And Now, A Brief Compendium Of Non-Fearmongered #sandy Forecasts
The Wunderground Map: We humbly suggest that it’s smarter than Mike Jerrick.
On this site, we often tell you (or intimate in every way we possibly can, every chance we get) that local TV news is for morons. Morons who love to be told to fear everything and that the sky is falling, who are abetted by the people who love to feed that telling of fear, who profiteer off of it and who, frankly, are basically war criminals in the neverending clash of Facts Vs. Reality. And frankly, we’ve never seen a for-profit local broadcast that was not a part of this ecosystem of shitty information.
But what do you do when the sky is falling? And what do you do when you don’t have any choice but to subsist on what info you can from local TV news, most of which has to be cleaned like a bird pulled out of an oil slick?
You keep a cool head, glean what you can and seek other info is what you do. For our purposes right now, there are a few resources we’re clinging to for dear life. Point your browsers to PhillyWeather.net and Wunderground.com, two sites powered by real-deal weather geeks staunchly outside funded-by-accident-lawyers system of local TV news. Both sites, obviously, are updating constantly right now, but Wunderground’s general Sandy forecast seems the sanest description of the insanity we’re looking at right now:
Pennsylvania
• Storm tide and surge: 1 to 2 feet of surge is possible on top of tides, with a 30-40% chance of surge exceeding 3 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Philadelphia, PA is 8-9 feet.
• Wind: 35 to 45 mph with gusts up to 70 mph. The strongest winds will occur Monday afternoon and evening and into Tuesday. Wind speeds will increase closer to the coast.
• Rain: Widespread totals from 4 to 10 inches, with the highest amounts mainly from Philadelphia metro southward. Heavy rain is expected to begin Sunday night, with the heaviest occurring Monday night into Tuesday.
• Inland Flooding: Significant urban and small stream flooding is possible, which could linger into Tuesday. RIver flooding is possible.
• Power outages: Power outages are likely as wind takes down branches and trees.
Now, we’ve already discussed what 70mph winds can look like, and it’s pretty nuts. But keep in mind: Here in Philly, everything we’re seeing in the Non-Insane Non-Fearmongosphere indicates that we’ll be looking at sustained winds of 40-50mph. Don’t get us wrong: We absolutely do not mean to downplay the seriousness of what Sandy will do to Philly and the surrounding region, but it also feels incumbent upon us to suggest that hysteria won’t do anybody any good in a time like this.
Unless you’re in NYC, that is:
Those living above the 10th floor in skyscrapers may want to find shelter in lower floors. Winds increase with height in a hurricane and could be significantly stronger than on ground level. Be cautious about sleeping near a window on Monday night. Do not walk outside on Monday evening, as there could be significant amounts of airborne debris flying around.
You guys are screwed. Out your crushes. And may God have mercy on all of us.
