Gathering Storm (2020) s01e03 Episode Script

1
MAN: Almost done!
NARRATOR: A major hurricane
has shipping on the run.
CAPT. JAY MULLINS: We got a squall coming,
so we're about to have some fun.
NARRATOR: Growing far larger
and far stronger than predicted.
ROGER DA COSTA:
Some serious wind now.
NARRATOR: To leap out of the darkness
(woman screaming)
MONA WALKER (off screen):
What a firestorm!
NARRATOR: and strike
ASHBY BRADSHAW: (off screen) Tornado?
NARRATOR: with unexpected fury.
(thunder roaring)
NARRATOR: As storms hit new extremes
and defy prediction
MAN (off screen): Woo!
(intense music playing)
NARRATOR: National Geographic
gave cameras
to more than a thousand marine workers
to film wherever storms might strike,
right around the globe
on a scale never seen before.
This is what came back from our cameras
in the path of Hurricane Humberto.
(intense music playing)
(thunder cracking)
(indistinct chatter)
DANNY FIDLER: Hey, Mac,
can you get in and slack out that rope?
MAC: You got six foot.
FIDLER: See you guys.
NARRATOR: In the Gulf of Mexico,
Danny Fidler of fishing boat Daytona,
is heading out to sea
with one of our cameras.
FIDLER: This is
We're heading out the pass
and the channel
of Panama City, St Andrews Bay.
Headed out to go fishing.
We've got about a 200-mile run
ahead of us.
Now the seas are picking up a little bit,
as we exit into the Gulf.
Sunny though, but we are in an area
where we could be hitting the hurricanes
at any time.
CAPT. MULLINS: Last thing I watched
last night was The Weather Channel.
First thing I flipped on this morning
was The Weather Channel.
And I'm sure when I go home,
I'll look at it again.
Try not to get too preoccupied
with the damn Weather Channel.
This is our job. This is what we do.
We are dependent upon Mother Nature.
NARRATOR:
Fishing fleets across the southern US
have been sheltering in port
since category 5 Hurricane Dorian
devastated the Bahamas
and swept up the eastern seaboard.
Captain Jay Mullins of the fishing boat
Blackjack II out of Fort Myers, Florida,
is finally able to put to sea again
and start earning money.
CAPT. MULLINS: We're hoping
we get 12 days of this weather right here.
But it is what it is, you know?
Unless a hurricane comes, we're here.
We're a big enough boat
to stay through whatever weather comes.
MAN: It's our first day,
picking up our first set.
NARRATOR: The good weather is holding
for the Blackjack II.
The crew are making the most
of the sunshine while they can.
CAPT. MULLINS: We're gonna target grouper
as we always do. Bottom fishing.
Bottom fish are very subject to pressure.
A falling barometer, the fish shut off,
where the barometer's rising is good.
I think fish are like human beings.
They like it sunny and 75 all the time.
I mean, I don't like the rain, do you?
NARRATOR: Clear skies mean the full force
of the summer sun on the ocean.
Sea surface temperatures
in the Gulf of Mexico
and Western Atlantic have hit 90 degrees.
But hot seas breed hurricanes.
CAPT. MULLINS: They say
the Gulf's the hottest it's been
in 100 years or something like that.
That's why it's such a breeding ground
right now for storms.
NARRATOR: Another storm is expected.
The only question is when.
FIDLER (off screen): Yep, swordfish.
Nice one. Be careful, though.
We're getting in our last section,
first set of the trip.
We have 568 hooks out,
and we had a fair day of fishing.
We had eight tunas and six swordfish.
The weather has deteriorated
a little more today.
We've actually got a tropical wave
moving across the Atlantic,
across the Bahamas.
They predict it could intensify
and increase in strength
and possibly become a tropical storm.
It is supposed to cross over
the peninsula of Florida into the Gulf.
Hopefully, it will not,
as we're about right here.
NARRATOR: The tropics are stirring again.
(ominous music playing)
An ominous new low-pressure system
located off the Bahamas
is creeping slowly westward
towards Florida.
MAN (off screen):
It's getting a little rough.
It's about to get rainy, ain't it, Cap?
CAPT. MULLINS: Looks like it.
MAN: Time to go secure the deck.
We've got some weather coming,
got to make sure
everything's tied down up here.
(ominous music playing)
NARRATOR: All eyes are now on this system,
watching to see what it will do.
MAN: We expect to reach Port Manatee
tomorrow morning.
