October 13, 2024

This Week in Amateur Radio

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Hurricane Otis

via the ARRL: Helene – Storm Updates

Read more at ARRL.org

Wednesday, September 25, 2024 9:30 AM Eastern Update:

Wednesday, September 25, 2024 9:30 AM Eastern Update:

Amateur radio continues to respond to two different tropical events as of Wednesday, September 25, 2024, at 7:00 AM Eastern, Tropical Depression John and Tropical Storm Helene.

The National Hurricane Center now reports that Hurricane John has dissipated into a tropical depression after hitting Mexico’s Pacific coast, making landfall about 80 miles east of the resort of Acapulco. It was downgraded on Tuesday to a tropical depression with maximum sustained wind speeds of 35 miles per hour (mph). Mexican authorities have discontinued all tropical storm warnings.

The National Hurricane Center also reports that Tropical Storm Helene continues to move northwest at 9 miles per hour. As of 7:00 AM Wednesday September 25, 2024, Helene is just off the northeastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, about 60 miles east northeast of Cozumel, Mexico. Sustained winds are 70 mph.

The Tropical Storm Warning has been extended northward to Altamaha Sound, Georgia. On the forecast track, the center of Helene will pass near the northeastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula this morning, move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico later today and Thursday, and reach the Big Bend coast of Florida late Thursday. Over the southeastern U.S., Helene is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 5 to 10 inches with isolated totals around 15 inches. This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with areas of significant river flooding.

A tornado or two may occur tonight over parts of the western Florida peninsula and southern Alabama. The risk of tornadoes will increase on Thursday, expanding across Florida and into parts of Georgia and South Carolina.

The VoIP Hurricane Net and WX4NHC, the amateur radio station at the National Hurricane Center, will activate Thursday morning through Friday morning on the *WX_TALK* Echolink conference node: 7203/IRLP 9219 reflector system for Helene and impacts to Florida and Georgia. The net activation announcement will be posted by Wednesday afternoon.

The Hurricane Watch Net is making tentative plans to activate Thursday for what is expected to be Hurricane Helene, currently forecast to be a Category 3 hurricane at landfall. With its fast forward speed, it is expected to remain a hurricane well into southern Georgia before weakening to a tropical storm.

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