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Flood watches across Texas and Oklahoma; FY27 starts on a CR
jeudi 1 octobre 2026 • Durée 06:10
THE EMN DAILY NEWS | Thursday, 1 October 2026
The Overview
Flood watches across Texas and Oklahoma; FY27 starts on a CR
Flood watches cover southern Oklahoma and much of north and central Texas today as the remnants of Hurricane Polo move across the region, with flash flood warnings overnight around Wichita Falls and a watch running through Friday evening over the Hill Country counties still in Public Assistance recovery from the July floods. Fiscal year 2027 opens on a continuing resolution that runs through December 11, holding agencies at fiscal 2026 levels and permitting up to $26.37 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 58 incidents and 4,826 personnel, down 574 in a day, with no new large fires. Year-to-date fire counts were adjusted sharply upward to 62,218, moving the season from 124 to 134 percent of the ten-year average. Dome in Yosemite National Park reached 39 percent contained as a second California team mobilizes.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS
Oklahoma and north Texas: The Norman forecast office holds a flood watch until 1 p.m. today for 25 Oklahoma counties and five northern Texas counties, with 2 to 4 inches likely and local amounts to 6 inches. Flash flood warnings ran overnight for Wichita Falls, Burkburnett, Iowa Park and Sheppard Air Force Base after 1 to 3 inches fell in short order.
Central Texas: The Fort Worth office carries a flood watch through Friday morning across north central Texas, including Dallas, Denton, Collin and McLennan counties, with 2 to 3 inches widespread and localized totals to 5 inches. The Austin and San Antonio office holds a watch until 7 p.m. Friday for Hill Country counties including Kerr, Bandera, Uvalde, Real, Edwards, Gillespie and Kendall, all of which carry open Public Assistance from the July declaration.
Fiscal year: Agencies begin fiscal 2027 under the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, signed September 2, which funds the government through December 11 at prior-year levels. The measure permits up to $26.37 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund, with obligations charged against fiscal 2027 appropriations rather than treated as supplemental. Under a continuing resolution, agencies cannot start programs, projects or activities that were not already funded and active, which constrains new grant starts until a full-year bill passes.
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Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 58 incidents, 14 uncontained large fires, 1,641,606 acres and 4,826 personnel, a drop of 574, per the Wednesday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 91 fires and no new large incidents; one large fire was contained, and five complex teams were committed. The Northwest, Northern California and Southern Area each released more than 220 people in a single operational period.
Reporting adjustment: Year-to-date fires rose from 57,521 to 62,218 in one reporting cycle, almost entirely in the Southern Area, which moved from 28,661 to 33,302. That shifts the season from 124 to 134 percent of the ten-year average for fire counts. The situation report attributes such changes to mapping or reporting adjustments rather than new activity, and a similar acreage swing last week reversed within days.
California: Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 151 acres to 5,410 and jumped to 39 percent contained, up from 31, with 932 personnel and California Team 4 mobilizing. Costs stand at $24 million. Plaskett on the Los Padres National Forest is fully contained, and Timber holds at 88 percent with numerous structures still threatened.
Northwest: Eight uncontained large fires and 2,186 personnel, down 239. Command on Little Giant transfers from Northwest Team 13 to Northwest Team 12 today, with the fire at 93 percent contained and structures still threatened. Sisi near Stehekin nearly doubled containment to 29 percent, with residences threatened.
Recovery calendar: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 public assistance declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas, with economic injury applications open to June 1, 2027. Texas recently added Grimes, Live Oak, McMullen and Schleicher counties for Public Assistance, and its Individual Assistance request covering 30 counties remains pending.
Fire weather: Breezy northerly winds in the Sacramento Valley and southern California ease this morning, but relative humidity of 10 to 15 percent persists with above-normal temperatures. In the southern Plains, breezy south winds of 10 to 18 miles per hour and minimum humidity of 25 to 35 percent create locally elevated conditions.
SOURCES
Texas and Oklahoma flooding
NWS Norman: Flood Watch for 25 Oklahoma counties and five northern Texas counties, issued Oct 1 at 1:41 a.m. CDT until 1 p.m. CDT
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Wednesday, Sept 30, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for all fire figures and the California, Northwest and fire weather items.
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Assistance caps rise to $44,800 as FEMA redefines the field
mercredi 30 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:21
FEMA has issued a formal definition of emergency management, calling it the strategic coordination of emergency services to protect life, property, and continuity of operations, and paired it with 12 coordination responsibilities that every FEMA component must now align its doctrine, training and publications to. Three Federal Register notices published yesterday reset the annual assistance numbers: Individuals and Households Program maximums rise to $44,800 each for housing and other needs, Serious Needs Assistance goes to $790, and the Public Assistance simplified procedures threshold moves to $1,093,800. Texas added four more counties for Public Assistance, while its Individual Assistance request for 30 counties remains pending. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 62 incidents and 5,400 personnel, down 297, and three new large fires in the Southern Area. Moisture from decaying Hurricane Polo brings wetting rain and localized flooding to the Southwest and Colorado today.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS
FEMA doctrine: The definition came in a September memorandum from Administrator Cameron Hamilton, released September 22 during National Preparedness Month. It sets 12 coordination responsibilities running from capacity building through continuous improvement, alongside professional skills covering command and coordination, consequence analysis, planning, decision-making under pressure, technical writing and after-action analysis. FEMA says the standard applies regardless of sector, and all components will update doctrine, policy, guidance, training, workforce materials and exercise products to match.
Assistance thresholds: The new figures took effect with yesterday’s Federal Register notices and are indexed to a 2.9 percent increase in the Consumer Price Index for the 12 months ending August 2025. The Individuals and Households Program caps at $44,800 for housing assistance and $44,800 for other needs assistance. Serious Needs Assistance is set at $790. The Public Assistance simplified procedures threshold rises to $1,093,800.