We will really be having heavy
showers, wind against us
NARRATOR:
Ships in the area are reporting
extensive cloud buildup
and changing weather.
MAN 1: Cool-looking clouds.
The wind's kinda picking up a little bit.
MAN 2: Yeah.
We've got some weather coming.
NARRATOR: In the last 24 hours,
the low pressure has intensified.
At the National Hurricane Center in Miami,
it's being closely watched.
MIKE BRENNAN: We're starting to see
a circulation develop.
You can see the low level cloud line
starting to turn cyclonically here.
With these developing disturbances,
we don't have
as good a handle on the track
because the center
hasn't really formed yet.
It can kinda jump around.
This is the time to task an aircraft
to go out and fly into the system.
(phone ringing)
LT. COL. SEAN CROSS:
Operation technical, Cross.
Positive launch?
Okay, copy that,
I'll alert them right now, thanks.
NARRATOR: The call
goes out to Biloxi, Mississippi,
and the United States Air Force Reserve
53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron.
LT. COL. CROSS:
Time to launch a crew, Teal 71.
NARRATOR:
Also known as the Hurricane Hunters.
Their job is to provide the data needed
to assess the new threat
rising off the Atlantic.
LT. COL. CROSS:
This is a tropical disturbance.
They're not taking anything lightly
down in that area right now
and so that's what our job is today,
to investigate that area of low pressure
to see if it's going to develop
into something much stronger.
NARRATOR: Operations Director
is Lieutenant Colonel Sean Cross.
Flying the mission,
one of his most experienced pilots
LT. COL. CROSS: Hey, Dena,
it's Cross, you're alerted.
NARRATOR:
Lieutenant Colonel Dena Williams.
LT. COL. DENA WILLIAMS: We are good to go.
All right, mission purpose.
We're gonna go out and fly this.
We're gonna be Teal 71 today.
Weather, to you.
WOMAN: Yes ma'am. Right now,
it's still moving at 290 at seven knots.
Strongest, weakest quadrants,
lightning and turbulence.
Just looking at satellite,
looks like the north-western quadrant
will be the trickiest point.
NARRATOR: This is a low-level mission,
flying just above the ocean's surface,
allowing Teal 71
to see what satellites can't.
LT. COL. CROSS:
We take that low-level area
and break it up into four quadrants.
We're gonna fly around
in each one of those four quadrants
at an altitude of about 500 feet
to 1000 feet above the surface.
While flying in each one
of those quadrants,
we're looking to see
what the wind field is doing.
If we get those counter-clockwise winds
in each one of those quadrants,
then we have the birth of a storm.
You know, we're trained as pilots
to avoid weather at all costs.
MAN (over radio): Clear for takeoff.
Check is complete.
LT. COL. CROSS: But, here in the 53rd,
we throw the rule book out the window
and we fly right into,
what I call, the most intense weather
that Mother Nature has created.
(man speaking indistinctly over radio)
MAN (over radio):
Gears up, flaps are up.
LT. COL. CROSS: We're either gonna
reaffirm what they've already put out
or it could possibly change.
It could possibly diminish.
Hopefully, for everybody out there,
we're gonna go out there
and we don't find anything
and this system
is gonna completely fall apart
and our job will be done.
RON YOW (off screen): Low-pressure
building by the Bahamas.
They don't know if it's gonna go
turn and go into the Gulf
or turn and come up
the east coast of Florida.
They're not sure yet.
But expecting tropical weather
by the end of the weekend here.
NARRATOR: Ships all around the southern US
are already thinking about plans
to avoid the storm.
Shrimper Sea King has one of our cameras.
YOW: A little bit of weather,
20, 30 mile an hour winds.
It stirs the ocean up.
Would be good for the shrimping.
Boat is ready, crew is ready.
REPORTER: The Hurricane Center
gives this a high chance
for the next two to even five days.
Hurricane Hunters
are headed out there right now.
They're almost there
and they're gonna sample
all around the system looking
for that closed circulation.
LT. COL. CROSS: Here's a satellite up-link
we have with the aircraft.
You can see right here,
here's home base right here.
They left here earlier this morning
and they're down in this area
right now flying around.
NARRATOR: After three hours airborne,
flight Teal 71 has reached
its targets and enters the storm.
LT. COL. CROSS:
I don't know what his altitude is.
I can't tell off of this.
Just-- One second. So, let's see.
LT. COL. CROSS (off screen):
We've measured the northwest
and the southeast quadrants circulation.
