Search the Great Bahama Bank

Continue Flight 19


Upon returning to Fort Lauderdale, Fox Tare 74’s pilot, Lt. Robert Cox, went to the operations office and related as much as he could remember of the conversations with Flight 19 to the duty officer and requested permission to take the ready standby aircraft out to search for the flight. When he got no answer, he then made the same request to the flight operations officer who replied, "Very definitely, no."
The three officers continued to discuss the problem and they figured a key factor was the time of Fox Tare 28’s first transmission indicating that he was lost had occurred at 4:00 o’clock. They knew by that fact that the leader could not possibly have gone on more than one leg of his navigation problem and still gotten to the Keys by 4:00 o’clock. Then studying a wall map of the area the three officers figured it was likely that Flight 19 was lost somewhere near the Great Bahama Bank and not the Keys.
The duty officer then called Air Sea Rescue to instruct Fox Tare 28 to fly 270 degrees and simply fly towards the sun, taking the part about wild compass readings out of play. Of course that was standard procedure for planes lost off the East Coast of Florida and it was drummed into all students. However, the fact that the Flight 19 leader believed he was over the Keys makes those instructions sound, at least in his mind, like he would be flying out into the Gulf of Mexico.
It was apparent though that at least one of the student pilots didn’t believe they were in the Keys and remembered that general rule, because Air Sea Rescue picked up a message that was said to be strident in tone that, “If we fly 270 degrees we could hit land.”
At 4:39 pm, the Ft. Lauderdale operations officer contacted Air Sea Rescue a second time and explained further that his operations officers believed that Flight 19 must be lost over the Great Bahama Bank. His plan was to dispatch the Lauderdale standby plane, guarding 4805 kc, on course 075 degrees to try to contact Flight 19. And if the communications improved during that flight it would be a good indication that they were closing the distance and that their location theory was sound.

At 4:45 pm, Fox Tare 28 announced, "We are heading 030 degrees for 45 minutes, then we will fly north to make sure we are not over the Gulf of Mexico."
None of the ground listening stations had made contact or fixed any useful bearings on Flight 19, and IFF got no response either. The lost flight was asked to broadcast continuously on 4805 kc. The message was not responded to but a short time later when asked to switch to 3000 kc, the search and rescue frequency, Fox Tare 28 yelled, "I cannot switch frequencies. I must keep my planes intact."

There were no transmissions for almost ten minutes when suddenly Fox Tare 28 opened his mike and said, "Change course to 090 degrees for 10 minutes." Almost immediately after that message at least two of the students adamantly disagreed with their leader. They were sure that they were not over the Keys and let it be known. "Dammit, if we could just fly west we would get home” the first voice said.
“Head west, dammit," barked the second voice.

Some time after the strident dissent of the students and the fact that the last two course corrections by Lt. Taylor had not resulted in spotting land at 5:16 pm, Fox Tare 28 opened his mike and called out, “We’ll take a heading of 270 degrees until we hit the beach or run out of gas."

To this day, it appears that geography and navigation did not come naturally to Lt. Taylor for he was far from the Florida Keys. We have to assume that the islands Taylor mentioned must have been some where in the Bahamas. And Taylor’s actions, following his own instinct were actually guiding the flight farther and farther off course. During that time the weather was deteriorating and radio contact became more intermittent, the five planes were probably in one of two areas. They were in that wide expanse of ocean south of Grand Bahama Island or they had somehow gone farther north and got past Little Abaco Island and were heading out into the Atlantic.
At about 5:15 pm Lieutenant Taylor said he was flying west and would do so for the time being, but at the same time worried that they were running out of gas. He requested a weather check at 5:24.
Near that same time back in the NAS operations office weather reports indicating a bad turn in the weather, along with that last transmission from Flight 19 advising that they would be flying west, prompted the duty officer to indicate at 5:36 pm, that they had missed the window of opportunity to send the standby plane out to join the search.
(To be continued)

You Tube and BBC Video uses another angle taking you in the direction of the paranormal. Click Here

