Natural Disasters in Florida

There are many types of emergencies that get classified as natural disasters.

In Florida the five most common types of natural disasters are: hurricanes, tornados, fires, lightning and floods.

These are clearly not mutually exclusive since a hurricane can bring tornados, lightning and flooding from a storm surge. But all of these can occur on their own.

Disaster Operations in Melbourne

If conditions warrant, the City activates an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at a police facility on Babcock Street. City operations are managed from the EOC until the threat no longer exists, or until recovery is completed.

Online:

Advisories will be available at www.melbourneflorida.org

Radio:

Broadcasts to motorists by the M.P.D. Traffic Radio at 1650 on the AM dial.

Phone:

When City Hall and other offices must be closed due to a storm threat or impact, a recorded message with advisory information will be available at 321 / 727-2900.

Telephone inquiries and reports should be directed to the Police Dept. Communications Center at 321 / 409-2200, 409-2201, 409-2202, or 409-2203.

Emergencies should continue to be reported with a call to 911.

Hurricanes

Hurricane season for Florida is June 1st to November 30th. A hurricane is a tropical cyclone beginning over an area of water where water temperatures are at least 80 degrees (F) with rotating winds reaching a sustained speed of at least 74 mph. In the northern hemisphere this rotation is usually counter clockwise about the center.

The strength of a hurricane is usually reported using the Saffir Simpson Scale:

scale number (category)	sustained winds (mph)	Damage expectation	Storm Surge (feet)
1	74-95	Minimal	4-5
2	96-110	Moderate	6-8
3	111-130	Extensive	9-12
4	131-155	Extreme	13-18
5	more than 155	Catastrophic	more than 18

Damages to Expect:

Category I: Unanchored mobile homes, vegetation and signs, some flooding and minor pier damage.

Category II: All mobile homes, roofs, small craft, flooding

Category III: Small buildings, low-lying roads cut off

Category IV: Roofs destroyed, trees down, roads cut off, mobile homes destroyed, beach homes flooded

Category V: Most buildings destroyed, vegatation destroyed, major roads cut off, homes flooded

Tornados

Tornadoes are one of nature's most violent storms. In an average year, about 1,000 tornadoes are reported across the United States, resulting in 80 deaths and over 1,500 injuries. A tornado is a violently rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind speeds of 250 mph or more. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. Here in Brevard County we experience tornadoes year round, with the peak period being March through June. If you are new to Florida, you need to be aware that we range from number 2 state for tornadoes through number 4 depending on how you average the tornadoes.

Fire

Every year in Brevard county, thousands of acres of wildland and many homes are destroyed by fires that can erupt at any time from a variety of causes,including arson, lightning and debris burning. Adding to the fire hazard is the growing number of people living in new communities built in areas that were once wildland. This growth places greater pressure on the area's wildland firefighters.

Lightning

On average, lightning is responsible for more weather-related deaths in Florida than all other weather hazards combined, and Florida has the highest number of lightning casualties of all 50 states. In our county there has been over 10 lightning related deaths since 1970.

Flood

There are different reasons a community may flood; storm surge, river flooding or heavy rainfall. Low-lying or poorly drained areas can also increase a community's flood risk.