Texas: The major disaster declaration for the July storms and flooding now includes Grimes, Live Oak, McMullen and Schleicher counties for Public Assistance, in addition to the 19 counties approved earlier. The state’s request for Individual Assistance covering 30 counties remains pending.
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Hawaii shifts to damage assessment; Northeast power restored
mardi 29 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:05
THE EMN NEWS DAILY BRIEF | Tuesday, 29 September 2026
Hawaii County has shifted from response to damage assessment after Hurricane Nolo and is asking residents and businesses to file damage reports through separate residential and commercial forms. Governor Josh Green has identified roughly $686 million in damage and recovery costs from the state’s first four disasters of 2026, before Nolo, which was the season’s seventh tropical cyclone. In the Northeast, Rhode Island Energy restored all 50,000 customers it lost in under 48 hours, and PSEG Long Island reported more than 128,000 cumulative outages, with more than 99 percent restored by late Monday. The nor’easter produced an 81-mile-per-hour gust at Montauk Point and 6.3 inches of rain in southeastern Massachusetts. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 64 incidents and 5,697 personnel, down 306, while the Southern Area reported 63 new fires. CISA released nine industrial control system advisories last week. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hawaii assessment: Mayor Kimo Alameda said flooding remains the county’s biggest concern, particularly in Kau, where roads closed after overnight rain. Naalehu, Waiohinu and Pahala took the brunt of the rain and wind, the same communities Hurricane Lala hit in August. The three shelters opened in Naalehu, Pahala and Ocean View held 10 people Sunday morning and have since closed.
Hawaii water system: Department of Water Supply crews are assessing the system for damage and connecting backup generators, and will notify customers when normal use may resume. Customers may see low pressure or intermittent service while conditions stabilize. The essential-use request remains in effect.
Kauai deadlines: Hurricane Lowell recovery continues, with the Koloa hurricane resource center open today and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Households that lost food to power outages may be eligible for replacement SNAP benefits. Real property tax exemption applications close tomorrow with no extensions. Owners of storm-damaged property have until June 30, 2027, to file for disaster tax relief.
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Federal declaration for Hawaii as Nolo passes; deadly nor'easter floods the Northeast
lundi 28 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:01
Hurricane Nolo passed farther south than forecast and spared Hawaii Island the worst case, but flooded roads on the Big Island, prompted five high-water rescues Sunday and knocked out power on Oahu and Maui. A pre-landfall Presidential Emergency Declaration approved Friday covers four counties at a 75 percent federal cost share. On the East Coast, the nor’easter killed a New York City Housing Authority worker struck by a falling tree Saturday in Brooklyn, drove outages past 100,000 customers at their peak, and produced the worst coastal flooding since Sandy at two Jersey Shore tide gauges. New Jersey and New York both declared states of emergency before landfall. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 69 incidents and 6,003 personnel, down 305, and three new large fires, including one near Benton City, Washington, that destroyed seven structures. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hawaii outcome: Nolo tracked south of the main islands, with rainfall above 14 inches at the Big Island's highest elevations. Crews worked through Sunday on flooding, debris, high surf and wind. Highway 11 in Kau closed in multiple locations between Pahala and Waiohinu. Hawaii County Civil Defense is asking residents and businesses to report storm damage so agencies and nonprofit partners can assess unmet needs.
Hawaii infrastructure: The Hawaii County Department of Water Supply asked customers in affected service areas to limit water to essential health and safety needs, citing power outages and possible damage to water system infrastructure. County solid waste transfer stations in Kauai stayed closed, and the Hele-On Route 90 run to Kona was canceled.
Federal declaration: The pre-landfall declaration approved September 25 provides federal assistance for emergency protective measures in the City and County of Honolulu and Hawaii, Maui and Kauai counties, including direct federal assistance, at a 75 percent federal cost share. The State Emergency Operations Center remains at Level 1 full activation with 24-hour staffing, coordinating with FEMA Region IX, the counties and utilities.
Get ready, Long Beach! Join emergency management professionals from across the country and around the world for the IAEM 74th Annual Conference & EMEX, November 9-11, 2026, and experience three incredible days of big ideas, new connections, innovation, and the people shaping the future of emergency management. We’ll see you in Long Beach!
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Hurricane Nolo nears Hawaii Island; nor'easter warnings from Virginia to Massachusetts
vendredi 25 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:56
THE EMN DAILY NEWS BRIEF | Friday, 25 September 2026
Nolo became a hurricane Thursday night and is closing on Hawaii Island with 80-mile-per-hour winds, a tropical storm warning and hurricane watch for Hawaii County, a tropical storm watch for Maui County, and forecast rainfall of 15 to 30 inches on the eastern and southern Big Island. Hawaii County opens five more shelters this morning, and state and county offices, public schools and University of Hawaii facilities on the island are closed today. High wind warnings took effect at 8 a.m. for coastal Massachusetts and most of Rhode Island as the nor’easter strengthens, with coastal flood warnings up in southeastern Virginia. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 74 incidents and 6,824 personnel, down 520, and Northern California now reports no uncontained large fires. Correction: Thursday’s issue reported year-to-date acreage revised down to 8,096,338; today’s report puts it at 8,559,888, or 145 percent of average, so that drop was a reporting lag rather than a revision. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hurricane Nolo: The Central Pacific Hurricane Center put Nolo at 80 miles per hour at 11 p.m. Thursday, centered 240 miles south of South Point and moving north-northeast at 5 miles per hour. Hurricane-force winds extend 40 miles from the center. Forecasters expect rapid intensification to a major hurricane Saturday, with a sharp turn west near the Big Island. Tropical storm conditions begin late Friday in the warning area, with hurricane conditions possible early Saturday.
