Aftermath of Irene, Next up: Tropical Storm Katia

Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene came through the east coast this weekend, killing at least 38 and leaving an estimated 3.3 million people without electricity. Connecticut's eastern half of the state has been especially affected by power outages, which can be seen on Connecticut Light & Power's map of power outages. For information on the federal government's response to Irene, check out this National Oceanic Service website. Next up? Tropical Storm Katia is projected to strengthen to a major hurricane Sunday morning in the Caribbean.

Irene Heading For Densely Populated Northeast

As of Thursday morning, Hurricane Irene was heading towards the Northeast's population centers.

Communities in the Northeast are preparing for the impact of Hurricane Irene. Mayor Bloomberg is urging citizens to prepare themselves in New York City, and reports are that the city of Boston is investigating potential shelter locations. If Irene comes to shore in the Northeast, there will be large numbers of people affected, which is why some are weary of a potential disaster in the making. Today, I created the population density map above with ArcGIS to show this. On the map, you will find the projected path and cone in addition to population; each dot on the map represents 5,000 people. I have posted a tutorial on where to find the applicable data and how to generate a similar product in ArcMap on Outside the Neatline.

Today's Update on Hurricane Irene

As seen in this image from NOAA, Hurricane Irene's eye has formed Southeast of Florida.

Today's latest NOAA projections of Hurricane Irene's path have the storm reaching us, here in New England, sometime in the latter half of Sunday.

When it does reach us, it is projected to still be a Category 2 hurricane which, Andrew Revkin of the NYT warns, could mean hazardous flash flooding.

If and when Irene makes landfall, it will be the first Hurricane to hit the US mainland since Hurricane Ike in 2008.

Update: Hurricane Irene Approaches US Coast

A time-lapse of Hurricane Irene from the GOES-east satellite (see more from NOAA Visualizations)

On the same day a 5.9 magnitude earthquake shook the eastern seaboard, Hurricane Irene is gaining strength. It is expected to hit the US mainland this weekend.

Irene's projected path as of Tuesday 5 PM.

Irene was expected to reach Category 3 sometime today, and some forecasts have Irene as reaching Category 4 before making landfall. We, here in Connecticut, are projected to feel the effects sometime on Sunday.

Hurricane Irene Nearing Southeast US

According to NOAA's projected path (see above), Hurricane Irene may make landfall in the Southeast US later this week. Visit this NOAA website to keep up to date.