Use the video as a pictorial and a second opinion about what happened to Flight 19.
Then at the end of the series, add that information along with the video or videos together and either agree with the series (my conclusion) or come up with your own theory as to what happened inside the Bermuda Triangle that afternoon of December 5, 1945.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
Www.tombarnes39.com

www.RocktheTower.com

http://thehurricanehunter.blogspot.com

Flight 19 Radio Transmissions Garbled

(Part 1 tag)
Ft. Lauderdale tower picked up a conversation from Flight 19 near the end of the bomb exercise when someone said, "I've got one more bomb."
A second voice stated, "Go ahead and drop it". That short report was taken down since it was general practice for base and other aircraft in the area to monitor radio conversations between the pilots. The short message was normal and a good sign that the bombing and strafing operation was completed successfully.

Lost in the Bermuda Triangle (Part 2)

Assuming Flight 19 continued on the prescribed course of 091 for 67 miles they would have made their turn to the north on course 346 at approximately 3:25 pm. Now if they were on course and on time when they made that turn, by 3:40 pm they should have been coming up on Grand Bahama Island.
However, at about 3:40 Fox Tare 74, a senior flight instructor at Ft. Lauderdale, was moving his training squadron into formation near the Ft. Lauderdale airfield when he heard what he believed to be a distress call from a boat or aircraft. One man was transmitting on 4805 kc to Powers, which happened to be the name of one of the Flight 19 students. The transmissions were broken up, but the voice seemed to be asking Powers what his compass read. There was no answer until someone, possibly Powers, said, "I don't know where we are. We must have got lost after that last turn."
During the next fifteen minutes garbled and broken radio messages could be heard between the pilots of Flight 19. Adding to the poor reception of the voice transmissions was normal atmospheric conditions along with a Cuban radio station using a frequency close to 4805. In any event at some point after the student leader’s “lost” transmission Lt. Taylor took over the lead position of Flight 19.
Fox Tare 74 was monitoring the garbled conversation and became concerned enough to put out a blind transmission. “This is Fox Tare 74, will the plane or boat calling Powers please identify yourself so someone can help you.”
He got no response to that call, but a few moments later a voice came on the air asking, “Are there any suggestions?”
Fox Tare 74 tried again, and the voice was identified as Fox Tare 28.
Fox Tare 74 asked, “Fox Tare 28 Are you in trouble?”
“Both my compasses are out and I’m trying to find Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I’m over land, but it’s broken. I’m sure I’m in the Keys but I don’t know how far down and I don’t know how to get to Ft. Lauderdale," said the unsure voice of Flight 19’s leader.
“Fox Tare 74 to Fox Tare 28 if you are in the Keys put the sun on your port wing and just fly up the coast until you get to Miami. Ft. Lauderdale is 20 miles farther, your first port after Miami. The air station is directly on your left from the port."
After a few moments Fox Tare 74 asked, "What is your present altitude? I will fly south and meet you."
Fox Tare 28 replied, "I know where I am now. I’m at 2300 feet, don't come after me."
Fox Tare 74 was not convinced. "Roger, you're at 2300 feet. Coming to meet you anyhow."
Minutes later, Fox Tare 28 said, "We have just passed over a small island. We have no other land in sight."
Most listening stations in the area had picked up on the possible problem and were riveted to the conversation, and most had serious doubts about Fox Tare 28’s actual location.
Fox Tare 28 opened his mike and asked, "Can you have Miami or someone turn on their radar gear and pick us up? We don't seem to be getting far. We were out on a navigation hop and on the second leg I thought they were going wrong, so I took over and was flying them back to the right position. But I'm sure, now, that neither one of my compasses is working."
Fox Tare 74 said, “Turn on your emergency IFF gear, or do you have it on?"
Fox Tare 28 said, “I did not, but I now have on emergency IFF. Does anyone in the area have a radar screen that could pick us up?"
At that point Air Sea Rescue was aware of the problem and making plans to assist in locating Flight 19. Ft. Lauderdale Operations notified NAS Miami and asked them and other stations to attempt to pick up the lost flight on radar or IFF signal with their direction finders.
Air Sea Rescue put out a call for all merchant ships in the area to be alert to Flight 19’s problem. Stand by Coast Guard vessels were told to prepare to put to sea. But there were delays in implementing the plan and Teletype communication with several locations was out and radio fixes were hampered by static and interference from the Spanish speaking broadcast stations from Cuba.

