This spring has been an active season for tornadoes in Iowa and throughout the U.S. (2008 could be record breaking). We had an EF5 tornado level Parkersburg, IA (see ATM video of the tornado ripping apart a house). Attica, IA was hit as well.
Last night we had tornadoes to the south of us. This is something that we are used to in Iowa. We get tornadoes pretty frequently, but not as much as say Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas though.
I was watching the Weather Channel this morning, and they were saying… we haven’t seen a weather model setup like this since 1974 – which that day had, if I am remembering this correctly, 39 tornadoes. Eating a late lunch I found this blog post that said “Historic tornado outbreak expected today!” Take a look at this map below.
Actually on the Weather Channel that “high risk circle encompasses more of Iowa, but regardless, Des Moines is in the high risk area. Reed Timmer of Tornadovideos.net said on his blog today:
A 60-80 knot low-level jet, 3000+ J/kg CAPE across the entire warm sector, and 40 knots of wind shear in the lowest kilometer will create a perfect environment for strong, long-track tornadoes from southern MN south to Northwest Texas. The hodographs look absolutely perfect, rivaling May 4, 8, 2003, when significant tornado outbreaks struck the Great Plains. Not surprisingly, the SPC has issued a high risk across the entire warm sector from MN south to KS, and will likely be extended southward from there. This is a very dangerous situation for the residents within the risk area outlined below (above). If you are a resident of this area, stay tuned to local media for watches and warnings.
Oh happy day! I’ll keep my camcorder handy. I always thought it would be cool to do some storm tracking. I’ve never seen a tornado in person… I saw a weak waterspout on Biscayne Bay when I lived in Miami, FL. It’ll be interesting to see what comes to pass, and prayerfully we’ll avoid any loss of life and property today.
In you have never seen a tornado in action before, here is a video shot on May 4, 2007 (some offensive language… so beware). These guys were crazy chasing this tornado in Ellis County, OK. At one point they were only 50 yards away.
Hey Shane, we’re in the warning area too, so pray for our state (kansas) and we’ll pray for yours….. stay safe.
[...] you to Shane for the head’s up! I didn’t believe my husband when he told [...]
I sure will! It isn’t supposed to get really bad here until later tonight, I know it has been acting up in Nebraska since this morning. NW Iowa had some strong T-storms go through as well.
Stay safe – that’s gotta be rough – I can only hope the best for your communities.