Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
The winds were bad here last night in Arkansas - had no idea the weather was that bad. So you guys are all good?
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Nashville tornado (At least 19 dead) (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter gianmarco
- Start date
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
Looks like an initial Tornado Watch went up west of Nashville at 5:20pm and was valid until 1am. Then at 11:20pm, the Watch was extended to the Nashville area until 3am.
So there were alerts ahead of time. The problem is that when the watch was extended eastward at 11:20pm, most people are already in bed.
It sucks, because you don't want to do an alert for every watch or you're just begging for those alerts to be ignored. But how do you keep people informed about something that MIGHT happen? This is where the local mets have to make sure they are getting the info out to everyone that day about the potential. Unfortunately, there's no easy answer for this.
I'm a big believer that those weather alerts should sound off even if you have your phone silenced. I get that it's loud and annoying, but so is a smoke alarm. But that's their job.
So there were alerts ahead of time. The problem is that when the watch was extended eastward at 11:20pm, most people are already in bed.
It sucks, because you don't want to do an alert for every watch or you're just begging for those alerts to be ignored. But how do you keep people informed about something that MIGHT happen? This is where the local mets have to make sure they are getting the info out to everyone that day about the potential. Unfortunately, there's no easy answer for this.
I'm a big believer that those weather alerts should sound off even if you have your phone silenced. I get that it's loud and annoying, but so is a smoke alarm. But that's their job.
RnR
Footballguy
You're right about this. In this area, there's a "watch" of some kind at least a few times a month during certain times of the year. T-storm, flash flood, tornado, etc. You want to stay informed, but your brain quickly goes to "I'll worry when it says warning" after about 100 "watch" notifications.
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
The single biggest problem with forecasting tornadoes is that they are very hard to forecast. Sure, we've made strides to where we can see the way a storm is acting and get a decent idea of where a tornado is going to form, but even then, we're talking maybe a half hour of warning if they catch it fast, not to mention actually getting the info out to the people.
I remember when Irma was running over Florida, we kept seeing tornado warnings pop up in the feeder bands, but the hurricane itself was enough of an issue.
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
Yup. But when you get the tornado warning, that means that either a tornado has been seen on the ground or that radar is indicating there is rotation in the clouds similar to a tornado. So when these warnings come out, they are given for specific areas. And if you are in that area, your phone will go off with the EMS Alert. Anyone in that area should seek shelter immediately. Now, a tornado can form without much lead time for the first place hit, but those places in the path of the storm can take cover. So while it's not 100% effective, the warning time is fairly decent currently.
You only need a couple of minutes. You get to an interior room or your basement. Cover yourself with towels, blankets or a mattress. You don't need a half hour of lead time. You're not going to outrun it. You just need to take cover.
So if you have a Tornado Watch for your area, that's saying a tornado could occur over the next 4 to 6 hours, or whatever. That's when you make your plan of action. When that Tornado Warning happens, you get to cover immediately.
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Right, I grew up in the Midwest, so I know what happens. Still, the issue is reaching everybody with the message, which is further compounded by the time of day(or night, in this case) the tornado is spotted.
flapgreen
Footballguy
I barely heard anything and my house is probably 10 miles north of where it happened. Everyone I know is fine. East Nashville is very sketcky area that I never go to.
RnR
Footballguy
I'm going to bite my tongue for the sake of not violating the "be excellent" rule around here.
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flapgreen
Footballguy
I've been here my entire life. I don't care how many people they try to force into that area or how many new houses they build, it will always be East Nashville. The people I know who live there now, none of which grew up near here, have all had their cars broken into or something stolen or some other crazy thing. It's better than it was 20 years. I'll concede that.
I'm going to bite my tongue for the sake of not violating the "be excellent" rule around here.
RnR
Footballguy
I've been here plenty long enough myself (22 years). I still don't know why any of that would be tone appropriate for what that area of our community is going through today. Could have stopped at "Everyone I know is fine."
Everyone I know is not fine. And it surely has nothing to do with whether they were worthy of being spared by living in East Nashville or not. I mean, c'mon.
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flapgreen
Footballguy
I have no idea what you're talking about. Wasn't meant in any "tone." Binky is a friend of mine and asked me a question and I answered him that everyone I knew was fine. I'm a native of the area. Whatever you read into that sentence wasn't there. Worthy of being spared by living in the area? What in the world
Spin
Footballguy
Yah, it's pretty bad. The worst part that was hit is right where my in-laws live, and it is primarily made up of double-wides/modular homes and apartments. It landed right at the corner of 56 and 70 and ran down 70 to willow. They're saying multiple kids are included in that count, too :(
sho nuff
Footballguy
Spin
Footballguy
https://www.newschannel5.com/news/three-dead-in-putnam-county-after-tornado-hits-middle-tennessee?fbclid=IwAR1xNnVUEVs7Jj6ZI7Xl_s5yY-EWQpjTb2KhrdatybjwAO4GJ9HKry3KI8s
This aerial view is chilling. You can see how many houses are just completely gone. You can see my in-laws house close to the beginning of the video. Luckily they're on the other side of 70 from where it landed. You can literally see the path of destruction it took.
