Max Mayfield Quotes (93 Quotes)

It's capable of causing catastrophic damage, ... Even well-built structures will have tremendous damage. Of course, what we're really worried about is the loss of lives.

The fact that we had a major hurricane forecast over or near New Orleans is reason for great concern. The local and state emergency management knew that as well as FEMA did.

Well, it's never been as bad as this. Well, we've never had it as good as this. Well, hey, it couldn't have been any worse than this, Rush Why, it had to be global warming.

I just wanted to be able to go to sleep that night knowing I had done everything I could,

I would expect to see extensive damage to a pretty large section of the country ... It's been a long time since we've had a hurricane on this track.

We want to make sure everyone in the Florida Keys understands the seriousness of the situation. We will likely have a major hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, and we'll have to deal with it whether we like it or not.

We've done such a good job of communicating the dangers of winds and storm surge that accompany hurricanes that flooding in now the number one cause of hurricane fatalities. Our challenge is to get the word out that inland flooding, in some cases far removed from where the storms come ashore, can pose serious danger.

It's not always about the numbers. It just takes one hurricane over your community to make it a bad season.

We think that there is still some chance of it strengthening into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it makes landfall tomorrow morning,

This is a real good night to just stay indoors. Tomorrow is going to be a much better day, but first we must get through tonight.

I don't remember seeing conditions as favorable as this for a strengthening hurricane for a long time,

The message needs to be very clear. It's not a good night to be out driving around, ... The back side of the core of the hurricane has yet to come. It's not over yet.

If Isabel stays close to our forecast track and if it does make landfall as a major hurricane, it has the potential for large loss of life if we don't take it seriously and prepare,

Most of (the latest computer projections on the storm's path) are keeping Debby in a more southerly track and that keeps it somewhat closer to Hispaniola and to Cuba,

I don't think anybody ever thought we would be at this point.

We like to tell people, 'Flee the water and hide from the wind,' ... We need to make sure the whole population knows that you can go tens of miles instead of hundreds of miles.

You bet I'm worried about next year, and several years after that,

We're very concerned. This is a solid Category 2 storm, which can cause damage not just with wind and storm surge, but rainfall as well.

The message here is to continue to pay very close attention. It's still coming. It's just been slowed down,

I had to let the mayor know that this storm has the potential not only to cause large property damage, but large loss of life if people don't make the right decision.

We had well over a thousand lives lost in Katrina. If Wilma, you know, comes into the US, to the Florida coast as a Category 3 or 4 hurricane, that potential for large loss of life is with us.

It seems like this year all but three or maybe four of them have impacted land.

The main concern right now is for the Keys -- not for a hurricane, but for a tropical storm. If it holds together, we still think it can make a comeback.

I don't think any model could predict whether it'll top the levees, but that's obviously a grave concern.

We've brought the winds down a little bit here, but it's going over a warm eddy in the Gulf of Mexico tonight, ... We actually think it has a chance to strengthen again tonight and in the early morning hours.

With just a little bit of advance planning you can be ahead of the game. There's going to be enough stress anyway when a hurricane comes. Please don't wait until the last minute. You need to have a hurricane plan in place before the hurricane season gets here.

Most people respond to what their local officials tell them to do. I'm very comfortable in putting our resources into training these state and local emergency managers.

It's still coming. We might as well take advantage of the time. Gas up your cars and get all your supplies ready.

But Wilma still could cause tremendous damage and loss of life if we're not careful, ... The storm surge and the wave action will be tremendous with this hurricane, given the intensity and the size.

They're lined up again, similar to this time last year.

I've been here 33 years, and we've always been concerned about the New Orleans,

We've been preaching this for decades, and you know, the government can only do so much. I don't know how we motivate people.

That would obviously be terrible news for Mexico, but for the United States interests it means that we'll have a weaker hurricane coming out into the Gulf of Mexico and it will be slower in getting here.

I know the folks in the Panhandle and Gulf Coast have gone through the drill, but I'm afraid they're going to have to go through it again.

People need to understand that the greatest potential for large loss of life is from the storm surge flooding near the coastline,

This is a good thing. This gives us more time. It gives people time to say we can see it coming. Don't let our guard down yet.

The 1940s through the 1960s experienced an above-average number of major hurricanes, while the 1970s into the mid-1990s averaged fewer hurricanes.

The 33 years that I've been at the hurricane center we have always been saying the directors before me and I have always said that the greatest potential for the nightmare scenarios, in the Gulf of Mexico anyway, is that New Orleans and southeast Louisiana area,

This is a good night to just stay indoors.

This hurricane is much larger than Hurricane Andrew ever was. I also want to make absolutely clear to everyone that the greatest potential for large loss of life is still in the coastal areas from the storm surge.

I think a lot of people say you could never have the same death and damages as we did last season. I'm here to say it could happen.

By the time this gets here, I could be retired.

but everything we see says we have a good hurricane track forecast.

People need to start paying very close attention and making their preparations now,

This is not your average hurricane. It's a very, very dangerous hurricane. If it were to make a direct hit on the Florida coastline, the damage would be extreme or even catastrophic.

I expect many people are thinking the death and damages from last year will never be like that again. I'm here to tell you otherwise.

Alpha is not going to be a threat to the United States, ... I want to make that very clear.

I don't have any doubt that it will become a major hurricane, and that means a Category 3 or above,

I think we have people's attention after this year.

No one has put any pressure on me, from the White House or anywhere else.