At 4:28, Air Sea Rescue called Fox Tare 28 and suggested that another plane in the flight with a good compass take over the lead. Fox Tare 28 gave a Roger, but from ground observers listening to fragmentary messages between the flight leader and the students the talk was only about their estimated position and heading. But it would appear from those conversations that no other plane was ever designated to take over the lead.
During that same period Fox Tare 74 was losing his signal and said, “Fox Tare 28 your transmissions are fading. What is your altitude?"
Fox Tare 28 transmitted a weak signal and said, "I'm at 4500 feet."
Fox Tare 74 had no further contact with Flight 19, but on his return flight to base he observed a very rough sea covered with white caps and streamers. The surface winds were westerly, at about 22 knots, and visibility was very good in all directions except directly west. That was probably a normal condition since one would be looking into the sun through shifting cloud formations.
For BBC Video of Avengers Click Here
(To be continued)

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter. Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com

A Day to Remember

Lt. Charles Taylor Late for Flight 19 Briefing

Sixty four years today the tragedy of Flight 19 happened and it's still a subject of interest. Come along with me and we'll follow Flight 19 into the Bermuda Triangle. In this series I'll use radio transmissions from the flight, hearing records and witness testimony along with my own questions and commentery to tell the story.

December 5, 1945
NAS Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Flight 19 was to be a routine navigation, bombing and strafing exercise as part of the student pilot’s and aircrew’s operational training schedule. The flight consisted of five planes and 14 navy and Marine Corps aviators, five pilots, and nine radiomen or gunners. The planes were TBM Avengers, large single-engine torpedo bombers. Four of the planes were piloted by student pilots and the fifth by the flight instructor and leader, Navy Lt. Charles Taylor.
Prior to the flight, each plane went through a full preflight inspection that included engine, aircraft, fuel, safety equipment and ordnance, which included live ammunition and bombs.
The student pilots and air crewmen stood around the operations office waiting for their flight instructor to show up. As the clock ticked past 1:10 pm and still no instructor the crews began to show anxiety, knowing that they were going to be late. Their takeoff time was set for 1:45 pm and they still hadn’t had their briefing. At 1:15 Lt. Charles Taylor arrived and immediately asked the aviation training duty officer to find another instructor to take his place. Taylor gave no particular reason; he just stated simply that he did not want to take the flight out. His request was denied; and he was told that no relief was available.
Taylor didn’t plead his case further and reluctantly accepted the duty officer’s decision. Then once it was settled that he would be leading the flight, the crews picked up their life jackets and parachutes and trooped over to the briefing room. As soon as they settled into their chairs the briefing officer told them that today’s training flight would include a bombing and strafing exercise. The weather reports in the area were favorable and the sea was moderate to rough. The briefing officer stood beside a chalkboard and drew as he explained the navigation problem. They would depart NAS Ft. Lauderdale and take an easterly heading of 091 degrees for a distance of 56 miles to Hens and Chickens Shoals where they would practice low level bombing and strafing. Once the bombing exercise was completed they would continue on course 091 for 67 miles. They would then turn north and take a course of 346 degrees and fly for 73 miles. The third leg of the course would take them on a west-southwest heading of 241 degrees for a distance of 120 miles, which would complete the triangle and bring them back to NAS Ft. Lauderdale.

