One

[Riley Smith]

We're getting a visitor today or tonight. Whatever is on the Gulf is coming ashore sometime today or early tomorrow. Predictions are for it to head into Louisiana but you never know what it is going to actually do. Whatever the case, no doubt we'll get even more rain. It's very soggy here and rain is not what we need. Good thing wind isn't much in the equation as any substantial wind would uproot all the trees out of the soggy soil. And it'll just make the mosquito problem worse. It already reminds me of the 60s where people asked how do you LIVE in such a place!

If you've never done a tropical storm, most of them are just rain. LOTS of rain. Sometimes you can mix in a tornado or two but usually wind isn't much a concern. As I mentioned, we don't need any more rain, as in the last two days it has rained at least four inches measured very conservatively. As you might expect there has been little sailing done. Lightning and rain has seen to that. And I'll be out of the loop after Friday anyway for two weeks. One good thing is the cloud cover has kept the temps reasonable and it has been in the 80s much of the time. It did briefly get into the 90s over the weekend when the clouds broke up for a short span.

[Riley Smith]

Yes, it is raining this morning. There is thunder off on the Gulf and to the west toward Biloxi, where the worst of the weather is. It's hot and humid, those who know about tropical storms will know what that feels like. I don't know what the rainfall amount is by now, as my electronic gauge has quit without the sunshine to power the battery. I'm tinkering in the shop with the jams going. If I were more enthusiastic about the sound I'd break out the bluetooth and the play list but it's just something going on to connect what is happening in the working world to one that don't care anymore. I'm glad I'm not on I-10.

I'm building an R/C sailplane and learning out there with the tunes. It's too heavy, and the wing I've done, I don't like the airfoil. No measurements other than a comparison with the old Super Cub wing, but the black foamboard is sturdier and weighs more than the white. The paper backing has been wicking up the humidity too, so there are a few grams of water in all that. It is very strong though, and were it a motorized craft, would probably not matter. I chose the black foamboard for durability but...there are always trade-offs. I can do better and will, but am going to try and get this one together and tested to learn all there is to learn from it. I placed the spar a centimeter or so too far to the trailing edge it looks like. Live and learn and this is learning. So instead of a slow flight airfoil, I have one fit for a supersonic fighter.

So not a bad day except it's a little stuffy in the shop. I have to keep the doors closed because of the mosquitoes. I think I've managed to kill all of them in the shop at the moment. And even if the plane turns out not to fly, I'll have learned SOMETHING. Just like learning how to make that beautiful arc of sail with the gaff rig. I didn't get that one right the first time, either.

[Frank B.]

Yes, raining in the far north part of the Sip.  On the edge of what you have, much worse to the south of us, nothing to the north of us.  I'm not complaining, we've had so much drought lately as long as it doesn't flood it is welcome. Temps nice.

Also just came in from the shop.  Painting a small addition (inside) so that I can move some things in there.  My shop is small and is on wheels, i.e., all the machines are on mobile bases so I can move them out to use them and then put them back.  Only two that never move are a ten inch Unisaw and a radial arm saw. The little extension will help, can add on to the assembly table, much needed.

Weather looks like I can go to the boat this afternoon to replace the mount.  Tricky job working over the water over the transom.  All the bolts are taped in place and I have a safety line on the mount itself so hopefully I can get this done without dropping anything I need. Put it on, start the nuts, then remove the tape to get a wrench on the bolts, one at a time.

Good luck with the sailplane.

[Riley Smith]

They're saying 2-3 inches an hour but I'm sure that's depending on where you are. Closer to the coast might up it some. I don't have to worry about floods on this ridge but traveling is another matter. Radar is showing the end coming, so that's a good thing.There's some really bad weather between N.O. and Biloxi at the moment and I'm hoping it will skirt to the north of us. The wifi is spotty. I don't do TV. And so far, no limbs on the power lines. And not much wind. It could be MUCH worse!

[Riley Smith]

Thank goodness that thing didn't have much time om the water. What we got was rain and lightning. LOTS of rain and LOTS of lightning. That cloud to ground stuff that will have you jumping straight up before the thunder even sounds. It hit my daughter's house and freaked THEM out. No discernable damage but they could smell the burnt air. A couple of miles from me a gigantic tree is on top of a house. And every creek, ditch, pond, and bayou is overflowing and running fast. It rained 20 inches near Wiggins, about 30 miles NW of me. Frank, I saw a video of a waterspout forming in Back Bay! It got dicey for several hours. Closed a plethora of roads and highways in the coastal counties. (Including Hwy 49 for a while). I have heard of any tornado related problems but I"m sure somewhere in all the mix there were a couple.

The actual low pressure center tracked about 30-40 miles to the west of me bearing NE. You could zoom out on the radar and track it. It was hard to see on the sat shot. WHat that meant is we got the "dirty" side. Every topical system is different and distinct and this one had more lightning than all the other's I've ever experienced COMBINED! The grand finale was an inflow or feeder band after the center had passed us. Torrential rain, very bad lightning, and very slow moving.

