Representatives from the National Weather Service were at the Collier County Emergency Operation Center yesterday – briefing staff on updated procedures for measuring the intensity of tornadoes.

Hurricanes get most of the attention in the Sunshine State – but Florida is also in the top ten for the number of tornadoes that strike in any given year. National Weather Service Meteorologist Robert Molleda says enhancements to the Fujita scale for measuring tornadoes will benefit forecasters and disaster planners.

“it gives us a record and also it helps us to identify future storms and also helps emergency management officials in promoting or instituting better building codes – and overall serves the community by keeping a record of the storms that hit the area.”

The Enhanced Fujita scale ranks tornadoes in intensity from 0 to 5. Forecasters will begin using it February 1st. Molleda says tornadoes are most likely to strike in Florida during late winter and early spring.

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Forecasters and Disasters planner have an improved tool for measuring the intensity of tornadoes. The National Weather Service starts using the “Enhanced Fujita Scale” February 1st. Forecasters from the National Weather service in Miami were at the Collier County Emergency operation center yesterday to brief staff on the changes. Meteorologist Robert Molleda says Florida is a top tornado spot.

“Florida in most years ranks above the top ten states as far as number of tornadoes are concerned, at least more than people think. The main difference between Florida and other states, especially out on the central plains, is that Florida tornadoes generally tend to be weaker”

Tornadoes raced through central Florida on Christmas Day causing some significant damage. The Fujita Scale measures the intensity of tornadoes on a scale of zero to five. The measurement is determined by analysis of the damage left behind.

This year’s hurricane season was very peaceful – following two years of dramatic storms that impacted much of the peninsula and traumatized many Floridians. But director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management Craig Fugate says emergency managers must plan for more than just dealing with hurricanes.


In fact people sometimes ask what do you do when you’re not dealing with hurricanes and we remind people that as great as the state of florida is we still face hazards every day from technology, man made to weather and we don’t know when the next disaster is going to strike and often disasters don’t give us warnings like hurricanes do…


Fugate says the conference with emergency operations directors from Florida’s 67 counties gives them the opportunity to face to face and learn to work as a team – no matter what kind of emergency may threaten. Valerie Alker W-G-C-U news.

All garbage, yard waste, and recycling collections are suspended today in Lee and Collier counties. The city of Fort Myers is collecting yard waste.

There’s no school in Lee, Collier, Glades, Hendry and DeSoto Counties.
There is school today in Charlotte county. Collier County Parks and Recreation offers a No School Fun Camp today at
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Collier County’s tourism bureau has activated its emergency Hotel Hotline, providing information on which Naples hotels have rooms available.

Based on a telephone survey Monday, there are currently more than 3,000 available rooms available for the next four nights.

If Ernesto continues on its more easterly path, it’s expected that Southeast Florida residents may choose to evacuate here. If local residents are thinking of relocating to an area hotel, now is the time to call for reservations.

The number is 1-800-785-8252.

Motorists across South Florida have clogged gas stations Monday to fill up their vehicles in advance of Ernesto’s arrival. Governor Jeb Bush says he’s pleased people are preparing in advance. But he also says the state is in NO danger of running out of fuel. He says Florida’s ports have more than 295-million gallons of gasoline—the highest ever recorded in the state:

“There’s ample fuel. It’s getting out of the ports. The ports are still open. There’s not going to be a shortage so people don’t need to overreact. They just need to make sure they have enough fuel to take care of their families.”

State officials also warn residents to be on the lookout for price gouging. They say any suspected instances of being overcharged should be reported to authorities.

A hurricane watch continues for all the Florida Keys from Ocean Reef to the Dry Tortugas including Key Largo, Islamorada, Marathon, Big Pine Key and Key West.

Monroe County Emergency Management says the National Hurricane Center forecast indicates Ernesto should not exceed Category 1 strength, if the tropical cyclone passes over the Keys late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning as forecasted. Keys tourism spokesman Andy Newman says that means things are quite calm.

“It seems with the last couple of forecasts that the tracking of the storm seems to be shifting to the east so perhaps we might get lucky here. But still people are taking it seriously because we are responding to a category one storm it means that the procedure dictate that there’s not going to be a need for any type of mandatory general resident evacuation.”

A visitor evacuation continues for all the Florida Keys. Those with immediate future travel plans to the Keys must postpone trips until the risk has passed.

The evacuation of special needs patients to the Monroe County shelter at Florida International University began at 6 a.m.

Mobile home and boat dwellers, as well as residents residing in low-lying areas prone to flooding, should leave. Monroe County schools are today.

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Forecasters from the National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane watch for the southern peninsula of Florida as Tropical Storm Ernesto grows closer today. Ernesto has maximum sustained winds of 50 miles-per-hour but forecasters cautioned that the storm could regain hurricane strength before its anticipated arrival today on Cuba's southeastern coast.

The watch was issued from Deerfield Beach near Boca Raton southward on the east coast and from Chokoloskee southward on the west coast. A hurricane watch is in effect for all of the Florida Keys. Keys tourism spokesman Andy Newman says this storm hasn't provided much warning time and has been eratic.

“It’s a strange thing how it’s tropical storm Ernesto, became a hurricane, then the mountains of Haiti really chewed it up and now it’s a tropical storm again and the forecasters are really puzzled about this storm and we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.” :12

Visitors were ordered to leave the Keys yesterday and Governor Jeb Bush issued a state of emergency because of the possibility that Ernesto could threaten much of the state.

At 8 a-m, the storm had top sustained winds of 45 miles-an-hour, moving northwest at 12 miles-an-hour. It was centered 515 miles southeast from Key West.