Hawaii operations: Hawaii County is opening five additional shelters this morning. Governor Josh Green closed state and county offices, Department of Education schools and University of Hawaii campuses on Hawaii Island Thursday and Friday. This is the state’s fourth tropical system of the season, after Lala in August and Lowell earlier this month, and Green put combined damage and planned resilience costs from the run of disasters above $1 billion.
Get ready, Long Beach! Join emergency management professionals from across the country and around the world for the IAEM 74th Annual Conference & EMEX, November 9-11, 2026, and experience three incredible days of big ideas, new connections, innovation, and the people shaping the future of emergency management. We’ll see you in Long Beach!
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Hurricane watch for Hawaii Island; nor'easter floods the East Coast
jeudi 24 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:04
THE EMN NEWS DAILY BRIEF | Thursday, 24 September 2026
Tropical Storm Nolo formed south of Hawaii on Wednesday, and a hurricane watch is in effect for Hawaii County, with a flood watch covering the Big Island and Maui County through Saturday evening. Forecast rainfall is 15 to 20 inches on Hawaii Island, with isolated totals to 35 inches, on ground already damaged by Hurricane Lala in August. A strengthening nor’easter is driving coastal flooding and gale-force marine winds from North Carolina to southern New England, with a wind advisory posted for the Atlantic coasts of New Jersey and Delaware through Friday evening. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine declared a state of emergency Tuesday for 19 counties hit by flooding. The national preparedness level holds at 2 with 87 incidents and 8,523 personnel, down 1,178 in a day. Year-to-date acreage was revised down to 8,096,338, or 137 percent of average, from 146 percent. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hawaii: Nolo was centered about 285 miles south of South Point late Wednesday with 50-mile-per-hour winds, crawling north at 2 miles per hour. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center forecasts hurricane strength by Thursday night and possibly a major hurricane by the weekend, with the closest approach to the Big Island Friday into Saturday. A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions are possible within 48 hours.
Hawaii impacts: The state emergency management agency forecasts widespread totals of 15 to 20 inches on Hawaii Island, with isolated totals of 35 inches in the southeast; catastrophic flooding is possible Friday and Saturday, with life-threatening landslides in steep terrain. Maui could see 5 to 10 inches, with isolated totals of 20. Molokai, Lanai and Oahu could see up to 4 inches and Kauai up to 2. Peak storm surge of 1 to 3 feet above ground is possible on Hawaii Island at high tide.
Nor’easter: The Mount Holly forecast office reports persistent northeast winds through at least Friday, sustained 25 to 35 miles per hour with gusts to 50 on the New Jersey and Delaware Atlantic coasts, inland gusts to 35, gale-force winds across all coastal waters, and seas of 8 to 15 feet. A coastal flood advisory runs through tonight and a wind advisory through 6 p.m. Friday. The storm coincides with the full moon this weekend, which raises tide levels through successive cycles.
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Two pilots killed on the Dome fire; Hawaii flood watch
mercredi 23 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:43
THE EMN NEWS DAILY BRIEF | Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Two pilots were killed Sunday when a helicopter under contract to the Forest Service crashed on the Dome fire in Yosemite National Park. The national preparedness level dropped to 2 with 92 incidents, 31 uncontained large fires and 9,701 personnel, down 588 in a day. A flood watch runs from this afternoon through Saturday afternoon for Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe and Hawaii Island as the remnants of Tropical Depression Fifteen-E organize southeast of the state; the next central Pacific name is Nolo. Hurricane Polo is a Category 4 off southwestern Mexico with 150-mile-per-hour winds and outer rainbands reaching the coast. The Southern Area reported 43 new fires and one new large incident near Bastrop, Louisiana. Two to five inches of rain is forecast today across New Mexico and eastern Arizona. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Yosemite: The situation report opened with notice that both pilots aboard a Forest Service contract helicopter were fatally injured in an accident on the Dome fire on September 20. The fire grew from 373 acres to 3,420, remains 15 percent contained, and personnel rose by 203 to 784, with a California team assigned.
Hawaii watch: The National Weather Service flood watch covers Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe and Hawaii Island from Wednesday afternoon through Saturday afternoon. Forecast totals vary widely by outlet, with the Fox Forecast Center putting localized amounts on the eastern Big Island at 12 to 18 inches and gusts of 30 to 40 miles per hour on a close approach. The system is still a remnant low, and the track will not settle until it closes off.
Hurricane Polo: The 1200 UTC intermediate advisory put Polo at 150 miles per hour and 922 millibars, drifting north at 2 miles per hour about 165 miles off Zihuatanejo. Winds peaked near 180 miles per hour Tuesday. Hurricane-force winds extend 40 miles from the center and tropical storm-force winds 105 miles. The core is forecast to stay offshore while turning northwest.
Wildfire posture: National Preparedness Level 2, down from 3, with 92 incidents, 31 uncontained large fires, 1,923,544 acres and 9,701 personnel, a drop of 588, per the Tuesday situation report. Six complex incident management teams remain committed, down from nine on Saturday. Year to date, the country is at 56,794 fires and 8,554,955 acres, 125 and 146 percent of the ten-year averages.
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THE EMN DAILY NEWS | Monday, 21 September 2026
mardi 22 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:25
THE EMN DAILY NEWS | Monday, 21 September 2026
Tropical Storm Fay peaked at 70 miles per hour overnight, just short of hurricane strength, and is now weakening about 405 miles southwest of the Azores with no hazards to land. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center gives the remnants of Tropical Depression Fifteen-E a 60 percent chance of becoming a depression within seven days, possibly south or southeast of Hawaii later this week. National Preparedness Level 3 holds with 96 incidents and 10,886 personnel, down 437 in a day, and uncontained large fires fell from 46 to 34. The Southern Area carries more incidents than any other region, 36, as hot and dry conditions persist across the Lower Mississippi Valley. Boil water advisories are in effect in three states, including all of Monroe County, Indiana, and most of Kalamazoo, Michigan. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hawai’i watch: As of Sunday’s outlook, the Central Pacific Hurricane Center puts formation chances for the remnants of Tropical Depression Fifteen-E near zero through 48 hours and at 60 percent over seven days as the system moves west to west-southwest. A depression could form south or southeast of the Hawaiian Islands once conditions improve. No watches are posted, keeping the first half of the week as the preparation window.