At 2:00 pm the pilots and crews boarded their planes, started their engines and by 2:10 pm the flight was in the air, led by one of the students. The instructor whose call sign was Fox Tare 28 stayed behind the other planes in a tracking position. Estimated Time of Arrival back at base was 5:23 pm. All five planes had enough fuel to remain aloft for five to five-and-a-half hours.
Flight 19 apparently arrived at their first objective, the bombing and strafing range located at Hens and Chickens Shoals, commonly called Chicken Rocks. That range was only 56 miles from Fort Lauderdale, and at normal cruising speed they would arrive at the Rocks in about 20 minutes. Thirty minutes was the normal time for the bombing and strafing exercise. After that target practice was completed they would regroup and then continue on the final 67 miles of the first leg.
Ft. Lauderdale tower picked up a conversation from Flight 19 near the end of the bomb exercise when someone said, "I've got one more bomb."
A second voice stated, "Go ahead and drop it".
That short report was taken down since it was general practice for base and other aircraft in the area to monitor radio conversations between the pilots. The short message was normal and a good sign that the bombing and strafing operation was completed successfully.
(To be Continued)

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://TheHurricaneHunter.blogspot.com

2009 Hurricne Season Ends

Monday, November 30, 2009
Today is not only the last offical day of the 2009 hurricane season, chances are it's the actual end. I said chances are, because weather is not made by man – we simply observe and report on it. The weather stations and satellites will continue to monitor the Atlantic Basin, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico for any sign of a tropical wave or depression.
However, I plan to take a trip into The Bermuda Triangle – join me and we'll look at some facts and fables. And your comments are welcomed at tomb45905@gmail.com

Bermuda Triangle Post 1
Hundreds of stories have been told about the Bermuda Triangle, sometimes called The Devils Triangle. That area of strange happenings begins at Bermuda and runs south to Puerto Rico, east to South Florida and back to Bermuda. Some expand that area to include the Outer Banks off North Carolina and Virginia. Of course those strange happenings inside the triangle didn’t begin in the 20th Century. They go back to at least 1492 when Christopher Columbus and his three ships the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria sailed through that area. Words from Columbus’s journal were that his compass went haywire and his crew saw strange lights in the sky. Those few words written in the Christopher Columbus journal might have been the beginning of what has now become the mystique of the Bermuda Triangle.
There are tales about missing vessels, missing airplanes and ghost ships – enough to chill the souls of the faint hearted. And writings on the subject range from paranormal, voodoo and supernatural, UFO’s, a black hole somewhere in the Bahamas as well as time warp and third dimension theories.
Over the years as I have watched film and read articles about the fate of Flight 19 and I'm always reminded of my own training experience during the summer of 1944. Following gunnery school at Hollywood, Florida our group moved about seven miles up the road to Ft. Lauderdale for the last phase of our combat aircrew training. Classrooms at Lauderdale were set up to teach the basic use of safety and survival equipment as well as ship and plane identification. A special course was taught in altitude simulation as to how and when to use your oxygen masks.
Radioman Paul Byrd and I were paired as a team and were assigned to fly with our squadron instructor, Lt. Krieger.
As part of a three-man crew Paul Byrd and I were taking our classroom knowledge and putting it into practice. Paul was stationed in the lower aft part of the plane while I as the gunner was strapped into the ball turret, located just aft of the pilot.
And from that position I could observe the same ocean, islands, shoals and rocks as Flight 19 did on December 5, 1945. Of course I wasn’t there at the time, but the experience I gained in 1944 does give me a pretty good prospective regarding some of Flight 19’s problems that afternoon.
(Next week, we'll begin a series, and observe what happened to Flight 19 on that fateful day of December 5, 1945.)
Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://TheHurricaneHunter.blogspot.com

Somewhere South of the Cayman Islands

2009 Storm Track

Sunday, November 29, 2009
The 2009 Atlantic Basin Hurricane Season, without some unexpected development, is over.

Saturday, November 28, 2009
2009 Hurricane Season is near the end and on that last official day November 30th we'll take a look at the Bermuda Triangle.

Friday, November 27, 2009
The Atlantic Basin, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico areas all quiet.
And that's a great disappointment to the global warming crowd.


Thursday, November 26, 2009
It's quiet today and to all the regular suspects tropical systems, waves, depressions, storms and hurricanes – thank you for keeping a low profile on this Thanksgiving day.
Have a good one everybody.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009
All's quiet in the tropics, but not on the global warming front.


Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Tropics still quiet and countdown for the end of the 2009 hurricane season is under way. But lest we get ahead of ourselves, you might take a moment and read a piece of sage advice from Yogi Berra, 'It ain't over till it's over.'
Official end of the season is November 30th.


Monday, November 23, 2009
We are in the last official week in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico hurricane season, and it's quiet.
However, before I comment on the 2009 hurricane season I'll wait until next next Monday

Flashback:
1945 Hurricane season ended with number XI a Category 2, which originated in the Caribbean south of the Grand Cayman Islands. It moved north as a tropical storm it passed west of the Caymans, but the storm hit Central Cuba and at that time appeared to be heading for South Florida. However, once past Cuba it veered to the northeast toward the Bahamas. While over open waters Tropical Storm XI grew in intensity to a Category 2 Hurricane.
We were tracking the storm that morning from the altitude of about 28,000 feet.
Aside from lightening bursts on the dark side of the storm, the outright beauty of the beast was breathtaking.
Even though the view was spectacular I couldn’t get my mind off the danger it posed to the people in its path. The island people watching the approaching monster would see it for what it was, the powerful winds were just part of it. The sea piling up in front the hurricane would present a far greater danger than the Category 2 winds.
I turned around and checked with Jackson and we made a routine estimate of fuel onboard, which I passed along, to the pilots. When I turned around Primrose gestured me to put on a headset. When I got the set in place all I could hear was babble. He had tuned into a short wave radio network and the voices were filled with excitement and underlying fear as they described the storm from their different locations.
The hurricane was churning in a north northeasterly direction. If it maintained that course, the main body of the storm would pass Andros Island, Adelaide, Nichols Town and Nassau and they would all be pummeled by outer winds spinning off from the northeast quadrant of the hurricane. Next in line were the Berry Islands on the east and Bimini to the west.
A further projection of the storms movement north would place Hope Town on the east with Grand Bahama Island, Freeport and West End on the west. Then somewhere in the vicinity of Little Abaco, the northernmost island of the Bahamas, the storm would make landfall and cross that island before moving into the Atlantic.

From listening to radio broadcasts, both official and unofficial, we gathered that most of the Bahama Islands would be spared a direct hit with that one exception Abaco. But with winds and thunderstorms spinning off from the storm and the tall waves that were driven by the storm surge no island in the vicinity would escape without a large amount of damage.
I took off my earphones and maneuvered into position where I could get a good look at the model of a near perfect hurricane. Then when I thought about it, even without the earphones on, I could still hear the echoes of those anguished and panic stricken voices announcing their own doom via short-wave radio. While we flew high above it all in the relative calm those island people had nowhere to go, and no place to hide.

The skipper maintained an altitude of 29,000 feet while at the same time maneuvering the plane into a position that would give Bassett a good angle to plot the movement, direction and forward speed of the hurricane.
Once that information was gathered and transmitted to base we descended below the altitude of 14,000 feet and were then free to remove our oxygen masks. We encountered broken clouds during most of our descent, but eventually we moved far enough away from the storm to give us a critical look. When viewing the hurricane from the lower level there was not only a physical difference, there was a psychological difference as well. The storm was still beautiful, but at the same time it seemed more threatening than it had appeared from the upper levels.

The hurricane continued along its north by northeast path and because of the heavy rain clouds and rain preceding the storm we were unable to observe what was going on down below. However, the airwaves were full of reports, some in panic and others calmly reporting the details.
We hung around the area long enough to chart the storms movement across Little Abaco Island. Fortunately for those people Hurricane XI dropped in intensity from a Category 2 to a Category 1 storm. And the damage to Little Abaco Island was far less than they expected.
The storm continued north into the open sea, but even with no land in its path it continued to menace the Atlantic sea-lanes for another two and a half days before falling apart somewhere northwest of Bermuda on the sixteenth day of October 1945.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://TheHurricaneHunter.blogspot.com

1926 and 1945 Miami Hurricanes

2009 Storm Track

Sunday, November 22, 2009
The tropical Atlantic remains quiet, however there are a couple of very weak tropical waves to watch. One is south of the eastern tip of Cuba and the other is south of the Dominican Republic. There is very little shower and thunderstorm activity associated with these two waves, and it is unlikely that we will have any significant showers and thunderstorms around them over the next day or two. There is some chance that the moisture from these waves might move northward during the week into Florida, but very little development is expected.

