Tornado videos

You remember the old westerns? The movies where the Indian always climbed up the edge of the fort, was shot and flung himself backward, etc. The women always picked up a rifle dropped by a downed man and shot someone dead on. And so on and so forth. It's kind of like wrestling: fake and predictable.

Well, tornado videos aren't fake, but they sure are predictable. I've just watched a few on Hulu and have come to a few conclusions:

Ten Things all Tornado Videos have in Common

1. Film is shot by men between the ages of 25 and 45.
2. There is far too much adrenalin, caffeine and testosterone present.
3. Every other phrase is, "Oh my G--." 
4. Every tenth word is a curse.
5. "Debris" is a very desirable thing.
6. Missing the spark as the tornado crosses the power lines is a source of shame.
7. The chasers will get too close - on purpose - and instead of sensibly turning around and heading back down the road, will reverse at 60 mph while one of them yells, "Back! Back!! Go go go!!!"
8. Someone will always get mad that the wipers are on, ruining the shot.
9. Hoots and screeches will accompany any lighting stroke caught on film.
10. While you're trying to listen to the sound of the wind, someone is invariably yelling, "Do you HEAR that?!?" so that you can't.

(source)

Hurricane Camille Memorial

In the course of taking my daughter to the state science fair in Biloxi I was able to go see the Hurricane Camille memorial only a few miles away. The Episcopal Church of the Redeemer which was behind the memorial had been a built as the "new" church only in 1891. The church was destroyed in Camille but the tower somehow withstood the winds and storm surge.

Before Camille (source)

After Camille (source)

(source)

The bell tower which survived was repaired and served as a memorial after Camille. The "old" church, which had been serving as the church hall, survived Camille and was repaired and then used as the church again. In the first photo above you can see it in the background. Below you can see how the church grounds looked before Hurricane Katrina. The memorial appears to be on or near the footprint of the old church.

(source)

A view that includes the surviving tower:

(source)

Then, of course, came Katrina which finished the job that Camille started. The bell tower was destroyed, the memorial damaged, the "new/old" church destroyed. The only things left of the church were a few twisted girders and some artifacts dug out of the muck.

(source)

(source)

(source)

(source)

 
Today, the church has been moved. The girders remain as a memorial to the church. The memorial has been restored. (the following are all my photos)

 

 

 

Ahhhh

Music to my ears: the sirens are going off. Alas, only for a tornado watch which we're sharing with a few dozen other counties. We will at least get some good wind, thunder and lightning (the rain isn't much needed - we had enough overnight).

Updates as events warrant.

[I notice that parts of LA have gotten over 10 inches of rain. Time to break out the oars.]

--Primarily a rain event although we had a little thunder and lightning. Flood warnings for our area but we're not low-lying.

March 2012 Tornado Outbreak

Yesterday was hopping indeed. 95 reports of tornadoes in 10 states. Now, there can be multiple tornado reports for the same tornado, all along the damage path, so it is highly unlikely that there were actually 95 tornadoes. No matter how you cut it, however, that's a lot. Currently the record for the biggest March outbreak is 74 tornadoes from March 11-13, 2006. Sadly, there were also around 30 deaths.

There is extensive news coverage so I'm not going to post much more about this. Our prayers are with all of the victims and their families. The map of tornado reports as it currently stands can be found here.

UPDATE: The indefatigable Wikipedia now has an article on this outbreak. 

Spring 2012: the opening lineup

We kicked off the 2012 spring tornado season a little early with the tornadoes on February 29th. Usually we're not looking at major outbreaks until at least March and more usually April. Wednesday there were 30 confirmed tornadoes and 13 deaths. May their memory be eternal! (The people, not the tornadoes)

In the south you can always tell the onset of spring not by the appearance of the robin (they've wintered here) nor by the blooming of the azaleas (they got a head start at the beginning of February) but by the wail of tornado sirens. I haven't heard any myself yet today, but considering that I went outside at 7 AM in short sleeves and it's March 2nd I will probably be hearing them by late afternoon.

(via the Weather Channel: see article)

If you live in an area of the country that is at higher risk for severe weather, I strongly urge you to have a weather radio in your house. Don't just get the kind that offers a 24 hour forecast if you press a button; get one that you can set to go off if a severe weather warning is called for your area. At 2 AM you are highly unlikely to wake up and think, "hey, I think I'll push this little button and check the forecast". You are far more likely to be asleep in your bed and unaware of the tornado sneaking across the county line into your backyard. Many communities have sirens now but if you live in an area without one or are in a rural area or you are like me and simply can't hear them unless you're outside, then do yourself and your family a favor and get a weather radio.