Atlantic: Fay reached 70 miles per hour at the 0300 UTC advisory, then weakened to 65 miles per hour and 997 millibars by 0900 UTC, drifting south-southeast at 2 miles per hour. The National Hurricane Center expects Fay to become post-tropical in a day or two and to dissipate by Saturday. No hazards affect land.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 3 holds with 96 incidents, 34 uncontained large fires, 1,999,381 acres and 10,886 personnel, a drop of 437, per the Sunday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 60 fires and no new large incidents, and eight complex incident management teams remain committed. Year to date, the country is at 56,525 fires and 8,541,715 acres, 125 percent and 146 percent of the ten-year averages.
Southern Area: Thirty-six incidents and 1,038 personnel, down 157, after 26 new fires. Dry River near Sonora, Texas, is 8,939 acres and 85 percent contained, with energy infrastructure threatened. Gracemont near Binger, Oklahoma, has destroyed 31 structures on 2,665 acres and is 60 percent contained. Relative humidity of 20 to 30 percent persists across the Lower Mississippi Valley.
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THE EMN NEWS DAILY BRIEF | Tuesday, 22 September 2026
mardi 22 septembre 2026 • Durée 06:45
THE EMN NEWS DAILY | Tuesday, 22 September 2026
The remnants of Tropical Depression Fifteen-E southeast of Hawaii are now likely to become a tropical depression within a day or two, up from a medium chance over the weekend. In the eastern Pacific, Hurricane Polo reached Category 4 overnight with 130-mile-per-hour winds, and the Associated Press reports it reached Category 5 Tuesday, with a tropical storm watch posted from Tecpan de Galeana to Manzanillo, Mexico. Fay has lost its deep convection 570 miles southwest of the Azores and is expected to become post-tropical today. National Preparedness Level 3 holds with 95 incidents and 10,289 personnel, down 597, and three new large fires, including Chileno in Marin County with structures threatened. Evacuations are again listed as in effect for the Three Queens fire in Washington. The EMN NEWS Daily Brief is your concise daily update on national and state-by-state emergency management news.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Hawaii watch: The Central Pacific Hurricane Center’s 0200 HST outlook says the remnants of Fifteen-E, several hundred miles southeast of the islands, produced an increase in showers and thunderstorms overnight, and a depression is likely in the next day or two as the system moves west-northwest or northwest slowly. Sunday’s outlook carried a 60 percent chance over seven days. The system is not yet under advisories.
Hurricane Polo: The 0600 UTC intermediate advisory put Polo at 130 miles per hour and 955 millibars, 330 miles south-southeast of Manzanillo. The National Hurricane Center forecasts 4 to 8 inches of rain, with isolated totals of 12 inches, across coastal Guerrero and Michoacán through Thursday, with life-threatening flooding and mudslides possible. The core is forecast to stay offshore.
Atlantic: Fay weakened to 40 miles per hour and 1009 millibars at the 0900 UTC advisory, moving southwest at 9 miles per hour. It peaked at 70 miles per hour Sunday night without reaching hurricane strength and has no hazards to land.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 3 holds with 95 incidents, 33 uncontained large fires, 1,968,316 acres and 10,289 personnel, a drop of 597, per the Monday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 46 fires, three new large incidents and seven complex incident management teams committed. Northern California dropped to Preparedness Level 2. Year to date: 56,651 fires and 8,542,800 acres, 125 and 146 percent of the ten-year averages.
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September 11: The Recovery That Never Really Ended
lundi 14 septembre 2026 • Durée 31:27
Episode Description
September 11: The Recovery That Never Really Ended
Twenty-five years after the attacks of September 11, 2001, the skyline of Lower Manhattan has been rebuilt—but recovery is about far more than buildings.
In this episode of Emergency Management Network, Todd DeVoe examines the long aftermath of 9/11: rebuilding Ground Zero, caring for responders and survivors, confronting World Trade Center-related illnesses, preserving memory, and understanding why the emotional wounds of that morning remain so powerful a quarter-century later.
Recent confrontations near Ground Zero during the 25th anniversary observances remind us that disaster memory does not follow an emergency manager’s recovery timeline. Places become symbols. Grief becomes generational. Anger can survive long after debris has been removed.
The episode also explores a sobering reality of long-term recovery: more FDNY members have now died from World Trade Center-related illnesses than were killed in the attacks themselves. Thousands of responders and survivors continue to receive monitoring and treatment, while researchers are still examining health consequences that may span generations.
September 11 challenges the way emergency managers think about recovery. Infrastructure can be restored. Businesses can reopen. Memorials can be built. But how do we measure the recovery of people?
Perhaps the lesson 25 years later is that we need to add something to “Never Forget.”
Never stop recovering.
Show Notes
Emergency Management Network
Episode: September 11: The Recovery That Never Really EndedSubtitle: 25 Years of Rebuilding, Recovery, Memory, and HealingHost: Todd DeVoe
Twenty-five years after September 11, 2001, this episode looks beyond the attacks themselves and examines what happened afterward.
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Get ready, Long Beach! Join emergency management professionals from across the country and around the world for the IAEM 74th Annual Conference & EMEX, November 9-11, 2026, and experience three incredible days of big ideas, new connections, innovation, and the people shaping the future of emergency management. We’ll see you in Long Beach!
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 62 incidents, 15 uncontained large fires, 1,690,313 acres and 5,400 personnel, a drop of 297, per the Tuesday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 90 fires, three new large incidents, two large fires contained and five complex teams committed. Year to date, the country is at 57,521 fires and 8,565,689 acres, 124 and 141 percent of the ten-year averages.
