*Localized Forecasts: Providing Customer Support*

*Where It's Needed Most*

*A Summary of IMET/HAZMAT Spot Forecasts Provided By WFO Lake Charles,
Louisiana from November 2005 to November 2006*

Kent Kuyper, Senior Forecaster

Stephen Carboni, General Forecaster

Roger Erickson, Warning Coordination Meteorologist

Montra Lockwood, Service Hydrologist

The National Weather Service (NWS) mission statement states: **The NWS
will provide weather forecasts and warnings for the protection of life
and property and the enhancement of the national economy**. This report
details six HAZMAT events over the past year where Weather Forecast
Office (WFO) Lake Charles provided time critical environmental
information and forecasts in direct support of the NWS mission. Through
the years, this support has included oil and gas well blowouts, the
Space Shuttle Challenger loss, and marine oil spill support.

**Event 1. Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill -- November 22, 2005**

WFO Lake Charles received a call from the NOAA HAZMAT office in Seattle.
The tug *Rebel* and tank barge DBL-152 had struck a submerged oil
platform damaged by Hurricane Rita. The tug released the double-hulled
barge after noticing it was listing. The barge drifted about 15 km and
subsequently ran aground. Twelve days later, it flipped over and sank
with only the stern above water. An estimated 2.7 million gallons of oil
were leaked, which resulted in a major spill that settled on the floor
of the Gulf of Mexico 55 km south of Cameron, Louisiana.

The WFO provided HAZMAT Spot Forecasts twice daily, with updates as
needed. Special Marine Warnings were issued if hazardous conditions were
present. The recovery team required forecasts for winds and seas, as
well as other significant weather events that would affect the recovery
operation.

Support for this incident continued until approximately January 27,
2006. An estimated 130 spot forecasts were issued to the U.S. Coast
Guard Incident Commander, along with occasional contact by phone and
fax.

For more info:

[http://www.rdc.uscg.gov/reports/Products/Submerged%20Oil%20Report.pdf](http://www.rdc.uscg.gov/reports/Products/Submerged Oil Report.pdf)

![](media/image1.jpeg){width="3.6805555555555554in"
height="2.408333333333333in"}

**Figure 1. The Barge DBL-152 (photo from USCG)**

**Event 2. Vermilion Parish, Natural Gas Plant Explosion -- April 21,
2006**

This was a short duration event with a fire developing after an
explosion at the plant. WFO Lake Charles provided HAZMAT Spot Forecasts
and remained in frequent communication as a strong squall line
approached from the northwest. As a result of such consultations, the
decision was made to give maximum effort to suppressing the fire and
speeding up recovery efforts. The WFO continued close communications
with the command post while issuing Severe Thunderstorm Warnings with
the squall line passage. Four HAZMAT Spot Forecasts were issued along
with numerous phone conversations to the on-scene coordinator as the
squall line pushed through South-Central Louisiana during the afternoon
hours.

Sgt. Paul Van Kerhove, Special Operations, Louisiana State Police Troop
I, thanked WFO Lake Charles for their forecast expertise.

"*Their timely information was instrumental in the success of our
mission!"***\
**

+-----------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| ![](media             | *"\...The Truckline plant was in flames\...  |
| /image2.jpeg){width=" | Vermilion Parish authorities arrived on      |
| 1.9583333333333333in" | scene and began evacuating the area\...about |
| height="1             | 50 to 60 people were evacuated\...*          |
| .9583333333333333in"} |                                              |
|                       | *\...after air samples were taken throughout |
| Figure 2. Truckline   | the area by both the Louisiana State Police  |
| gas plant off of      | Haz-Mat and the Louisiana Environmental      |
| Highway 35, in        | Quality Agency\...tested clear of toxins.    |
| Vermilion Parish.     | Authorities said they\'d rather be safe than |
| (Photo courtesy       | sorry."*                                     |
| KLFY-TV).             |                                              |
|                       | *(Courtesy Sara Vincent, KLFY-TV, Lafayette, |
|                       | LA)*                                         |
+-----------------------+----------------------------------------------+

**Event 3. Hurricane Rita Debris Cleanup -- June 3, 2006**

In early June, WFO Lake Charles began issuing HAZMAT Spot Forecasts to
support cleanup efforts in Cameron Parish. Storm surge from Hurricane
Rita had destroyed coastal communities and subsequently washed debris
into the Sabine Wildlife Refuge. The U.S. Coast Guard asked the WFO to
provide meteorological support for their daily operational planning. The
Coast Guard explained that cleanup crews were working in vast open areas
that provided no cover from approaching thunderstorm activity.
Therefore, their concern centered around thunderstorm activity and
development. An estimated 60 spot forecasts were issued through July
30^th^ in support of this clean-up effort.

