH ARE POSSIBLE IN EAST–CENTRAL LOUISIANA AND SOUTHWEST MISSISSIPPI. DO NOT VENTURE OUTDOORS ONCE TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ONSET! $$
|
Categories
Site DirectoryFavorites
|
