I have never heard of tornados , ever in all my 59 years at this

[blues90]

Time of the year , and there's no climate change .

[libertee]

1. Oh for cripe sakes ...where have you been..it happened

[AngryOldDem]

3. It has happened, but to this degree?

The tornado that went through Nashville has been going since Tupelo, Mississippi, and it's now headed toward Kentucky. That's just one example.

I don't think it's so much the incidence of this weather in Feburary, it's the severity of it.

[Individualist]

5. Hear, hear!

Unless my memory is failing me completely, it used to be that when tornadoes occurred at this time of year they were F1 or F2, nothing as severe as what's occurring now.

[AngryOldDem]

9. I've lived in the Midwest all of my life.

I remember the Xenia, Ohio, tornado of April 1974 like it was yesterday because I lived in the next county over.

But it's only been within the past decade or so that the weather here in Southwestern Ohio has gotten more severe both earlier and then again later in the year. Looking back, I can't recall severe thunderstorms (let alone tornadoes) happening much before late March and into April, and now I'm beginning to expect at least one bout of bad weather in late winter, and again in late fall. In fact, most of the damaging storms around here occur at those times -- not so much during the "normal" tornado months of April, May, and June.

Just last week there was a suspected tornado just west of here -- the Weather Service is thinking that it could have been both a tornado and straight-line winds because the damage pattern is extremely odd. How's that for scary?

But I have to say tonight takes the cake for long-lived tornadoes and severe storms. This is April/May weather, not mid-Feburary weather. I have no theories on why this is; all I know is that it sucks.

Just have two more hours to go as I wait out a tornado watch in my area. I'm afraid to go to bed because I don't have a weather radio yet, and the worst of the weather isn't even here. :(

[Individualist]

10. Good luck to you on this scary night

I remember the '74 Xenia tornado and the outbreak that stretched all the way from the Canadian border to the Gulf Coast. That was a scary time as well.

I believe you're right about severe storms occurring earlier and lasting later in the year. I've also noticed that spring is occurring earlier (dogwood blooms used to be at their peak in late April; now it's mid to early April) and fall occurs later than usual. When I was growing up here, there would be few leaves left on trees by Halloween. This year and in the previous few years, few leaves have fallen by then.

I can understand your being afraid to go to bed without a weather radio. I have one, but it frightens me to be awakened out of a sound sleep by a severe storm warning (not good for someone with a bum heart). I imagine I'll be up for quite a few more hours as well - and am thinking about chugging a margarita or two to ease the anxiety I'm experiencing. :)

Stay safe!

[AngryOldDem]

14. I'm stressing.

Actually, I can take bad weather in stride, but the thought of tornadoes in the middle of the night just freaks me out. I just keep checking in with the National Weather Service Website, Weather Channel, and you all on DU to help get me through. There's a severe thunderstorm warning up for just west of here, so it's coming.

And here, the first round's on me:

:beer:

[Individualist]

17. You sound like me, AOD!

I check weather websites on the 'net, the Weather Channel, turn on my weather radio, and even have a Bearcat scanner that I turn on when conditions are bad so I'll know what's going on around me. It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one who gets so stressed about severe storms. :)

[AngryOldDem]

18. Take care.

It sounds like you're getting the brunt of this.

[Individualist]

20. Thanks. I'm hoping the squall line will weaken

when it gets to the Cumberland Mountains, but one never knows until it gets here. You take care too!

[AngryOldDem]

22. I'm hoping....HOPING...

...that things are weakening just a bit. The worst of the weather seems to be going south of here -- it looks from the radar that we might get just garden-variety thunderstorms. The radar doesn't look as ominous as it did about an hour ago.

[Individualist]

27. Glad to hear that!

Radar for here is looking better too - for now. There's still a second squall line in West TN, but that shouldn't reach here until early morning. I'm going to keep an eye on the radar for about the next half hour just to be sure, then try to get a few hours sleep before the next squall line gets here.

[AngryOldDem]

30. I'm not sure, but I think....

...the tornado watch here has been extended until 6 A.M.!

Damn, damn, damn!


On EDIT: Nope. That is a new watch for just east of here. Still...BAD NIGHT.

