Disaster In My Region: AW Check In Thread (Tornadoes, Floods)

Breaking news: The El Reno storm from last Friday night has been upgraded to an F5 and declared the widest - at 2.6 MILES - ever recorded.

Boy, I'm tired of Oklahoma setting weather records during my lifetime.

Ol' Fashioned Girl said:

Boy, I'm tired of Oklahoma setting weather records during my lifetime.

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Poor Oklahoma.

Ol' Fashioned Girl said:

Breaking news: The El Reno storm from last Friday night has been upgraded to an F5 and declared the widest - at 2.6 MILES - ever recorded.

Boy, I'm tired of Oklahoma setting weather records during my lifetime.

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I guess state pride has it's limits.

Hope it's all over for the season, OFG.

Damn that's scary stuff.

No lie. NOAA weather service said it was so wide, people who saw it wouldn't recognize it as a tornado. It didn't have the tornado shape we expect - either wedge or V shaped. It just looked like a low cloud on the horizon.

That's the scariest part to me, not being able to recognize it as a tornado. If you can't recognize a tornado, even if you have shelter to go to you can be caught in it too late to get to safety.

Have you considered another state? Seriously, OFG. I worry 'bout you there. Seems like Oklahoma City is becoming ground zero for these storms lately.

Ambrosia said:

Have you considered another state?

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I truly understand. Who hasn't thought of moving away from the latest disaster? But to where? To the hurricane coast . . . to tsunami shores or where earthquakes move mountains and open the earth? Sinkholes, floods, deadly hail and ice or arid drought, volcanoes. . . .

Sometimes the devil you know trumps the mother nature you don't.

Chase is right. I wouldn't trade those tornadoes for any other weather, as much as I'd like to escape the tornadoes. We have the finest weather forecasters in the universe - people who don't listen, don't educate themselves, won't spend the money for a shelter, and/or won't plan ahead so they know how, what and where to go... I just can't imagine. We knew three days ahead of time how bad those days were going to be. We were told to go home early if at all possible so we wouldn't be on the road at rush hour. A whole family got in a storm drain because it was 'under ground' next to an apartment complex... and were washed away in the flood waters.

I dunno the answer... but, surely, it's GOT to include education (and paying attention, and taking the weather seriously) and common sense.

OFG, common sense is usually in short supply.

It looks like I am going to be moving back that way this fall. Not as far as Oklahoma. Into northern Ark or southern Missouri. I wish I could afford to stay here in the Northeast. The worst thing I have had to deal with here, besides taxes, has been snow. I grew up dodging tornadoes and poisonous snakes in Missouri. I am not looking forward to going back to that now that I am older.

Make sure you have a fraidy hole and you'll be okay.

Have a big stick in the fraidy hole for the snakes--s6

Ol' Fashioned Girl said:

Make sure you have a fraidy hole and you'll be okay.

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A thoughtfully prepared safe room is a good idea for other dangers than those from the environment.

shakeysix said:

Have a big stick in the fraidy hole for the snakes--s6

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Another good girl scout/boy scout idea. Thus, my pitchfork. I grew up in Montana and now live in Oregon where venomous snakes are required by law to have rattles. So because I can no longer hear, a little girl with a garter snake can run me all over the place until I see the critter's tail.

Yes, one of the things I am going to insist upon is a 'fraidy hole' for me and my dogs...and my laptop. I would be very bereaved if I couldn't save my laptop.

Stay safe, Jen 'n everyone! s!

It's easy to say "spend the money on a shelter" and it's another to actually do it. I live in an old home that the best I have is a "root cellar." I don't think it would do me any good in an F5 because of the ceiling above me getting ripped off. Looking at the potential for a storm cellar or safe room, I'm looking at a minimum $5,000. I only have $8,000 of equity in my home. None the less, I'm doing the best I can by including an old motorcycle helmet in the emergency kit I've put in the cellar. Not even kidding there. A bicycle helmet worked for a kid in Joplin. Sometimes it's just about being able to do the best you can with what you've got.

I've lived in the Kansas/Missouri/Oklahoma area my entire life. Yes, I've spent nights glued to the weather. I've gone into basements, into hallways, been on the third floor of a dorm when hit with 80 mph straight line winds with no warning. But I'm with OFG. At least tornadoes *typically* don't cause the widespread destruction that is common with hurricanes and earthquakes. And here in Kansas, we have the fortunately luck that *most* of the time (and considering they're calling for severe weather in my town on Saturday I'm probably jinxing myself) the tornadoes seem to prefer the rural areas.

I'll be heading south tomorrow evening to hook up with a volunteer group to help out with some of the clean-up from the tornadoes. It's the least I can do for one of my adoptive states and the friends I still have there. Here's to hoping it also buys me some severe weather karma...

JMC, look up the local library. I think many are outfitted as tornado shelters. It has something to do with funding. I use our library here in St. John because the steps to my fraidy hole are fraidy inspiring on their own. And the door to the thing is the same door that they used in the opening of TWISTER! The library is across town but this is a very small town. I can make it in 4-6 minutes, even with a g-kid in tow. If the trip is farther than eight minutes by car and two to get in, just ask a neighbor for shelter--ss

PS-- I was in eastern Kansas yesterday--things are so green and pretty thanks to the rain. Have you ever eaten at Brookville Hotel?

S6,

The problem with the library would be my dog. :-( I used to be able to go to my work - I had 24/7 access and I would dare anyone to say something about my dog at that time of night. I know it's silly that I would put myself at risk for my dog, but considering I'm in tears every time I see an article about them down in Moore...

Things are wonderfully green here, and the lakes actually went to being waaay below normal (marinas were closing) to being above normal! I've not ever eaten at Brookville, but I drive past it all the time when I have to be in Salina. I hear they have wonderful fried chicken.

ETA:

I'm glad you have a good place to go! You tend to get hit a lot harder than I do! My root cellar entrance is underneath my back porch and yes, scary stairs.

The sign says no dogs but people bring them down all the time and no one says anything. Except the cats--s6

Major disastrous flooding going on all around Southern Alberta at the moment. The towns of High River, Black Diamond and Canmore have been evacuated and there are mandatory evacuations in place even within the cities of Calgary and Lethbridge. I'm on high ground here at home, but the entire area around where I work is under an evacuation order. They're expecting the flooding to spill over the top of the dam upstream later tonight.

The pictures of the "creek" in Canmore look like the hosepipes from the Hoover Dam are just upstream. Unbelievable.

Updated at midnight, Mountain time.

Between 75,000 and 100,000 people expected to be evacuated by Friday morning. I'm proud of my city: most people haven't had to go to the shelters. They've been taken in by friends, family and even strangers. My name's out there to host, too.

If you happen to catch news coverage showing heavy equipment building a berm within the city of Calgary, that's my workplace they're beside. Rivers expected to crest around 5 am, Mountain time.

Stay safe. Floods can be wicked.

BardSkye said:

Updated at midnight, Mountain time.

Between 75,000 and 100,000 people expected to be evacuated by Friday morning. I'm proud of my city: most people haven't had to go to the shelters. They've been taken in by friends, family and even strangers. My name's out there to host, too.

If you happen to catch news coverage showing heavy equipment building a berm within the city of Calgary, that's my workplace they're beside. Rivers expected to crest around 5 am, Mountain time.

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I have a thread going in P&CE forum if you care to head there.

I's a-scared to go into that forum.

I'll check it out, thank you. The berm apparently didn't work, as the TV just said the restaurant kitty-corner to my building has been flooded.

I'm off to P&CE to look for you, and I'll save you if you're about to drown over there.