So, that means 50/50 because
he only has circulation
in two quadrants of the four.
Right now we've got
counter-clockwise winds
going this way here
and then this way here.
So, what he's gotta do
is find these other two quadrants
and see if he's got
those counter-clockwise winds.
If he does,
it's just a big circle of wind.
If he gets that,
well, then that's a little more concerning
'cause now we have
a tropical system that's building.
(winds whooshing)
CAPT. MULLINS: Are you ready
to do tonight's haul, Michael?
MICHAEL: Oh, I'm ready, boss.
CAPT. MULLINS: We're trying to fish veins
that ain't but as wide as this boat.
But we got a squall coming,
so we're about to have some fun.
NARRATOR: Off the southern tip of Florida,
the weather is starting to turn,
causing big problems for the crew
of the Blackjack.
(winds whooshing)
CAPT. MULLINS: Let's go to sleep
and pretend this day never happened.
Right now, we can't even catch dinner.
(winds roaring)
NARRATOR: Thunderstorms are blowing up,
suggesting the low pressure system
near the Bahamas may be building.
CAPT. MULLINS (off screen):
We can't catch a fish right now.
This is me frustrated
because nothing is going right.
NARRATOR:
At the National Hurricane Center,
the data from the aircraft
is confirming their fears.
The system has formed a cyclone,
and it's quickly growing.
BRENNAN: The Air Force plane
was able to go out there
and close off a closed circulation
in the low level,
so that tells us that the system has
gone on and become a tropical cyclone.
NARRATOR: The sustained wind speed
inside the system
has now broken
the 40-mile-per hour threshold,
making this officially a tropical storm.
REPORTER: Let's go right over to Rob,
who's tracking the impact at the Bahamas.
He's also looking at what this storm
could bring to the US.
- Rob, good morning to you.
- ROB: Good morning, Dan.
The National Hurricane Center
baptizing Tropical Depression number nine
to become Humberto
with 40-mile-an-hour winds right now.
Centered about 70 miles east
of Great Abaco island.
(ominous music playing)
NARRATOR: Newly named Humberto
gives an early indication
of its unpredictable nature.
As a result of the new data,
its projected path
has now drastically changed.
BRENNAN:
The storm has begun moving northward.
The tropical storm force winds
that you can see here
are offshore of Florida and now expecting
a west-northwestward motion,
approaching the coast of Florida
as a tropical storm.
(winds roaring)
NARRATOR: The USA's eastern seaboard
is one of the most
storm-vulnerable coastlines in the world.
Over 100 different hurricanes
have impacted here in the last 50 years.
The Gulf of Mexico is off the hook,
but ship crews from Miami to Jacksonville
are now scrambling to plan escape routes.
LOUIS SANTOS: Port Manatee, come in.
Time to pull back, Johnny.
The tropical depression
is turning to tropical storm.
It's actually aiming right here
at the Port Canaveral.
If it becomes a hurricane,
the port may issue a mandatory evacuation.
We got to get out of here.
Go back to the canal
and hope for the best.
CAPTAIN VLADIMIR KOROVIN:
The vessel will depart today at 1700,
and we will proceed to Bermuda.
- And we expect inbound bad weather.
- (phone ringing)
Sorry.
Some job.
Bridge, Captain.
In 10, 15 minutes.
NARRATOR: In the port of Fernandina Beach,
Vladimir Korovin,
captain of the container ship Somers Isles
is quickly replanning his next few days.
CAPT. KOROVIN: We are
constantly check the weather condition.
We receiving the weather reports.
It's always changing.
NARRATOR: The 4000-ton Somers Isles
carries cargo on a back-and-forth route
between Florida
and the port of Hamilton in Bermuda.
NARRATOR:
Humberto is bearing down on them fast.
Captain Vlad needs to get out ahead of it.
CAPT. KOROVIN: The vessel is prepared,
the crew is prepared.
So, we are ready for the rough seas.
This is our job.
(horn bellows)
NARRATOR: As the Somers Isles
leaves Fernandina Beach,
Humberto is 500 miles to the southeast,
moving slowly towards Florida
where shrimper Sea King is still at sea.
YOW (off screen): Guys trying to get
the tarp put up for the weather coming.
Tomorrow, east, north-east, 15 to 20.
Increasing to 20, 25 with gusts of 35.
Six to nine foot seas.
I believe I'll be going home
and let the low pressure come by and go.
It's not just me, I have crew men,
I even have my dog come.
