This past weekend, as parts of New England were still waiting for electricity to kick back on, Mother Nature pummeled another part of the United States. Tropical Storm Lee swept through the Gulf Coast dumping more than a foot of rain on New Orleans and firing off accompanying tornadoes. Fears of flash flooding were strong as the region prepared for the storm last week.
The good news is not many people were forced to relocate – the levees in New Orleans did their job. There were evacuations, but hundreds not thousands. Areas in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama also reported damage caused by wind and light flooding. The problem will become more evident as the storm moves into the Appalachians, however.
We might see some of what we saw in Vermont with Hurricane Irene late last month. When the water from the storm hits the Appalachians, it will sit there for a few days and then might give way. That’s when you get the flash floods. Many residents in Vermont have lost their homes and will need to move due to the damage.
Though the Gulf Coast is quite soggy from Tropical Storm Lee, no deaths have been directly attributed to the storm. One body boarder in Galveston, Texas drowned in rough waters caused by Lee and lightning traveling through the phone line injured a man in Mississippi.
Just remember, we are still in the heart of hurricane season, so there’s still a chance for even more named storms this year. If you have just moved to a hurricane region, please be prepared!
Lance Grooms
