One hell of an evening here...

Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:16 am

I'd worked early, for me, and with plenty of time left in the day went to hang out at my buddy Don's store [Don plays Sir Bungo in the Western Tennessee Gnome Liberation League tale]. We knew some storms were coming, but were all pretty much not caring much at all. Just sitting at the front of the store, jawing. The door was open to catch the breeze, and when Matt The UPS Guy left to go home, we heard him shout out "OH HELL" in the parking lot.

So's, me and Don head out to see what Matt The UPS Guy is upset about. He's a kinda touchy fellow. Matt points to the north, just past The Fantasy Warehouse strip club at the end of the parking lot, and good lord....

One hell of a tornado was ripping past.

Matt looks at it, and says "I think that's a tornado", and I said "Yep. Looks like." Some kid said "Hey, looks like it's headed for Bartlett!" At which Don flipped out, since his kid had just got home from school, in Bartlett. Don runs inside, and me and Matt stand outside and watch the tornado. Sirens start going off.

Just when things got boring, and the tornado was heading out of sight, I turned and looked to the south. And, what do you know? Another tornado. We were completely bracketed. I finally headed inside, and tuned in the television to our Favorite Weathercaster, Dave Brown [who shops at Don's shop]. Since we were in a bad spot, and probably going to die anyways if the tornado hit us, we basically just chilled for a while. Called my dad. He was in the path of one of the tornadoes. But he was fine. I saw that #2 tornado was heading for my apartment. Not much to do but chill, so I did.

When the weather started to clear a bit, I saw on the television that another tornado was heading up from Mississippi. Figured I'd better get some supper first, so I headed for Taco Bell. Ate inside, since the chick at the drive-thru window had a good view to the southwest, from which the new storm was coming. By the time I got home, tornado #3 was passing through, but it was dark so I didn't see it. The rain was hell, though. I'm still fairly wet sitting here right now. Good thing my cold is pretty much gone.

The three storms made a fair mess of things around here. My dad is fine, I'm fine, most of my friends are fine. We won't know until tomorrow if the house we game at is OK. The DM [Brutorz Bill] has two houses, both under one tornado or the other, but he and his family are fine at the house they happened to be at tonight. Looks like there was a lot of damage around here, though, and injuries.

Matthew · Post by **Matthew** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:29 am

Glad you're okay, man. I was in Ohio a few years back during tornado season. Hail Stones as big as a fist and a weird greenish tinge to the light. I hope everything else turns out to be okay.
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Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:34 am

Looking at the news, finally, it looks like there was a ton of damage to the south of me, and more to the north east. Some deaths are being reported now, and a neighborhood wiped out apparently.

And for the last ten minutes, the tornado sirens have been going off again. The front is finally about to pass through.

Matthew · Post by **Matthew** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:44 am

Good luck.
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Coleston the Cavalier · Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:51 am

Nothing like being close enough to see a tornado.

Boy, they are deadly.

The last town I served in, DeSoto, IL was completely destroyed by a huge tornado back in 1925. I lost a great-grandfather in that one.

Keep your head down Harry and away from the windows!
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Deogolf · Post by **Deogolf** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:00 am

I think I'll take the foot of snow that suppose to fall overnight from this same system! Might make me sore to shovel in the morning, but at least it won't rip the neighborhood apart!! More than likely will give me a snow day too!
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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:10 am

Wow man, wishing the best for fellow C&Cers and their own. Crazy weather night around here too, but nothing like you saw.

All the best.

-O
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Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:31 am

The front just blasted through. I think the wind burst was about 50MPH. Just heard from another group member, through his brother-in-law. Dekster, who currently runs the Mad Gnome in our group and posts here, lives in Jackson, TN and makes a helluva commute for the game. The storm did some major damage in his area when it went through, but he and his are fine.

serleran · Post by **serleran** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:50 am

Tornadoes are wonderful forces of destruction. Glad to know you are safe.

I lucked out when I lived where they happened, always being slightly downhill so they would tend to, literally, skip over the house.

Tadhg · Post by **Tadhg** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:00 am

Wow, very intense post, Harry. Glad to hear everyone is OK!
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Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:57 am

It occurs to me that this very same system must have passed through the Little Rock area before it got here. I'm hoping everything is all right at TLCentral.

Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 6:53 am

The net channels are picking it up now:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23006771/
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/0...her/index.html

Does look like it hit Little Rock.

Treebore · Post by **Treebore** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 8:35 am

This is one of the big reasons I am glad I fell in love with AZ and didn't move back to Ohio.

No tornadoes.

No earthquakes.

No hurricanes.

I hope everyone is safe.

Looks like my family in Ohio didn't have to face a tornado today.
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Deogolf · Post by **Deogolf** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:23 pm

Harry Joy wrote:
The net channels are picking it up now:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23006771/
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/0...her/index.html

Does look like it hit Little Rock.

