Articles · Topic
Articles about Storm Surge
16 articles across 2 sections
Section
Disaster History
Flood Case Studies
Flash floods, river floods, and storm surge. The costliest natural disaster by cumulative damage, and one of the most misunderstood.
Hurricane Case Studies
Storm surge, wind damage, flooding, and the long recovery after a major landfalling hurricane. Every category has a different risk profile.
Hurricane Hugo 1989: A 20-Foot Storm Tide, a Flooded Shelter, and an Evacuation That Worked
Hugo struck Sullivan's Island, SC as a Category 4 in September 1989. Most coastal residents evacuated in time, a school used as a shelter flooded six feet deep, and up to 1.5 million customers lost power for weeks.
Section
Preparedness
Connecticut Local Risk Guide: Nor'easters, Hurricanes, Floods, Power Outages and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Connecticut by six regions: Fairfield County and the lower Housatonic and Naugatuck valleys (the August 2024 flash flood emergency, 19 homes destroyed, the 2016 drought), Greater New Haven, Waterbury, and the central shoreline (Sandy's surge, Know Your Zone towns, the 2013 blizzard), the eastern shoreline and Thames valley (Henri, evacuation zones), Hartford and the Connecticut River valley (the 1979 Windsor Locks tornado, heat protocol and cooling centers), the Litchfield Hills (forest cover, long outages, Albany NWS coverage), and the Quiet Corner (Henri flash floods, wells, fuel). Built on the 2023 Connecticut Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan. Historical lesson: the October 2011 nor'easter, its record 880,000 outages and twelve-day restoration, from the Two Storm Panel and Witt reviews. Covers the three NWS offices by county, CT Alert, town-led evacuation orders, the November 1 to May 1 winter protection and medical protection, energy assistance, a seasonal calendar, cascading chains, household overlays, and a ten-action checklist.
Delaware Local Risk Guide: Coastal Flooding, Storms, Warnings and Household Preparedness
Household disruption guide for Delaware by area: Atlantic coast and Inland Bays storm surge and Route 1 closures, Delaware Bay shore communities cut off at high tide, nor'easters, hurricanes and coastal evacuation within three-quarters of a mile of the coast, winter storms with Level 1, 2 and 3 driving restrictions, Brandywine and Piedmont stream floods from upstream rain (the 2021 Ida lesson), tornadoes including the 2023 Bridgeville EF3, heat and cooling centers, drought and burn bans, and the Salem/Hope Creek nuclear planning zone. Covers DENS alert sign-up, NWS Mount Holly, the Coastal Flood Monitoring System, 211, cascading failures, a seasonal calendar, and a ten-action checklist.
Florida Local Risk Guide: Evacuation Zones, Hurricanes, Flooding and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Florida by operational region: Northwest Florida and Big Bend Gulf surge (Hurricane Michael 2018, Apalachee Bay) and I-10 dry-season tornadoes, Northeast Florida and St. Johns River flooding, North-Central interior wells, wildfire smoke and evacuee hosting, Tampa Bay causeways and rainband tornadoes, Southwest Florida surge (Hurricane Ian 2022, Fort Myers Beach, Peace and Myakka record crests), Central Florida overnight tornadoes (1998 outbreak, mobile homes), Southeast Florida Biscayne Bay surge, king tides, Turkey Point and St. Lucie nuclear planning zones and Lake Okeechobee, and the Florida Keys single highway, numbered Monroe County zones and 130-mile aqueduct. Covers evacuation zones A to F and Know Your Zone, all 7 NWS offices including Mobile, AlertFlorida, the State Assistance Information Line, fuel shortages from port closures, generator carbon monoxide, food after outages, flooded private wells and boil-water notices, early prescription refills under F.S. 252.358, the special needs registry, year-round sales tax exemptions for preparedness items, rip currents, lightning, heat, red tide, sinkholes, a seasonal calendar, cascading failure chains, the Hurricane Ian lesson, and a ten-action checklist.
Hurricane Preparedness Checklist
A calm, specific guide to hurricane preparedness for Atlantic and Gulf coast households. Evacuation zones, shutters vs. plywood, fuel storage, and the first 72 hours after.
Hurricane: What to Do Right Now
What to do as a hurricane approaches: the wind-versus-water shelter decision, why storm surge is the leading killer, and evacuate-or-stay judgment. Immediate action for a household in a hurricane's path.