NARRATOR: The deepening low pressure
is drawing in air from all around,
causing pockets of thunderstorms
to spring up with little warning.
YOW (off screen): There's Dwayne
over there texting his mother.
He's worried.
- DWAYNE: I'm worried.
- YOW (off screen): Hurricane's coming.
Got one over.
Ah, it just cooled down 10 degrees,
you feel that?
Yeah! Almost to us now.
(ship creaking)
CAPT. KOROVIN: We depart yesterday evening
from Fernandina Beach.
We're faced with some strong winds
and waves against us.
Somewhere behind us is Humberto.
(ominous music playing)
NARRATOR: Overnight,
Humberto's slow turn northward
has become a tight arc,
missing the east coast
and heading back out to sea
on the tail of the Somers Isles.
CAPT. KOROVIN: We are somewhere here.
So the storm it will chase us.
We expect to arrive in Bermuda Tuesday.
Wednesday we have to depart from Bermuda.
We will meet this bad weather
with this storm.
NARRATOR: All Captain Vlad can do
is try to maintain his distance
ahead of the storm.
(ominous music playing)
But, as it turns to sea, it intensifies.
Winds have reached 75 miles per hour.
Humberto is now a category 1 hurricane.
(ominous music playing)
LT. COL. CROSS: Okay,
so where are we at here? What do we have?
MAN: Chappie's gonna come off today.
Dena Williams has called in
and said she can fly it.
- LT. COL. CROSS: Okay, perfect. All right.
- MAN: Yep.
NARRATOR: In Mississippi,
the Hurricane Hunters
are on round-the-clock deployments.
LT. COL. CROSS: We have to be able
to sustain flight operations 24/7
until the National Hurricane Center says
you guys are done. You can go home.
MAN (over radio):
All right, 32, clear back.
You're still clear back.
Going for brakes.
LT. COL. CROSS: After four or five
weeks straight, you get kind of worn out.
But we're increasing
the forecast accuracy by 25%
where a hurricane may make landfall.
Bottom line, it does save lives.
MAN (over radio): Teal 71,
start when you're ready.
LT. COL. CROSS: That's our job.
That's what we do.
MAN (over radio): nine-seven.
ROB: And strengthening actually,
the latest track from the Hurricane Center
has winds at 85 miles per hour,
moving northeast at five,
expecting it to become a category 2 storm
later today or tomorrow
and very close to being a category 3 storm
by the time we get to Wednesday
as it heads closer to Bermuda,
then a big turn up to the north.
(intense music playing)
NARRATOR: Bermuda is a group of islands
in the middle of the Atlantic,
650 miles from the US.
And they're now
directly in the firing line.
Bermuda's 72,000 residents
rely on supplies arriving by sea.
If Hurricane Humberto strikes here,
they could become completely cut off.
ERIC: We supply the island with food,
cars you drive, the buses you ride on.
Everything, basically.
NARRATOR:
Container ships and the cargo dock
are a lifeline for the islanders.
ERIC: If ships didn't come for two weeks,
the island will starve.
That's the bottom line.
NARRATOR: The cargo ship Oleander
is carrying one of our cameras.
It runs containers carrying anything
from fruit and water
to cars and coaches
from Newark, New Jersey, to Bermuda.
No ships can stay here
through a hurricane.
A loose vessel could wreck the port
and cut Bermuda's vital supply line.
CAPTAIN JACEK:
I can show you our weather forecast.
NARRATOR: Captain Jacek's only option
is to steer the Oleander
across the path of Humberto.
But if the storm intensifies, he could
find himself too close for comfort.
CAPT. JACEK: Humberto
is approaching Bermuda.
Here we have the Bermuda,
our present position.
Here is the vessel track
and our destination, New Jersey.
So, you can clearly see,
we will expect some strong winds.
NARRATOR: Loading of the Oleander
is complete and the ship can depart.
(horn blaring)
NARRATOR: As the Oleander
exits Hamilton Port,
the Somers Isles is just arriving.
(intense music playing)
CAPT. KOROVIN: Captain speaking.
We are approaching Hamilton, Bermuda.
NARRATOR: The Somers Isles
will be the last ship allowed
to enter the port before they start
their shutdown procedures.
ERIC: All these trucks and stuff
you see right here will be packed away.
All the equipment that could fly
has to be packed away or tied down.
We don't have to worry about this crane
moving anywhere of course,
'cause it's heavy.
NARRATOR: The pressure is now on the crew
of the Somers Isles and the dock workers
to get the ship turned around.