So we're soggy and safe after all that. And just like that we're into the 90F territory....at least the clouds have kept it bearable.

[Riley Smith]

And it is STILL raining!!! We got 1/2" last night with more on the scope. A big production is happening in the middle of the state now. Don't misunderstand. 1/2" is nothing here unless it is falling on top of FEET of rain. Which it is. ALL RIVERS ARE FULL. The Pascagoula River is in "moderate" flood stage after Arthur, and all along the Gulf, residents are watching the waters rise. That's a crazy feeling, having lived it at one point in my life and I can still feel the stress of those tiny drops. Hundreds of roads are underwater and some washed away. Boat rescues have been happening as the water jumped up and smacked a whole lot of peoples in the mouth. Yeah, just get out of the way and let the river have it. You have no other choice.

That said, on a personal note, I now have TWO new eyes. Bye-bye cataracts! The downside is a weight limit of ten pounds and no bending over for a while. I'll take it!

[Doug SC]

Congratulations on the new sight! I don't care where you live don't build in flood plains or coastal hurricane targets unless you can afford to lose it. I know if you already live in such places, you may not have a choice in the situation. We have had plenty of rain the last 3 weeks, but not too far north of us they are dry and need rain.

[Riley Smith]

Property high and dry is a premium. I don't know how my parents found this place so long ago. Word of mouth? Were they looking actively? All I know later is that they made an excellent choice, even with the construction of a nearby reservoir. If you really want to know the truth, almost all of our coast is considered a flood plain. When a storm comes calling from off the gulf bringing a huge tidal surge, or when the sky opens up into a monsoon and there simply isn't anywhere for such a volume of water to go. My niece just avoided real problems by buying a house. She'd been living in a travel trailer and going to college. It is now history and memories.

There had been a long period of ....lets just say dryer weather as a whole. Over that long time, people that didn't know or chose to forget that it DOES rain buckets full here, got caught napping. I knew when those yo-yos at the NHC said only a 20% chance of a hurricane this year that SOMEONE was doomed. Looks like it was our turn.

[Frank B.]

Waterspouts....I recall being out in the sound sailing a number of times and seeing them develop close by.  Can't outrun them, can't out think them, just have to hope they don't veer your way.  Also recall one that made landfall half way between Cowan road and Courthouse road, one of those short residential streets that end at the railroad tracks, right up the street, a little damage to houses on both sides, funniest interview was with a guy who was sitting on the toilet when it came through.  Also remember sitting in Micky McElroy's restaurant, Biloxi small craft harbor area and watching one drift east through the Deer Island channel, wondering if I will be able to finish my lunch.    

They predict 3-5 more inches today here, not really normal for this part of the Sip, late June.  Glad I finished my drainage project to carry it off.

[Riley Smith]

So...the accounting has begun with a tally of damaged and lost homes from TS Arthur. 250 homes damaged including 15 destroyed and 78 with major damage. Roads and bridges took a real hit; around 50 roads and three bridges at this time with several counties still assessing. I know of one major bridge not included in that total. Water is still up here in Jackson County and our two rivers, and I'm sure that assessment will go up as some places are still inaccessible. The major bridge was over the Pascagoula at Vancleave and was closed due to erosion from river current and rain. It causes a 30 mile detour and is going to be a really big problem. That is basically a preliminary count. The end total will be much bigger.

Tropical Storms can bring unimaginable amounts of rain. We're at the bottom end of the river, so it is magnified despite us not getting the amount of rain others did. We still got PLENTY (somewhere around 10-15 inches here) but I watched as the storm slowed and barely moved for hours, with a "train" of thunderstorms over a specific area that basically stayed in one spot for a LONG time. So if you hear of a TS, it doesn't mean that things didn't get really serious. Additionally, there were numerous tornadoes in the bottom part of our state. Not those pavement eating monsters of the great plains but mostly small EF-1s and smaller that tear up a few trees and rip a few roofs.
 
After a two day hiatus, we got more rain this evening. .7 inches on my gauge at the moment, and I hear thunder off in the distance now. One good thing is the dragonflies have increased and with that, a dent is happening in the mosquito population. We cleaned the pool and swam this evening before the rain, my first swim of the year and the latest that has happened ever. I STILL have to wait another three weeks before I can dive underwater because of eye surgery, but the water felt great in the heat.

[Frank B.]

Well when a front page article shows up in the Tupelo Daily Disappointment, regarding the ability for Pascagoula to drain, I guess you have had a bunch of rain. Article focused on the fact that the system is mostly good but for a double punch of significant rain and high tide in the drainage field.

[Riley Smith]

When the river is hill to hill, it's hard for everything ELSE to drain off! THe river gauges are stuck too. It'll be a couple more days before it really begins to go back down. One of my buds has a marina nearby and the water is almost to the roof of the boat stalls. THere has been an uptick in black bear sightings and I don't go out into the yard after dark without a flashlight fearing snakes and critters that are displaced.