-  Motorists Free; Highways closed as death toll mounts   

• At least 24 deaths across 12 states blamed on weather
• Up to 6 inches of ice in some areas keep roads closed
• Motorists finally able to exit highway, some after 24 hours
• National Guard ferries food, fuel and baby supplies         

       

     ALLENTOWN, Pennsylvania (AP) -- "The last of hundreds of stranded motorists were freed but highways remained shut Friday as crews struggled to clear ice and snow following a monster storm that has been blamed for at least 24 deaths.

      State Transportation Secretary Allen D. Biehler said Friday that Interstate 78, site of a huge traffic jam Thursday, as well as large portions of I-81 and I-80, would remain closed so workers could clear them. The icy mixture, up to 6-inches thick, became rock-hard as overnight temperatures plummeted to the low teens and single digits.

      The sprawling storm system, which caused deaths from Nebraska to New England, blew out to sea Thursday, leaving huge snow piles, frigid temperatures and tens of thousands without power across the Midwest and Northeast...."

   And I hear there is another nasty system moving into the area again...  That Global Warming just needs to cool it (Pun intended; note my sarcasm)






-   Jet Blue Weather Woes not yet overcome

• JetBlue canceled 97 of its 570 scheduled flights Friday
• 150 flights canceled Thursday
• Some passengers spent up to eight hours stranded on planes Wednesday

     NEW YORK (CNN) -- "Acknowledging the airline has a long way to go to regain its customers' trust, JetBlue Airways was faced with yet more flight cancellations and irate customers Friday after a spokesman on Thursday said that the airline expected to start this "morning fresh and prepared for the remainder of the holiday weekend."

      JetBlue canceled 97 of its 570 scheduled flights Friday, a day after nixing 150 flights, the airline said.

      Thursday, JetBlue CEO David Neeleman repeatedly apologized for the airline's recent wave of cancellations and delays. "I think the best thing we can do is say we're sorry and give them their money back, and give them a free ticket and then kind of plead with them to come and fly again," he told CNN.

      The apology came a day after hundreds of passengers spent up to eight hours stranded on various planes because of bad weather..."

-  Troops aid stranded motorists  

• 15 dead as snow and ice blow out to sea
• Cars start to move again on locked-down I-78
• Officials had to close I-80 and I-81 as well
• Troops help stranded motorists in Pennsylvania        

    

    HAMBURG, Pennsylvania (AP) -- "National Guard troops in Humvees ferried food, fuel and baby supplies Thursday to hundreds of motorists stranded on a 50-mile stretch of highway for nearly a day by a monster snow and ice storm.

      The storm was blamed for 15 deaths.

      The stuck vehicles on the icy, hilly section of Interstate 78 in eastern Pennsylvania forced authorities to also shut down portions of I-81 and I-80 Thursday afternoon.

      Drivers were frustrated they were let onto the road at all. State police did not close all the entrance ramps to I-78 until around 5 p.m., more than 24 hours after vehicles starting getting caught.

      "Why would they have that exit open if they were just going to let us sit there?" said a crying Deborah Miller. Her 5-year-old son was trapped in the car with her, running a 103-degree fever from strep throat..."

   I think the sheer volume of snow generated by the last two systems speaks for itself.  I'm only here to remind you that the weather is unpredictable, so be ready for any extreme weather "freak event" to hit your area.






-   U.S. "Likely" to seek second Iran Resolution: Rice

     WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Thursday it was likely Washington will seek another U.N. Security Council sanctions resolution on Iran because of its nuclear program, but no decision had been made.

       "We are certainly exploring it and I think we probably think, at this point, it's likely we would pursue one, but we haven't made the decision," Rice said in a interview with U.S. newspaper reporters.

       The Security Council voted unanimously on December 23 to impose sanctions on Iran's trade in sensitive nuclear materials and technology in an effort to stop enrichment work that could be used in atomic bombs..."

-  New Public Resources added to Technical Info, Survival Info, Weather Preparedness and Medical References!




-  State Farm to stop writing new Policies in Mississippi  

        

     Mississippi (AP) -- "State Farm Insurance Cos. is suspending sales of any new commercial or homeowner policies in Mississippi starting Friday, citing in part a wave of litigation it has faced since Hurricane Katrina, a company official said Wednesday.

      Mike Fernandez, vice president of public affairs for State Farm, said Mississippi's "current legal and political environment is simply untenable. We're just not in a position to accept any additional risk in this homeowners' market."

      Fernandez said the decision does not affect existing policies but the company is still assessing how many of the current policies in Mississippi will be renewed this year.

      Fernandez said the action was not a direct response to any specific development in the litigation. That litigation has included a recent federal jury's $2.5 million punitive damage award to a couple who sued State Farm for refusing to cover the 2005 hurricane's storm surge damage to their Biloxi home..."

   This proves the point that in life, there is no 100% insurance for ANYTHING.  However, the more precautionary steps you have taken, the less impact you will feel should one of those "insurances" give way.






