Drew.Gardonia
funnels being reported, I'm listening in on Jasper County Spotter Network Ham Radio on my cell phone. possible touchdown.
rdale
EF5
A tornado is by default on the ground, so if funnels are being reported then it's not on the ground. Looking at radar, the rotation is going to pass north of the city.
Drew.Gardonia
a funnel was just reported just north of 32nd and Connecticut in Joplin just a few minutes ago over Jasper County Storm Spotters Ham Radio.
rdale
EF5
Joplin is no longer in the tornado warning, and it's better to keep this thread for discussion regarding the 5/22 event anyways.
Kurt Wayne
EF0
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2005
- Messages
- 34
Prayers for Joplinites tonight.
TWC says Sunday's deadly spin was the 8th worst in recorded U.S. history.
BTW, one last thing talking about deaths despite advances in tornadic prediction. The area called "NWA" (Northwest Arkansas) which is a chain of cities led by Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale and Fayetteville now has about 500,000 people in its metro area. This area is only two counties south of Joplin, and is in the Ozark Plateau which has rocky, limestone-laden soil that's not easy to excavate. As such, a WAVE (we're talking hundreds if not a thousand or more) of homes was built last decade WITHOUT basements, in row-upon-row of streets without community storm shelters. There are so many "slab" homes around here that I'm terrified of what will happen if a significant tornado strikes this area during traditional rush hours of 5-6. (A lot of traffic moves in that direction and there's heavy street congestion in that direction as well.)
It's going to happen some day, I fear.
TWC says Sunday's deadly spin was the 8th worst in recorded U.S. history.
BTW, one last thing talking about deaths despite advances in tornadic prediction. The area called "NWA" (Northwest Arkansas) which is a chain of cities led by Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale and Fayetteville now has about 500,000 people in its metro area. This area is only two counties south of Joplin, and is in the Ozark Plateau which has rocky, limestone-laden soil that's not easy to excavate. As such, a WAVE (we're talking hundreds if not a thousand or more) of homes was built last decade WITHOUT basements, in row-upon-row of streets without community storm shelters. There are so many "slab" homes around here that I'm terrified of what will happen if a significant tornado strikes this area during traditional rush hours of 5-6. (A lot of traffic moves in that direction and there's heavy street congestion in that direction as well.)
It's going to happen some day, I fear.
Alan Smithton
I can second this from personal observation the last couple of days. The area around the hospital (which I suspect is where the majority of the fatalities that were in residential buildings occurred) was almost entirely structures like the ones Jason described, and from what I understand a lot of them were rentals. It's one thing to repeat the old standard advice of shelter in a closet, bathroom or "safe place", but when an F5 tornado is about to reduce your home to a pile of lumber there IS no safe place. And if your house didn't have a basement, guess what? Neither does your next-door neighbor, so you're not going to be sheltering there either.
The only realistic path to survival for people in that area would have been to a.) get in the car and go someplace else, and b.) accurately guess which way the tornado was going so that they didn't inadvertently drive into its path. They could have had hours of lead time, but as long as they followed the standard advice to shelter at home in their "safe place", they were still going to be dead.
hazelmaryjackson
EF1
- Joined
- May 24, 2011
- Messages
- 58
Ars a matter of interest, is there any requirement for the municipality to provide storm shelters? Does it depend on where you live and the assessed risk of a tornado? Would there have been any shelters around the Joplin hospital or provision at the hospital itself in the basement for its staff? The use of plate glass windows suggests the assessed risk of violent storms there is low.
After the Alabama tornado I read that some townships had no shelters at all. I also saw a newly built church had indeed constructed a shelter in its basement where people could take refuge. Are shelters so expensive to build, could not philanthropist fund some? We have plenty of housing built on limestone in the UK where we generally live in brick houses and building regs are tougher. It can be done indeed many of these UK houses were built in the 19th century and do have cellars.
After the Alabama tornado I read that some townships had no shelters at all. I also saw a newly built church had indeed constructed a shelter in its basement where people could take refuge. Are shelters so expensive to build, could not philanthropist fund some? We have plenty of housing built on limestone in the UK where we generally live in brick houses and building regs are tougher. It can be done indeed many of these UK houses were built in the 19th century and do have cellars.
PDailey
Todd Friskey
EF1
Hazel....The majority of Joplin does not have basements! Not to long ago a reader of the local paper wrote an article suggesting the city build some shelters around town. Read some of the responses from readers of the Joplin Globe...
http://www.joplinglobe.com/editorial/x1142033039/Your-view-Storm-shelters-needed
Thoughts?
rdale
EF5
Only if the residents require it. Their local government isn't going to use taxpayer dollars to build shelters if the taxpayers don't want them.
Albert Moor
Also if your plugged into your IPOD you are not even going to hear the warnings. It's intersting that someone reported a lot of the dead were on "Resteraunt Row"....they proberbly had no idea the tornado was coming, most resteraunts have thier windows covered to stop diners being gaped at as they eat, I often want to watch the storms as I eat, but its difficult to do so. Also all those knifes and forks flying around at 200 mph is not going to be much much fun !
Isaac Pato
EF1
According to my cell phone log, I called 911 at 5:36pm to report the large damaging tornado that was heading into Joplin. I placed the call while I was driving toward the tornado. We came across damage on Woodland rd & W 32nd street, I reported that there were large power poles down and potential structural damage. The dispatcher seemed more concerned with my safety because she told me to find shelter. I explained that the tornado had already passed our location and that it was large and heading into Joplin.
SGF's page about the tornado states: "The tornado was reported to have developed directly over Joplin with the first report of the tornado in Joplin at 5:41 pm CDT, 5/22." http://www.crh.noaa.gov/sgf/?n=event_2011may22_summary
I'm wondering if my 911 call was used at all for the warning because if it was that would mean that it took them 5 minutes to relay it to the weather service! But yes, as one of the few chasers on this storm I can say that it seems like I DID call it in BEFORE anyone else. What 911 did from there was out of my hands.
rdale
EF5
Good to hear! Could I suggest in the future that you avoid dialing 911 (or at least use SN or some other method of notifying NWS at the same time.)
Simon Andersen
EF2
New Video From Inside the Joplin tornado
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrnRSSHz4dU
Looks like surveillance video from a home that recieved F0-damage. I have never seen such a long build-up and wind-down. I guess that's normal with as violent a tornado as this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrnRSSHz4dU
Looks like surveillance video from a home that recieved F0-damage. I have never seen such a long build-up and wind-down. I guess that's normal with as violent a tornado as this.
Isaac Pato
EF1
Yeah, I should have all of the tornado alley WFO numbers in my phone, right now I only have OUN's number. At the time 911 seemed like my best option b/c spotter network takes time to write up.
Edit: plus it requires loading the web page with cell data service.
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