By KSN Chief Meteorologist Dave Freeman

October 2004 -- Somebody in Florida must have made the Big Guy Upstairs really mad. I mean really, really mad. Charley....Frances...Ivan....Jeanne....the first time since 1886 that a state has been struck by four hurricanes in a single season. Here in Kansas, we have been mesmerized by the spectacle unfolding on NBC Nightly News. Homes blasted apart, debris scattered across neighborhoods and then scattered again by the next hurricane; beaches and beach front roads excavated by massive storm surge; raging flood waters taking lives; parades of cars waiting in lines for hours for a few precious gallons of gas or a bag of ice. The recovery will be long, hard and expensive and I am sure that I speak for all Kansans when I wish our Floridian neighbors all the best in these difficult times.

Has it ever been worse, you might ask? The answer to that question is, unfortunately, yes. In 1900, Galveston, Texas, was nearly wiped out by a powerful hurricane. To this day, it remains the deadliest natural disaster in US history--by some accounts taking more than 8000 lives. We believe it was a Category 4 hurricane, packing winds of 150mph, with a monstrous storm surge of sea water that cut right through the island city of Galveston.

But what makes this story truly awful is that it "came out of nowhere." It is hard for us to comprehend in this day of satellites, Doppler Radar, the Internet, cell phones, 24 hour news and weather coverage, and sophisticated computer simulation of the atmosphere. But the simple fact is that the people of Galveston had absolutely no idea anything was wrong until it was way, way too late. By the time the alarm was raised, it was impossible to leave the city and thousands were left to their terrifying fate in the grip of monstrous waves and the incessant roar of 150mph wind.

Yet there is more to this story. It is not just a tragedy--it is a classic Greek tragedy complete with a hero who falls from grace due to a fatal flaw. You see, in 1900, many people thought that science had advanced to the point where we knew everything that we needed to know. If we believe author Erik Larson, one of those people was Isaac Cline, head of the US Weather Bureau at Galveston on that fateful day.

In his book "Isaac's Storm," Larson transports us to 1900 Galveston and paints a vivid portrait of Isaac in all his confident glory. He makes a convincing argument that Cline was not, as he later claimed, the hero of Galveston. Instead, it is Cline's mistaken belief in his own understanding of the powerful forces of atmosphere and ocean that contribute mightily to the tragedy.

This book was poignant for me--reminding me of how important it is to stay in a learning mode, never taking things for granted, always keeping our guard up. In a way, it reminded me of the infamous Udall tornado of 1955. In that case, TV weathercasters told folks storms were over that night and it was OK to go to bed. 15 minutes later, the massive tornado struck. The parallel was so eerie, I actually made Isaac's Storm required reading for the KSN WeatherLab Team. It was an easy sell. The entire team found the book compelling and sobering. The book has been out a while, but I can heartily recommend it for any one interested in meteorology and fascinated by the human condition.

Dave Freeman
KSN Chief Meteorologist
weatherlab@ksn.com