Wait, Waffle House has a Storm Center?

　　As governmental entities and private businesses mobilize ahead of Hurricane Florence’s expected landfall in the Carolinas, Waffle House is also preparing for the storm. A tweet from the restaurant chain showed employees gathered around laptops and storm-tracking monitors. In past natural disasters, Waffle House has been praised as a role model for disaster preparedness, and following the Joplin, Missouri tornadoes in 2011, a FEMA administrator even coined the term “Waffle House index” as a measure of a disaster’s severity. Stay safe out there, everyone. [Kate Bernot]

Florence’s massive eyewall

　　If you are a bit of a storm aficionado like myself, you may be interested in this CNN video of the eyewall of Hurricane Florence, which is just nuts. From the safety of the Midwest, it’s hard not to just be gobsmacked by the incredible power (winds expected at over 100 mph) of that storm. But above all, what Kate said: Be safe out there! [Gwen Ihnat]