![](media/image3.jpeg){width="3.1354166666666665in"
height="3.9756944444444446in"} ![](media/image4.jpeg){width="3.375in"
height="3.975in"}

Figure 3. Eastern Holly Beach Figure 4. Western Holly Beach

Monica Allison of the USCG praised WFO Lake Charles on their efforts
during the cleanup.

> *"The recent reports that I have receiving from NOAA in Lake Charles
> have been outstanding...Your continued support of our operation, while
> it may seem trivial, is vital to our success and the health and safety
> of the crew working out of Gibbstown. In short, it is greatly
> appreciated*.*"*

**Event 4. Patterson, LA Hurricane Rita Debris Fire - June 7, 2006**

WFO Lake Charles was contacted by the Fire Chief of Patterson, Louisiana
to provide wind forecasts. A pile of debris caused by Hurricane Rita's
storm surge had caught fire just south of the town. The fire's location
in the marsh hampered the department's efforts to extinguish the fire,
and thick plumes of smoke poured from the debris pile. Our forecasts
were used by the Fire Chief to determine where and when residents of
Patterson would need to be evacuated to avoid the smoke.

Two HAZMAT Spot Forecasts were issued daily: at 5 am for operational
planning purposes and around 7 pm to determine the overnight fire
behavior. Through June 25^th^, a total of 36 HAZMAT Spot Forecasts were
issued in support of clean up operations.

**Event 5. CITGO Oil Spill -- June 19, 2006**

A heavy rain event in mid June sparked this HAZMAT oil spill. Nearly 3
million gallons of waste oil (about 71 thousand barrels) were released
into the Calcasieu River from the CITGO refinery near Sulphur, LA. This
oil spill occurred in part due to heavy rains overwhelming storage tanks
at the refinery. National Weather Service radars at Lake Charles and
Fort Polk estimated approximately 12 inches of rain fell during the
24-hour period between June 18^th^ and June 19^th^. HAZMAT team
responders estimate that 1 million gallons of oil were contained on
land, with 1.25 million gallons spilling into an adjacent bayou, and 730
thousand gallons spilling into the Calcasieu River.

![](media/image5.jpeg){width="3.8291666666666666in"
height="2.879861111111111in"}

Figure 5. Aerial view of the Calcasieu River

On June 19, 2006, the office staff began providing forecasts twice
daily, along with phone calls providing advance notice of any
thunderstorms that would affect the containment and clean up operation.

Service Hydrologist Montra Lockwood and Lead Forecaster Kent Kuyper also
provided on-site support to the responders, providing them with
information from local river and tide gages, and sharing our hydrology
and meteorology expertise of the local area. The HAZMAT team leader was
so pleased with the support, that he extended an offer to pay for any
overtime incurred by WFO Lake Charles in support of this event.

The office continued to support the HAZMAT team until July 11, 2006. A
total of 44 HAZMAT Spot forecasts were issued. The NOAA HAZMAT team also
requested a detailed report on the weather events for June 18^th^ and
19^th^.

More information about this event can be found at:
[https://responselink.orr.noaa.gov](https://responselink.orr.noaa.gov/)
(use your NOAA e-mail address and password to access the site, then
search under Calcasieu spill)

**Event 6. *La Marie* Tugboat Recovery -- October 31, 2006**

WFO Lake Charles is providing ongoing support to the U.S. Coast Guard as
they recover the tug boat *La Marie*. This 150 foot tug carrying 125
thousand gallons of fuel struck an unknown object approximately 20 miles
south of Cameron, Louisiana, and subsequently sank to the Gulf floor.

The USCG requested forecasts four times a day. As the towing operation
neared, they also requested that we participate in their planning
conference calls twice daily. Sea state and water temperature were of
particular importance to them, and to assist our forecast accuracy in a
data sparse area, observations from oil platforms in the vicinity of the
incident site were utilized. Todd Mogged, one of our Hydrometeorological
Technicians, has worked very diligently to establish and maintain a
network of these offshore contacts, which are most often used to assess
and verify Special Marine Warnings. This event demonstrated an
additional use and benefit of having these contacts with over 300
observations received into this office.