Southern Area: Fifty-five new fires and three new large incidents. Honey, nine miles southwest of Okmulgee, Oklahoma, on Bureau of Indian Affairs protection, is 333 acres and 80 percent contained, with active fire behavior and structures threatened. 3 Alpha Sierra, five miles west of Weston, Florida, is 330 acres and 16 percent contained. Stone Bridge near Wilburton, Oklahoma, grew to 45 acres with residences threatened.
California: Timber on the Los Padres National Forest jumped to 88 percent contained, up from 77, with numerous structures still threatened and costs at $171.6 million. Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 178 acres to 5,259 acres, at 31 percent contained. Command on Plaskett transfers back to the local unit today.
Northwest: Eight uncontained large fires and 2,425 personnel, down 163. Little Giant on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest rose to 91 percent contained with structures still threatened, and Northwest Team 12 is mobilizing. Three Queens holds at 33 percent contained with numerous residences and critical infrastructure threatened.
Recovery calendar: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas, with economic injury applications open to June 1, 2027.
Fire weather: Breezy northerly winds develop in parts of the Sacramento Valley and southern California with relative humidity of 10 to 15 percent, creating elevated conditions. Downslope westerly winds are expected in north-central Montana east of the Divide. Moisture from decaying Hurricane Polo persists over the Southwest and Colorado with widespread wetting rain and local amounts near 3 inches, bringing areas of flooding.
SOURCES
FEMA doctrine
FEMA, Administrator’s Corner: We Must Return to the Basics, A Definition of Emergency Management and Professional Framework, released Sept 22 (page could not be retrieved in this sweep; text supplied by the editor)
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Tuesday, Sept 29, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for all fire figures and the Southern Area, California and Northwest items.
Nor’easter restoration: Rhode Island Energy deployed more than 270 crew members and field personnel, responded to more than 270 vegetation-related outages and over 150 wires-down 911 calls, and replaced 20 broken poles. Scituate, South Kingstown, Cumberland and Coventry were hardest hit. PSEG Long Island ran 16-hour shifts against more than 1,000 downed trees and 530 large branches.
Coastal damage: Long Island is assessing steep erosion at Gilgo Beach, where the Army Corps of Engineers was already mobilized for sand replenishment. The stairs to the surf at Smith Point Park were destroyed, part of the Jones Beach fishing pier was knocked down, and the Jones Beach theater took significant damage with water reaching the orchestra seats. In Lindenhurst, floodwater surrounded homes for three days. Measured coastal inundation in New York City topped 2.6 feet.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 64 incidents, 17 uncontained large fires, 1,681,161 acres and 5,697 personnel, a drop of 306, per the Monday situation report. Initial attack was light at 89 fires, with one new large incident and five complex teams committed. Year to date, the country is at 57,339 fires and 8,563,287 acres, 124 and 142 percent of the ten-year averages.
Southern Area: Sixty-three new fires, the most of any region by a wide margin, and one new large incident. Rafter 4B southeast of Eldorado, Texas grew 850 acres to 2,100 and rose to 50 percent contained, adding 114 personnel. Grover Bend, southeast of Benjamin, Texas, is 320 acres and 60 percent contained.
California: Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 475 acres to 5,081, holding at 30 percent contained with costs at $19.9 million. Timber on the Los Padres National Forest rose to 77 percent contained, with numerous structures still threatened. Command on Plaskett, at 99 percent contained, transfers back to the local unit today.
Cyber: CISA released nine industrial control system advisories on September 22, ICSA-26-265-01 through 09. The set covers the lwIP TCP/IP stack, Siemens Siveillance Control, Desigo CC, Industrial Edge Management, and OpenPLC Runtime v3.
Fire weather: Abundant moisture from Hurricane Polo moves into the Southwest with widespread showers, scattered thunderstorms and localized flooding. Dry conditions and below-normal temperatures return to California, the western Great Basin, the Northwest and the northern Rockies.
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Monday, Sept 28, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for all fire figures, the Southern Area and California items.
The Watchers: PSEG Long Island cumulative outages and restoration, Montauk gust, southeastern Massachusetts rainfall, New York City inundation, storm position Monday, Sept 29
Nor’easter toll: Outages ran past 100,000 customers across the Northeast at times Sunday, concentrated from New Jersey through Long Island and coastal Connecticut, and were down to roughly 40,000 by this morning. Major coastal flooding was reported at tide gauges from Delaware to Long Island, with two Jersey Shore locations reaching their highest levels since Hurricane Sandy.
State declarations: New Jersey Executive Order 25 declared a state of emergency effective 5 p.m. Friday for Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean and Salem counties, activating the State Emergency Operations Center. New York declared a state of emergency for the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester.
Federal posture: FEMA reported that response coordination centers in the affected regions operated at an enhanced posture through the weekend, with teams on standby in New England in case of widespread outages.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 69 incidents, 16 uncontained large fires, 1,707,048 acres and 6,003 personnel, a drop of 305, per the Sunday situation report. Initial attack was light at 55 fires, with three new large incidents and five complex teams committed. Year to date, the country is at 57,223 fires and 8,562,096 acres, 124 and 142 percent of the ten-year averages.
New large fires: Second Street, one mile southeast of Benton City, Washington, is 1,151 acres and 60 percent contained, with seven structures lost, extreme fire behavior and wind-driven runs, and threatened residences and energy infrastructure. Rafter 4B, southeast of Eldorado, Texas, is 1,250 acres with no containment. Stone Bridge, northeast of Wilburton, Oklahoma, is 130 acres and 60 percent contained with one structure lost.
California: Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 245 acres to 4,606 but nearly doubled containment to 30 percent, with estimated containment pushed to October 17. Timber on the Los Padres National Forest rose to 71 percent contained, with numerous structures still threatened.
