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2011-05-28 -Signs, Portents, and the Weather-

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Posted by Besoeker 2011-05-28 00:00|| || Front Page|| [8 views ] Top

#1 What got my attention most about the Joplin tornado was how many ignored the sirens, which mean "Take cover immediately. Your life is in danger." Instead they drove across town, sat out in parking lots or stood out in yards observing the sky, etc.
Two days later tornado sirens went off in my neighborhood. A tornado had been spotted 8 miles west of town, coming right at us. I was walking out of a Walmart when the sirens started. The sky was half sunlit, half black with boiling clouds. Rather than taking cover immediately, I drove home. There were many people near the Walmart sitting in the cars, their kids strapped in, looking up at the rapidly darkening sky. Others were driving around like me. During my 3-mile drive back home, I saw about 50 people in their front yards looking up at the sky. One hundred feet from my driveway, a violent gust of wind lifted up the front end of my F150 and then slammed it down again. Shortly after I was indoors and into the basement. It was all over in 15 minutes, just straight line winds, many trees, poles & wires down, no one injured.
Next morning I walked around the neighborhood to check out the damage. I talked to many neighbors about what they did in response to the sirens. A local contractor went out into his backyard to take down his flags. The first wind gust knocked him flat on his back and leveled his flag pole. He found himself looking straight up at a cloud vortex (never touched down). He was not injured. He went into his basement. Another neighbor works as a disaster trainer, having moved to OH from New Orleans after Katrina destroyed her home. She sent her child & pets into the basement, then went out to her car to get an emergency kit. She was barely able to re-enter her basement due to the wind blowing out of her house as the local air pressure plunged. Another young mother sent her children & pets into the basement, then went back upstairs looking for a corded telephone to use downstairs.
The only person of about 10 that I spoke to who did everything right was my octogenarian next door neighbor, who went into her basement & stayed there until the all-clear.
Oh well, I guess most of us are slow learners.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2011-05-28 16:29|| 2011-05-28 16:29|| Front Page Top

#2 AH9418, that sounds about right. Good on you for getting to good shelter, tornadoes move a bit quicker than I think most people realize. Those people sky gazing, well, at that perspective all a person sees is flying pain.

One time I was in a similar situation, gathered the apartment codwellers and hit the basement. One left his cat and went back, called him an idiot, stayed in the shelter and held the door. One second I'm pulling with all my might (inward swinging door) and the next I'm pushing, giving goofball a chance to get in.

Some lessons I learned. Have everyting gathered beforehand and where you will be riding it out. Second was taking shelter in the basement of a brick and morter (like one of the posters blithy suggested, proving lunchbox moore wrong that there are idiots in the UK) was likely not a great idea even if taking shelter under a sturdy table. That was proven after seeing Greensburg and their brick and morter main street. The expression Come Down like a Ton of Bricks is correct except for the tonnage.

A land line is not going to help, there will not be any land lines. The story about the guy who texted his location is lucky they had cell service. What a person needs is a talkaround with a radio frequency which will be monitored in the case of an emergency. Other items in a basic kit would be 3 days supply food/water/medicine/toiletries, a collection of rags which could double as wound dressing in a pinch, strong tape which could also double as wound dressing, a laminated or ziplocked bio sheet of all involved in case of outstanding health issues and blood types and contact numbers pictures etc., and an emergency whistle in case trapped and an extra to put into a pocket if time and concentration allows. I have all mine in a backpack with strong shoulder straps and wear it during the hunker down so that a) it does not blow away and b) gives protection to the back during a hunker down. Head protection is also suggested even if just a bike helmet. Also hand is several pair of work gloves strong enough to protect against grabbing a nail. Good thick soled boots are also nice in an aftermath but difficult for a boogie bag.

Glad you are OK; F150 drink up! Tornadoes are in some ways a lot like hurricanes and not in other ways. There are massive pressure changes and variable wind directions which do interesting things to otherwise friendly objects.

Education is key. Admittedly I was a gawker until I learned better the hard way. It was solidified after being a responder. Dang things are mesmorizing.

Posted by swksvolFF 2011-05-28 22:41|| 2011-05-28 22:41|| Front Page Top

#3 From my time in the Midwest I observed that the sirens were activated anytime heavy thunderstorms blew trough the vicinity and people became complacent. Kind of like the "White Death" alerts from the TV weather anytime significant snowfall was forecast.

Posted by TZSenator 2011-05-28 23:51|| 2011-05-28 23:51|| Front Page Top

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