From October 31^st^ to November 28^th^, an estimated 98 forecasts were
issued to support this recovery operation, and forecast support
continues at this time. More information about this event can be found
at:
[https://responselink.orr.noaa.gov](https://responselink.orr.noaa.gov/)
(use your NOAA e-mail address and password to access the site, then
search under La Marie).

![](media/image6.jpeg){width="3.786111111111111in"
height="2.826388888888889in"}

Figure 6. The Mad Hunter on scene at the La Marie (courtesy USCG).

 

Capt. Tom Sparks and Security Specialist Robert W. Stegall with the USCG
stated,

> *"As so often is the case with our crisis responses, weather is an
> absolutely critical factor, & it\'s reassuring to know that we\'ve got
> a super resource in you & your folks."*

* *

> *"Thank you very much to you and all the NOAA staff that have been
> providing us with up to the minute weather conditions during this
> period."*

**Findings:**

1\. In the past 12 months, over 300 HAZMAT Spot Forecasts have been
issued by WFO Lake Charles in support of hazardous incident clean-up and
recovery.

2\. Over 500 supplemental surface observations from oil rigs in the
northwest Gulf of Mexico were compiled by the Data Acquisition staff at
WFO Lake Charles during these HAZMAT events.

3\. The forecast and observation programs at WFO Lake Charles utilized
around 500 man hours to support the HAZMAT recovery efforts.

4\. WFO Lake Charles has promoted HAZMAT forecasts to local, state, and
federal government officials. State and local emergency managers have
provided mutual aid radios to WFO Lake Charles to monitor local HAZMAT
emergencies.

5\. Conference calls were found to be extremely useful to the responding
agencies during the HAZMAT events. WFO Lake Charles participated in over
100 HAZMAT conference calls in the past 12 months.

**Recommendations:**

NWS field offices need to be proactive in support of HAZMAT events
within their area of responsibility. They have the local meteorological
expertise to provide detailed, hour by hour weather information in
verbal, written, or graphical presentations.

Although the Graphical Forecast Editor (GFE) in AWIPS is useful for
creating HAZMAT Spot Forecasts, a few changes would enhance GFE
capabilities. Some proposed changes include:

1\. Allow a header change to reflect the event.

2\. Allow additional fields such as sea heights.

3\. Allow the forecaster the ability to send this product via AWIPS to
an

E-mail address.

Some other resources would also benefit forecast offices in their
specialized customer service. For example, National Weather Service
internet graphics lack the resolution and detail necessary for our
customers. An additional enhancement to the AWIPS system would enable
forecasters to produce and transmit locally-developed graphics to a
secure internet location for conference call briefings. Maintaining
situational awareness is another critical aspect of spot forecasting,
and a monitoring system, including local and national TV, radio and
internet broadcasts, would further assist forecasters in this task.

Ultimately, the local WFO should meet with the HAZMAT incident
coordinators at the beginning of the event to determine their needs and
offer suggestions. Forecaster flexibility will be essential in
responding to changing customer needs as the incident evolves. Following
recovery operations, the event and supporting operations should be
reviewed with the customer. Finally, HAZMAT events will require the
field offices to maintain a 24 hour weather watch throughout the event.

The Fire Weather Spot Forecasts generated by GFE are practical products
for the Fire Weather Community. However, a change of style delivered in
an E-mail format would present a more professional looking product to
our customers. An example of the style developed by WFO Lake Charles is
attached.

![](media/image7.png){width="1.3020833333333333in"
height="1.0520833333333333in"} ***National Weather Service Forecast***

***Office Lake Charles, Louisiana***

**Phone:** 337-477-5285 **Fax:** 337-477-8705 **Web:**
[www.srh.noaa.gov/lch](http://www.srh.noaa.gov/lch)

**Spot Forecast For:** La Marie Incident -- 20 NM South-Southwest of
Cameron, LA

![](media/image8.jpeg){width="7.375in" height="0.125in"}**Issue
Date/Time:** 11-11-2006 900 AM CST