nirad3
Footballguy
Huh, I thought those alerts (Amber alerts, flood alerts, etc.) went off no matter what. I agree they should bypass your phone settings.
shader
Footballguy
East Nashville is actually quite trendy and has a ton of great food and restaurants...
flapgreen
Footballguy
I'm very familiar with all of the neighborhoods. It's just not a place I frequent. It's sad what happened down there. I have a few coworkers who live there and my buddy is a police officer there on nights. Everyone I know there is fine, but a couple people lost their lives and some homes and businesses were destroyed. Sad thing
Spin
Footballguy
flapgreen
Footballguy
One of my close friends lives in Cookeville. Hit about a quarter mile from him. Said he didn't get an alert until a couple minutes before it hit. Went down and got his baby out of her crib. Windows busted out all over the crib about 2 minutes later.77 people still missing in the Baxter/Cookeville area.
shader
Footballguy
Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
flapgreen
Footballguy
sho nuff
Footballguy
Just flattened several neighborhoods.
and this thing around Nashville threw stuff miles and miles away. Thing from the two schools that were hit in Hermitage and Mt Juliet found several counties away (if those stories are true).
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
If you have your ringer off, it will buzz like crazy, but it won't make an alert sound.
One of the big problems was that the Flash Flood Warnings get the WEA alert. But unless you live next to the river, these didn't mean anything to you for the most part. I believe just this past fall they've started trying to narrow these down a little more. It was because of these alerts going off that people began to turn the alerts off on their phones.
I think the only things that are on there now are things that can cause immediate dangers. Like tornadoes, tsunamis, snow squalls, dust storms and tropical systems.
sho nuff
Footballguy
Day 2 with no power. Possibly wont be back on until Monday. Storms damaged 3 substations including the one closest to here. Thus far been an inconvenience especially with how others are hurting.
Thankful for portable chargers and being able to grab lunch and charge my wife’s laptop so she can work some at home (her office is also without power). Restaurant manager where we went (many places were slammed with people from the area and volunteers) let us charge some things in the restaurant office and wouldn't let us pay for our meal since we had been “affected” by the storm. So we paid for someone else's meal instead. Jealous out son is going to a friends house tonight who has power.
May be heading somewhere over the weekend if we don't get it back in by then as its supposed to get colder.
Schools closed the rest of this week as its still hard tp get to many places while they are clearing roads or have numerous electrical workers restoring power. Though...better than multiple schools who are in plans for how to educate children for a while without their actual buildings.
Id hope all communities out there would react to things like middle Tennessee has. Multiple locations having to turn away volunteers as there are more showing up than what is currently needed in places. Businesses setting up food trucks and free food. Offering places to power up and shower. And people reaching out all over wondering how they can help.
Thankful for portable chargers and being able to grab lunch and charge my wife’s laptop so she can work some at home (her office is also without power). Restaurant manager where we went (many places were slammed with people from the area and volunteers) let us charge some things in the restaurant office and wouldn't let us pay for our meal since we had been “affected” by the storm. So we paid for someone else's meal instead. Jealous out son is going to a friends house tonight who has power.
May be heading somewhere over the weekend if we don't get it back in by then as its supposed to get colder.
Schools closed the rest of this week as its still hard tp get to many places while they are clearing roads or have numerous electrical workers restoring power. Though...better than multiple schools who are in plans for how to educate children for a while without their actual buildings.
Id hope all communities out there would react to things like middle Tennessee has. Multiple locations having to turn away volunteers as there are more showing up than what is currently needed in places. Businesses setting up food trucks and free food. Offering places to power up and shower. And people reaching out all over wondering how they can help.
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Mr.Pack
Footballguy
My daughter lived in East Nash for 3 years. Lived and worked right by the 5 Points area where they took the brunt of it.
Sketchy? Maybe a little but I never feared for her safety for the most part and have been there many times.
sho nuff
Footballguy
That spot has bad luck...the paths of the three major Nashville tornadoes all cross there in Rast Nash (1933 I think, 1998, and now 2020)
sho nuff
Footballguy
Long path tornado starting at John C Tune Airport in West Nashville continues for 50 mikes into Smith County...after going actoss Davidson Co (Nashville) Wilson Co (Mt Juliet and Lebanon) and into Smith Co. EF2 to start building strength to and EF3 and 165 mph winds.
Same supercell produced another separate Tornado in Cookeville an EF4 with 175mph winds.
Same supercell produced another separate Tornado in Cookeville an EF4 with 175mph winds.
Dumb question, but I don't live in an area that gets Tornadoes: was this an extra-ordinarily bad tornado, or did it have so many fatalities due to where it landed and the time? I did not recall any sort of national "tornado watch" warning, was it a freak tornado or do they just happen this time of year normally? Are they year round?