Speaking of severe weather risk, there are maps for every month indicating the relative storm risk in any given area. Let's have a look at them.

January: Ok, tornadoes are rare in January but they happen.

more info

February: Aha! Notice the risk has gone up dramatically.

more info

March: Now we're talking. Notice that the risk is not primarily in the traditional "tornado alley" but in the southeastern states. For the uninformed (or formerly uninterested) this is actually called "dixie alley".

more info

April: The slide off to the west begins as things start to heat up in tornado alley.

more info

May: You see how the area of greatest risk has now moved off to the northwest. The risk is the greatest in tornado alley.

more info

June: Mostly the same as June but concentrated a little farther north.

more info

July: July is pretty uniformly hot so you're not having quite as many clashes along frontal boundaries.

more info

 August: Notice the threat in the south has decreased to below even that of January.

more info

September: As things start to cool off a bit the threat starts its slide back south. A lot of tornadic activity this time of year is associated with hurricanes and tropical storms.

more info

October: The threat is not gone, but it is pretty tame in general across the U.S.

more info

November: Here we see the south getting its second wind. November is the second peak for the lower Mississippi valley. There are plenty of hurricanes this time of year too.

more info

December: No one thinks of Tornadoes in December, but they occur. Weather in the south can be very changeable and strong fronts are not uncommon.

more info

Remember, even if you live in an area considered low threat, like Washington state, tornadoes and severe thunderstorms can still occur. Check this site for tornadoes by state (also just a fun site).

Book List

I've started working on the book list (see separate page). At the moment I've merely got them organized by topic and in chronological order (by event, not copyright) and don't have any reviews or summaries up yet. That will come gradually. So far I have tornadoes, specific and general, and hurricanes, specific and general. I have some more general books on other weather events, forecasting, etc., but haven't gotten those listed yet. It looks like about 25 titles up at the moment. I'm in the process of rereading some of them to have more recent impressions.

Fun!

Any favorite books you don't see on the list yet?

Post the first

Ah, the inaugural post.

I guess it would be useful to say what this blog IS and what it ISN'T. Oh, and also why it is here.

Purpose: To give me a place to gush about all things weather-related without having to annoy the sweet people who visit my other blog. They are understandably confused to see things like "So close! I think I saw rotation!" next to, "Recipe for butterscotch brownies" and crocheting patterns. Bless their hearts. I will not be "sweet" on this blog. This one is solely so I can have fun with one of my favorite things.

What this blog ISN'T: This is not a place to get forecasts. This is not a place for mathematics. This is not a place where you will come across a word you've never heard of and can't pronounce. This is not a "fancy" meteorology blog. And also, sadly, this is probably not going to have too many first-hand accounts of severe weather. I have a curse. (See below.)

What this blog IS: This blog is where I will discuss all things weather. I really enjoy the history of meteorology as a science and historical accounts of storms. I don't just love tornadoes; I also love hurricanes, blizzards, hail, clouds, etc. I can't remember where I read it, but the saying, "a day without wind is dead" is very true. True, there are some days when you want a nice, cool, sunny, calm day, but in general I like the messier ones. I have a growing collection of weather-related books and I think it would be fun to list and review them. Not "serious" reviews, you understand, just amateur reviews.

Doubtless this blog will evolve as time goes on and I doubt I will be able to post daily. But I do plan to have a lot of fun and welcome anyone along for the ride.

[The Curse: Yes, I have a curse. It involves a large, invisible umbrella. Wherever I live, regardless of the normal weather patterns, it suddenly calms down when I get there. I have watched menacing clouds approaching on Doppler miraculously part and slide past on either side of me, only to rejoin five miles later and drop a funnel. When I move, the place I left suddenly has dreadful weather. I do NOT want my home destroyed and my family injured. I DO want to be close enough to get a good look and hopefully some photos. And I will go ahead and say right now (so that I do not have to append it to every post), yes, I am aware that severe weather causes death and destruction. I do not like death and destruction. I look at it like this: if the weather will occur anyway (and it will) then I just want to be close enough for a ring-side seat. The better we are able to observe tornadoes and other sudden severe storms, hopefully the better our forecasting will be and the number of people injured will be fewer.]