**A. Advisories/Watches/Warnings:** None.

**B. 0-12 Hour Forecast:** 9 am FRI to 5 pm FRI

+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| **Va  | **     | **Wa | **Wa | **W | *  | **   | **Sky** | *        |
| lid** | Wind** | ve** | ve** | ate | *A | Chan |         | *Other** |
|       |        |      |      | r** | ir | ce** | **a     |          |
| **T   | **     | **He | **   |     | ** |      | nd/or** |          |
| ime** | (kt)** | ight | Peri | **T |    | **of |         |          |
|       |        | (f   | od** | emp | ** | Rain | **We    |          |
|       |        | t)** |      | (F  | Te | (    | ather** |          |
|       |        |      | *    | )** | mp | %)** |         |          |
|       |        |      | *(se |     | (  |      |         |          |
|       |        |      | c)** |     | F) |      |         |          |
|       |        |      |      |     | ** |      |         |          |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| 9 am  | E 5    | 1-2  | 5    | 66  | 64 | 0    | CLEAR   |          |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| 11 am | E 5    | 1-2  | 5    | 66  | 64 | 0    | CLEAR   |          |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| 1 pm  | E 6    | 1-2  | 5    | 66  | 64 | 0    | SUNNY   |          |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| 3 pm  | E 6    | 1-2  | 5    | 66  | 64 | 0    | SUNNY   |          |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+
| 5 pm  | SE 7   | 2    | 5    | 66  | 65 | 0    | SUNNY   | Sunset   |
|       |        |      |      |     |    |      |         | 5:13     |
+-------+--------+------+------+-----+----+------+---------+----------+

**C. Discussion:** A ridge of high pressure extends from the Ohio Valley
southwest to across southeast Louisiana. This system will move slowly
eastward, reaching the New England states late tonight before stalling.
Winds will become southeast through the weekend. A strong Canadian cold
front will advance through the northwest Gulf of Mexico on Thursday.

**D. 12-24 Hour Forecast:**

.Tonight...southeast winds around 10 knots with seas around two feet.
Areas of fog forming over interior waters the coastal regions after
midnight. Visibility at times will be less than ½ mile.

.Saturday...southeast winds increase a bit to 10 to 15 knots with seas
two to three feet.

**E. Days 2 to 3 Outlook:**

.Sunday into Monday...southeast winds will continue around 15 knots with
seas around three to four feet.

**F. Days 4 to 5 Outlook**

.Tuesday and Wednesday...southeast winds 15 knots becoming south late
Wednesday and increasing to 20 knots ahead of a cold front that will
move through on Thursday. Seas building to five feet with isolated
showers and thunderstorms.

![](media/image7.png){width="1.3020833333333333in"
height="1.0520833333333333in"} ***National Weather Service Forecast***

***Office Lake Charles, Louisiana***

**Phone:** 337-477-5285 **Fax:** 337-477-8705 **Web:**
[www.srh.noaa.gov/lch](http://www.srh.noaa.gov/lch)

**Spot Forecast For:** La Marie Incident -- 20 NM South-Southwest of
Cameron, LA

![](media/image8.jpeg){width="7.375in" height="0.125in"}**Issue
Date/Time:** 11-11-2006 900 AM CST

**G. Tides for Sabine Pass:**

+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| **Da | **     | **   | **T   | **   | **T   | **Hei | **T   | **   |
| te** | Time** | Heig | ime** | Heig | ime** | ght** | ime** | Heig |
|      |        | ht** |       | ht** |       |       |       | ht** |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| FRI  | 12:16  | 1.8  | 11:07 | -0.3 | 8:13  | 1.8 H | 10:53 | 1.7  |
|      | AM     | H    | AM    | L    | PM    |       | PM    | L    |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/24 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| SAT  | 12:47  | 1.8  | 11:57 | -0.2 |       |       |       |      |
|      | AM     | H    | AM    | L    |       |       |       |      |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/25 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| SUN  | 1:04   | 1.7  | 12:52 | -0.1 | 9:51  | 1.7 H |       |      |
|      | AM     | H    | PM    | L    | PM    |       |       |      |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/26 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| MON  | 1:53   | 0.1  | 10:05 | 1.6  |       |       |       |      |
|      | PM     | L    | PM    | H    |       |       |       |      |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/27 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| MON  | 1:07   | 0.1  | 9:09  | 2.0  |       |       |       |      |
|      | PM     | L    | PM    | H    |       |       |       |      |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/27 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| TUE  | 2:17   | 0.4  | 9:19  | 1.9  |       |       |       |      |
|      | PM     | L    | PM    | H    |       |       |       |      |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/28 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| WED  | 5:33   | 0.9  | 9:54  | 1.1  | 4:25  | 0.7 L | 10:24 | 1.4  |
|      | AM     | L    | AM    | H    | PM    |       | PM    | H    |
| 1    |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
| 1/29 |        |      |       |      |       |       |       |      |
+------+--------+------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+

**H. Forecast Issued By: Stephen Carboni**