Thursday, September 15, 2011
Floods in Pennsylvania from Hurricane Irene temporarily closed the facility that prints the checks for the state of Florida.
Hurricane Irene did not make a direct hit on Florida, but the storm delayed about 11,300 child support checks to families across the state. The Pasco County Clerk of the Circuit Court reassured families Wednesday that their child support checks are in the mail. County courts in Florida received notice Friday that there was a delay. The payments were held up, when the Pennsylvania facility that prints the checks for the Florida Department of Revenue was closed due to flooding caused by Irene. High waters shut down businesses and roads in some areas of Pennsylvania. The delayed checks are for payments for Sept. 8, Sept. 9 and Sept. 12, according to a notice from the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Pinellas County. “All checks were placed in …
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Area sheriff’s offices have some advice for avoiding post-storm scams.
With a death toll that keeps rising and millions still without power, reaching out to help the victims of Hurricane Irene is a natural inclination for many. But, how can donors make sure their money is really going to go where it’s meant to? Both the Pasco and Hillsborough county sheriff’s offices say it’s not at all uncommon for scammers to come out in force after natural disasters like Irene. “Nonprofits” that are less than legitimate are likely to start popping up with the sole intent of parting donors and their money, officials said. To safeguard against fraud, Debbie Carter of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office suggests area residents deal only with organizations they know, such as the Red Cross or Salvation Army, and steer …
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Two Tampa Bay area agencies are accepting disaster relief donations.
As what’s left of Hurricane Irene continues to batter the Northeast, Land O’ Lakes residents may be wondering what they can do to help out. At this point, cash donations can do the most good, said Janet McGuire, spokeswoman for the American Red Cross Tampa Bay Chapter. “Donate to the disaster relief (fund),” she said. While residents can designate their donations for a specific event, such as Hurricane Irene, she advises against this. “People don’t understand” if they donate to a specific disaster, the money is locked in for that disaster. That means if something else happens – even in the exact same area a hurricane impacted – the money collected earlier could not be used to assist victims. “We’ve had a lot of disasters this year,” she …
Friday, August 26, 2011
Warm, soupy air will move over us after Hurricane Irene passes and make for a couple hot days.
Irene will give the Carolinas at least a brush with a serious hurricane, but for this part of Florida, the storm is more likely to generate heat warnings than rain or wind. In fact, Irene should technically bring us a breeze, according to the widely accepted scale rating wind speeds. That’s quite a switch from last weekend, when Pasco County looked to be dead in the sights of Hurricane Irene. By mid-week it was clear the storm would be well away from Florida’s west coast but might still send some blustery winds our way. By Friday, the passage of Irene off the state’s east coast looks to maybe ruffle our hair with winds about 20 mph and gusts to 30 mph, but that’s about all. Those wind speeds range from what's considered a fresh breeze to a…
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Land O' Lakes has been spared the worst of the major hurricane, but gusting winds are expected to last into the weekend.
That breeze in the air is Hurricane Irene blowing past Florida on its way up the East Coast. The storm moved through the central Bahamas on Wednesday and is picking up speed and strength in the Atlantic Ocean as it churns toward the Carolinas. The latest forecast track from the National Hurricane Center in Miami projects Irene will make landfall in coastal North Carolina on Saturday afternoon. Forecasters expect tropical storm or hurricane watches to begin in the Carolinas today. Even though Irene is bypassing Florida, tropical-storm-force winds are extending up to 255 miles from the center of the storm, according to the National Hurricane Center. To put that in perspective, 255 miles is slightly farther than the distance between Tampa …
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The hurricane is no longer expected to make landfall in Florida, but Land O' Lakes residents could still feel its effects starting this evening.
Hurricane Irene is picking up speed and strength as it turns toward the East Coast, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Irene lumbered into the Bahamas as a Category 1 hurricane Tuesday night and by this morning had ballooned into a Category 3 storm. Forecasters warn that Irene could become a Category 4 hurricane by the end of the day as it turns north. The storm's projected path has been adjusted steadily to the east throughout the past 48 hours. Forecasters no longer expect the center of the storm to make landfall in Florida. However, Irene could still bring rain and strong wind to the Tampa Bay area. The National Hurricane Center reports that tropical-storm-force winds extend up to 205 miles from the center of the storm…
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
The storm could be a major hurricane by the time it strikes the Bahamas tonight or Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center says.
Hurricane Irene is expected to skirt Florida on Thursday and Friday as it heads up the East Coast, according to the latest forecast model from the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The Tampa Bay area was placed in the five-day forecast cone on Monday morning. Newer forecasts from the National Weather Service have moved Irene's track farther east. Still, the Bay area could receive heavy rain and wind from the storm at the end of the week, with local seven-day forecasts currently calling for scattered thunderstorms and gusting wind on Thursday and Friday. Irene, a Category 2 hurricane, is expected to slow down slightly and gather strength before moving into the Bahamas late Tuesday or early Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane …
Monday, August 22, 2011
Irene could be the major player in our weather later this week but the storm is still distant.
No doubt Irene is the star of this week’s weather, even if the storm isn’t supposed to be in the neighborhood until the week’s end. That many days away, forecasters usually pad a lot of uncertainty into their outlooks. There’s plenty of room in the forecast error for Irene to head far east or far west of Florida and not bother the state much at all. For Irene, many of the models show a fairly tightly clustered path toward the Florida Straits by Wednesday or Thursday. After that, the models split a bit more. But forecasts show the dotted line in the middle of the National Hurricane Center’s forecast cone heading toward Pasco County and the Tampa Bay area, possibly by Friday. Only a couple models, and ones folks in West Central Florida …