Saturday, November 21, 2009
Ida seems to have just faded away somewhere over the vast Atlantic. And the tropical Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico are all quiet at the present time.

Friday, November 20, 2009
The old system once called Ida, continues to crawl eastward across the central Atlantic and at present is generating showers and thunderstorms. However, it is not expected to develop into a tropical storm.
The rest of the tropical Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico remains quiet.

Thursday, November 19, 2009
What remains from Ida is practically dormant and no development is expected into the weekend.
The overall tropical Atlantic remains relatively quiet with no development expected over the next few days.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The system south of Bermuda that held fairly stationary over the last 24 hours will likely move east today and become part of the westerly flow aloft. No tropical development is expected from this system.
The rest of the tropical Atlantic remains quiet and no change is expected through at least Friday.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
The remnant of Ida is now located about 375 miles south of Bermuda. A slow drift to the southwest for a time today will reverse itself late today and tonight though it is cut off from the overall flow and will likely lead to erratic and unpredictable movements.
And like this overall season we watch and wait – mostly wait.
The rest of the tropical Atlantic has no organized systems, and nothing of a tropical nature is expected before Thursday.

Monday, November 16, 2009
The remains of Ida is now located near Bermuda and is tracking toward the southwest Atlantic where it will probably play out within the next day or two.
Quiet conditions prevail over the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico area with no tropical storm development expected in the near future.

Flashback to 1945:
During that first season of chasing and charting hurricanes, every person in Squqdron 114 had become more aware of the dangers those storms could cause to life and property. With the general public hurricanes are a one day story, but to me they are a lot more personal than that.

Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle
Excerpt from Chapter 9
Folklore stories and myths relating to hurricanes were on my mind as I rummaged through a stack of books on hurricanes. I was also curious to see a report regarding the hurricane that devastated much of South Florida in 1926. My mother and I were still in the Lee Memorial Hospital at Ft. Myers, following my birth, when that September hurricane hit the area. I located what I was looking for, checked out the book and walked to the barracks. Then I kicked back in my bunk and started to read. There were eleven storms during the season of 1926 beginning on July 22nd with a hurricane that was spawned near the Leeward Islands and the season ended its activity in the Western Caribbean on November 16th.
The one that interested me originated in the Eastern Caribbean around September 11th and rushed into Miami from the Bahamas on September 16th. That Category 4 hurricane was the worst of the season and it struck Miami with 140 mph winds along with the storm surge it left some 300 people dead in South East Florida and millions of dollars in property damage. Then it raced across the Everglades and smashed into Ft. Myers on the 17th still carrying winds of 137 miles per hour killing almost a score of people on the West Coast and millions more in property damage. When it left Ft. Myers it tracked to the northwest and continued across the Gulf of Mexico where it made landfall between Pensacola, Florida and Mobile, Alabama before it fell apart on September 22nd.
Primrose stopped by my bunk and said, “Hey, Tom, what are you reading?”
“I’m revisiting my youth.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Just kidding. I was reading about the Category 4 hurricane that hit Ft. Myers while my mother and I were still in the hospital soon after my birth.”
“Looks like you started jousting with hurricanes early on,” Primrose said laughingly.
“Yeah, I guess you could say that. Seriously though, I just realized how similar the 1926 hurricane season was to our present season.”
“How so?”
“First the total number of hurricanes in September of 1926 was 3 in 1945 the number was 3. But specific the 1926 hurricane that hit the Miami area, its estimated wind speed was between 140 and 150 mph, our number IX was clocked at 139 mph with gusts to 150 mph. Both had strong storm surges that did enormous damage. But here’s something that is different. The number of deaths in the Miami area in 1926 was 300 plus whereas our number IX this season was 4 and that included a fireman that was killed while fighting the Richmond hangar fire. Of course a large part of the 1926 deaths were caused when the eye of the storm passed over and people came outside to view the damage -- many lives were lost when, without warning, the back side of the storm unexpectedly hit.”
“The similarities are incredible, Tom.”
“Yep. And I’ll wager that education and warnings played a big part in the death toll difference.”