Fire weather: Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms develop across the Southwest as moisture from Hurricane Polo moves north from off the Mexican coast. Heavy rain continues today in much of southern and eastern New England with strong northeast winds and coastal flooding. Winds slowly weaken in Hawaii as Nolo moves west away from the islands.
SOURCES
Wildfire, national
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Sunday, Sept 27, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for all fire figures, the new large fires and the California items.
Honolulu Star-Advertiser: Nolo spares Big Island, outages on Oahu and Maui, five high-water rescues, damage reporting through Hawaii County Civil Defense, Sept 28
FOX Weather live updates: major coastal flooding gauges from Delaware to Long Island, two Jersey Shore locations at worst since Sandy, current outage count, Sept 28
Nor’easter: The Boston forecast office issued high wind warnings for coastal and southeastern Massachusetts and all of Rhode Island except northwestern Providence County, running from 8 a.m. today to 2 a.m. Sunday, with northeast gusts of 45 to 60 miles per hour and 65 to 70 possible on the islands. Coastal flood warnings remain in southeastern Virginia with 2 to 3 feet of inundation forecast. Reporting from Norfolk describes repeated high tide cycles flooding roads and disrupting city operations, and Saturday’s full moon raises each successive tide.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 74 incidents, 26 uncontained large fires, 1,783,567 acres and 6,824 personnel, a drop of 520, per the Friday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 70 fires, one new large incident, two large fires contained and six complex teams committed. Year to date, the country is at 57,087 fires and 8,559,888 acres, 125 and 145 percent of the ten-year averages.
California: Floriston near Truckee is fully contained, leaving Northern California with no uncontained large fires. Timber on the Los Padres National Forest gained 241 personnel to 920 with moderate fire behavior and uphill runs, and numerous structures and communication infrastructure remain threatened. Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 144 acres to 4,133 at 16 percent contained, with costs now at $13.8 million.
Northwest: Thirteen uncontained large fires and 3,115 personnel, down 209, with precipitation over most of the Oregon and Washington incidents yesterday. Three Queens hold 9,551 acres and are 31 percent contained, with numerous residences and critical infrastructure threatened.
Southern Area: Thirty-one new fires and one new large incident. Lake Ranch, northwest of McAlester, Oklahoma, is 390 acres and 74 percent contained after wind-driven runs and torching.
Fire weather: Southwesterly gusts to 40 miles per hour develop across northeast California, the northern Great Basin and southwest to central Montana, with minimum humidity of 10 to 20 percent from northern Nevada into central Montana and areas of elevated conditions. Wetting rain is expected from northern Idaho into western Montana.
Federal assistance: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 public assistance declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas. Economic injury applications stay open to June 1, 2027.
Cyber: No Known Exploited Vulnerabilities additions were located after Monday’s Zyxel GS1900 switch entry, CVE-2026-7273.
SOURCES
Wildfire, national
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Friday, Sept 25, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for all fire figures, the Northwest, California and Southern Area items.
Ohio: The state of emergency signed September 22 covers Athens, Clermont, Gallia, Greene, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Meigs, Mercer, Montgomery, Morgan, Muskingum, Perry, Pickaway, Pike, Preble, Ross, Van Wert and Vinton counties. The proclamation directs state departments to provide services, equipment, supplies and personnel for cleanup.
Wildfire posture: Preparedness Level 2 with 87 incidents, 30 uncontained large fires, 1,824,164 acres and 8,523 personnel, a drop of 1,178, per the Wednesday situation report. Initial attack was light, with 93 fires, one new large incident and six complex teams committed. The Northwest dropped to Preparedness Level 2.
Acreage revision: Year-to-date acres fell from 8,554,955 to 8,096,338 in one reporting cycle, moving the season from 146 to 137 percent of the ten-year average. The change is a mapping and reporting adjustment, concentrated in Northwest Bureau of Land Management acres, not a correction to any single fire.
Northwest: Thirteen uncontained large fires and 4,290 personnel, down 366, with no new fires. Wednesday’s report lists only area, road and trail closures on Three Queens, without the evacuations carried Monday and Tuesday. Sisi near Stehekin added 85 acres at 15 percent contained, with residences and energy infrastructure threatened.
California: Northern California released 701 people in a day. Floriston near Truckee reached 96 percent contained, and Chileno in Marin County 85 percent. Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 263 acres to 3,683, holds at 15 percent contained, and carries 840 personnel and $8.4 million in costs.
Southwest: Deep tropical moisture continues over eastern Arizona, New Mexico and southern Colorado with widespread showers and scattered thunderstorms. Predictive Services expects flooding near and east of the New Mexico central mountains today.
Fire weather: Above-normal temperatures continue from the southern Plains to the lower Mississippi Valley, less extreme than recent weeks, with humidity near 30 percent in northeast Texas. A weak cold front brings scattered showers and thunderstorms to the northern Plains.
Federal assistance: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 public assistance declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas. Economic injury applications stay open to June 1, 2027.
Cyber: No Known Exploited Vulnerabilities additions were located after Monday’s Zyxel GS1900 switch entry, CVE-2026-7273. The most recent industrial control system batch remains the eight advisories of September 17.
Northwest: Thirteen uncontained large fires and 4,656 personnel, down 352. Three Queens near Snoqualmie Pass moved to 31 percent contained and released 110 people, and evacuations remain in effect with numerous residences and critical infrastructure threatened. Border 2 in North Cascades National Park grew to 401 acres, reaching 9,108, and Sisi near Stehekin added 177 acres at 15 percent contained, with residences and energy infrastructure threatened.
California: Floriston near Truckee is 85 percent contained, and 283 people were released. Chileno in Marin County is 75 percent contained at 341 acres, with structures threatened and estimated containment today. Timber, in the Los Padres National Forest, is 59 percent contained, with numerous structures and communication infrastructure threatened and $171.6 million in costs.
