re: #347 lawhawk

(busting out the old meterology class knowledge)
The Saffir Simpson scale used to describe hurricanes is based on top sustained wind speeds. It doesn’t factor size, storm surge, or populations affected.

Cat 1 is for storms with top sustained speed of 74+.

Irene and Sandy both had sustained speeds less than that at landfall. Sandy’s big damage wasn’t wind, but storm surge. Irene’s main damage was due to massive and widespread flooding.

The NWS treats Sandy as extratropical at landfall due to how the storm interacted with various fronts and airmasses.

I find meterology mildly fascinating (nothing like hubby tho, who is often glued to Accuweather) but if this is what mild is considered, the NWS really needs to recalculate how they measure these things. How do you tell someone to evacuate a no big deal hurricane (on paper) when all the other things make it as deadly as a Cat 5 rolling through Jamaica?