Breezy Point, New York

Two weeks ago I posted about Hurricane Sandy's impact on New Jersey and the destruction it caused there through storm surge, waves, and wind.  Today I'll be showing images of Breezy Point, NY where the hurricane caused a different problem: Fire.

Like my last post, this story is really nothing new to those of us living in the USA.  Nevertheless, the devastation looks somewhat more revealing from above where the burned out homes look like a scar through the town.  

The animation below shows June 17, 2010 and November 3, 2012:

You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:     40°33'28"N     73°55'05"W

More info: Jeff Master's Wunderblog during the month of October

NEW!!!: I've added a map feature to my blog near the top of the page where you can use Google Maps to see a spatial view of all my blog post locations.  Nifty right?

Check back in two weeks to see one of the most impressive road bridges in the world.

Seaside Heights, New Jersey

Hurricane Sandy (or Superstorm Sandy as many have been calling it) made its landfall on New Jersey in late October of 2012.  While I doubt many of you reading this managed to not hear about this event, let me give you a brief summary anyway:

THIS HAPPENED

image credit: NASA

While there have been many stronger hurricanes both barometrically and velocity-wise (Wilma, Gilbert) and more lethal (Katrina, Mitch), Hurricane Sandy covered an exceptionally large area belonging to an exceptionally large & dense population.  Combine that with the fact that this area rarely receives a direct hurricane strike and voilá, you get the most talked about meteorological event of 2012 (at least in the USA).

Even without being the most powerful, destructive, or lethal hurricane of all time, Sandy was still a cruel beast.  The storm surges and wind damage certainly did a number on the Jersey Shore.  That brings me to Seaside Heights, NJ where Casino Pier seems to have misplaced one of its roller coasters.

The animation below shows September 20, 2010 and November 3, 2012:

Also note the reduction of sand on the beach.  I imagine that most of that will likely end up being rebuilt by the state during the next year or two in order to sustain the summertime tourists.

You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:     39°56'33"N     74°04'07"W

More info: Jeff Master's Wunderblog during the month of October

NEW!!!: I've added a map feature to my blog near the top of the page where you can use Google Maps to see a spatial view of all my blog post locations.  Nifty right?

Check back in two weeks to see one more before and after from 2012's most talked about hurricane.

New Orleans, Louisiana

Hurricane Katrina's landfall on New Orleans in 2005, to this day, is still considered the most costly disaster in U.S. history.  The staggering $133,800,000,000 price tag of it's damages is over three times the amount that Hurricane Andrew caused in 1992.  The death toll was roughly 1200 people, with even more deaths due to indirect effects of the hurricane.  The most damaging and deadly aspect of this storm however was the broken levee that inundated the Ninth Ward.

August 16, 2005

August 30, 2005

September 20, 2005

Landfall NEXRAD Loop:

You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:      29°58'16.64"N    90°00'58.35"W

More info:  http://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/at200511.asp?feature=image

Check back next week to see a protest caught on satellite image.

Gilchrist, Texas

Hurricane Ike in 2008 was all kinds of bad for the Houston/Galveston area.  My house suffered some roof dammage and the yard was a mess of branches.  The worst part of the hurricane is the storm surge which Ike, as a category 2 hurricane, was not powerful enough to send all the way to my house.  Unfortunately, the little Bolivar peninsula across from Galveston Island has a towering elevation of... ...nearly 3 feet.  Considering the storm surge for Ike was over 17 feet, you can imagine things didn't end up well at all...

September, 2007

Pre-Ike

September, 2008

Post-Ike

You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:   29°30'45.63"N   94°29'30.94"W

More info:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivar_Peninsula#Hurricane_Ike

Check back next week to see how a stream becomes a bayou.

Baytown, Texas

The Subdivision of Brownwood was a neighborhood built on a peninsula right on the Houston Ship Channel.  After being inundated with storm surge waters from Hurricane Carla in 1961, and then slowly sinking because of subsidence caused by groundwater pumping over the next few decades; the subdivision slowly became engulfed by the waters.

December, 1953

December, 1978

In 1983, Hurricane Alicia moved through and destroyed much of the neighborhood.

December, 1989

In 1991, the city decided to tear down remaining homes and turn the land into a wetland restoration project.  It is now a nature center where people can walk around at their leisure.  You can even still find old toys and artifacts belong to the people wo originally lived there.

March, 2011

You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:    29°45'04.42"N   95°03'08.37"W

More info:  http://www.baytownnaturecenter.org/bnc_information/history_of_site.html

Check back next week to see a curious pyramid...

Also, joining my blog team will be my friend Phillip.  He spends as much time on Google Earth as I do.  His first post will show up on September 1st.

Further notes: Tropical Storm Don formed in the GOM yesterday and is headed my way.  The next blog will still post next week since it is already finished and scheduled to automatically upload.