Southern Area: Forty-three new fires, the most of any region. Round Prairie, eight miles northwest of Bastrop, Louisiana, is a new large incident at 739 acres and 60 percent contained after wind-driven and short crown runs. Gracemont in Oklahoma reached 90 percent contained with 31 structures lost. Mud Bayou in Texas is fully contained.
Southwest monsoon: Southerly flow around the repositioned ridge draws another round of monsoonal moisture into New Mexico and eastern Arizona, with 2 to 5 inches of rain expected today. Burn scar drainages are exposed.
Federal assistance: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 public assistance declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas. Economic injury applications stay open to June 1, 2027.
Water systems: West Columbia, South Carolina, lifted its main break boil water advisory Tuesday evening. The Mississippi State Department of Health lists boil water notices issued September 21 in Lamar and Forrest counties, with several others rescinded September 22.
Fire weather: Relative humidity falls to 35 to 40 percent across the lower Mississippi Valley with temperatures back into the low to mid 90s. West winds gust to 35 miles per hour through the Cascade gaps and the Columbia Gorge this afternoon. Northern California drops to 10 to 20 percent with poor overnight recovery.
Cyber: No Known Exploited Vulnerabilities additions were located after Monday’s Zyxel GS1900 switch entry, CVE-2026-7273. The most recent industrial control system batch remains the eight advisories of September 17.
SOURCES
Wildfire, national
NICC Incident Management Situation Report and Predictive Services discussion: Tuesday, Sept 22, 2026, 0730 MDT (live PDF, overwritten daily). Source for the Yosemite helicopter accident notice and all fire figures.
Hawaii Emergency Management Agency flood watch, quoted by FOX Weather: Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe and Hawaii Island, Wednesday afternoon through Saturday afternoon, Sept 23
Northwest: Fourteen uncontained large fires, 5,050 personnel and five complex teams. The situation report no longer lists evacuations on Three Queens or Goat; Three Queens, near Snoqualmie Pass, is 9,566 acres and 23 percent contained, with numerous residences and critical infrastructure threatened. Border 2 in North Cascades National Park grew 345 acres, and Sisi near Stehekin is 15 percent contained, with residences and energy infrastructure threatened.
California: The dome in Yosemite National Park grew 198 acres to 2,384 and remains 15 percent contained, with 525 personnel. Command on Timber was set to pass Sunday from Southwest Team 1 to California Team 6, with the fire at 25,435 acres, 59 percent contained and $169.9 million in costs. Floriston near Truckee moved from 25 to 45 percent contained and released 100 personnel.
Rocky Mountains: Moonshine near Wheatland, Wyoming, is 7,325 acres and 61 percent contained, with residences threatened. Swiss Roll near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, is 36 percent contained, with energy infrastructure threatened. Rain fell Saturday over Davis Coulee and Sand Creek in Montana, where Sand Creek is 58 percent contained.
Water systems: City of Bloomington Utilities issued a precautionary boil water advisory for all of Monroe County, Indiana, early Sunday after turbidity exceeded the permitted maximum, running through 3 p.m. today. Kalamazoo, Michigan, expects to lift its advisory today if Monday samples come back clean; it covers 19 of 22 city neighborhoods and Portage north of Interstate 94. Salemburg, North Carolina, restored service Saturday evening, but its advisory remains in effect.
Federal assistance: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 public assistance declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas. Economic injury applications stay open to June 1, 2027.
Cyber: The most recent Known Exploited Vulnerabilities additions, posted this morning, are Friday’s three Linux kernel entries, remediated by federal civilian agencies under Binding Operational Directive 26-04.
Fire weather: Wet thunderstorms bring up to about an inch of rain to eastern Montana, Wyoming and the High Plains. Relative humidity drops to 7 to 18 percent across Nevada, the Mojave Desert and the Central Valley, with light winds; gusts of 25 to 30 miles per hour are likely along the Front Range and eastern Sierra.
Tropical weather
Tropical Storm Fay Public Advisory Number 7: NHC, 0300 UTC Sept 21
Tropical Storm Fay Public Advisory Number 8: NHC, 0900 UTC Sept 21
Tropical Storm Fay Forecast/Advisory Number 8: NHC, 0900 UTC Sept 21
Central Pacific Tropical Weather Outlook: CPHC, 200 AM HST Sept 20, formation chance 60 percent in 7 days
Central Pacific Tropical Weather Outlook: CPHC, 800 AM HST Sept 20
Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog: CVE-2025-39682, CVE-2025-39964 and CVE-2026-53266 added Sept 18; no later additions located in this sweep
Binding Operational Directive 26-04: Prioritizing Security Updates Based on Risk
Federal assistance
Federal Register: SBA notice, Texas, FEMA-4935-DR, amended incident period July 12 through August 4, published Sept 14
Federal Register: SBA notices for Colorado FEMA-4944-DR, South Dakota FEMA-4938-DR and Missouri FEMA-4939-DR, published Sept 9 to Sept 14
Texas and Oklahoma
NICC situation report: Dry River, Hydra, Gracemont and Calvary Creek, Sept 20
Washington and Oregon
NICC situation report: Three Queens, Goat, Sisi, Border 2 and Little Giant, Sept 20
California
NICC situation report: Dome, Timber, Plaskett and Floriston, Sept 20
Wyoming, Colorado and Montana
NICC situation report: Moonshine, Swiss Roll, Davis Coulee and Sand Creek, Sept 20
Indiana
The Bloomingtonian: City of Bloomington Utilities countywide boil water advisory, Sept 20
Indiana Public Media: precautionary boil advisory for Monroe County, Sept 20
Michigan
The Detroit News: Kalamazoo boil water advisory could end Monday, Sept. 20
North Carolina
WRAL: Salemburg boil water advisory remains in effect, updated Sept. 20
Links that need a note:
* Advisory 8 has no NHC link. Both Fay advisory 8 products came through news-site mirrors of the NHC bulletin text, not nhc.noaa.gov, so I’ve marked them.
