Hurricane season is off to a slow start this year.  In fact right now, 2009 is #5 in the top latest hurricane season starts since 1954. 

2009 just replaced 2004 (Alex formed on July 31 of that year).  The top four years are:

#4  Andrew:  August 16, 1992

#3  Alma:  August 26, 1962

#2 Arlene:  August 28, 1967

#1 Anita: August 29, 1977

However, just because this hurricane season is starting “later than usual,” doesn’t mean we won’t have powerful hurricanes this year.  Look at #4 on the list above.  Remember Hurricane Andrew that roared through south Florida in 1992?

Just some food for thought. 

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Here we go again…

If you have outdoor plans on Sunday afternoon/evening, keep an umbrella nearby.  Remember “when thunder roars, go indoors.”  I know that phrase may sound silly but the message saves lives.  With the combination of energy from the sun, plenty of moisture, a cold front approaching and some upper-level support, strong to severe thunderstorms are possible later on Sunday.  Gusty winds and hail will be the primary threat.  In fact, the Storm Prediction Center has our area in the “slight risk” category for Sunday.

Be sure to check in with Meteorologist Jeremy Wheeler on WAVY-TV 10 on Sunday morning for the latest forecast information.

Be safe.

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Showers and thunderstorms fired late this afternoon across northern and western parts of our Virginia viewing area.  Trees were reported down across the metro Richmond area, parts of the Middle Peninsula (near Gloucester Point) and Pungoteague on the Eastern Shore. 

From Lena north of Gloucester Point

Hail was also reported in Gloucester.  Our weather watcher, Ed in Williamsburg received close to 2.00″ of rain on Sunday.  Unfortunately many other residents across the Southside didn’t even see a drop of rain today.  (They only heard crickets…).  The Southside and NE North Carolina need rain!

PS.  If you saw damage or know of damage that I didn’t mention, please leave a reply and let us know.   We appreciate it.  Thanks! 

Have a wonderful Sunday night/Monday!

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Many of our pets enjoy spending time outdoors during the summer months.  As long as they have plenty of water, shade, play time and nap time, they’re usually happy.  But sometimes pests can interfere.  Ticks, spiders, bees, mosquitoes, fleas, etc are out in full force right now.  We know how we can protect ourselves with bug repellent and citronella candles, but let’s not forget about our furry friends.  I do the “Pet of the Week” segment on WAVY-TV and have a genuine love for animals and their well-being.

If you haven’t thought about parasite prevention for your pet, now would be a good time to start.  Fleas can cause some bad diseases in your pet such as cat scratch fever and tapeworms.  Fleas also can irritate your pet’s skin causing him/her to scratch the itchy skin continuously.  Ticks can carry Lyme Disease and other less known diseases.  Infected mosquitoes can transmit heartworms to both cats and dogs.  Heartworms can survive in your pet’s lungs, heart, and blood vessels.  Even indoor pets are at risk of mosquitoes because these pesky critters like to sneak inside buildings and can actually survive quite well indoors.  Other internal parasites like hookworms, roundworms, and whipworms can also infect your pets causing them gastrointestinal problems: kittens and puppies are most susceptible  to these parasites.

To keep your pet healthy during the summer months, talk with your veterinarian about parasite prevention.  If you have a story you’d like to share about how you keep your pet safe and cool during the summer months, let me know.  I’d love to see your pet pictures too.  Feel free to send me an email at cheryl.nelson@wavy.com

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Dancing lights in a dark sky…shades of green, red and blue.  Pillars of light that last for minutes, sometimes even hours.  The Northern Lights, aka “aurora borealis” are breathtaking to witness.  I’ve seen them twice: once when I was driving up Interstate 81 north of Syracuse on a dark night with a new moon.  The other time, I drove out to the country in Upstate New York, pulled over near someone’s farm and watched the sky in pure amazement.  In the northern hemisphere, auroras are most common in the northern latitudes, such as Canada, Alaska, Greenland, the extreme northern part of the U.S., Siberia and Scandinavia.  Auroras are most common in the winter and usually peak around midnight. 

For more information on auroras, check out this link: 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090719194337.htm

Have you witnessed the Northern Lights?  If so, let us know your story.  Thanks!

