• After witnessing the continued decrease of involvement in the SpotterNetwork staff in serving SN members with troubleshooting issues recently, I have unilaterally decided to terminate the relationship between SpotterNetwork's support and Stormtrack. I have witnessed multiple users unable to receive support weeks after initiating help threads on the forum. I find this lack of response from SpotterNetwork officials disappointing and a failure to hold up their end of the agreement that was made years ago, before I took over management of this site. In my opinion, having Stormtrack users sit and wait for so long to receive help on SpotterNetwork issues on the Stormtrack forums reflects poorly not only on SpotterNetwork, but on Stormtrack and (by association) me as well. Since the issue has not been satisfactorily addressed, I no longer wish for the Stormtrack forum to be associated with SpotterNetwork.

    I apologize to those who continue to have issues with the service and continue to see their issues left unaddressed. Please understand that the connection between ST and SN was put in place long before I had any say over it. But now that I am the "captain of this ship," it is within my right (nay, duty) to make adjustments as I see necessary. Ending this relationship is such an adjustment.

    For those who continue to need help, I recommend navigating a web browswer to SpotterNetwork's About page, and seeking the individuals listed on that page for all further inquiries about SpotterNetwork.

    From this moment forward, the SpotterNetwork sub-forum has been hidden/deleted and there will be no assurance that any SpotterNetwork issues brought up in any of Stormtrack's other sub-forums will be addressed. Do not rely on Stormtrack for help with SpotterNetwork issues.

    Sincerely, Jeff D.

The "Galloping Gertie" Bridge Collapse & The Armistice Day Blizzard November 1940

Joined
Mar 23, 2009
Messages
55
Location
East Bethel, Minnesota
In my opinion this is one of the most amazing weather events of the 20th Century. On November 7th, 1940, a gale swept across Washington State near Tacoma. The newly built Tacoma Narrow Bridge had only been open four months when the storm system hit. The winds of the gale were just right to cause the suspension bridge to began to sway. It led the eventual collapse of the bridge by day's end. You can watch actual video of the event here:

That same storm system moved across the United States, and on November 11, 1940, hit the upper Midwest with the worse Blizzard ever recorded in Minnesota. That now infamous blizzard is known as the Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940. Here are some pictures taken around the Twin Cities, MN after the storm:

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My dad told me stories about that blizzard and how all the Street Cars were disabled because ice had covered the power lines so the cars couldn't get any power. The roads were blocked and no one was dress for the weather because it was in the mid 60's that morning when people left for work.

Amazing Storm!

Weather Map of the low pressure system:
https://www.weather.gov/arx/nov111940weather
 

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My differential equations prof showed my class a film (long time ago - no youtube) of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapse. He said that's what happens when engineers don't know their differential equations - a little motivation for the engineers in the class.
 
My differential equations prof showed my class a film (long time ago - no youtube) of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapse. He said that's what happens when engineers don't know their differential equations - a little motivation for the engineers in the class.

I first saw the movie in Jr. High Drafting Class (1974). No math was discussed. Our teacher just wanted us to see what happens if we didn't do a good job of designing our projects.
 
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