ERIC: These containers here
are the Somers Isles' containers.
So we have to load all these back
before the ship actually sails.
Uh, because we don't want these containers
on the dock.
Cause a major problem, they're up high
and the less containers we have
the better off we are.
NARRATOR: On the bridge
of the Somers Isles,
it's now Captain Vlad's turn
to plan his escape route
out of the path of Humberto.
CAPT. KOROVIN: This is our normal route,
from Bermuda to Florida, Fernandina Beach.
Because of the hurricane,
this Humberto coming in this direction.
(alarm ringing)
Alarm.
This is alarm sounding.
It's updated information about Humberto.
CAPT. KOROVIN (off screen):
Max wind 95 knots
with the gusts 115 knots.
It means if we sail tomorrow morning,
it's too late for us already
and we cannot escape.
So, for us, the best possibility
is to sail today.
(intense music playing)
(intense music playing)
DA COSTA: Okay.
DA COSTA:
Hooked up another tuna.
NARRATOR: Roger Da Costa,
a solo operating tuna fisherman
DA COSTA: Seems to want
to take a lot of line.
NARRATOR: is 20 miles
off the coast of Bermuda.
He is one of hundreds of fishermen
carrying our cameras.
DA COSTA: Not bad.
NARRATOR: Throughout hurricane season,
more than a thousand men and women
working in marine environments
were filming for National Geographic
in the world's stormiest seas
to document tropical cyclones
more closely than ever before.
As Hurricane Humberto bears down
on the islands of Bermuda,
Roger is watching the skies,
judging the right moment to head for home.
DA COSTA (off screen): It's pretty choppy.
I'm approaching the island again.
The weather is turning pretty bad.
I can see it on the phone.
You can see it moving right in on us,
and it's not looking good.
NARRATOR: Roger ties his boat up
in a narrow inlet
to the west of the main island.
When a hurricane threatens,
the boats in this bay
will double up their mooring ropes,
giving them greater stability
in the storm.
The fishermen on Bermuda are cautious.
They've been hit before.
DA COSTA: One I was really scared in,
Fabian,
I think it gusted to 165 miles an hour.
NARRATOR: Category 3 hurricane Fabian
struck the islands in September 2003,
doing 300 million dollars worth of damage.
DA COSTA: Fabian was serious,
very serious.
I had never heard the wind scream,
make a noise like that ever.
The damage was unbelievable.
What I fear is the hurricanes
may get stronger,
and we may face something
even stronger than Fabian,
and that's gonna be catastrophic, I think.
(intense music playing)
JAMES DODGSON: So I'm James Dodgson.
I'm the director
of Bermuda Weather Service.
We've just had a call with
the National Hurricane Center in Miami
discussing Hurricane Humberto,
which you can see
on the imagery behind me.
Quite a significant system.
NARRATOR: Bermuda Weather Service
is tasked with providing
the islanders and the government
with all available information
on approaching hurricanes.
DODGSON: I'm heading to an update briefing
to the Emergency Measures Organization.
Humberto now a major cat 3.
That's 100 knots,
so that's 115 miles an hour sustained.
The wind's just beginning to pick up.
You can actually see
a few little white caps
on the sea there, to the left.
CAPT. KOROVIN: So, cargo operations
are completed.
We are ready for departure.
NARRATOR: At the port, the Somers Isles
has finished loading.
Instead of heading east
directly to the US,
they will now sail due south,
hoping to put as much distance
between them and Humberto as possible.
CAPT. KOROVIN: The most important thing
is safety of navigation,
safety of the cargo,
and safety of the people on board.
(tense music playing)
NARRATOR: The dock workers
can now complete the process
of securing the port.
ERIC: Done our prep.
We're ready for the hurricane.
We don't know what's gonna happen,
to tell you the truth.
This is all a waiting game.
You know what I mean?
And then when we come back the next day,
we just clean up the mess.
DODGSON: A little bit of a walk.
(chuckles) It's this way.
NARRATOR: In downtown Hamilton,
Weather Service Director, James,
is due to brief Wayne Caines,
Bermuda's Minister for National Security.
MINISTER WAYNE CAINES:
Good morning, everyone.
I believe we have more activity,
so we're not going to wait.
Our weather guru is here.
DODGSON: Thank you, Minister.
So, tropical storm force winds,
34 knots or more,
arrived early this afternoon.
Best estimate is west end
of the islands around 1:00 this afternoon,
continuing for a 12-hour period.
