Island's Weather Gear Blown Out by Typhoon
From the Associated Press
September 1, 2006


HONOLULU — Typhoon Ioke knocked out Wake Island's weather sensors Thursday as it lashed the isle with some of the central Pacific's fiercest winds in more than a decade, the National Weather Service said.

Forecasters monitoring the 2.5-square-mile atoll's wind and temperature gauges from Hawaii said the instruments blew out as the storm approached with winds up to 155 mph and gusts up to 190 mph.

The Air Force evacuated all of the roughly 200 island residents Monday before the "super typhoon" neared.

Only troops, Defense Department civilian employees and military contractors live on the remote island.
[link to www.latimes.com]