Latest news with #WEA
Hindustan Times
15-07-2025
- Hindustan Times
Virginia Beach Senior Amber Alert: Who is Marian Weaver Byers and where is she? Details here
On Monday, Virginia State Police issued a Senior Alert for Marian Weaver Byers, an 83-year-old woman missing from Virginia Beach, believed to be at risk due to cognitive impairment. She was last seen at around 2:35 PM local time and has been missing since. Virginia Beach Police issued a senior amber alert for an 83-year-old woman on Monday(Virginia Beach Police) Who is Marian Weaver Byers? Marian Weaver Byers, 83, is a Virginia Beach resident. She is 5'2', weighs approximately 120–150 pounds, has hazel eyes and gray hair, and was last seen wearing a yellow button-up shirt, black jeans, black sunglasses, and white shoes, possibly carrying a cane. Read More: New York flash floods: Which major airports are grounded? Here, have a look 'The missing senior suffers from a cognitive impairment and the disappearance poses a credible threat to their health and safety as determined by the investigating agency,' Virginia Beach police noted on a flyer. Where Was She Last Seen? Byers was last seen on Monday, around 2:35 PM EDT at the 700 block of Weich Lane, off Witchduck Road in Virginia Beach. She may be driving a gold 2010 Ford Escape with Virginia license plate GOD4MWB, as per officials. Read More: New York flash flood map: LaGuardia Airport, Westchester, Staten Island, Rockland affected; videos emerge Virginia Beach Police and Virginia State Police are actively searching, using K-9 units and checking local surveillance. The Senior Alert was broadcast via radio, TV, and cellphones through the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA). Residents are urged to call 757-385-5000 (non-emergency) or 911 with information. Read More: Scary video shows NYC subway line severely flooded amid heavy downpour Senior Alert vs. AMBER Alert A Senior Alert is issued for missing adults aged 60+ with cognitive impairments. An AMBER Alert targets abducted children under 18. Senior Alerts prioritize health risks; AMBER Alerts focus on abductions. Both use EAS/WEA broadcasts but differ in criteria.
San Francisco Chronicle
10-07-2025
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Even after Texas floods, S.F. has no plans to fix its defunct tsunami warning sirens
Disastrous flooding along Texas' Guadalupe River raised the question of whether a system of warning sirens could have saved lives. In San Francisco, where a network of sirens once stood ready to warn residents of tsunami risk, there are no plans to revive the old technology. Though the system has been defunct since 2019 and officials have discussed whether to fix or replace the sirens, Mayor Daniel Lurie did not include funding for it in his budget proposal that the Board of Supervisors is set to approve within weeks. The cost of repair or replacement has been estimated as high as $20 million, and cell phone alerts, while far from a perfect warning system, is the primary technology the city relies on. Still, the deadly Texas floods and the lack of a siren system there stirred debate online. 'This horrible event in Texas should be a sign for our local elected officials to take action and not divert money to other programs and get this done now,' one San Francisco resident posted on Nextdoor. The mayor's office referred the Chronicle to the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management for questions about the sirens. The department did not comment specifically on plans for the defunct warning system. Emergency officials said the siren system was 'paused for maintenance and assessment in 2019' because officials found 'much of the infrastructure was no longer functional,' and that the costs to repair it would be 'substantial.' When the sirens were turned off, the expected price tag to boost the system's security and reliability was about $2.5 million, but the money was never allocated. In 2023, then-Supervisor Aaron Peskin tried to fast-track the project with a $5 million injection of funds, but then-Mayor London Breed didn't include the funding in her budget. The cost of an entirely new system is expected to be upward of $20 million, before factoring in the operating costs, and it could continue to grow the longer the city waits. For the city, the question has been whether the system should be repaired or replaced. Lurie did not identify any funding for the repair or replacement project in his proposed budget, which seeks to close an $800 million budget gap with funding and staffing cuts. Without the sirens, the city still has other ways of communicating danger to residents. 'The recent tragic flooding in Texas is a powerful reminder of how critical it is to reach people quickly and effectively during emergencies,' emergency management department spokesperson Leah Greenbaum said in a statement. 