MINISTER CAINES (off screen):
So, let's start with the beaches.
Will the beaches remain closed
as of 2:00 p.m. today,
- based on the information we heard, sir?
- MAN: Yes.
MINISTER CAINES:
Okay, we'll go now to buses.
We, in Bermuda, have been through
these storms before.
We never know the trajectory,
we never know the speed.
There's nothing that you can do
to prevent it,
so all we can do is be prepared.
So, this country is powering down by 7:00.
NARRATOR: Plans for shutting down
the islands are set.
MINISTER CAINES:
You prepare for the worst,
but pray for the best.
NARRATOR: Hurricane Humberto is now
less than 100 miles from Bermuda.
MINISTER CAINES:
I must implore all Bermudians
to take the storm seriously.
Stay off the road
until the all clear is given.
Board up your homes, close your shutters.
It is time for us to make our way home
and start to prepare ourselves
for Hurricane Humberto.
(intense music playing)
NARRATOR: Humberto's hurricane force winds
are 120 miles across.
The Somers Isles,
carrying one of our cameras,
has headed south to avoid the storm,
but they are encountering heavy seas.
CAPT. KOROVIN:
Somers Isles' Captain speaking.
We are facing the rough seas
and high winds.
We escape from Hurricane Humberto.
CAPT. KOROVIN (off screen):
But winds still increasing,
it's really huge.
As a captain,
I have some experience already
on how to escape from the bad weather.
We left Bermuda this way,
and then we went on to
Fernandina port destination.
CAPT. KOROVIN (off screen):
We're better to escape.
Just think of yourself one step ahead
of dangerous.
(ominous music playing)
NARRATOR: The cargo ship Oleander
has taken the opposite escape route
to the north of the hurricane.
They are also feeling the effect
of its widening wind field.
CAPT. JACEK: Hurricane Humberto
is approaching Bermuda right now.
We can see Hurricane Humberto
and our position over here.
Right now,
wind is about 40, gusting to 50 knots.
NARRATOR: The Oleander
and the Somers Isles
are nearly 400 miles apart,
but neither ship
has escaped Humberto's reach.
The hurricane is getting bigger.
(rain pattering)
JOEY (off screen):
You got that thing on, do you?
DA COSTA (off screen): This is Joey.
I'm Roger.
Heading down to the boat now.
Apparently there's an issue.
JOEY (off screen): We got an issue!
DA COSTA (off screen): A boat's pulled
its moorings and is close to our boat.
(winds roaring)
NARRATOR: Hurricane Humberto
is now reaching Bermuda.
(intense music playing)
Tuna fisherman, Roger, and buddy, Joey,
filming on our cameras,
are racing to get to their moorings
before their boat suffers serious damage.
DA COSTA (off screen): Oh man.
I don't like the way that this is going.
Oh boy, this does not look good.
NARRATOR: A boat has been
ripped loose by the wind
and is caught up in the web of ropes
securing Roger's boat.
DA COSTA (off screen): Not sure what
we can do about it now.
Had the boat not got tangled,
it would have pinned against
all the other boats at the dock
and in less than 5 or 10 minutes,
you would've had some very serious damage.
DA COSTA (off screen):
Pretty serious gusting going on.
(wind roaring)
The boat's coming loose.
NARRATOR: A strong gust of wind
frees the loose vessel,
but that leaves it drifting
uncontrolled on the wind again.
DA COSTA (off screen):
This is quite serious.
We've got in touch with the owner,
a fisherman in the area.
NARRATOR: The owner of the loose boat
arrives just in time
to drive it to safety.
DA COSTA: That's it, it's free!
NARRATOR: Roger will now stay on his boat
to keep watch through the storm.
DA COSTA: I didn't expect things
to happen quite that early.
Things can get out of control
really quickly
and go from zero to 10 in a heartbeat.
In the dark, with the even heavier winds,
that could have been a disaster.
BRADSHAW: I have currently
just gone through my shift change.
The forecasters are about
to go through their shift change,
fresh and ready
for the passage of Humberto.
NARRATOR: Ashby Bradshaw,
in her third year
with the Bermuda Weather Service,
has the hurricane shift.
She will be filming for us
as the storm unfolds.
BRADSHAW (off screen): I can give you
an update right now.
Currently, our two-minute winds
is 49 knots, coming from 200.
Gusts are 71 knots. I'm going this way.
NARRATOR: The outer bands of Humberto
have arrived sooner than forecast.
Reported wind speeds around the islands
are far higher than expected.