Maryland Local Risk Guide: Flash Floods, Tidal Flooding, Hurricanes, Winter Storms, Heat and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Maryland by the five regions of the 2021 State Hazard Mitigation Plan: Western Maryland (Georges Creek and Westernport flash flooding in May 2025, landslides, the state's heaviest snow), Central Maryland and the I-95 corridor (Ellicott City, Catonsville and West Baltimore urban flash floods in 2016 and 2018, Baltimore City heat, Annapolis tidal flooding, Peach Bottom planning zone in Harford), Southern Maryland (coastal hazards and wind on the Bay, Patuxent and Potomac, La Plata tornado history, Calvert Cliffs planning zone), and the Upper and Lower Eastern Shore (tidal flooding, surge, wind, Ocean City, highest 2025 heat-visit rates in Dorchester, Kent, Talbot and Somerset). Covers NWS Sterling, Mount Holly and Wakefield coverage, county alert systems after the end of MdReady text alerts, Know Your Zone A/B/C evacuation zones, utility shutoff protections in extreme cold and heat and medical certification, 34 heat deaths in 2025, a seasonal calendar, cascading outage and flood chains, household overlays, and a ten-action checklist.
New Jersey Local Risk Guide: Floods, Coastal Storms, Heat, Pinelands Wildfire and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for New Jersey by operational region: the northeast urban corridor (Ida flash flooding, 8.44 inches at Newark Airport, Passaic County severe repetitive loss flood properties, Newark heat island, NWS New York office), Raritan, Millstone and central Jersey (record Ida river crests at Bound Brook, Princeton and the North Branch Raritan, the 2024 Tewksbury magnitude 4.8 earthquake), the northwest Highlands (snow and ice storms, Warren County ice storm counts, the October 2011 snowstorm outage, private wells and dams), the Jersey Shore and barrier islands (Sandy surge at Sandy Hook, Mantoloking inlet, 2.7 million customers out, coastal evacuation maps, nor'easters), the Pinelands and South Jersey interior (wildfire, Jones Road Wildfire 2025, Garden State Parkway and Route 9 closures), and the Delaware Bay shore (Mullica Hill EF3 tornado, Paulsboro vinyl chloride release, Salem and Hope Creek nuclear planning zone). Covers basement apartments and flash flood warnings, the 2024 flood risk disclosure law for renters and buyers, Register Ready, Nixle alerts, cooling centers and the July 2026 heat wave, carbon monoxide and generator safety, Prepare Endure Recover actions, a ten-action checklist, and the Ida 2021 historical lesson.
New York Local Risk Guide: Coastal Storms, Flooding, Lake-Effect Snow and Household Preparedness
Household disruption guide for New York by region: New York City and Long Island storm surge and hurricane evacuation zones, basement flash flooding and the 2021 Ida lesson, upstate river and ice-jam floods, lake-effect snow and blizzards east of Lakes Erie and Ontario, ice storms and long outages, extreme heat and cooling centers, and wildfire smoke and air quality. Covers NWS offices by county, county and NYC alert sign-up, cascading failures, a seasonal calendar, and a ten-action checklist.
North Carolina Local Risk Guide: Inland Flooding, Hurricanes, Ice and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for North Carolina by operational region: mountain counties (Helene 2024 flash floods and more than 2,000 landslides, the 2005 Henderson County ice storm, the 2020 Sparta earthquake), the Charlotte area and southern Piedmont (Catawba dam releases, Union County flood drownings), the northern Piedmont and Virginia-border counties, the Triangle and central counties (Nash County EF-3, I-95 and I-40 closures), the Sandhills and Lumber River basin (heat-alert counties, the Florence I-95 closure and Fair Bluff), the eastern river counties, and the coast, sounds, and Outer Banks (Know Your Zone evacuation zones in 21 counties, Wilmington cut off in Florence, the 2014 coastal ice storm). Covers all 7 NWS offices including Greenville-Spartanburg, Wakefield, Blacksburg, and Morristown, the NCEM county alert directory, FRIS flood maps, FIMAN gauges, NCGS landslide maps, DriveNC, ReadyNC outages and shelters, inland and flash flooding, hurricanes and storm surge, ice storms, tornadoes, heat, drought, wildfire and burning permits, dam releases, rip currents, generator carbon monoxide, food after outages, flooded private wells, a seasonal calendar, cascading failure chains, the Floyd 1999 flood-map lesson, and a ten-action checklist.