JaxBill
Footballguy
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
You probably know this already but, if you leave for a couple of days, shut your power off just in case it comes back while you're gone.
sho nuff
Footballguy
Yes...and we were in only a slight risk area here. First tornado watch came after many had gone to bed. It was a huge surprise to me when my phone alerts and then the county sirens went off.
Timing was awful there and in Cookeville who didn't have much warning either from what I ha e heard. Also was more violent in Cookeville and went through neighborhoods.
Timing was awful there and in Cookeville who didn't have much warning either from what I ha e heard. Also was more violent in Cookeville and went through neighborhoods.
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
JaxBill answered this great, but just wanted to add some stuff.huthut said:
This tornado was just (excuse the term) the perfect storm. Large tornadoes aren't rare. Tornadoes at night aren't rare. And tornadoes hitting large populated areas are not rare. What is rare is that all three of these things occurred. Everyone know that Tornado Alley is where most tornadoes occur in the US. But Dixie Alley, which Nashville is part of, is not far behind in total tornadoes for yearly averages.
The other thing I wanted to ask was where do you live? You don't have to give an exact location, but I just wondered because you said you don't get tornadoes. But tornadoes pretty much happen in every state. There are definitely places that don't see them often, but I want to make sure you don't lull yourself into a false sense of security.
TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
EF4. I knew that wedge looked huge. That's massive. I haven't seen a report yet saying how wide the storm was, but it looked big from the video.
Did anyone see the video of the guy working in the crane when it hit? I know he was OK and unscathed, but I'm sure that must have been a horrible feeling. He was recording the video and basically telling all of his loved ones he loved them in case he never saw them again.
Did anyone see the video of the guy working in the crane when it hit? I know he was OK and unscathed, but I'm sure that must have been a horrible feeling. He was recording the video and basically telling all of his loved ones he loved them in case he never saw them again.
I live in the SF bay area. Every now and then you hear of a small tornado out in the sticks, but it never seems to do any damage. No hurricanes due to the water being way too cold.
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TheIronSheik
SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
Got it. That makes sense then. That's definitely in the area that doesn't see them except on rare occasions.
The way it works is that this time of the year, people in susceptible areas know that every system is capable of being tornadic. Some more than others. And they tend to hit in the afternoon, although not exclusively. Usually, 2 to 3 days in advance, the Storm Prediction Center will start to highlight areas that might see severe weather, including tornadoes. By the day of the storms, most local mets have got the word out to people in their forecasts.
On the day of the storms, the SPC will monitor the areas they've outlined and watch all of the elements that could lead to severe weather. If things start to look like an area will be ripe for development, they issue something called a Mesoscale Discussion. This is more for the mets, but this means that the SPC is monitoring this area very closely and might issue a Watch soon. If a Watch is issued, it's a large area. Can cover multiple states. They are saying that that area has a good chance to see severe weather. That's when phone app alerts go out and the local news will start talking about it, or put it on a scroll along the bottom of the screen.
Meanwhile, the local NWS office is watching the areas, too. It's their job to focus on individual storms inside the area. If a storm starts to show rotation on radar or they get a report of a tornado or funnel cloud, they will issue the Warning. And a Warning is small and is only issued for the area that WILL be hit by the storm. These are usually the size of a county or so. These alerts will trigger the phone's WEA alert (minus a Severe Thunderstorm Warning.)
So, yes, tornadoes can hit out of the blue with little warning, but they are rarely every a complete surprise. Even with this TN storm, there was advanced warning. The problem was that because it came overnight, it's extremely hard to warn people when they are sleeping. TV's aren't on. Phones are silenced. So if the tornado sirens don't sound off, or you live in an area without tornado sirens, there's no actual warning.
It's one of those things that mets and the NWS have been trying to figure out how to improve. But because most tornado warnings don't result in a tornado touching down and doing damage, people start to look at these alerts as false alarms. Or being overhyped or fear mongering. It's a very tricky situation, sadly.
sho nuff
Footballguy
Videos and pictures don't do the damage or power of storms like this.
Seeing it...seeing huge trees uprooted, twisted and easily snapped in two and how metal is twisted around things. Just images that will be with me for a while.
I really hope every community responds this way...definitely has been really cool to see the good in people from all walks of life.
Seeing it...seeing huge trees uprooted, twisted and easily snapped in two and how metal is twisted around things. Just images that will be with me for a while.
I really hope every community responds this way...definitely has been really cool to see the good in people from all walks of life.
hagmania
Footballguy
I hauled logs to a brush pile for 6 hours yesterday. There was no end in sight.
Saw the Mt Juliet middle school... thing was just ripped to bits.
sho nuff
Footballguy
Yes...DCA too.hagmania said:
I was behind West Wilson Friday hauling logs and brush from the property of a friend of a friend. Which basically put me out of commission for the weekend as pretty much everything I touched were trees that I was allergic to. Now, with corona coming to Davidson co...I have to convince people its just my allergies and asthma.
