Hurricane Floyd is expected to bring significant amounts of rain to Massachusetts and Rhode Island on Thursday and Friday. During this storm event the U.S. Geological Survey will have 8 teams in the field making high-flow measurements at USGS stream-gaging sites on 30 rivers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. This information will be used to ensure that the most accurate measurements possible of the amount (discharge) and height (stage) of water in swollen streams are measured at these stations.
During Hurricane Floyd the USGS will be operating and maintaining 102 gaging stations throughout Massachusetts and Rhode Island where water level and flow will be monitored continuously. Fifty-four of these stations are equipped with instrumentation that allows the USGS to monitor remotely the current water level and flow of the rivers at 15 minute intervals. This streamflow information is relayed to the National Weather Service (NWS) and other State and Federal agencies, such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA). This discharge and stage information is used by flood forecasters and water resources managers at these agencies to warn the public of impending floods and also manage water levels at locks and dams, levees, and diversions.
This information about Massachusetts and Rhode Island streamflows may be
found on the USGS Massachusetts--Rhode Island District home page:
http://ma.water.usgs.gov/
Hurricane preparedness information from the USGS may be found at:
http://www.usgs.gov/
Other USGS information related to the 1999 Hurricane Season and USGS
hurricane and severe storm research projects information may be found
at:
http://ma.water.usgs.gov/hurricane_season_99.htm
As the nation's largest water, earth and biological science and civilian mapping agency, the USGS works in cooperation with more than 2000 organizations across the country to provide reliable, impartial, scientific information to resource managers, planners, and other customers. This information is gathered in every state by USGS scientists to minimize the loss of life and property from natural disasters, to contribute to the conservation and the sound economic and physical development of the nation's natural resources, and to enhance the quality of life by monitoring water, biological, energy, and mineral resources.
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