Irene: Much A Do About Nothing; little damage reported

"Hurricane" Irene made landfall along the Outer Banks of North Carolina around the 8 am hour on August the 27th. There were NO hurricane SUSTAINED force winds reported at land based, sea based, or hurricane chaser observations sites. There were only a handful of reported hurricane gusts.

(Definition of a hurricane: : a tropical cyclone with sustained of winds of 74 miles (119 kilometers) per hour or greater)

The map below depicts the SUSTAINED winds around the time of landfall. Most winds are less than required tropical storm force (39 mph).

Observations of Sustained Winds Around Time of Landfall

Satellite Picture At Time Of Landfall

River Stages- Aug. 27th

All the green dots, on the U.S. map above, are rivers that are within their banks. Yellow/Orange dots indicate flooding that could happen or that is happening. Eastern parts of VA and NC have been in a drought in recent months so all the rain is certainly welcomed news.

 We will have to wait until December for the NHC official report and investigation to come out to find out what Irene's true strength was.

Bottom line: This was not a historic storm, this was not the "big one," and this storm will not rack up billions of dollars in damage, in the Continental U.S.