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

If you check out our 7-day forecast, we have a chance for scattered showers and storms in the forecast just about each day.  This is because of a quasi-stationary front that will meander back and forth across the eastern seaboard through the week. 

The front will act as a focal point for scattered showers and thunderstorms.  It will also be on the humid side.  Just because there is a chance for showers and storms in the forecast doesn’t necessarily mean that the rain will fall at your house in particular.  It just means that somewhere in our viewing area there will be showers and thunderstorms.  Let’s hope the rain gets evenly distributed across our region throughout the week so our yards and gardens can all enjoy a bit of rain.

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Plenty of sunshine this afternoon will give us perfect beach weather.  If you’re planning on heading to the oceanfront or bay this afternoon, be sure to lather on some sunscreen.  Make sure to reapply it every three hours and after swimming. 

Here’s the beach forecast for today:

Mostly sunny with a high in the middle 80s on average.  UV index is a 10 which is in the very high category.  NE/SE winds 10-15 mph.  Average height of waves in the surf zone will be about 2 feet.  The surf zone water temperature is between 74 and 78 degrees.

The next high tide is at 2:01 this afternoon.  Should be a lot of fun for anyone who wants to “ride the waves” on a boogie board onto the beach!  The next low tide is at 8:28 this evening.  The rip current threat is low.

Enjoy the weather!

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

What an intense weather day!  The lift from a frontal boundary combined with some energy from the sun and a wave of low pressure created some nasty thunderstorms this afternoon.   There were numerous reports of damage in Suffolk, Portsmouth and parts of the northern neck and northeast North Carolina.  Early reports from the Emergency Manager in Suffolk say that at least 65 homes in the Berkshire Meadows subdivision have minor damage from Sunday’s storms.  Gusty winds toppled trees  into homes, cars and across roadways, shingles were blown off rooftops and large hail and dangerous lightning reminded us of what a severe thunderstorms is capable of.  Thankfully, so far there have been no reports of injuries.

Here are a few photos from WAVY-TV viewers.  Remember, you can always send your photos of weather and storm damage to photos@wavy.com.  Please make sure your photo size is less than 1 MB.  Thank you!

From Darcy near Obici Hospital in Suffolk

Kings Landing area

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Hurricane season begun June 1st.  Typically, June and July can be pretty quiet in the tropics.  However, activity normally starts to increase late August into September.  If you haven’t picked up one of our 2009 Super Doppler 10 Hurricane Ready guides, now is the time to get one for your family and workplace.  Our 2009 Super Doppler 10 Hurricane Ready guides are now in stores and online.  You can pick up a free copy at Farm Fresh, Geico locations, R.S. Andrews and Harrison’s Moving and Storage.  You can also find out valuable safety information including hurricane evacuation routes on our website at: http://www.wavy.com/subindex/weather/hurricane.

I was looking at the results from one of our polls on wavy.com yesterday and saw that approximately 75%  of viewers that participated in the survey said that they have no hurricane plan.  Unfortunately this could be a set-up for disaster if a hurricane threatens Hampton Roads and northeastern North Carolina.  If most people aren’t prepared, a lot of people will be rushing around at the last minute.  Grocery stores and hardware stores could run out of supplies and people could be stuck on the road in traffic when the first effects of the tropical system are felt.  I’ve asked people why they haven’t prepared and some people think we won’t get a hurricane, others say they don’t want to spend the money now if they don’t need the supplies, and others tell me that they have too many other things to worry about.    I believe that it is better to assemble your hurricane kit now than wait until the last minute… it never hurts to be prepared.  But that’s only my two cents. 

Does your family have a hurricane plan?  Let us know and post a response here.  Thanks- have a great day!

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson

Showers and thunderstorms blossomed along a frontal boundary across Northern North Carolina last night.  Localized flash flooding was a problem with some areas receiving 3-4+ inches of rain overnight.  To the north across much of Virginia things were pretty quiet with only a few isolated showers and thunderstorms. 

Clouds have been slow to exit our region today.  Parts of the Peninsula and points north enjoyed some sunshine, but many of us saw mostly cloudy skies.  Skies will clear out overnight settting us up for a lot of sunshine on Tuesday.

Have a great night.

Meteorologist Cheryl Nelson