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://TheHurricaneHunter.blogspot.com

2009 Ida Not a Rerun of 1998 Hurricane Mitch

2009 Storm Track


Sunday, November 15, 2009
All's quiet in the Atlantic Basin and no tropical development is expected in the near future.

Saturday, November 14, 2009
A strong storm (formerly Ida) is several hundred miles off the east coast is moving east-southeast across the Atlantic. As it moves farther away its impact on the United States will continue to lessen. Gusty winds and rain along the coast have gradually subsided.
This storm will continue to shift to the southeast and will probably weaken over the next several days. Wind and rain will taper off along the East Coast and across eastern New England tonight and Sunday.
The remainder of the Atlantic basin is quiet.

Friday, November 13, 2009
The remnant from Ida has become the center of the nor'easter making its way up the east coast. At 10:00 am it was located just off the North Carolina coast. All coastal areas from North Carolina to Main can expect high winds, heavy rain and some flooding.
The other system being watched is southeast of Bermuda and is moving northward. By tonight this system will bring gusty winds and rain to Bermuda.

Thursday, November 12, 2009
A strong storm off the North Carolina coast is moving northward and will pound the East coast the next two days. At 8:30 this morning the center of the storm was located about 50 miles east of Wilmington, N.C. Strong winds and rain can be expected along the coast from Outer Banks of North Carolina to the New Jersey coast and continue into Friday.
The strong winds will create dangerous surf with large battering waves and beach erosion. The heavy rainfall that has already occurred from Ida will continue to effect the mid-Atlantic coastal states with rainfall totals exceeding 10 inches and causing damage as it moves north along the U.S. coastline the New England coast later Friday and Saturday.
There is another low pressure area about 400 miles south southwest of Bermuda moving north that is being watched.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The remnant low of Ida is moving across Georgia today and by Thursday morning, the system will move offshore over the Atlantic and merge with a developing nor'easter on Thursday just off shore and to the east of South Carolina.
Despite becoming a much weaker storm, the system will continue to produce heavy rain across the southeastern United States through Friday
As the nor'easter develops, winds will increase to well over gale force from coastal Delaware southward to the South Carolina coast. These strong winds will create dangerous waves, rip currents, coastal flooding and some beach erosion into the weekend.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Ida made landfall as a tropical storm this morning near Mobile, Ala. The storm has since weakened into a tropical rainstorm. As of 10 am EST Tuesday, the storm was located about 30 miles east-southeast of Mobile, Ala. Maximum sustained winds have decreased to 35 mph with gusts to 45 mph. Ida is moving toward the northeast at 9 mph.
Ida will move to the east across southern Alabama tonight and southern Georgia Wednesday. By early Thursday morning, Ida will move offshore over the Atlantic, tracking north offshore of the Carolina's Thursday into Friday.
Ida will continue to bring heavy rain across the Southeast over the next couple of days with some flooding along its path. Winds will remain below tropical storm force today, but along with the heavy rains could cause tree damage and possibly create some power outages.
Seas will be slow to diminish through tonight across the northern Gulf of Mexico. Dangerous rip currents, coastal flooding and beach erosion will be threats for both the Southeast and mid-Atlantic coasts through the end of the week.

