We're hoping those weather guys don't have everything right, because they're talking the likelihood of tornadoes tomorrow afternoon and evening and also on Saturday. It's to start in the western part of the state and move eastward. And if we're going to have this weather, so might the states to our east. Look out Missouri and Illinois!
While Kansas has always been known for its tornadoes, thanks to The Wizard of Oz, it isn't the only state or even the region that deals with them. The times--along with weather patterns--are changing.
A report finds that the traditional boundaries of Tornado Alley - which has centered on the Plains states of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota- should be expanded to include much of the Midwest and Deep South, because the frequency and severity of tornadoes in those areas is much more widespread than commonly believed. (from an article from USA Today about Tornado Alley, shared on WZZM in Michigan)Tornadoes have always been a part of my life. I've learned to respect them. If the siren blows or a warming is issued via TV or radio, I know what to do, and I do it. And the two reasons below are why.
When I was not quite four years old, the deadliest of the tornadoes in Kansas struck Udall, a small town in the southeast part of the state. I heard that tornado as my mom and I were driving home to the city from the graduation of a cousin in another small town. It's one of those things---along with bits of memories of the graduation ceremony---that I'll always remember. The tornado went through Blackwell, Oklahoma, first, on its way into Kansas, killing 20 people there. In Udall, a town of just over 600 people, 76 died (20 were children) and more than 200 were injured.
On April 26, 1991, another tornado ripped through my area of state. My oldest daughter was with her fifth grade class as the annual Renaissance Fair, held at one of the local colleges. She remembers her teacher mentioning that the air felt strange that day. By 5:15 pm, the school trip was over and students were home again. That was when storm chasers spotted the storm with tornado near Argonia, KS that eventually cut a southwest to northeast path that deposited rain and hail at the farm where we lived, then moved on and dropped again just east of the town of Clearwater, then built as it went through Haysville, into south Wichita and McConnell AFB. At 6:35 pm, the F5 tornado hit Andover, KS, northeast of Wichita, wiping out homes and lives in the Golden Spur Mobile Home park. Videos (most are on YouTube) taken of the storm are mind-boggling.
Just one simple caveat. If you've seen the movie Twister, there's a lot of made-up junk in it. Strapping yourself to a metal pipe will more than likely find you with a pipe wrapped around your neck...if you manage to somehow survive. Not to mention that tornadoes do not sound like a camel moan played backwards, as they used in the movie.
So I'll go dig out my weather radio, watch the radar via computer, and keep an eye on the sky, ready to go to my daughter's house, three blocks away, where there's a basement, if needed. Or I'll simply bend over and kiss my a$$ goodbye. Here's hoping all of you stay safe from Mother Nature's Spring Wrath. :)
Laurence: That one we encountered back there was a strong F2, possibly an F3.Beltzer: Maybe we'll see some 4's.Haynes: That would be sweet!Bill: 4 is good. 4 will relocate your house very efficently.Melissa: Is there an F5?[Everyone goes dead silent]Melissa: What would that be like?Jason 'Preacher' Rowe: The Finger of God.
~~ Twister (the movie) 1996
2 comments:
I have a very healthy respect for them too. I'm in that newly added area of Tornado Alley, but we've always considered ourselves there whether the weather gurus said it or not. We had a day of tornadoes on April 27 last year, including an EF5 that traveled over 130 miles. And just a month or so ago, another tornado ripped through the same path, destroying several homes that had just been rebuilt from last year. I like to consider myself prepared and even asked my kids to give me one of those emergency radios for Christmas -- the kind that has a solar battery in addition to alkaline ones, has a crank for a quick burst of power that will let you make a quick cell phone call, radio, weather radio and flashlight. I get in the bathroom that's in the center of the apartment building and then I wait. And pray.
Marilyn
Marilyn, I think it only takes once. Since my "once" was when I was 3, it's pretty much ingrained in me. We had a basement until I was 12. There was a basement at the farm, and the day I saw the tornado from an upstairs window, heading right our way, we used that basement. Don't think I've every shook so much in my life. LOL
I'll have to look for a fancy emergency radio like yours! I have a small, plug-in one that also uses batteries. In face, I just unearthed it from a box buried in the closet. :)
Wishing you a boring spring...
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