Comments on: We have been hit with a fairly serious tornado. https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/ Thu, 20 Aug 2009 08:17:39 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.8 By: Jay https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542573 Thu, 20 Aug 2009 08:17:39 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542573 Crap, Greg.
I was in Fridley yesterday when all this was going on, and we got hustled into the storm shelters twice. I didn’t notice the damage along 94 as I headed back to the airport (at about the time you were posting that the weather was clearing), but the traffic around that area was pretty bad even for that time of day.

Have they made any sort of damage estimates yet?

]]> By: travc https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542572 Thu, 20 Aug 2009 00:40:39 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542572 As someone who grew up in Tornado Alley (TX), I can well sympathize. Most tornadoes aren’t very big, so isolated damage is common. They are more like someone was firing random mortar shells around than dropping a nuke… actually more nerve racking due to the unpredictability.

Tangential story I hope provides some amusement. Some family of mine (Aunt, Uncle, and cousins) living in MO had their house flattened by a tornado. They are sensible folks, so they had a storm cellar and no one was seriously hurt. When they rebuilt though, they went for a ~80% underground design built into a hill. If they got hit again, they’d just loose what is basically an enclosed porch. (Their house is also very energy efficient, a side effect at the time I’m sure they appreciate now.)

]]> By: D. C. Sessions https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542571 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 20:16:45 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542571

My brother-in-law deliberately chases those things.

#1 Son is in training for that job. BILs are more expendable.

Absolutely insane.

Yup. Just proves he’s mine, I guess.

]]> By: CyberLizard https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542570 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 19:59:19 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542570 My brother-in-law deliberately chases those things. Absolutely insane. Stay safe in those basement thingies y’all have way up there.

]]> By: The Science Pundit https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542569 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:41:10 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542569 Here’s a video of some of the damage.

]]> By: Virgil Samms https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542568 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:54:39 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542568 This is God’s way of expressing his feelings on the Favre signing.

]]> By: Stephanie Z https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542567 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:15:33 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542567 We’re on relatively high ground, and we didn’t regrade after buying the house for nothing. The beer is fine. And no, I’m not walking home in street flooding to check on it!

WCCO has lots of pictures.

]]> By: Greg Laden https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542566 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:37:06 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542566 Oh, when I say “three separate funnel cloud…” I mean three different reports of funnel clouds, probably the same funnel cloud (or, really, maybe the same funnel cloud).

Our weather has cleared here.

Between 35th and 45th on Portland there are piles of trees down, and somewhere in that vicinity there’s a half a foot of water on the road.

The Quiche Moraine site is still up, so that’s good…

]]> By: Greg Laden https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542565 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:34:39 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542565 I’m starting to think that whatever happened downtown (and there are three separate funnel cloud sightings in downtown) may have been a different event than what happened in S. Minneapolis (based on timing). I don’t know of a funnel cloud sighting at 94th and Lyndale, but several in between.

At 18th and clinton, there is quite a bit of damage and down trees, and much minor structural damage. A funnel cloud was spotted at that location.

]]> By: Dan J https://gregladen.com/blog/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542564 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:31:56 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/08/19/we-have-been-hit-with-a-fairly/#comment-542564 Stay safe. I’m listening to watches and warnings come in for central IL, and I’m getting ready to head for home (before the nasty stuff gets here).

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