-   Valentine's Day Blizzard Smacks Northeast

• At least 12 deaths blamed on massive storm
• Flights Canceled
• Schools Closed
• Record Breaking Winter Season for Northeast

  

     ALBANY, N.Y. (MSNBC) - "Sleet stung the faces of pedestrians and snow and ice coated windshields and streets Wednesday as the Valentine’s Day blizzard shut down schools and air travel and turned highways into skating rinks.

      Nearly 300,000 homes and businesses had lost electrical service in the cold weather. At least 12 deaths were blamed on the huge storm system.

      Thousands of schools were closed in states from Maine to Kentucky, some in the Midwest for a second day, and in Washington the federal government decided to open offices two hours late..."

-  New Orleans Tornado; snow in winter weather  

     

    CHICAGO (Reuters) - "A winter storm brought near-blizzard conditions to much of the U.S. Midwest on Tuesday, forcing schools to close and disrupting transportation across the region, while a deadly tornado ripped through New Orleans.

      The National Weather Service issued warnings of hazardous weather and winter storms for the Midwest up through the northeastern United States. As much as 3 feet (1 meter) of snow were forecast for parts of New England with wind chills down to 35 degrees (-37C) below zero.

      The advancing system unleashed severe thunderstorms and the tornado on New Orleans, knocking out power and killing an elderly woman living in a trailer provided to Hurricane Katrina victims, police superintendent Warren Riley said..."

   Wow more winter weather during winter.  Who'd have thought.  Did I mention you should be ready for winter weather during winter?  Either way, weather disasters are by far the most common in the world, no matter where you live.  Even in winter, those in the south can experience devestating tornadoes.

    I highly suggest going to our Checklists Page and check out our Basic Emergency Readiness Kit Checklist.  If you have one of these kept in a good spot, and properly maintained (cycling out dated shelf-life items, etc.), during weather situations with 12 feet of snow (like Upstate NY) or -30 degree windchills, you'll at least have a remedial backup should your power, and subsequently generator (if you have one) go out.






-   Massive snow system almost cripples Midwest, Northeast

• Up to 20 inches of snow forecast for Ohio
• Ohio girl killed by falling tree limb
• Federal workers in D.C. sent home earlhy
• More than 900 flights canceled at Chicago airport

    

    STATE COLLEGE, Pennsylvania (AP) -- "Sliding cars and jackknifed trucks snarled highway traffic and flights were grounded Tuesday as a storm blew out of the Midwest with a threat of up to 2 feet of blowing, drifting snow.

     The National Weather Service posted winter storm watches and warnings from Iowa and Missouri across the Ohio Valley into parts of New England.

     As the storm plowed eastward, parts of Northern Ohio received more than a foot of snow, and Indiana measured more than 11 inches with drifts up to 6 feet, and the weather service said..."

-  Bush tries to convince world no plans for Iran War
   

      

    WASHINGTON D.C. (Reuters) - "President George W. Bush is trying to convince the world he has no intention of invading Iran, but is running into skeptics who see U.S. charges that Iran is shipping bombs into Iraq as a step toward conflict.

     Having ordered two aircraft carriers to the Gulf and accused Iranians of providing Iraqi militants bombs that have killed 170 Americans, Bush and his top aides are struggling to tamp down talk that a new war is brewing.

     Bush himself prompted the talk in a January 10 speech outlining his reworked Iraq strategy, by saying "Iran is providing material support for attacks on American troops. We will disrupt the attacks on our forces..."

   Well which is it Bush?  The U.S. is or is not going to attack Iran?  Seems to me like you're saying both.  Either way, if there is a massive war (as many are beginning to say), then people still need to understand that readiness applies to any disaster, which is basically any and all drastic, negative changes to your lifestyle.

   In major wars there are rationing, drafts and other sacrifices a nation at war asks its people.  The U.S. hasn't seen a full-scale declared war since WWII.  I sure hope this thing doesn't escalate into something more.






-   Hospitals in Jakarta overflowing with flood victims

    

     JAKARTA (Reuters) - "Hospitals in the Indonesian capital were overwhelmed on Tuesday with hundreds of flood victims suffering from water-borne diseases after the city's worst flooding in five years.

      Some 200,000 people have suffered from flood-related illnesses and there are fears that disease could spread with hundreds of people still displaced from their homes and thousands living in homes with no clean water or plumbing.

     "Some hospitals in charge of taking care of flood victims were overloaded. They asked the health ministry to send more medical personnel," Suprawoto, spokesman of the National Coordinating Agency for Disaster Management, told Reuters.

     "There are 757 in patients, most of them are suffering from diarrhoea, skin diseases, dengue, leptospirosis and severe respiratory problems." The patients are in some 20 hospitals in the city..."

- Emergency Respirator Use Guide Added to Respirator Info Page!


