RHODE ISLAND — Here’s a look at this week’s weather forecast for Rhode Island, as reported by AccuWeather.

Monday, Oct. 14

Cloudy most of the day, with a little sun in the afternoon. A couple showers expected. There is a 90 percent chance of rain.

• High 64, low 36
• 10 mph winds.

Tuesday, Oct. 15

Mostly sunny.

• High 57, low 36
• 7 mph winds.

Friday, Oct. 18

Sunny.

• High 63, low 39
• 4 mph winds.

Have a news tip? Email jimmy.bentley@patch.com.

Kingston, RI. – On Saturday afternoon, the Duquesne University volleyball team concluded its series at Rhode Island, bouncing back with a 3-1 victory inside Keaney Gymnasium in conference action. The Dukes improve to 12-7 overall while jumping to 3-4 in Atlantic 10 action.

POINT OF EMPHASIS
Duquesne opened the match with one of its best performances in a set, posting 22 kills and a .348 swing percentage, in claiming a 26-24 win in the opening stanza. The two teams traded the first 14 points before the Dukes held a 13-10 lead later in the set. Four different players registered a kill for Duquesne, led by junior Carsyn Henschen and sophomore Jordan Robertson, who each tallied a pair. Later in the set, the Rams would tie the score at 15-all before taking a 19-17 advantage. A kill from junior Ariel Helm and sophomore Avery Hobson knotted the score at 20-20 before Rhode Island held a 24-22 lead. Duquesne responded with four consecutive points to rally and take the first set. Graduate student Elizabeth Drelling started the run with a kill before back-to-back kills from Hobson and Robertson sealed the win for Duquesne.

RAN AWAY WITH IT
After dropping set two, the Dukes bounced back with a .364 hitting percentage, taking a 2-1 match advantage. It was a back-and-forth affair to begin the contest as both teams traded the opening 20 points of the set. Later in the set, the Dukes jumped out to a 19-14 advantage, thanks to 6-1 stint. Freshman Emersen Schrom started the run with a successful swing, followed by a block from Hobson and Helm. Hobson found the floor successfully before a kill from Henschen stretched the Dukes lead. After a point from the Rams, Duquesne recorded six straight points to claim a 25-15 win. Helm tallied a kill to begin the stint before an attacking error from Rhode Island pushed the Dukes lead to six. Henschen and Helm collected a rejection while Helm found the floor successfully before Henschen carded consecutive kills to end the set.

BACK IN THE WIN COLUMN
Duquesne jumped out to an early 7-3 advantage before stretching its lead to 14-8 with a 7-5 stint. Hobson paced the team with a pair of kills while Drelling and Schrom each tallied a successful swing. Rhode Island netted a pair of points before Duquesne scored four of the next five points to hold an 18-11 advantage, Helm found the floor successfully while Robertson carded a point in the stint. Schrom and Robertson also posted a rejection in the run. Rhode Island trimmed the deficit to four but the Dukes ended the set of a 6-1 stint, while taking advantage of four attacking errors from the Rams to take the match.

INSIDE THE STAT SHEET
A pair of Dukes finished with double figures, let by Elizabeth Drelling and Avery Hobson. Each finished with 14 kills while Hobson posted her first double-double of the season, ending with 15 digs and three blocks. Henschen and Robertson each tallied nine kills while combining for six total blocks. Graduate student Grace Kristofic and sophomore Chloe Wilmot each carded 23 assists while Wilmot posted seven digs and Kristofic collected three aces. Junior Madison Grimm registered her first career double-double with 12 digs and 11 helpers.

UP NEXT
Duquesne returns to UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse when it welcomes Fordham for an Atlantic 10 series on Friday, Oct. 18 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 19 at 1:00 p.m.
 

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Hurricane Milton could bring a ‘reverse storm surge’

Depending on where Hurricane Milton makes landfall, the Tampa Bay area could be flooded with a huge storm surge or it could have its bay sucked dry.

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This hurricane season feels different. Early on the government predicted 17 to 25 named storms but only a total of 13 storms have occurred including Milton.  The Atlantic slumbered during an August that produced a 50-year record low in the number of storms. For Rhode Island this has meant virtually no activity – so far. No big storms and no expenses. If that’s the nothing, what is the double?

In those locations where hurricanes have gone ashore this year the double whammy is ocean storm surge combined with heavy rain on land.  To understand how rain plays into this, one has to look no further than the recent floods in Asheville, North Carolina. With one to almost three feet of Helene’s rainfall, areas in the region were swamped.  Since Asheville is over 400 miles and about 2,000 vertical feet from where the hurricane hit land, we can be sure Helene’s water impacts there are rain. Sadly, the currently known 19 deaths in Florida and 115 in North Carolina from Helene as of midweek further emphasize the severity of rain alone as a hurricane hazard.

More: Where to find high water mark plaques from RI’s past floods and hurricanes

Rhode Islanders know about storm surges like the 1938 hurricane that landed nearly 20 feet of seawater in Providence and Hurricane Carol in 1954 which produced over 14 feet. They occurred before the Fox Point Hurricane Barrier was completed in 1966.  However, sea level has risen about half a foot over the lifetime of the barrier according to the Providence tide gauge.  At some point continued sea level rise will mean even past storm surges can top the barrier. 

However, the idea that rainfall can be equally important as ocean storm surge may be new to many.  A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, and the rain gauge at T.F. Green International Airport reflects this with an increase in annual precipitation of about six inches since the Hurricane Barrier was completed. In a storm situation which produces the need to close the barrier to keep the sea out, pumps are required to move rainwater that has drained to the rivers behind it.  Averages do not predict the impact of a storm which will depend very much on the nature of the event itself, but they indicate a trend that more easily results in flooding.  More rain and rising seas mean that the Fox Point Barrier is in clear need of rejuvenation.

Not only has the average rainfall changed, but when the skies dump on an urban landscape the water flows along the surface with ever greater depth and virulence.  Providence has 37 percent of its area covered by rooftops, roads, sidewalks, and parking lots. Tunnels under the city can store moderate rains but not the results of a hurricane. With more rain and a high percentage of impervious surface in the city, Providence’s hazard mitigation plan quite rightly recognizes that urban flooding is extremely likely.     

More: Breakwaters have protected Galilee from storms for over a century. Now repairs are needed

The numbers and the threat don’t look good, but they also say that a large area of Providence can be a candidate for storing the rain on site or allowing it to sink into the ground. Simple as it seems, this requires institutional changes to incentivize private property owners to participate.  In Providence, strides have been made on public property and when private property is developed or redeveloped with the use of catchment basins and a variety of other management practices. However, incentivizing retrofits of this type on private property requires innovations that many other U.S. cities are investing in like credits to owners to maintain storage and infiltration solutions. Now is the time to bring those innovations here and make them work for Rhode Island.

Rather than owing twice as much or vastly more when our watery bet goes sour, Rhode Islanders should understand the consequences of a hurricane hitting Rhode Island well before it happens. Most importantly let’s act now to hold more rainwater on land and rejuvenate key infrastructure in preparation for the day the rains come. 

Richard Burroughs teaches in the Department of Marine Affairs at the University of Rhode Island. He is a member of the Providence Resilience Partnership.