Joan!!

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Dee
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Joan!!

Post by Dee »

Everything okay there??
Saw that some had severe weather with tornados.


Dee~~
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Post by JLH »

:grin: Thanks, yes, we are fine. There were tornado warnings but not much other than rain here. We didn't even go in the closet. How I wish we had a basement. Not even tree pruning (as I like to call it) weather here.

Thanks for checking. It was more than our related family bothered to do........
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Joan
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Gloria
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Post by Gloria »

I can't remember where you live, Joan. It seems a bit early for tornadoes. I'm glad to hear you are OK. It does make you nervous to live without a basement during tornado warnings. We have a tri-level, so we can get halfway beneath the ground, but not entirely.

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crranch
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Post by crranch »

Glad your okay, those twisters sure tend to make even the most calm person a little nervous.....


Cellars are a blessing here in Oklahoma. We had one put in when we bought the ranch and the showdogs and I have been in a couple of times as twisters came this way. It was worth every penny, when your house is at the top of a hill... :???:

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C
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tex
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Post by tex »

There's a bit of a risk involved with using a basement for a tornado shelter. In any level EF3 tornado, or below, basements are almost always quite safe, and in a level EF4 tornado, basements are usually safe. In a level EF5 tornado, however, basements are rarely safe. The power of the biggest storms are almost unbelievable.

We had a category EF5 tornado near us a few years ago, and it went through a small subdivision of a local town, totally destroying everything in that small development. Virtually everyone who was in that area at the time, was killed. Those who went to their basements, were sucked out and killed. The only people who survived were those who got in their cars and drove out of there, before it reached them, (just the opposite of what the weather "experts" advise people in a tornado's path to do). With one exception - one lady, who was taking a bath at the time, was picked up by the circulation, bathtub and all, and thrown out of the core of the circulation, (still in the bathtub, according to the story, though I'm not sure whether to believe it), and she somehow survived. Only a slab remained, where her house had been standing. Many of the slabs in that subdivision, were missing, and since they were never found, were assumed to have been ground to bits. The pavement was completely sucked up and gone, from many of the streets. Most of the automobiles were never found, only pieces - an engine block here, a bumper there, an axle over there - everything else was ground to bits. The remains of the 27 people killed, were mostly found in fragments - fingers, toes, arms, legs, etc. - everything that could be found was collected, but very few could be identified, due to the extent of the damage. At the edge of the storm, in farm and ranch land, there were cows still alive afterwards, without any skin, and with all sorts of debris sticking out of them. They had to be destroyed, of course.

It was the most gruesome scene you could imagine. I doubt that hollywood could have created a more numbing impression. The saddest part of it was a well-known family of four, who had a pre-arranged plan to go home to their basement, whenever a tornado warning was issued. The two teenagers, were in school, about 12 miles away, and they immediately drove home, as did their parents, and went to their basement. I don't know if any of their remains were ever positively identified or not. If they had simply stayed where they were when the warning was issued, they would have been spared. The father had an automotive parts and repair ship in town, (which was untouched by the storm), and he restored old Chevy cars, (mostly from the years 1955 and 1956). He had over a hundred of them stored near his house, and not a single one of them, (nor any identifiable parts), were ever found, after the storm.

I realize that category EF5 tornadoes are somewhat rare, but I've seen two of them, very near here, during my lifetime, and after seeing what they can do, I can guarantee that I will never intentionally choose to "ride out" a tornado, just because a "weather expert" recommends it, any more than I would go back to eating gluten, just because a GI doc insists that diet has nothing to do with MC.

Tex

P S Now a good storm cellar, as Carrie mentioned, I would trust, but if one is not handy when needed, I'm outa there.
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Post by JLH »

Wow, Tex, that's all amazing.....

Almost exactly a year ago, there was a bad tornado in Prattville AL where we usually like to go on some Sundays to see a movie and shop and now eat at Outback. I'll look for the category of that storm.

We saw the devastation first hand. A house that our friend's "kids" had rented when they were at an Air Force College was gone.

I don't know if DH could stay in one of those prefab storm shelters, he's pretty claustrophobic.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor and don't play one on TV.

LDN July 18, 2014

Joan
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Post by JLH »

I think it was an EF 3.

Here's a You Tube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzBp28_a ... re=related
DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor and don't play one on TV.

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Joan
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Bifcus16
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Post by Bifcus16 »

Hi Tex,

That sounds dreadful. They are playing a stormchasers show on TV here and they always make it look like such fun. Then at the end they show some of the devastation caused by the tornado they just missed (they always seem to just miss them). But of course what they show could never replicate the horror that must be involved in going through one of those.

Weatherchannel is currently offering a competition where the prize is to go to the US stormchasing. It seems kind of irresponsible to turn it into a tourist event. Rather like knitting in front of the gallows.

Joan, Tree pruning. That's a great term. I can just picture it. Glad to know you are safe.

Lyn
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Post by JLH »

We live in the woods. When we first moved up here, one of the hurricanes, Opal, spawned a little tornado that took 40 of our trees.
It looked like a war zone in our neighborhood. Trees down everywhere, across our driveway and our street. One damaged our shingles and some other parts of the house but not badly. DH didn't even have a saw to extricate us. Luckily, some nice neighbors came along to help.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor and don't play one on TV.

LDN July 18, 2014

Joan
JLH
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Post by JLH »

Usually with high winds, just some tree limbs come down, hence tree pruning.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor and don't play one on TV.

LDN July 18, 2014

Joan
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tex
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Post by tex »

Lyn wrote:Weatherchannel is currently offering a competition where the prize is to go to the US stormchasing. It seems kind of irresponsible to turn it into a tourist event. Rather like knitting in front of the gallows.
I agree - a lot of TV shows try to turn someone's misery into entertainment, but I suppose that shouldn't surprise us, since the news media have been doing that for decades.

Tex
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Post by starfire »

Tex, if you only knew how rare it is for me say "Oh My God"....... you'd know how stunning is your descirption of the devestation from that storm. :cry:

Love, Shirley
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Post by crranch »

I still vote for the inground OMG cement storm cellar with a sturdy door. And as far as getting someone " down in the hole" who might be a little nervous. You could always do the " better living thru chemistry" game. I used to have to do that with our 16 year old whippet, to keep her from stressing about the cellar, had to knock her out with valium or Xanex before heading outside...it worked... :wink:

Hugs,
C
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