Daily Weather Briefing for Wednesday, September 15, 2017

Hurricane IRMA

The wind field of the remnants of IRMA combined with a high pressure system to send high winds into Macon County Monday after and evening, lasting into the very early morning hours on Tuesday, leaving over 8,000 Maconians without electrical service and over 11,000 in Jackson County and over 7,000 in Rabun County also spent all or part of last night in the same condition. Duke Energy estimates electrical service will be restored to most people by 6 pm on Friday, September 15th.

The situation in Macon, Jackson and Rabun Counties continues to improve. Here is the situation at 4 am this morning by county and service:

Macon County - 4,339
3,078 Duke Energy
1,261 Haywood EMC

Jackson County - 8,194
6,161 Duke Energy
1,434 Haywood EMC

Rabun County - 4,836
4,623 Georgia Power
213 Haywood EMC

Here is a chart from Duke Energy showing the number of outages and customers out of service over the course of the last few days in North Carolina and South Carolina.



As of 4 am, Duke Energy Carolinas had over 60,000 without service and Georgia Power had over 355,000 without service and Haywood EMC had just under 5,000 customers without service. All these power utilities have crews out working to restore electrical service as fast as they can safely do it, with more crews from other states on the way to assist.

If you have a non-emergency situation, call 828-369-9116. This number should not be called for informational requests. Macon County is under a State of Emergency. You can read a copy of the declaration on the blog at http://thunderpigblog.blogspot.com/2017/09/macon-county-under-state-of-emergency.html

Food Safety and Power Outages

The USDA offers the following recommendations for maintaining food safety while the power is out:

•Never taste a food to determine its safety!
•Keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to maintain the cold temperatures.
•Each time the door is opened, a significant amount of cold air is lost.
•The refrigerator will keep food cold safely for about four hours if it is unopened. A full freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full and the door remains closed.)
•Food may be safely refrozen if it still contains ice crystals or is at 40° F or below.
•Obtain dry or block ice to keep your refrigerator and freezer as cold as possible if the power is going to be out for a prolonged period of time. •Fifty pounds of dry ice should hold an 18-cubic-foot full freezer for two days.
•If the power has been out for several days then check the temperature of the freezer with an appliance thermometer or food thermometer. If the food still contains ice crystals or is at 40° F or below then the food is safe.
•If a thermometer has not been kept in the freezer then check each package of food to determine its safety. If the food still contains ice crystals then the food is safe.
•Discard refrigerated perishable food such as meat, poultry, fish, soft cheeses, milk, eggs, leftovers and deli items after four hours without power.
•When in Doubt, Throw it Out!

POWER OUTAGES

Here are resources to report outages and safety tips.

Duke Energy

Call 800.769.3766 or in Spanish 866.4.Apagón (866.427.2466).

If you see a fallen power line or safety hazard, call Duke Energy at 800.Power.On (800.769.3766) or in Spanish 866.4.Apagón (866.427.2466) or contact your local emergency services immediately. Do not touch a power line or anything in contact with it and keep others away until help arrives.

Haywood EMC

To report or inquire about power outages, call 1-800-951-6088

LOCAL OUTLOOK

The remnants of Irma will move through the Ohio Valley today through Friday, maintaining chances for showers across the area today and Thursday. Weak high pressure will take over Friday and persist through the weekend, keeping rain chances low. Hurricane Jose is forecast to remain over the Atlantic through next week.



WEATHER SPONSOR



Adams Products, a Division of Oldcastle is underwriting the daily weather briefing and public safety updates for the month. They have all your masonry products (block, mortars, tools), plus feature Belgrade Pavers and Sakrete Products. Open 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM, M-F, located at 895 Hickory Knoll Road, Franklin, NC.

Visit their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/Adams.Oldcastle.Franklin.NC/

Their phone number is 828.524.8545, all are welcome, let them help you with your next project.



Weather Almanac for September 13th (1872-2016)

Record weather events for this date in Macon County

Highest Temperature 92°F in Franklin in 1962
Lowest Temperature 32°F in Highlands in 1917
Greatest Rainfall 2.63 inches in Highlands in 1893

On this date in 1917 marks the earliest recorded time in the season that temperatures dipped to 32°F. There were undoubtedly times this happened earlier, but this is the earliest is has been recorded.


