Mysterious boom rattles windows in Jackson County

By KAREN NELSON - klnelson@sunherald.com

PASCAGOULA — A boom that rattled windows in Moss Point and Pascagoula at around 8 p.m. was not from an industrial explosion of any kind, said Earl Etheridge, hazardous materials specialist for the state Department of Environmental Quality and Pascagoula City Manager Kay Kell.

But the event triggered so many calls to the Pascagoula Police Department that the phone line registered a recording that the line had been “disconnected or was no longer in service.” Moss Point’s public police line and the Jackson County Sheriff’s dispatch line were overwhelmed and also registered busy for a period of time from the number of calls coming in from concerned citizens.

“All that we know is that the industry is clear, and we’re checking with Keesler AFB,” Kell said at about 8:15 p.m.

Etheridge said there were no problems with industry anywhere in the county, “and our best guess is that it was a sonic boom from a military plane, otherwise, we don’t have a clue.”

Etheridge did say he received reports that people as far away as north Jackson County heard the boom. However, it did not travel to the western part of the county where he was in Ocean Springs.

At 10:15 this morning I was waiting to hear from a contractor or two and chatting with Swapna online when there was a loud rumble - sort of like thunder - and then the house started to shake. All of the doors and windows shook violently for several seconds.. So violently that a stunned Judge jumped up and ran from door to door barking viciously to keep whatever was out there from getting in. There was a brief pause - long enough for me to find Judge and get him to stop barking - before it happened again. The second time was a little shorter than the first - but there was a lot of creaking and groaning and I could hear things falling off the shelves in the garage... I'm not sure if the force itself knocked the bottles and boxes over - or if the spooked cats did it all.

I ran outside to look for smoke on the horizon - but there was nothing. Then, of course, I called Mom. She felt it too. Then I called Dave at work - and, yes, they all felt it.

So what was it? Will we ever find out? Is it going to happen again? Was it supposed to happen in the first place?

And am I ever going to hear from the contractors again?

In light of recent events -- and after several threats to do so over the past few months -- we have now purchased a separate earthquake policy for our home. Let's hope we won't need it.

METLIFE notice to Homeowners Policy Holders

From Camille and Katrina Were Not Ladies:

"What's more, if your policy excludes coverage for damage resulting from an earthquake, a notice with detailed information regarding the exclusion appears on the reverse of the page. If your policy currently includes optional Earthquake and Volcanic Eruption coverage, it will be listed on your Declaration Page and no exclusion notice is contained on the reverse."

Isn't that just totally interesting and so very timely! AND it just so happens that we received the same letter dated August 23, 2006 -- an astonishing 18 days before a magnitude 6.0 rattles the Gulf Coast from the Gulf of Mexico (where, incidentally, there is no earthquake-generating plate boundary).

Here's a bit of what the reverse side of our letter states :

"Your policy excludes coverage for any damages caused or precipitated by an earthquake or earth movement. This exclusion generally excludes all damages caused or in any way resulting from an earthquake, earth movements, tremors and aftershocks, and also excludes earth movement, land shock waves, aftershocks or tremors before, during or after a volcanic eruption. For further details, please see the language of your policy."

This is the second earthquake in the Gulf of Mexico since the beginning of the year. The first was measured as a 5.2 on February 9, 2006.

(Image from http://www.iris.edu - WILBER II - Station LTL.LI Seismograms)

(I'm challenging my blog-readers to help Mississippi public schools -- and quite specifically schools impacted by Hurricane Katrina -- by making a donation today:

Help Public School Kids by Funding my Challenge at DonorsChoose)

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program � Magnitude 6.0 - GULF OF MEXICO

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program � Magnitude 6.0 - GULF OF MEXICO: "# The following is a release by the United States Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center: A strong earthquake occurred about 250 miles (405 km) south-southwest of Apalachicola, Florida at 8:56 AM MDT, Sep 10, 2006 (10:56 AM EDT in Florida). The magnitude and location may be revised when additional data and further analysis results are available. This earthquake was felt in parts of Florida, Georgia and Alabama. No reports of damage or casualties have been received at this time.

Felt Reports
Felt in much of Florida and parts of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Tectonic Summary
This earthquake was centered beneath the Gulf of Mexico, well distant from the nearest active plate boundary. Such 'midplate' earthquakes are much less common than earthquakes occurring on faults near plate boundaries, and most probably represent the release of long-term tectonic stresses that ultimately originate from forces applied at the plate boundary. This is the largest of more than a dozen shocks that have been instrumentally recorded from the eastern Gulf of Mexico in the past three decades, and it is the most widely felt. The most recent significant earthquake in the region occurred on February 10th, 2006 and had a magnitude of 5.2. We have not associated this earthquake with a specific causative fault." [emphasis added]

Chevron successfully tests new US Gulf oil discovery - Yahoo! News

Chevron successfully tests new US Gulf oil discovery - Yahoo! News: "Still, the appraisal well flowed at a rate of more than 6,000 barrels of crude per day, Chevron said, -- putting it on a par with discoveries in exploration hot spots such as the waters off Angola.