Man, after looking through that stuff, I'm glad to hear that you're alright. Hope everyone else is ok down there!
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Aladar · Post by **Aladar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:31 pm

Glad to hear all of you are alright. I have been through my share of twisters, they are not fun. Hope everyone remains safe and well.
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jaybird216 · Post by **jaybird216** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:18 pm

Treebore wrote:
This is one of the big reasons I am glad I fell in love with AZ and didn't move back to Ohio.

No tornadoes.

I was thinking of moving to AZ back in 1997. While I was there for a week, scouting it out, Phoenix had a freak tornado! Talk about timing. The poor anchorwoman on the local news looked absolutely terrified as she was telling the residents what preparations to make. I can't say she would have instilled much confidence in me if I were a local.
Glad to hear everyone's OK, Harry Joy. Hell of a story!
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Treebore · Post by **Treebore** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:44 pm

All I can say to that is the area I am in has never recorded a tornado. So I can imagine Phoenix would have really freaked out over a tornado, since they are so rare in AZ as a whole.

There are areas with earthquakes too, but as far as I know they were so weak no one even noticed them. The last one near where I am, which is about 50 miles north of me, was about a hundred years ago. I just know, geologically speaking, AZ is one of the most stables areas in the US.

I see that 48 are reported dead from the tornadoes. A horrifying day for too many.
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Post by **Breakdaddy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:46 pm

Harry Joy wrote:
It occurs to me that this very same system must have passed through the Little Rock area before it got here. I'm hoping everything is all right at TLCentral.

Rgr that. We got some nasty weather but no tornadoes in Little Rock proper. Some other folks in the state were far less lucky as we apparently had 17 casualties.

Coleston the Cavalier · Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:11 pm

Treebore wrote:
This is one of the big reasons I am glad I fell in love with AZ and didn't move back to Ohio.

No tornadoes.

No earthquakes.

No hurricanes.

Well, the last time I was in AZ, it was during the 500 year floods.

It wasn't very reassuring to see the Governor on TV with a life preserver on.
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Valerian · Post by **Valerian** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:44 pm

Never been in or near a tornado as I live in the North east . I sure am glad to here everyone is ok though.
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jaybird216 · Post by **jaybird216** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:45 pm

Treebore wrote:
So I can imagine Phoenix would have really freaked out over a tornado, since they are so rare in AZ as a whole.

Yeah, I could tell by her poorly-veiled panic that it must be a rare thing indeed!
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Brutorz Bill · Post by **Brutorz Bill** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:38 pm

Like Harry said it was a wild night. My son and I were headed home, when I spotted two tornados coming towards us, I told him let me know if they get closer, he said, "ok, then what"... " I said then we hide in a ditch or under a bridge!!' luckily it didn't come to that. Other than a few missing shingles, the Game Domain for the West Tennessee Gnome Liberation Front is ok.

Lhorgrim · Post by **Lhorgrim** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 8:25 pm

My area didn't have any severe damage, but about 10 miles north of us they had at least one tornado.

One of the officers from my department was sheltering in a closet under his stairs with his family while the tornado ripped the roof off his house. He told me he could feel from the crack under the closet door that the air was being sucked out of the house. Everyone was fine, but he was pretty shaken.

The heavy rain from the storm ruined everything in their home after the roof was torn away.

We'll take good care of him until the insurance can get the house repaired or rebuilt. You have to look after your own.

Treebore · Post by **Treebore** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 10:51 pm

Coleston the Cavalier wrote:
Well, the last time I was in AZ, it was during the 500 year floods.

It wasn't very reassuring to see the Governor on TV with a life preserver on.

I grew up in Ohio. Floods were a way of life!
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Omote · Post by **Omote** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 12:21 am

Yup, Ohio now is totally water-logged. Trees down, mostly due to the amount of water over the past two days.

-O
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Catweazle · Post by **Catweazle** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 12:42 am

Close thing, Harry. Hope you and yours are all OK.

It's a funny thing, but people don't generally think of England as tornado country. Not even ourselves, although we have more tornadoes per square mile per year than anywhere else on the planet.

I was planning to go into Brum the day that tornado hit; glad I didn't bother.

The closest I've ever been to feeling Nature's raw power was when a smallish (4.8) earthquake hit with its epicentre less than half a mile from my house. I was awoken when my bed tipped me first forward, then back, and then the wave was past and receding with a dull, deep roar like nothing else I've ever heard.

Except the earthquake before, that is.

My sleep-addled brain had just enough wit to think "Oh. An earthquake" before sinking back into sleep. When I got up the next morning the news was full of it; I hadn't realised it was that widespread.

Something about earthquakes always makes me feel acutely aware of just how small and squidgy I am.
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Lurker · Post by **Lurker** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 2:07 am

Wow... You are "lucky" .... I'm paid to do crazy things like go chase them & I've never been that close to one. Seen lots of funnel clouds but never one touching down. Not even growing up in Ok.... -Yes I'm a weather geek and count seeing one as lucky-

Glad you didn't have any damage & your friend didn't have hurt family.
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Harry Joy · Post by **Harry Joy** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 2:44 am

There's already a Wiki page up about this storm...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_2 ... o_outbreak

Looks like this storm is going to go down as a famous one.