Rhode Island Local Risk Guide: Hurricanes, Nor'easters, Floods, Winter Outages and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Rhode Island by six regions: the Upper Bay and urban core (the Fox Point barrier, Bay-shore flooding, heat in older housing), the river valleys (Pawtuxet, Blackstone, and Woonasquatucket flooding, the 2010 record crest, high-hazard dams), the East Bay and bridge islands (wind limits on four Bay bridges, the 2019 Aquidneck gas outage), the South County shore (open-ocean surge, evacuation zones, saltwater in coastal wells), the western well towns (heavy snow, long outages, wildfire), and Block Island (ferry and single-cable dependence). Built on the 2024 State Hazard Mitigation Plan. Covers the Norton NWS office, CodeRED after its 2025 platform change, hurricane evacuation Zones A and B, the November 1 to May 1 utility shutoff moratorium and its gap for oil and propane, flooded private wells, a seasonal calendar, cascading outage, surge, river, gas-supply, bridge, and dry-season chains, household overlays, and a ten-action checklist.
South Carolina Local Risk Guide: Hurricanes, Floods, Dam Failures, Earthquakes and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for South Carolina by operational region: Upstate metro and mountain counties (Helene 2024 tree-fall deaths in Greenville and Spartanburg, the 2002 and 2005 ice storms and Anderson generator carbon monoxide deaths, the 2025 Table Rock Complex fire, Oconee and Catawba nuclear zones), Columbia and the central counties (the October 2015 flood, 51 failed regulated dams, Lake Murray floodgates, the Elgin earthquake swarm, V.C. Summer), Aiken, Orangeburg and the Savannah River border (extreme heat, the 2020 Hampton County EF-4), the Pee Dee river counties (Florence 2018 river crests, Nichols in Matthew, Robinson plant), the Grand Strand and Waccamaw (Conway flooding, the Horry van drownings, the Highway 31 Fire, US 501 lane reversal), and Charleston, Beaufort and the southern coast (Know Your Zone evacuation zones, I-26 and US 278 reversals, the 1886 Charleston earthquake and Middleton Place-Summerville seismic zone). Covers all 4 NWS offices including Wilmington, NC, the SCEMD county directory and SC Emergency Manager app, FEMA flood maps, the SCDES dam safety map and inundation zones, 511SC, ORS outage maps, hurricanes and storm surge, river and flash flooding, dam failure, tornadoes, ice storms, extreme heat, wildfire and Forestry Commission burn notification, earthquakes, drought, nuclear plant planning zones, rip currents, generator carbon monoxide, food after outages, flooded private wells, a seasonal calendar, cascading failure chains, household overlays, and the October 2015 dam-failure lesson.
Texas Local Risk Guide: Hurricanes, Flash Floods, Grid Outages and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Texas by operational region: Upper Coast and Houston storm surge, H-GAC ZIP-code evacuation zones (Coastal, A, B, C) and summer hurricane outages (Beryl 2024), Coastal Bend and Rio Grande Valley evacuation distances, East Texas wind and ice outages outside ERCOT, North Texas tornadoes, hail and winter storms, Hill Country Flash Flood Alley and low-water crossings (July 2025 Guadalupe River), Panhandle wind-driven grass fires (Smokehouse Creek 2024), blizzards and blowing dust, and West Texas heat, arroyo flash floods and El Paso on the western grid. Covers all 13 NWS offices serving Texas, ERCOT TXANS grid notices, the February 2021 winter storm lessons (carbon monoxide, hypothermia, medical equipment), STEAR and utility critical care registration, cooling and warming plans, cascading failure chains, a seasonal calendar, the Hurricane Rita evacuation lesson, and a ten-action checklist.
Virginia Local Risk Guide: Flooding, Coastal Storms, Winter Outages and Household Readiness
Household disruption guide for Virginia by operational region: Hampton Roads and the Peninsula tidal flooding, tunnels and Know Your Zone evacuation zones A to D (Hurricane Isabel 2003), the Eastern Shore and Bay peninsulas, Richmond and Central Virginia (Gaston 2004, the 1998 Christmas ice storm, the January 2025 water plant failure and boil-water advisory), Northern Virginia and the I-95 corridor (the January 2022 standstill, the 2012 derecho), the Shenandoah Valley and Blue Ridge (Camille 1969, Nelson County landslides), Southside wells and ice storms, the Roanoke and New River valleys (Helene 2024), and the Far Southwest coalfields. Covers all 5 NWS offices including Morristown and Charleston, the VDEM local emergency manager directory, 511 Virginia, river and flash flooding, tropical remnants, winter storms, tornadoes, heat, drought, wildfire and the 4 PM Burning Law, the 2011 Mineral earthquake, North Anna and Surry nuclear station alerts after the 2023 siren change, generator carbon monoxide, food after outages, private wells, stranded-vehicle steps, a seasonal calendar, cascading failure chains, the Camille and Helene lesson, and a ten-action checklist.