Monday, November 9, 2009 10:50am EST
Ida has been downgraded to a topical storm while moving northward across the Gulf of Mexico. As of 10 am EST Monday, the storm was located about 285 miles miles south-southwest of Pensacola, Florida. Maximum sustained winds are 70 mph, with gusts to 85 mph and Ida is moving north-northwest at 17 mph.
Hurricane warnings have been taken down, however, a tropical storm warning is in effect for the Gulf Coast from Pascagoula, Miss. eastward to Aucilla River, Fla.
Ida has weakened as predicted when it encountered cooler waters, and some wind shear. Continued weakening is expected through the day, but heavy rain and strong winds will continue to be a serious threat to the region. Widespread heavy rain will fall along parts of the central Gulf Coast today and tonight. This rain will create a significant flood threat in the region, where as much as 8 inches of rain can fall in the next 24 hours. Strong winds will increase tide levels along the coast, and as a result there is concern for coastal flooding over the central Gulf Coast, including New Orleans. Storm surge associated with Ida will likely be on the order of 3-6 feet just east of the center of the storm. Gusts to hurricane force could still occur from time to time, most likely in the western Florida Panhandle, which can lead to property damage and power outages. At this point, Ida is expected make landfall as a tropical storm early Tuesday morning on the western Florida Panhandle.
Heavy rainfall from the storm will be between 5-10 inches and it will directly effect western Florida and southeastern Alabama.


Hurricane Mitch and the Fantome
This is the story of a storm to remember.

In 1998 Hurricane Mitch devastated some of the same areas Ida passed only a few days ago. Read this story about Mitch and take a moment to be thankful that Ida of 2009 was not another Mitch.

Jim Carrier tells the story of The Ship and the Storm by using crew accounts, passenger interviews, surviving crew relatives and official weather related records.
Anchored in the quiet waters of the Bay at Omoa, Honduras passengers excitedly board the Windjammer Cruise Ship Fantome. Feted with the finest cuisine and free flowing rum swizzle the fun and excitement is just beginning as the tall ship prepares to sail from one tropical paradise to another.
Two mornings later as the Fantomes’ guests finished their Bloody Mary and sticky bun breakfast a weather station on the West Coast of Africa was recording a drop in the barometric pressure. The Miami Hurricane Center labeled the system #46 and indicated in the margin that it was impressive.
One week later on the evening of October 17, 1998 while Fantome passengers partied tropical wave 46 was moving west past Barbados in the Windward Islands. A day later the National Hurricane Center predicts that tropical wave 46 will become a hurricane.
October 21st the day Fantome arrived at the island of Guanaja and Fantome passengers were still enjoying their cruise vacation. But change came the next morning and Captain Guyan March advises crew and passengers about the storm.
BULLETIN: 5AM EDT SAT OCT 24, 1998. MITCH STRENGTHENS RAPIDLY INTO A HURRICANE
Storm tracks in the direction of Cuba and the Cayman Islands and forecasters are calling Mitch a potentially dangerous hurricane.
Fantome was at Omoa, Honduras where locals advised Captain March to drop both anchors and stay in port. March consults his boss in Miami by phone and following a prolonged discussion with Windjammer Headquarters in Miami it was decided to cancel the Fantomes’ cruise. Passenger safety was uppermost in their minds and they discharged the passengers at Belize City. They didn’t consider Belize a safe harbor to ride out the storm so Fantome with 31 crewmembers aboard left Belize to try and outmaneuver the storm.
Hurricane Mitch was coming up on Swan Island and conventional wisdom as well as the National Hurricane Centers computer models predicts that the storm will turn to the northwest. Fantome headed southeast from Belize toward the Bay Islands north of Honduras and had the storm tracked to the northwest as was expected there would have been plenty of separation between the ship and the storm. But the monster storm called Mitch with a mind of its own defied convention and turned south where it continued to spin its Category 4 and sometimes 5 winds over the waters and islands destroying everything in it’s path. High winds and waves produced by the storm extended out some 200 miles from its center. Fantomes’ engines and Captain March’s skilled seamanship was no match for the tall waves and winds produced by Hurricane Mitch. Eventually the powerful waves broadside Fantome and breach the ships watertight bulkheads.
The story of The Ship and the Storm is tragically compelling.

Tom Barnes -- Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter.
Check out my website for books, blogs, western legends, a literary icon, reviews and interviews. Also my novels The Goring Collection and Doc Holliday’s Road to Tombstone along with a non fiction remembrance of The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
www.tombarnes39.com
www.RocktheTower.com
http://TheHurricaneHunter.blogspot.com