[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 106 (Thursday, September 9, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1581]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND 
  ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION AND ITS EMPLOYEES FOR ITS DEDICATION AND 
            HARD WORK DURING HURRICANES CHARLEY AND FRANCES

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                         HON. VERNON J. EHLERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 9, 2004

  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce H. Con Res. 488, a 
resolution recognizing the hard work and dedication of the employees of 
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (better known as 
NOAA) who provide hurricane forecast and warnings to our citizens. In 
the past month, the state of Florida was hit by back-to-back 
hurricanes, a tragedy which has not occurred since 1964. The employees 
of NOAA worked tirelessly to provide timely and accurate warnings to 
residents of the affected areas. They remain hard at work even at this 
moment as another tropical storm, Hurricane Ivan, is heading towards 
the U.S. coast.
  Let me name the various offices in NOAA that contributed to accurate 
forecasts of Hurricanes Charley and Frances: The National Hurricane 
Center; The Southern and Eastern Region Weather Forecast offices of San 
Juan, Miami, Tampa Bay, Key West, Melbourne, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, 
Atlanta, Birmingham, Huntsville, Mobile and Morristown; The National 
Ocean Service, which provided help with storm surge prediction; The 
National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service, which 
provided the satellite images we all saw on television; The NOAA Marine 
and Aviation Operation Hurricane Hunters, who fly planes into the 
hurricanes to gather data; and The Southeast River Forecast Center, 
which provided flood predictions
  And I would be remiss without acknowledging the additional hurricane 
reconnaissance missions flown by the Air Force Reserve out of Keesler 
Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. Also, I want to acknowledge the 
work of the local and national media in disseminating NOAA's hurricane 
forecasts and warnings.
  The dedicated employees at these offices worked round the clock, 
spending days at a time in their offices away from their families and 
homes that were often directly affected by the hurricanes. I commend 
these government employees for their service to provide life-saving 
warnings and information to the people in the hurricane's path and 
support them as they continue to provide us with critical information 
during this (and every) hurricane season.

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