Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-10-16
COVE RN MENT
BUREAU SAVED
LIVES OF MANY
OF WEATHER DE-
PARTMENT OF APPROACH OF
STORM ON GULF COAST GIVE
PROOF OF VALUE OF WORK.
Washington Bureau
VI lliS aoIluiiiWd courier.
WaShinFtnn u @ Oct

Washington Bureau
of the Ottumwa Courier
Washington, D. c., Oct IA.
The saving of life and property
which was effected In the Gulf coast
region by reason of the weather
bureaus warnings of the approach of
the great storm which wrecked Key
West, without doubt amounted to
many hundreds of lives and millions in
property. Indeed, 1t is no excess of
statement to say that the saving eff
fccted in connection with this one
story was undoubtedly ample to repay
the entire cost of the weather service
from the time of it's Inauguration to
the present day. The storm which on
October IL struck Key West, had been
traced through the Caribbean region
day by day. almost hour by hour, from
October s. 1t was a typical seasonal
hurricane, such as that region is liable
to experience from August l to Nov
ember 15, September being the month
of greatest danger. There is no region
in which the utility of careful fore
casts has proved greater than in this;
and the weather bureau has extended
it's avenue of information and obser-
walton with the greatest care, in, the
effort to enable it to make useful fore
casts. Stations all over Cuba, In
Jamaica, Porto Rico, Santa Domingo,
at the Panama canal zone, and in Trim
dad and on the Venezuelan coast, give
the forecasters ample data from which
1t is possible to get track of these
huge tropical disturbances very early.
The result is that invariably, in recent
years, such storms have been fore
Swallowed from five days to Il week.
I'm the present instance" said one Of
the weather bureau staff of Horecasters,
wet M 1f ha +fa,1
and approach of the storm was given
October 6, five days before the disaster
at Key West When first observed, the
depressions We're shallow and there
was indication of little energy. We fol-
loved 1t carefully because such storms
all develop in that way. BY Sunday last
1t was apparent that it was destined to
be a very destructive storm,
The difficulty about these storms is
that they form, travel northwest for a
considerable part of their course, and
then turn and move northeastward. 1t
Is impossible, in the present state OF
meteor logical science, to forecast ac-
urately the point at which the storm
will change toward the northeast.
Therefore we issue warnings along up
the Atlantic coast, because the dis
turbances may travel considerable
distance along the coast before turning
northeastward. In the present case 1t
is apparent that the storm turned Just
about at Key West, and after doing It's
destructive work there, passed out
enthusiastically into the Atlantic In
the direction of the Bahamas.
This sort of storm gathers it's force
On the ocean, where there is no great
friction to interfere with the develop
ment of the Whirling motion. When it
strikes the land. the friction with the
uneven surface of the earth seems to
break up its force. The observations
indicate that this storm was one of the
most violent we have ever had to deal
with: the barometer registered as low
as $3.50 inches which is very low. Be-
cause it struck the land early in it's
career, the storm suffered the weaken
ing influence of that contact. and was
broken; but not till it had done it's
worst at Key West, which was struck
while it was in full force.
Reports from Willemstadt and San
Domingo on the 9Th inst. first defined
the approaching storm to us. On the
seventh it was about 200 to 300 miles
southeast of Kingston, jamaica on
the ninth, south of the central part OF
Cuba; on the tenth, over Cuba.
AS early as the sixth warnings were
sent to Havana, Jamaica and Hayti,
while the location and development of
the storm was notified to all the Gulf
ports and up the Atlantic as far as
Boston, SO that vessels sailing for these
waters might be warned. At that time
it was specified that the tendencies Of
the storm were not vet apparent. The
next day it was defined as a tropical
disturbance of increasing intensity,
moving northwest. On the eighth II
was located south Of Cuba, all stations
in those waters were advised to eau
ton vessels. and the Florida points
We're also fully advised. The next day
warnings were repeated. The storm
was now approaching Cuba. Warnings
were ordered hoisted all over the Flor
ida coasts on the tenth.
"V ssel owners and mariners have
learned that these warnings deservA
the utmost attention, and hundreds OF
vessels remained in port which other
wise would have been in the most dan
serous waters. The loss Of life and
property has been vast: but it would
have been immensely greater but for
the warnings that were given. Without
doubt the hundreds of lives that have
been lost would have been thousands
but for the service warnings. 1t isn't
possible to put n money estimate on
the value of such warnings, when they
save lives by the hundreds. One Inn
portant thing worthy of notice is that
every succeeding hurricane In that re-
gion gathers a decreasing toll of life
on the sea, because vessels are more
land more careful to govern themselves
wisely in view of the warnings
J. G.. Welliver.
a - .s-