Although some stark images show how much Hurricane Dorian has devastated the Bahamas, it is perhaps even more worrying that the full extent of its destruction is not yet known.
With this in mind, it’s understandable that citizens of the southeastern United States would be concerned about what the storm could do here. In times like these, staying informed about where, when, and to what extent the storm will strike becomes of paramount importance.
It is likely for this reason that the confusion in the wake of President Trump’s insistence that Alabama will be in the hurricane’s path has resulted in online backlash. But depending on how this confusion came to pass, that’s not the only issue at hand here.
Yesterday, President Donald Trump presented a map to reporters detailing a likely forecast for Hurricane Dorian’s path.
As Newsweek reported , this map came courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and showed that Dorian was likely to affect Florida and Georgia.
However, it’s also worth noting that this map presentation followed a period in which President Trump repeatedly stated that Alabama was also at risk.
As Newsweek reported , the National Weather Center disputed this claim, saying that the storm was too far east to affect Alabama.
Despite this, it soon became apparent that the weather map presented by Trump featured a bizarre extension drawn with a Sharpie to include Alabama in the hurricane’s path.
Although it’s difficult to confirm who drew that in, critics suspected Trump carried responsibility for this change as it mirrored his perception of the storm’s path.
Unfortunately, if anyone besides an official weather forecaster altered the map, they could be found in violation of a federal law stating that anyone found to issue counterfeit weather reports or false warnings of weather conditions could face a fine or up to 90 days in jail.
In response to the controversy, Trump posted an August 28 map from the South Florida Water Management District appearing to show Dorian touching Alabama.
However, Twitter user @altNOAA responded that Trump had misinterpreted what is known as a “spaghetti plot” that indicates changes in pressure and temperature rather than a hurricane’s specific path.
This assertion seemed all the more plausible after another user had a look at the South Florida Water Management District’s website.
On the day that they released the map that Trump tweeted out, they also issued a news release warning the public of Hurricane Dorian’s impending path.
In this warning, they made use of the original NOAA map that featured no Sharpie extensions and showed no indication that Dorian was headed for Alabama.
h/t: Newsweek