* Two links are live pages. The situation report and one Central Pacific outlook link are overwritten with each new issue. After today they will show newer content than what the brief cites.
* The CISA links are lost. I pulled the September 18 CISA alerts yesterday, but those links didn’t carry over. A search just now couldn’t recover them.
* Three Federal Register links are lost. The same happened to the Colorado, South Dakota and Missouri notices. I’ve marked all of these as missing rather than rebuild addresses from memory.
New large fires: Chileno, nine miles east of Tomales in Marin County, California, is 341 acres and 5 percent contained, with structures threatened and 110 personnel. Mud Bayou on McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge near High Island, Texas, is 10,550 acres and 80 percent contained. Tabor on the Mark Twain National Forest near Pomona, Missouri, is 130 acres and 4 percent contained.
Northwest, clarification: Monday’s issue noted that Sunday’s situation report did not list evacuations on Three Queens. Monday’s report lists evacuations in effect again, along with numerous residences and critical infrastructure threatened. The fire is 9,566 acres and 23 percent contained, and command transfers from Northwest Team 2 back to the local unit today.
California: Dome in Yosemite National Park grew 663 acres to 3,047 and holds at 15 percent contained with 581 personnel. Floriston near Truckee rose to 65 percent contained and released 338 personnel. Lucas is fully contained, and California Team 6 now manages both Timber and Plaskett.
Water systems: Kalamazoo, Michigan, lifted its boil water advisory at 7 a.m. Monday after negative tests for E. coli and coliform. Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo Public Schools are staying on bottled water while flushing systems. At Monday’s council meeting, the public services director said the city received many comments on its communications and is working with the state on its public alert systems.
Cyber: CISA added one vulnerability to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog Monday, CVE-2026-7273, a stack-based buffer overflow in Zyxel GS1900 series switches, remediated by federal civilian agencies under Binding Operational Directive 26-04.
Federal assistance: SBA physical damage deadlines for the September 1 declarations close November 1 in Colorado and South Dakota and November 2 in Missouri and Texas. Economic injury applications stay open to June 1, 2027.
Fire weather: Highs in the mid to upper 90s from the lower Mississippi Valley through Tennessee with relative humidity near 25 to 30 percent. East of the Cascades, humidity falls to 15 to 30 percent with gusts to 25 miles per hour in the gaps, and northern California drops to 10 to 20 percent with poor overnight recovery. Isolated wet and dry thunderstorms in southern and western Nevada and along the Sierra Front. Today is the driest day of the week on the southern Front Range, with humidity in the teens.
SOURCES
Tropical weather
Central Pacific Tropical Weather Outlook: CPHC, 200 AM HST Sept 22
Federal Register: SBA notices for Colorado FEMA-4944-DR, South Dakota FEMA-4938-DR and Missouri FEMA-4939-DR, published Sept 9 to Sept 14 (links not recovered)
The World Trade Center site has been rebuilt. Lower Manhattan has transformed. Transportation, businesses, residences, and public spaces returned. The 9/11 Memorial and Museum now preserve the physical memory of what happened there.
But rebuilding a place and recovering from a disaster are not necessarily the same thing.
In This Episode
Todd examines September 11 through the lens of long-term disaster recovery, including the physical reconstruction of Lower Manhattan and the much longer process of human recovery.
The episode explores the continuing health consequences facing firefighters, police officers, construction workers, volunteers, survivors, residents, and others exposed to the World Trade Center disaster environment.
It also considers the idea of the long disaster—that deaths and consequences associated with a catastrophic event may continue years or even decades after the response phase has ended.
The 25th anniversary also demonstrated how powerful disaster memory remains. Confrontations near Ground Zero during anniversary demonstrations showed that the site is more than a geographic location. For many Americans, responders, survivors, and families, it remains sacred ground connected to grief, sacrifice, anger, and national memory.
That raises an important question for emergency managers:
When does recovery actually end?
Key Themes
Recovery is not reconstruction.Rebuilding roads, buildings, transportation systems, businesses, and infrastructure is essential, but physical reconstruction represents only one dimension of recovery.
Disaster mortality can continue for decades.World Trade Center-related illnesses demonstrate that the human consequences of a disaster may emerge long after debris removal and official recovery operations have ended.
Responder health is a recovery responsibility.The obligation to responders cannot end when an incident is demobilized. Occupational exposure monitoring, healthcare, mental health support, and long-term research must be considered part of catastrophic-disaster planning.
Memory has geography.Places such as Ground Zero, Pearl Harbor, Gettysburg, Oklahoma City, Shanksville, and the Pentagon become connected to collective memory. Emergency managers should recognize that communities may attach meaning, grief, identity, and trauma to physical locations for generations.
Social recovery matters.Disasters can create fear, anger, mistrust, discrimination, and division. Restoring social cohesion can be every bit as important—and considerably more difficult—than restoring infrastructure.
Recovery belongs to survivors, not our planning calendar.Emergency managers work with recovery frameworks, timelines, objectives, and milestones. Human beings do not necessarily recover according to those schedules.
The Question for Emergency Managers
September 11 forces us to reconsider what we mean when we say a community has “recovered.”
Is recovery complete when the debris is removed?
When businesses reopen?
When infrastructure is restored?
When a replacement building opens?
Or does recovery continue as long as responders are becoming sick, families are grieving, survivors are seeking treatment, and another generation is learning what happened?
Twenty-five years after September 11, perhaps the answer is clear:
The response ended. The recovery did not.
Final Thought
Every September we say:
Never Forget.
Perhaps the emergency management profession should add another promise:
Never stop recovering.
Never stop studying what happened. Never stop caring for responders. Never stop supporting survivors and families. Never stop examining the long-term consequences. Never stop learning.
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