Record weather events for September in Macon County

Highest Temperature 98°F in Franklin on Sept 4, 1975
Lowest Temperature 27°F in Franklin on Sept 30, 1967
Greatest Rainfall 11.87 inches in Highlands on Sept 29, 1967


THREE DAY OUTLOOK



TODAY

Patchy fog in the morning. Partly cloudy with temperatures starting off near 50 and reaching highs near 70 in the Franklin area and 5 to 10 degrees cooler in Highlands and the higher elevations. 30% chance of showers, mainly after 10 am. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is expected.

TONIGHT

Mostly cloudy with fog expected to develop after midnight and lows in the mid-50s in the Franklin area and 5 to 8 degrees cooler in Highlands and the higher elevations. Winds out of the northwest calming before midnight. 30% chance of showers with less than a tenth of an inch accumulation expected.



THURSDAY

Mostly cloudy with highs in the mid-70s in the Franklin area and near 70 in Highlands and the higher elevations. Calm winds in the morning then wind from the west in the afternoon.

THURSDAY NIGHT

Partly cloudy with lows in the mid-50s and calm winds.



FRIDAY

Mostly sunny with highs ranging from 70 in the higher elevations to near 80 in the Franklin area. Winds are expected to be calm.

FRIDAY NIGHT

Partly cloudy with lows ranging from around 50 in the higher elevations to nearly 60 in the Franklin area.

HAZARDS

There is no hazardous weather in the forecast. All wind warnings and watches have been canceled, effective at 4 am. That does not mean there are no longer any hazards. There are still numerous trees down in Macon County, and some of them may be in roadways and a number of them may be wrapped in power lines. Do not try to cut trees that have power lines in them because if they are energized, you could be injured or killed.



Macon Media maintains a Severe Weather Preparedness Page at http://thunderpigblog.blogspot.com/p/breaking-news-hub.html for those who are interested.


As always, you can check to see what advisories, watches, and warnings are in effect for Macon County by visiting http://is.gd/MACONWARN



TROPICAL WEATHER OUTLOOK


Tropical Weather Outlook
NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
200 AM EDT Wed Sep 13 2017

For the North Atlantic...The Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico:

The National Hurricane Center is issuing advisories on Hurricane Jose, located several hundred miles northeast of the southeastern Bahamas.

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 5 days.



IRMA Remnants

Irma, once a powerful category-5 hurricane north of the Caribbean Islands, has continued to lose tropical characteristics as it interacts with an upper-level trough and moves further inland across the southeastern U.S. Although Irma's remnant circulation remains large, a lack of replenishing cool air from Canada means that Irma will gradually dissipate over the mid-Mississippi Valley during the next couple of days. Only very modest amounts of addition rain are expected over the Mississippi Valley into the Tennessee Valley through tomorrow before the circulation dissipates on Thursday. Nevertheless, a piece of the moisture is forecast to move eastward across the Eastern Seaboard on Thursday ahead of a weak front, where some scattered showers and thunderstorms can be expected to linger. Some showers and thunderstorms are expected in Florida as well. With the expansive cloud cover associated with the remnants of Irma, temperatures will continue to be much cooler than normal from the Mississippi Valley northeastward into the Ohio Valley.

FORECAST POSITIONS
------------------
INITIAL 12/2100Z 35.1N 88.2W
12HR VT 13/0600Z 35.9N 89.4W...REMNANT LOW
24HR VT 13/1800Z 39.2N 89.3W...REMNANT LOW
36HR VT 14/0600Z...DISSIPATED


MACON CALENDAR

If you have an event you wish to be added to this calendar, please send the information, along with a flyer in pdf format or a high-quality photo, to editor@maconmedia.com. If you want text published, please include a paragraph with your photo, flyer or graphic. Please include date(s) and time(s).
There is no charge for civic, educational or nonprofit groups, except for groups or events that receive funding from the TDA, TDC, and EDC, where full rates apply.