[Individualist]

31. Let's hope for the best

NWS issued a short term forecast for my area less than an hour ago, saying isolated rain showers will occur through 3 am, ahead of the thunderstorms. Think I'll try and get a few hours shuteye before the bad stuff gets here. Take care. Hope you get some rest tonight!

Incidentally, it's still 68 degrees here at 1:22 am! :crazy:

[RoyGBiv]

32. Yes ...

Climate change is happening. Every scientist with a brain cell left acknowledges that.

We don't need to "support" the argument with exaggerated claims of "OMG THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!!!" unless it really hasn't.

I chased what ranged between an f2 and f4 for most of its existence (about 40 minutes) across the Oklahoma prairie in January over ten years ago. That was one funnel, and one funnel almost never lasts that long.

As a worst case scenario of what happens in prime tornado season, the May 3rd tornado that hit OKC, one of the most powerful and damaging on record, traveled from Lawton, OK to the other side of OKC, about 80 miles, before it fizzled. Then the storm spawned another funnel that tore up stuff NE of OKC. Most people think of that as one tornado. Before the night was over, it was actually several ... I forget the actual number. The point is, the big one lasted an hour or so, and that was just so unusual even Gary England was having trouble imagining it.

Since I'm not getting this on local news I am having to rely on sensationalized non-meteorological descriptions and raw reports, but I'm gathering by reading between the lines this is not *one* funnel. *One* funnel maintaining itself from Tupelo, MS thru to Kentucky would be *highly* unusual in any month. What does seem to have happened is one mezocyclone spawning multiple tornadoes has been intact for a long time, and that does happen, not frequently, but often enough. And, there are a number of mezocyclones forming and dying, some producing tornadoes, others not.

Yes, this is unusual. But what is truly unusual is the weather pattern that brought this about. It's happened before and will happen again and with increasing frequency.

Subsequent check ... I'm seeing reports of three separate funnels in the Nashville area. A friend near there just confirmed to me at least two, confirmed via a local HAM anyway. Just an FYI.

[malaise]

35. You are correct

Weather Channel says this is the largest outbreak of tornadoes in February.

[Catch22Dem]

2. Not all that uncommon here

Not as common as sirens in the Spring, but somewhat common.

[Island Blue]

4. Where do you live?

It's not uncommon, especially here in the South. Of course that doesn't mean I don't believe in climate change ... I'm just sayin' it happens.

[TNDemo]

6. Murfreesboro, just south of Nashville,

had a strong tornado that leveled a subdivision in January several years ago. We have probably had tornadoes in every month of the year.

[seabeyond]

7. here is a site showing seasons and areas.

http://passporttoknowledge.com/storm/when/tornado.htm

i didnt go into many sites checking. just picked the first on the google list i got. BUT i have in the past checked seasons and areas. i live in the panhandle of texas and wanted that information when i moved here. i know the different areas in the country had different tornado seasons. i dont see where they give the number of tornados per month, but i have been on sites in the past where is shows increase in winter in this area. fall increase midwest and of course our season starts in march, may high and decreases from there.

[nealmhughes]

8. This is "secondary tornado season" in the South. That means fall and winter.

A huge deadly outbreak was on 19 December 2001, I remember because I was giving finals that day at University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, 17 people ended up dead outside of the city, and the path skirted the campus, striking a park within sight of the west edge of the campus, destroying a forest along the river there.
It was almost 80 degrees in North Alabama today, and we awoke to tropical wind and rain yesterday morning. I slept with all windows wide open all night long on the Tennessee River in Florence, Alabama.
The tornados are striking just east of Memphis and west of Nashville right now at 10:30pm CST. We are under a watch until 5 am.
A huge tornado just passed over the city of Nashville and is now in Kentucky, it came from the south and west at Shiloh Battlefield near where Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi come together, and raced towards Nashville.
There are severe damage reports in Jackson Tennessee east of Memphis from earlier in the evening, and a tornado hit Union Hill College and the hospital there.
The TV channels in Huntsville, Alabama are about to go to live feed after the returns special is over, as the squall line ahead of the front is rapidly approaching the Tennessee River into Alabama from Mississippi and Tennessee. My weather radio is set to alarm! The dogs are ready to head to the basement and I have my cash handy and radio and batteries!
The storms to top things off, have up to 80 mph winds in them, besides cloud to ground lighting, hail and tornados.
It's gonna be a rough one in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, KY, Indiana, and Illinois tonight, and then further east tomorrow.