BRADSHAW (off screen):
The current conditions
at Bermuda Weather Service TXKN.
DODGSON (off screen):
Don't go too far outside
BRADSHAW: Okay, sure.
DODGSON (off screen):
Be careful in case the dish
because the wind's gonna come round
BRADSHAW: Right, yeah.
It definitely took me a little off guard
at how quickly it came on
once I came on shift.
We were expecting the storm
to be later in the evening.
NARRATOR: Ashby has
prepared a weather balloon
to launch into the storm.
Equipped with a radio transmitter,
it could provide the best live data
to track Humberto.
BRADSHAW: Currently have 50 knot winds,
so it's debatable whether
we will launch this balloon.
The storm shutter
has been shaking quite violently.
(storm shutter rattling)
There you go.
When the wind comes around
against the storm shutters,
it can make the launch quite dangerous.
(shutter continues rattling)
NARRATOR: Powerful hurricane winds
are now raking the islands.
(intense music playing)
(woman screaming)
TIM HULSE: I'm standing outside my house
in Hurricane Humberto,
and as you can see,
it's getting real windy out there.
NARRATOR: The wind speeds
are exceeding all forecasts
for this early in the storm.
Our cameras are rolling
to capture the worst of it.
WALKER (off screen):
The gusts are getting higher.
Woo! I think it's
about 50 knots of wind here.
NARRATOR: Even in the relative shelter
of Roger's harbor,
winds are hitting dangerous levels.
DA COSTA (off screen):
A steady wind, and increasing.
Can already see coconuts on the ground.
I shouldn't be here.
I can't see.
(wind roaring)
This is getting pretty nasty.
Much worse than I thought
it was going to be.
I hate when it hits at night.
Daylight's a lot easier to deal with.
You can see a gust of 100 miles an hour
coming at you
just by the salt water
that it's picking up.
You don't see that at night at all
until it hits you.
(wind whistling)
WALKER (off screen): Okay,
it's starting to get really dark.
I think the worst is yet to come.
So lucky that we still have power.
I just really hope it doesn't come
any closer than it's meant to be
because cat 3 would not be fun.
NARRATOR: As darkness engulfs Bermuda
WALKER (off screen): All right, boys!
NARRATOR: flashes light up
the night sky.
Transformers blow
in a series of power outages,
hitting 80% of the island.
(woman screaming)
WALKER (off screen): What a firestorm!
NARRATOR: Using the backup generator,
Bermuda Weather Service
must stick to its task
of tracking the island's
biggest storm of the season.
Outside the building,
there is complete darkness.
BRADSHAW: And we're getting the first band
of the eyewall passing over us now.
You can see in the distance
that our GOES16 satellite dish
is shaking quite a bit.
DODGSON: The crescent's
The crescent's at 105.
- MAN 1: Gusts?
- DODGSON: Yep.
- MAN 1: Whoa!
- MAN 2: That's what we gather?
DODGSON: Yeah, based on what
we heard here.
NARRATOR: Reports from around the island
of gusts over 120 miles per hour
reveal Humberto's unexpected power.
A balloon launched now
could help the team understand
why the hurricane is hitting
so much harder than expected.
MAN: Here we go.
BRADSHAW: We are about to do
a balloon launch in 60 knot winds with
80 knot gusts.
MAN (off screen): Don't fight it
once it goes, let her go.
BRADSHAW: Yeah.
I was really skeptical whether it was safe
to launch the weather balloon,
and we settled that it was important
to get the most accurate data
out to the public.
MAN: You got it, you got it.
BRADSHAW: So when that balloon popped,
it was crushing for a lot of us
that we didn't get that data.
DA COSTA (off screen):
Getting reports of roof damage on houses.
It started to gust up over 100.
There's no way I can move
to check the houses.
You feel like the whole situation
is out of control.
It's getting really, really bad.
- (window rattling)
- BRADSHAW: Ooh, wow!
Our window's shaking. Oh, wow, okay.
NARRATOR: At the Weather Service,
storm shutters are now bolted closed.
The team are locked in and can't see out.
BRADSHAW: Tensions are very high.
The ceiling is actually shaking.
MAN 1: I'm just not sure about this.
Like this is actually shifting.
BRADSHAW (off screen): Mm-hm,
I'm not going any closer.
NARRATOR: They have to rely on instruments
to tell them what's happening.
BRADSHAW: 78 knots,
77 knots instantaneous.
MAN 2:96 peak!