The Future Farmers of America are selling Raffle Tickets
More information is posted below:

Support Franklin FFA (Future Farmers of America)
!!! RAFFLE TICKETS !!!!

$5.00 a ticket or 5 for $20.00

Winner announced & does not be present at The Macon County Fair 2017
September 13-16, 2017 at The Wayne Proffitt Agriculture Center - Macon County Fairgrounds, 1436 Georgia Rd, Franklin NC 28734
Raffle is for Adventure Package, valued at $300.00...

Items are:
1. Cargo Carrier ( donated by Ultimate Truck Accessories) - can be used atop an SUV/Van or rear hitch
2. Foldable Camp Chairs in Camo with Table
3. Burn Fire Log (Swedish Flame Torch)
4. Lighter
5. Heavy Duty Flashlight
6. "Over the flame" cooking basket
7. Roasting Sticks
8. Bug Spray

We thank Appalachian Ace Hardware for their support.

*All proceeds go to Franklin FFA & FHS Ag Dept*
Contact Gregory Charles Spala via FB or 813-838-7693 text or call
Or Lori Spala via FB or 813-503-2160


September 27th, WEDNESDAY

HOSPICE HOUSE FOUNDATION OF WNC

PEACEFUL JOURNEY
3rd annual charity dining event
hosted by RISTORANTE PAOLETTI at 440 Main Street in Highlands

For information, visit http://hhfwnc.org/peaceful-journey/


National Alliance on Mental Illness
Appalachian South

Meets each Thursday at 7pm
The First Methodist Church Outreach Center
at the intersection of Harrison Ave. and West Main Street
(directly across from Lazy Hiker Brewery)

Come join our weekly support group for anyone suffering from mental illness and their family or friends. This includes Depression, Bipolar,8chizophrenia, PTSD, Substance Abuse, Etc.

Here you will find:
— others living with mental health challenges YOU ARE NOT ALONE
- learn coping skills and ?find hope in shared experience
- help learning how to break down stigma and guilt surrounding mental health
- how to live life with the expectation of a better a better future

Kay (706)970-9987 Denise (828)347-5000)

SYRINGE EXCHANGE PROGRAM

On January 1, 2017, the Syringe Exchange Program of Franklin began operating a comprehensive harm reduction program to address the opioid epidemic that is impacting western NC. Opioid overdose reversal kits including naloxone are available free of charge. If you have any questions about our services or if you know someone interested in volunteering, please contact Stephanie Almeida at 828-475-1920.



Sun and Moon

Sun

Begin civil twilight 6:50 a.m.
Sunrise 7:15 a.m.
Sun transit 1:29 p.m.
Sunset 7:43 p.m.
End civil twilight 8:08 p.m.

Moon

Moonrise 12:27 a.m.
Moon transit 7:37 a.m.
Moonset 2:49 p.m.


Phase of the Moon on September 13, 2017: Last Quarter at 2:25 a.m. (local daylight time)




Sky Guides for this week

I took some epic photos of the solar eclipse, but have not yet had time to process them. I will be producing material from the photos and video for sale as a fundraiser for Macon Media. --Bobby

Sky and Telescope Magazine 
Astronomy Magazine


Earth Sky has an article on the eclipses of 2017. [LINK]

Heavens Above has an Android App that will assist you in observing the sky and even has a satellite tracker that will let you know when the International Space Station and dozens of other satellites are overhead. [LINK]

Stellarium is also an app that will assist you in observing the sky. It is available in both Android [LINK] and iOS versions. [LINK]

CROWD FUNDING OR DAY SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.

If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online. You have made it possible for Macon Media to begin purchasing state of the art equipment and begin work on building a real website with features not employed by any local news outlets.

You can find out more information on how to do that and some of what I plan to accomplish if I reach certain levels of funding at https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia

Published at 4:44 am on September 13, 2017

#WNCscan #MaconWx #MaconSafety

Data and information sources: Sources (except where otherwise credited): heavens-above.com, Ian Webster's Github, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, The National Weather Service, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, Penn State University Electronic Wall Map, The State Climate Office of North Carolina, Storm Prediction Center, U.S. Naval Observatory, and the Weather Prediction Center.