-  Upstate NY Digs out of nearly 10 Feet of Snow
    

  

     PARISH, N.Y. (Fox)  - "The snow got even deeper Sunday but the end was in sight after a weeklong series of squalls that have buried towns on one corner of Lake Ontario.

     By early Sunday, the persistent streams of squalls fueled by moisture from the lake had piled snow 115 inches deep at the Oswego County town of Parish, about 25 miles northeast of Syracuse.

     But as efforts to dig out Parish and surrounding towns were ramping up, the weather system was winding down..."

   I hope this is winding down, for the sake of those New Yorkers.  After four days of snow, and almost 10 feet, these people have had enough.  How would you prepare if you knew a blizzard like this was at your doorstep?

   That's how you should prepare every winter, because if you live in a region that snows fairly normally, all it takes is one "Freak" system to move through.






-   U.S.-led forces show evidence of Iran arms in Iraq

 

    BAGHDAD (Reuters) - "Officials of the U.S.-led coalition on Sunday showed what they said were examples of Iranian weapons used to kill 170 of their soldiers and implicated high-level Iranian involvement in training Iraqi militants.

      A senior defense official from the U.S.-led Multinational Force in Baghdad told a briefing that 170 coalition troops had been killed by Iranian-made roadside bombs known as explosively formed penetrators (EFPs) that he said were smuggled into Iraq.

      Officials showed reporters fragments of what they said were Iranian-manufactured weapons, including one part of an EFP -- which is strong enough to penetrate the armor of an Abrams tank -- and parts of 81 mm and 60 mm mortar bombs..."

-  Snowfall tops 100 inches in New York Village
    

    Parish, New York (AP) -- "With more than 8 feet of snow already coating the ground, it wasn't good news for this winter-weary region when the blue sky turned gray Saturday, signaling another intense snow squall was about to dump some more.

     "This is bad," said 67-year-old Dave DeGrau, who has operated an auto repair shop on Main Street for 45 years. "We had a very easy winter until now. Last fall during hunting season it rained every time I went out. I kept saying 'I'm glad this isn't snow.' Now, it's snow."

     Persistent bands of lake-effect snow squalls fed by moisture from Lake Ontario have been swinging up and down this part of central New York along the lake's eastern shore since last Sunday..."

   Every day this weather event keeps on pushing the envelope of snow records.  Lake effect snow isn't new.  But this much in three days is.  I hope this helps people see that Climate Change is what is going on here, not purely Global Warming.

    For those of you who don't know, Climate Change means a significant shift in weather patterns around the world.  That means in some areas, it could get much warmer.  Others could get colder.  Others may become more arid, and other still see more precipitation.

     This cycle has been going on for millions of years.  That's why the fossile record has such a diverse array of species.  Animals adapt to their surroundings.  Well with a world such as this where the surroundings are constantly changing, adaptation is a regular trend as well.



Q:      Why is so much ice melting in the northern ice cap? 
A:      Rapidly increasing thermo-geological and volcanic activity in the sea floor beneith it.  Just ask the Icelanders.  It could also be that we're seeing the peak cycle of the sun, which is every 11 years.  Also, the earth is nearing its peak wobble cycle point within the next 5 years.  A mixture of any of these events/cycles could be to blame.

    
     Food for thought:  Mt. Saint Helens puts out more Carbon Dioxide and Sulfur Dioxins in a single day than does the entire state of Washington (yes, Mt. Saint Helens is still active).  Then again, the past twenty years have been the most volcanically active in the recordable history of mankind.


- Facts about Volcano Pollution

     Seattle Times -- "Mount St Helens has been pumping out between 50- 250 tons a day of sulfur dioxide. The EPA should be furious.  All of the state's industries combined produce about 120 tons a day of the noxious gas.They have yet to find a way to collect fines from active volcanoes.  

     Mount St. Helens joins other natural factories of pollution like Italy’s Mount Etna which: can produce 100 times more sulfur dioxide than Mount St. Helens affecting huge areas of Europe; or the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii which churns out 2000 tons a day of sulfur dioxide…creating an acid fog that damages crops.”


- More Facts About Volcano Pollution

     "All volcanoes are different, he said, noting a 1783 eruption in Iceland that generated 1.7 million tons of sulfur dioxide and a "volcanic dry fog" that lingered over Europe from June through August. It obscured the sun and moon, withered vegetation and caused the human population eye irritation, asthma, bronchitis, emphysema and headache."

    Wow, sort of sounds like the symptoms of LA's infamous pollution problem.  And this event occured before the advent of the Internal Combustion Engine.


    If there is Global Warming, it's not mankind that the EPA should get angry with; it's Earth's constantly leaking Crust.  Some parts may be getting warmer, yes.  But New York State will tell you otherwise.







-   PUTIN:  U.S. Aggressions fuel New Nuclear Arms Race

 
• Putin blasts United States for "almost uncontained" use of force in the world
• Criticism comes during security conference in Germany
• Sen. McCain calls speech most aggressive since Cold War
• Official White House response muted