It was the deepest successful well test in the U.S. Gulf. With U.S. oil output in decline, large new fields are increasingly rare and oil companies are widening their search to more difficult places and drilling to far greater depths than ever before."

Tropical Storm ERNESTO Public Advisory

Tropical Storm ERNESTO Public Advisory: "000 WTNT35 KNHC 252030 TCPAT5 BULLETIN TROPICAL STORM ERNESTO ADVISORY NUMBER 5 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL052006 500 PM AST FRI AUG 25 2006 ...HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT DETERMINES THAT TROPICAL DEPRESSION FIVE HAS BECOME TROPICAL STORM ERNESTO... AT 5 PM AST...2100Z...THE GOVERNMENT OF HAITI HAS ISSUED A TROPICAL STORM WATCH FOR THE SOUTHWESTERN PENINSULA OF HAITI FROM THE HAITI-DOMINICAN REPUBLIC BORDER WESTWARD TO THE SOUTHWEST TIP OF HAITI. ALSO AT 5 PM AST...THE GOVERNMENT OF JAMAICA HAS ISSUED A TROPICAL STORM WATCH FOR JAMAICA. INTERESTS IN THE CAYMAN ISLANDS AND WESTERN CUBA SHOULD MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF ERNESTO."

Tropical Storm DEBBY

Tropical Storm DEBBY: "ZCZC MIATCPAT4 ALL TTAA00 KNHC DDHHMM BULLETIN TROPICAL STORM DEBBY ADVISORY NUMBER 6 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL042006 1100 PM AST TUE AUG 22 2006 ...TROPICAL DEPRESSION STRENGTHENS INTO THE FOURTH TROPICAL STORM OF THE SEASON OVER THE FAR EASTERN ATLANTIC OCEAN... AT 1100 PM AST...0300Z...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM DEBBY WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 15.2 NORTH...LONGITUDE 28.9 WEST OR ABOUT 300 MILES...485 KM...WEST OF THE SOUTHERNMOST CAPE VERDE ISLANDS. DEBBY IS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST NEAR 18 MPH...30 KM/HR... AND THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS."

Predictions

Before.

Success!

Earlier today I predicted that we would be finished with the kitchen closet texturing and patching and painting by tonight. Although I think I actually said by 'late' tonight -- I think we can still chalk one up for my psychic ability.

A look at part of the closet wall from the kitchen to show the lovely clay color which didn't show up in the first picture. I just want everyone to know that I'm not painting everything brown. In the background, behind the high chair, you'll notice some fresh, new drywall mud in the corner -- some of Bernard's handywork as he cleaned up some of the more jagged seams for us. (Read: We now need to touch up the kitchen paint as well...)

The Sun Herald has listed a ridiculous number of events that are being planned for the Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina on their website. Oddly enough, we couldn't find even one that we were especially interested in attending. However, the City of Pascagoula has announced an event that's a little different from all the concerts and tree-planting ceremonies going on:

AUG. 26

City of Pascagoula communitywide picnic, all public parks will be open for picnics. To recreate the sharing atmosphere after the storm, residents are encouraged to grill and share. Residents are also encouraged to gather in their neighborhoods.

I certainly understand the sentiment... but I actually feel like it's almost too much of a reminder of the actual events following the storm: 'No folks, we municipal folks aren't actually going to do anything but instead we'll leave it up to you to do something.'

Though quite seriously I appreciate the sense of respect for independence -- something I have liked about Pascagoula since we came here.

Still, Dave and I were thinking that it would be a nice touch if they were to round up some city trucks and drive through the neighborhoods distributing cold drinks and ice for those suggested block parties. That's the spirit!

Personally, I think we should have community-wide swimming lessons tailored especially to our needs with such extra instructional classes as: "How to safely dive from the roof of your two-story home into fast moving water" and "Navigating debris while treading water".

Dave has a prediction of his own regarding the upcoming anniversary, however. He thinks we'll be spending the weekend boarding up our windows and getting ready for whatever develops in the tropics this coming week. Talk about deja vu.

And he makes a totally valid point -- this hurricane season has barely begun. No matter how much we want to remember and forget last season - we really cannot afford to be caught off-guard, nor can we pretend that we are assured every step taken from here on out will be forward...

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program: Earthquake Report: GULF OF MEXICO

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program: Earthquake Report: GULF OF MEXICO

Magnitude	5.2
Date-Time	Friday, February 10, 2006 at 04:14:17 (UTC) - Coordinated Universal Time Thursday, February 09, 2006 at 10:14:17 PM local time at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location	27.58N 90.18W
Depth	5 kilometers
Region	GULF OF MEXICO
Reference	205 km (130 miles) SSW of Buras, Louisiana 230 km (140 miles) SSE of Houma, Louisiana 265 km (165 miles) S of New Orleans, Louisiana 330 km (205 miles) SSE of BATON ROUGE, Louisiana
Location Quality	Error estimate: horizontal +/- 10.6 km; depth fixed by location program
Location Quality Parameters	Nst=21, Nph=21, Dmin=610.0 km, Rmss=1.29 sec, Erho=10.6 km, Erzz=0 km, Gp=123.5 degrees
Source	USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

Dave's buying some earthquake insurance this afternoon.....