Santa Clause Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I feel very confident they made it through storm effects ok, it's the aftermath that worries me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1900hurricane Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 some comment on jeff masters blog with no other sourcing anywhere seems unworthy of heavy debate for now. people can go there to read it if critical. I'm a fairly prominent poster over there. Lots of unverified stuff being thrown around in there and in many other places as well. Still waiting for more concrete information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendy Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 In the last hour it's been posted on twitter that news crews from 2 different networks (ABS-CBN and Al Jazeera) who were in Tacloban when the storm hit are OK. The Al Jazeera reporter was in touch with James Reynolds on twitter and she may have moved to his hotel - reading her twitter (https://twitter.com/jamelaaisha) she was originally right on the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canderson Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Regarding supplies, James Reynollds had tweeted they had 50 liters of water and ample food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrick05 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I would like to find the raw footage shown beginning at 1:52 in this . Those are some serious winds in that clip. here's a longer version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUR3EX3pRpQ clips begin at 4min mark... just try and scroll through because there are some really wicked clips in there, especially the one taken inside the church... also that coconut trunk (not a branch) snapped off just like a twig...!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurricaneman Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh may have PTSD after this event and may never go for a cat5+ chase again, but then again it may be the most exilerating feeling of his life Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh may have PTSD after this event and may never go for a cat5+ chase again, but then again it may be the most exilerating feeling of his life I suspect it will be the latter. That said, it helped tremendously that they retreated from the shoreline (a wise and possibly life saving decision) into the downtown area of Tacloban City. Based on their specific intercept location, and the fact the Typhoon made a preceding landfall, as well as the winds coming in over the land into where they were positioned, it's highly unlikely they experienced category five wind speeds. That's no way meant to minimize the incredible winds they no doubt encountered, nonetheless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyhb Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh may have PTSD after this event and may never go for a cat5+ chase again, but then again it may be the most exilerating feeling of his life Regardless of the thrill of the chase, this won't be the most exhilarating feeling of his life. Such devastation and human suffering is going to hang with him, as it will everyone else in that region. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Regardless of the thrill of the chase, this won't be the most exhilarating feeling of his life. Such devastation and human suffering is going to hang with him, as it will everyone else in that region. Excellent post! It has never been the same for me since I intercepted Katrina in southern Mississippi. The same was true for the incredible devastation I observed in both Ike and Sandy, as well. He will likely continue to chase intense storms, as I will continue to do, but I presume it will leave him with a whole different perspective on these type of events. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyhb Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Still absolutely nothing from Guiuan either, which may have taken the strongest hit of any of the communities/cities affected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Reimer Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh just posted this on his iCyclone page."First off, Tacloban City is devastated. The city is a horrid landscape of smashed buildings and completely defoliated trees, with widespread looting and unclaimed bodies decaying in the open air. The typhoon moved fast and didn't last long-- only a few hours-- but it struck the city with absolutely terrifying ferocity. At the height of the storm, as the wind rose to a scream, as windows exploded and as our solid-concrete downtown hotel trembled from the impact of flying debris, as pictures blew off the walls and as children became hysterical, a tremendous storm surge swept the entire downtown. Waterfront blocks were reduced to heaps of rubble. In our hotel, trapped first-floor guests smashed the windows of their rooms to keep from drowning and screamed for help, and we had to drop our cameras and pull them out on mattresses and physically carry the elderly and disabled to the second floor. Mark's leg was ripped open by a piece of debris and he'll require surgery. The city has no communication with the outside world. The hospitals are overflowing with the critically injured. The surrounding communities are mowed down. After a bleak night in a hot, pitch-black, trashed hotel, James, Mark, and I managed to get out of the city on a military chopper and get to Cebu via a C-130-- sitting next to corpses in body bags. Meteorologically, Super Typhoon HAIYAN was fascinating; from a human-interest standpoint, it was utterly ghastly. It's been difficult to process." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrick05 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 James Reynold is now in Cebu, his wife just contacted our team!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Still absolutely nothing from Guiuan either, which may have taken the strongest hit of any of the communities/cities affected. I think there's very little doubt that Guiuan got the absolute max wind, and likely surge, from this devastating storm. I pray the residents there, who may not have evacuated, somehow survived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyhb Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Great news that he and the crew are alive , but as suspected this is going to leave an irreparable scar on his mind. Looks like trees stripped of their bark as reported and below it looks like a tsunami hit.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 James Reynold is now in Cebu, his wife just contacted our team!!!! Thanks for the post, Patrick. So relieved to get confirmation they are physically okay! Still need to keep praying for those residents who live there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Claus Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Great news that he and the crew are alive , but suspected this is going to leave an irreparable scar on his mind. I can't imagine he wasn't expecting this. If you chase a 195 mph cyclone hitting a well-populated area on the water with some poorly built buildings you are going to see some horrible things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Global_Warmer Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh just posted this on his iCyclone page. "First off, Tacloban City is devastated. The city is a horrid landscape of smashed buildings and completely defoliated trees, with widespread looting and unclaimed bodies decaying in the open air. The typhoon moved fast and didn't last long-- only a few hours-- but it struck the city with absolutely terrifying ferocity. At the height of the storm, as the wind rose to a scream, as windows exploded and as our solid-concrete downtown hotel trembled from the impact of flying debris, as pictures blew off the walls and as children became hysterical, a tremendous storm surge swept the entire downtown. Waterfront blocks were reduced to heaps of rubble. In our hotel, trapped first-floor guests smashed the windows of their rooms to keep from drowning and screamed for help, and we had to drop our cameras and pull them out on mattresses and physically carry the elderly and disabled to the second floor. Mark's leg was ripped open by a piece of debris and he'll require surgery. The city has no communication with the outside world. The hospitals are overflowing with the critically injured. The surrounding communities are mowed down. After a bleak night in a hot, pitch-black, trashed hotel, James, Mark, and I managed to get out of the city on a military chopper and get to Cebu via a C-130-- sitting next to corpses in body bags. Meteorologically, Super Typhoon HAIYAN was fascinating; from a human-interest standpoint, it was utterly ghastly. It's been difficult to process." No matter what people think of chasers. This will stay with these guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishingForWarmWeather Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Pictures from Ormoc City, Leyte. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1429772447237099.1073741843.1409343005946710&type=3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyhb Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Pictures from Ormoc City, Leyte. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1429772447237099.1073741843.1409343005946710&type=3 Some of the damage pictures there remind me of the aftermath of Bopha. Forests shredded and buildings either flattened or severely compromised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishingForWarmWeather Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I totally agree. I choose to believe the reason we haven't heard anything is a direct result of the lack of communications. As I noted in an earlier post, there was no communications available to me for more than 48 hours after Katrina. It's also not unusual for reporters to exaggerate things-being in a competitive and sensationalistic business. In time, we will know the true extent of the damage, and I suspect hear from Josh, as well. I also suspect he will have a harrowing tale, but will be physically okay. Were you there as well? I was about to comment on that to hopefully put at ease some minds... after Katrina, it took me nearly 3 days to be able to get any sort of communication to work in New Orleans, and that is in a fully developed country. Even if everyone is perfectly fine in all the surrounding areas, I would expect it to be a couple days before communication starts trickling out, and I personally assumed it would be a bit longer than that, just due to the underdevelopment of the area, but I must admit I know nothing of what the town/area is like, so it was all assumption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Reimer Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 No matter what people think of chasers. This will stay with these guys. Of-course they are going to have horrible images. They were in ground-zero of a Super Typhoon. That's to be expected. This probably won't be the last time that happens either. They're going to have to find a way to cope with it over the coming months and decide if they want to continue to chase or not. I'm still having PTSD after May 31st in the OKC Metro and I'm not sure if I'll be able to really chase much again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I can't imagine he wasn't expecting this. If you chase a 195 mph cyclone hitting a well-populated area on the water with some poorly built buildings you are going to see some horrible things. Although the winds they likely encountered were intense (nowhere near 195 mph), it's another horrific example of just how devastating a significant storm surge can be. Of course, the wind no doubt did it's fair share of damage, as well-even moreso as a result of the porous condition of the buildings, as you noted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Were you there as well? I was about to comment on that to hopefully put at ease some minds... after Katrina, it took me nearly 3 days to be able to get any sort of communication to work in New Orleans, and that is in a fully developed country. Even if everyone is perfectly fine in all the surrounding areas, I would expect it to be a couple days before communication starts trickling out, and I personally assumed it would be a bit longer than that, just due to the underdevelopment of the area, but I must admit I know nothing of what the town/area is like, so it was all assumption. I intercepted the storm in southern Mississippi, but was not in New Orleans myself. I'm thankful you survived that horrific ordeal and can appreciate what these guys have also experienced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwburbschaser Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Although the winds they likely encountered were intense (nowhere near 195 mph), it's another horrific example of just how devastating a significant storm surge can be. Of course, the wind no doubt did it's fair share of damage, as well-even moreso as a result of the porous condition of the buildings, as you noted. The storm surge is what would frighten me above all else. I am rather curious about the true sustained wind speeds though because anything near the 195mph would be insane. Does anyone know if these guys had anything to collect wind speed, pressure readings etc..? To the point of the criticism, chasing any extreme weather will have consequences and these guys were well aware of that so I don't think second guessing the choice that they made is really fair, at least imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valkhorn Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I intercepted the storm in southern Mississippi, but was not in New Orleans myself. I'm thankful you survived that horrific ordeal and can appreciate what these guys have also experienced. The interesting thing is that MS was hit way harder than New Orleans was in terms of wind and storm surge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishingForWarmWeather Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Some of the damage pictures there remind me of the aftermath of Bopha. Forests shredded and buildings either flattened or severely compromised. It's making my physically ill to look at all this. As a few people commented, after you go through a storm of such magnitude, you are just never the same. It's a long and heart breaking process. The pictures/video coming out of there are just... I honestly have no words. My heart breaks over and over and over for these people and I wish that there was something I could do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishingForWarmWeather Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Josh, you have no idea how relieved I am to see your facebook post. I am glad you are physically safe and out of the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dan11295 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 Glad they are OK. regarding surge height if the elevation of their hotel was actually ~26' than implies a ~30+' surge into the city since we know people on the first floor had to be moved up based on his report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 The storm surge is what would frighten me above all else. I am rather curious about the true sustained wind speeds though because anything near the 195mph would be insane. Does anyone know if these guys had anything to collect wind speed, pressure readings etc...? Josh had a barometer with him, as did another chaser, who also intercepted the storm in Tocloban City. Like you, I'm also curious to hear the pressure readings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncforecaster89 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 The interesting thing is that MS was hit way harder than New Orleans was in terms of wind and storm surge. Meteorologically, that's very true. That said, I wouldn't want to suggest that the aftermath was any more devastating for those in N.O. than it was in southern Mississippi-mainly as a result of the levees being breached. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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