[Individualist]

11. How far from Huntsville are you?

I have a niece who lives there.

[nealmhughes]

23. about 50 miles, but it takes me 1.5 hours to get there, due to me being in the country.

I live right on the Tennessee-Alabama State Line in Lauderdale County. 90 south of Nashville and 110 north of Birmingham.
Their weather gets to them after ours, and as we are in the same TV area, they use us as the "guinea pig" for what the city is to expect!

[Individualist]

28. Here's hoping all goes well for you as well as for the folks in Huntsville tonight!

[Naturyl]

33. I'm in Huntsville

These things make me wish I had some Xanax handy. I'm originally from New England and I haven't gotten used to this sort of weather yet at all. I'm up for the night, hoping not to have to wake the wife to get out of here - yep, we're in a trailer (of course).

[nealmhughes]

34. The sirens may sound in MadCo soon for you. 19, 31, and 48 all reporting a tornado in Decatur right

now! Leave the trailer! The storm is moving 55 mph to the NE towards Fayetteville, TN.

[Judi Lynn]

12. Same here, blues90. Something also too creepy: have you ever heard THUNDER WHEN IT'S SNOWING?

That has NEVER, NEVER, NEVER happened in my lifetime until the last few years.

How long has anyone ever heard of "microbursts?" We had the first one I've ever heard of in my life in the Kansas City area not too long ago. Jesus. Here's an illustration from Wikipedia:



Illustration of a microburst. Note the downward
motion of the air until it hits ground level, then
spreads outward in all directions. The wind regime
in a microburst is completely opposite to a tornado.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microburst

[AngryOldDem]

16. Yeah, I have...

Back in the late '70s here we had some real bad-ass snow and ice storms. It IS freaky seeing lightning during a driving snowstorm. About microbursts, I've heard of them, but don't think I've ever experienced one. Those may be what they also call straight-line winds, though. We do get those, and sometimes we think a tornado's gone through.

[Judi Lynn]

19. Oh, god. Lightning during snow storms. People won't believe you until they see it for themselves.

Outrageous!

Might as well add ROCKS whizzing around in there, too!

[AngryOldDem]

21. Yep --

Sometimes you even get hail. That's rare, but it happens in winter.

Mother Nature can be fascinating -- as long as you're not in the middle of it. Like I am tonight.

[bac511]

26. We had that in NW Missouri just this morning...freaky!

[Individualist]

25. Jim Cantore had a classic thundersnow moment on the Weather Channel a few years ago

He was giving a live report during a heavy snowfall (don't remember where he was) when suddenly it thundered pretty loudly. The expression on his face and his reaction were priceless!

The only time I've heard thunder during heavy snowfall was in '66. I was working at a location about 8-10 miles from my home when it started snowing very heavily and accumulating on the ground quickly. I got permission from my employer to leave early, and as I was driving home it thundered. That was such a strange experience, and I don't recall having heard thunder during a snowfall/snowstorm since then.

[Judi Lynn]

29. You really DON'T believe it at first. It really forces you to do a reality check. n/t

[Marrah_G]

37. Thundersnow

I heard it for the first time a few years ago here in southern New England. I freaked out. It sounded like explosions and since there was extreme white-out snow I was not thinking "thunder and lightening". I had no clue what it was until I got home and turned on the news.

[K Gardner]

13. I'm in Knoxville and its eerie. And we were at 74 degrees today. Hope all you guys

are OK !

[Individualist]

15. I'm about 100 mi. NE of you; it's 68 freakin' degrees here right now.

[RL3AO]

24. Only a few weeks away from peak season in the south.

This was not that unusual.

[lynne]

36. Feb 19th - 60 Tornado's - 420 dead

in 1884 referred to as the "Enigma Outbreak". The second worst outbreak of tornados in American history.