Terrible storms last night. I’ve lived through a few like that, and hope you are all safe.
Even you, hOmefries.
Be well.
Best,
Ted
Our thoughts and prayers are with you. I experienced them first hand when stationed in Kansas during the late 60's, simply terrifying!
Karl
Wishing the best for those affected.
Add my wishes to those above, my prayers are with you.
Mike
A total of 4 counties were hit by the storm. Worst hit seems to have been Wilson, borders, Metro Nashville on the east. As of last night, there were 25 confirmed dead over the 4 counties, with some 77 or so still missing in Wilson county, mostly around Lebanon I believe.
Back in 1976 a tornado just jumped my house, I have a high hill close behind me, the direction it came from. As it cleared the hill it dropped enough that I had to re-roof but suffered no more damage other than timber on the place. The only time I have ever been quite that close to one of those twisters. They sure do some strange things at times.
I echo Ted's best wishes. My prayers for all those affected. Best wishes to all.
Ted, hOmie is over nearer to Memphis. He should have fared okay, as far as the tornado goes. At least, I hope so, too.
SRH
The last count I saw was still 25 dead, of these 18 were in Putnam County, home of Tenn Technological college, commonly referred to as TN TECH. The storm was an EF2 in Nashville, EF3 in Wilson County, dropped back to EF2 in Smith County, then back up to "At Least" an EF3 in Putnam. In an EF3 the wind around the funnel can reach as high as 165 MPH.
Two schools were totally destroyed in Wilson County, one middle school & the other an elementary school. Some 22,000 people are still without electricity in Metro Nashville.
I believe that one tornado did hit further west, out around Jackson, Home of the Casey Jones museum, but still a good distance from Joe's hometown of Memphis.
An update on the news this morning said a total of 8 tornados hit in this area. The affected area extended across 60+ miles. I was mistaken bout the one hitting Jackson TN, it hit Benton County which is west of Davidson (Metro Nashville) but not as far west as Jackson. The one which hit Cookeville has been upgraded to an EF4 with winds reaching 175 MPH. EF5 takes over with winds exceeding 200 MPH. They further stated that only 0.6% of all tornados over the entire US ever reach an EF4 or EF5, so yes this was a BAD one.
One teenager was blown from their residence but survived as they landed in a neighbors swimming pool, A Yr old boy was Sucked from an upstairs window & dropped around to the side of the house but gently enough that he too survived. Only had one minor scratch.
Miller,
I'm sorry to here of all the devastation, but glad to learn of some miracles of those surviving. I know it will take a long time for the areas hit to recover. Our prayers are with all of you.
Karl
Very sobering to hear Millers description of the deaths and devastation. I feel very sorry for what these folks are going through. Shortly after I bought my property, an extremely severe EF-5 tornado went through my area. It was on the ground for a very long time, and there was a largely uninhabited area where it went through with a path almost two miles wide. The whole previously wooded area looked like pictures of Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the atomic bombs. Most of the trees in one valley weren't merely knocked down, they were sucked away along with topsoil down to the hardpan clay underneath. People who had hunting camps couldn't even find where they had stood. What I saw there convinced me to spend extra money to put in a poured concrete basement with rebar woven every 16 inches vertical and horizontal when I built my house. People who took shelter in concrete block basements were killed when the block walls collapsed on them. One guy I worked with who lost his house told me his wife got the kids in the basement, and the tornado took the entire house away. He said the only items not sucked out of the basement were the washing machine, and a very heavy antique 8 1/2 ft. Brunswick pool table with two inch slate top. His wife and kids hid under the pool table, and lived. His boy got a broken arm from flying debris. When he rebuilt, the new house had a reinforced concrete storm shelter in the basement.
Tornados seem to follow paths. Tuscaloosa always had them north and just south - then one center-punched the city. Tornados are not fun. Thinking about and praying for you volunteers.
nature sends some pretty strong messages to contest our notions that we are in control...
Thanks, Karl;
Fortunately, my home is about 75 miles south of Nashville. We had some rain & a bit of wind, but nothing of tornado forces.
President was in Cookeville (Putnam County) yesterday surveying the damage. His "Naysayers" immediately jumped in that he was only there because it was an election year. They would, of course, have "Howled" even louder had he not come.
News hs up-date there were at least 10 storms in this one system which covered a length West to East of a bit over 60 miles. Two of them were in KY, one in Hopkinsville & the other in Bowling Green. They were not as powerful as the worst ones in TN.
A news producer for Nashville's Channel 5 (CBS) car was "Re-directed from the direction as he was head to work the morning the storms hit, from the route he was taking into a large sign for Auto-Zone several feet over on the edge of their parking lot. The car appeared to be totaled, but apparently he was not hurt much.