NARRATOR: Outside, winds
are hitting 115 miles per hour,
and it's getting worse.
MAN 2 (off screen): Look at that, wow!
MAN 2: Pressure just dropped 4 millibars.
- MAN 1 (off screen): Oh, my God.
- BRADSHAW (off screen): Tornado?
(ominous music playing)
(winds roaring)
(thunder crackling)
NARRATOR: All across Bermuda,
Hurricane Humberto is causing havoc
as cables are downed
and boats are ripped from their moorings.
- (electricity zapping)
- WALKER (off screen): Oh, my gosh.
Oh, no, no. Please stop!
This is right in front of our house.
Our neighbor's cable is flickering.
(electricity zapping)
- Oh, there.
- WOMAN (off screen): Oh, my God.
NARRATOR: At the port,
one of the two-ton containers
has been lifted off the dock side
and is seen drifting across the harbor.
(ominous music playing)
BRADSHAW (off screen): Tornado?
(indistinct chatter)
NARRATOR: Intense winds
in the eye-wall of the hurricane
are creating localized tornadoes.
BRADSHAW (off screen): We are currently
getting 100 knot gusts
here at the Bermuda Weather Service.
Our Doppler radar has gone down.
The forecasters are looking for evidence
of possible tornado passage just now.
(indistinct chatter)
- MAN 1 (off screen): 96 knots, wow!
- BRADSHAW (off screen): Oh, my goodness.
MAN 2: It's something to drop the pressure
that much that quick.
BRADSHAW (off screen): So, we were
just, like, in a tornado just now?
- MAN 2: Vortex.
- MAN 3: Holy
BRADSHAW: Tension was very high.
I work with
some very seasoned forecasters.
For me to see them as worried
and frightened as they were,
that was worrying me.
WOMAN (off screen):
Maybe that's the worst.
(winds gusting)
DA COSTA (off screen): Getting ready
to try and leave. Check the houses.
There's no electricity.
NARRATOR: Hearing reports
of major building damage,
Roger has decided to leave the boats
to go check on his home.
DA COSTA (off screen):
Trees are down
Will we be able to get the car out?
You're very worried.
Oh, we have an issue.
Kind of inch your way through.
Just clearing the road.
Anticipating that something's gone wrong.
Gas cylinders for the stove
have been blown down.
The roof's okay.
Yeah. I can't see any damage.
It's okay from here.
Once you know there's no damage,
it's a relief like you can't believe.
NARRATOR: The hurricane force winds
are finally starting to die down.
Roger's home has escaped serious damage,
but the Bermuda Weather Service
has been hit hard.
BRADSHAW: I opened the door
and I was like - where did the deck go?
The deck is gone.
That GOES satellite
which I showed you earlier
is on the ground,
which would explain why
our satellite feed is out.
And oh my gosh, that's
why our AC is not working.
(tense music playing)
NARRATOR: Shortly before midnight,
Hurricane Humberto
moves away into the Atlantic.
It's eight-hour offensive on Bermuda
is ending.
As the sun rises, across the island,
residents can begin to assess the damage.
WALKER (off screen):
Good morning from Bermuda.
Just stepping out.
WALKER:
We've just lost a bit of ceiling
on the porch roof.
But the roof seems to be okay.
Oh, I see my neighbor's wall is down.
NARRATOR: At the docks,
the team is on clear up already,
eager to reopen to shipping
as soon as possible.
The container that was lifted clean off
the dock during the night
has drifted to the far end of the harbor.
ERIC: It blew right off this point
right here,
in the water, and went straight down.
And remember, this is blowing in the wind,
so it was moving pretty fast.
NARRATOR: In daylight,
the damage at the Bermuda Weather Service
is easier to see.
BRADSHAW: We currently
just have a big door
into a really nice view
of St. George's Harbour.
NARRATOR: Roger and his boat
survived another Bermuda hurricane.
DA COSTA: It was more than I bargained for
last night.
We did all the preparations for a big one,
but I really didn't think
it was going to be that big.
It got pretty scary
for a couple of hours, you know?
(somber music playing)
MINISTER CAINES:
The worst of it is behind us.
We have made it through
Hurricane Humberto.
The country is getting back on its feet,
and the good news
is there was no loss of life.
From one of my favorite poems, Invictus,
"Our head is bloodied,
but it is unbowed."
Thank you, Bermuda.
NARRATOR: Humberto produced
hurricane force winds and gales
for two more days
before it dissipated
600 miles south of Newfoundland.