'While Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) and cell phone-based systems like AlertSF are essential tools, we know no single method reaches everyone. That's why we're continually working to improve how we alert and warn the public.' The WEA are 'short emergency messages from authorized federal, state, local, tribal and territorial public alerting authorities that can be broadcast from cell towers,' according to FEMA, while the city's own AlertSF system does the same thing but also sends text messages and more localized warnings. The department said it is 'committed to reaching as many people as effectively as possible in an emergency and continues to build on our alert and warning programs.' Former FEMA and California Office of Emergency Services emergency management expert Art Botterell said the sirens can only be part of a wider emergency response network — they can't be the only way people are notified. 'You have to look at sirens in coordination with other systems — like WEA alerts, which work well in urban environments but struggle in less developed areas,' Botterell said, like where floodwaters have wrought devastation in Texas. 'It's easy to get fixated on a single warning technology like sirens — but there is no magic bullet that works best in all circumstances.' Botterell said sirens are best for wide open areas where large crowds need to be warned of danger. Botterell said that places along the coast could use the sirens, such as Ocean Beach, where tsunami warnings should be as loud as possible. Otherwise, the sirens can actually be primitive warning systems, he said. 'Sirens are essentially a one-bit message,' Botterell said. 'They don't give you any insight into what to do next.' Botterell added that new construction techniques in the past several decades have made sirens essentially obsolete. Advances in window and insulation technology mean most homes are so closed off from the outside that sound has trouble reaching inside. Boterrell called it an 'unintended consequence' of tech advancements. Today the best warning systems are pocket-sized: everyone has a mini siren on their phone, he said. He said he's not surprised the city isn't funding a replacement for the sirens. The city's emergency management department also made clear that warnings are no substitute for good emergency planning. 'Notification is just one part of San Francisco's comprehensive emergency preparedness strategy,' the department said. 'We encourage all San Franciscans to take steps to prepare themselves and their families for disasters.'
San Francisco Chronicle
09-07-2025
- Climate
- San Francisco Chronicle
Historic rainfall leads to deadly flooding in New Mexico: a timeline of emergency alerts
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Three people died in flooding Tuesday as New Mexico's Rio Ruidoso's banks swelled amid the summer rainy season. The village of Ruidoso and other parts of New Mexico have received more warnings in the past few years as catastrophic wildfires have left vast swaths of once forested land without enough vegetation to absorb and hold back storm runoff. If a storm lingers over one of these burn scars, it doesn't take much to create trouble. Ruidoso, a popular summer retreat in the mountains of southern New Mexico, was the recipient this time, getting what officials called historic rainfall that caused the death of three people and left dozens of homes damaged. The Associated Press reviewed a database of the National Weather Service's emergency alerts. Here's a look at the warnings that preceded the deadly flooding: 2:15 p.m. The NWS in Albuquerque sent a Wireless Emergency Alert to cellphones in the Ruidoso area announcing a flash flood warning. It cited the South Fork burn scar, saying flash flooding was expected to begin shortly and would affect areas along the Rio Ruidoso and downstream of Ruidoso Downs. WEA alerts are targeted to cellphones in a geographic area. They can appear as the pop ups on our phones and or text messages. The language differs based on the cellphone capabilities, but each initial alert communicated the need to avoid flooded areas. 2:47 p.m. The NWS triggered another wireless alert, upgrading the situation to a flash flood emergency for Ruidoso. At this point, Rio Ruidoso remained at just under 1.5 foot (0.45 meters) high. However, the alert emphasized a 'particularly dangerous situation' and those in areas in and around the South Fork scar should 'seek higher ground now' and evacuate. The Lincoln County Office of Emergency Services followed up shortly after with an alert warning that flash flooding was imminent in the Cedar Creek area and warned people to 'move to higher ground immediately.' Two more alerts followed, one from the NWS and another from Ruidoso Emergency Management, which stated that flash flooding had been observed along the Rio Ruidoso just before 3 p.m. 3:30 p.m. A U.S. Geological Survey gauge along the Rio Ruidoso, located just north of a commercial district along U.S. Highway 70, recorded a water level increase from 1.5 feet (0.45 meters) to nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters). Minor flooding can occur at 10 feet (3 meters) at that location, per the USGS data. At the same time, Lincoln County emergency officials sent an alert to cellphones regarding imminent flash flooding in the Ruidoso Downs area, just east of the USGS river gauge. 3:55 p.m. Rio Ruidoso rose to more than 20 feet (6 meters), according to preliminary data recorded by the USGS gauge.
