Unified Interior Regions

Although Hurricane Lenny brought high winds and heavy rains to Puerto Rico, residents in the vicinity of Lago La Plata were spared the hazards and inconveniences of an unnecessary evacuation Wednesday morning, in part because of the efforts of U.S. Geological Survey Caribbean District Office personnel in advance of, and during the storm.

Due to an unprecedented decision by the U.S. Geological Survey representative in Puerto Rico, two USGS employees in Guaynabo have actually moved to the city’s civil defense facility and will remain there until the latest in a series of hurricanes (Jose) no longer appears to threaten the lives and property of the residents of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Today, as Hurricane Jose was upgraded from a tropical storm, the U. S. Geological Survey in Puerto Rico was monitoring the storm’s path and intensity very closely. If the hurricane threatens Puerto Rico later this week, as predicted, the USGS is prepared to provide critical information to local government and emergency management officials responsible for protecting the lives and property of Puert

While navigating the treacherous floodwaters in North Carolina to measure the rising water caused by Hurricane Floyd, U.S. Geological Survey scientists rescued four citizens threatened by the storm.

While much of eastern North Carolina remains under water, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and hydrologic technicians are boating over rooftops, submerged cars, and bridges and roads topped by deep water to collect data and determine the amount of environmental damage done by Hurricane Floyd’s heavy rains.

Flood levels from Hurricane Floyd exceeded those from Hurricane Fran, which occurred in September 1996.Preliminary assessments indicate that flood levels in much of the Tar River Basin were at the 500-year recurrence interval. (500-year flood flow has a 0.2-percent chance of being equalled or exceeded during any given year at a particular location.)

River stage and streamflow data--The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collects river stage and streamflow data at more than 200 sites across North Carolina. Near real-time data at most sites are transmitted via satellite to a central data base that compiles current and historical data.

USGS scientists from the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, the National Wetlands Research Center and the Florida and Caribbean Science Center are gearing up to assess Hurricane Floyd damage to wildlife and habitat from Florida to Maine.

Wildfires have long played a key role in structuring ecosystems and plant communities in the southeastern United States. From the coastal prairie of Texas and Louisiana to the marshes and pinelands of Florida, many native species have adapted to a natural regime of frequent wildfire caused by lightning strikes.

The USGS, in collaboration with State and other Federal agencies, is evaluating the extent of erosion along North Carolina’s coastline following Hurricane Dennis. The following activities have been completed or are in progress toward that goal:

While Hurricane Dennis is little more than a soggy memory, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are hard at work trying to understand how the storm changed the landscape of beaches along the Virginia and Carolina coasts.