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Historic rainfall leads to deadly flooding in New Mexico: a timeline of emergency alerts
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Three people died in flooding Tuesday as New Mexico's Rio Ruidoso's banks swelled amid the summer rainy season. The village of Ruidoso and other parts of New Mexico have received more warnings in the past few years as catastrophic wildfires have left vast swaths of once forested land without enough vegetation to absorb and hold back storm runoff. If a storm lingers over one of these burn scars, it doesn't take much to create trouble. Ruidoso, a popular summer retreat in the mountains of southern New Mexico, was the recipient this time, getting what officials called historic rainfall that caused the death of three people and left dozens of homes damaged. The Associated Press reviewed a database of the National Weather Service's emergency alerts. Here's a look at the warnings that preceded the deadly flooding: 2:15 p.m. The NWS in Albuquerque sent a Wireless Emergency Alert to cellphones in the Ruidoso area announcing a flash flood warning. It cited the South Fork burn scar, saying flash flooding was expected to begin shortly and would affect areas along the Rio Ruidoso and downstream of Ruidoso Downs. WEA alerts are targeted to cellphones in a geographic area. They can appear as the pop ups on our phones and or text messages. The language differs based on the cellphone capabilities, but each initial alert communicated the need to avoid flooded areas. 2:47 p.m. The NWS triggered another wireless alert, upgrading the situation to a flash flood emergency for Ruidoso. At this point, Rio Ruidoso remained at just under 1.5 foot (0.45 meters) high. However, the alert emphasized a 'particularly dangerous situation' and those in areas in and around the South Fork scar should 'seek higher ground now' and evacuate. The Lincoln County Office of Emergency Services followed up shortly after with an alert warning that flash flooding was imminent in the Cedar Creek area and warned people to 'move to higher ground immediately.' Two more alerts followed, one from the NWS and another from Ruidoso Emergency Management, which stated that flash flooding had been observed along the Rio Ruidoso just before 3 p.m. 3:30 p.m. A U.S. Geological Survey gauge along the Rio Ruidoso, located just north of a commercial district along U.S. Highway 70, recorded a water level increase from 1.5 feet (0.45 meters) to nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters). Minor flooding can occur at 10 feet (3 meters) at that location, per the USGS data. At the same time, Lincoln County emergency officials sent an alert to cellphones regarding imminent flash flooding in the Ruidoso Downs area, just east of the USGS river gauge. 3:55 p.m. Rio Ruidoso rose to more than 20 feet (6 meters), according to preliminary data recorded by the USGS gauge.
Winnipeg Free Press
09-07-2025
- Climate
- Winnipeg Free Press
Historic rainfall leads to deadly flooding in New Mexico: a timeline of emergency alerts
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Three people died in flooding Tuesday as New Mexico's Rio Ruidoso's banks swelled amid the summer rainy season. The village of Ruidoso and other parts of New Mexico have received more warnings in the past few years as catastrophic wildfires have left vast swaths of once forested land without enough vegetation to absorb and hold back storm runoff. If a storm lingers over one of these burn scars, it doesn't take much to create trouble. Ruidoso, a popular summer retreat in the mountains of southern New Mexico, was the recipient this time, getting what officials called historic rainfall that caused the death of three people and left dozens of homes damaged. The Associated Press reviewed a database of the National Weather Service's emergency alerts. Here's a look at the warnings that preceded the deadly flooding: 2:15 p.m. The NWS in Albuquerque sent a Wireless Emergency Alert to cellphones in the Ruidoso area announcing a flash flood warning. It cited the South Fork burn scar, saying flash flooding was expected to begin shortly and would affect areas along the Rio Ruidoso and downstream of Ruidoso Downs. WEA alerts are targeted to cellphones in a geographic area. They can appear as the pop ups on our phones and or text messages. The language differs based on the cellphone capabilities, but each initial alert communicated the need to avoid flooded areas. 2:47 p.m. The NWS triggered another wireless alert, upgrading the situation to a flash flood emergency for Ruidoso. At this point, Rio Ruidoso remained at just under 1.5 foot (0.45 meters) high. However, the alert emphasized a 'particularly dangerous situation' and those in areas in and around the South Fork scar should 'seek higher ground now' and evacuate. The Lincoln County Office of Emergency Services followed up shortly after with an alert warning that flash flooding was imminent in the Cedar Creek area and warned people to 'move to higher ground immediately.' Two more alerts followed, one from the NWS and another from Ruidoso Emergency Management, which stated that flash flooding had been observed along the Rio Ruidoso just before 3 p.m. 3:30 p.m. Currently on hiatus A review of funny, uplifting news in Winnipeg and around the globe. A U.S. Geological Survey gauge along the Rio Ruidoso, located just north of a commercial district along U.S. Highway 70, recorded a water level increase from 1.5 feet (0.45 meters) to nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters). Minor flooding can occur at 10 feet (3 meters) at that location, per the USGS data. At the same time, Lincoln County emergency officials sent an alert to cellphones regarding imminent flash flooding in the Ruidoso Downs area, just east of the USGS river gauge. 3:55 p.m. Rio Ruidoso rose to more than 20 feet (6 meters), according to preliminary data recorded by the USGS gauge.
