Re: 200 Tornado's Already and it Isn't Season Yet
It gets weirder every year! I used to have a lot of wind spinners in my yard of all sorts of things. Now when we get just an ordinary storm they say we will get wind gusts anywhere from 30-even 70 miles per hour. I am all the time running outside and taking them down until a storm passes.
I have found that most times the really bad storms that hit suddenly come unannounced. I was in a tornado in 1989 and it is an experience you never forget. You hear of the fear people have that live in earthquake zones but this is just as bad. We often watch for what I call "possible tornado skies". We rehearse tornado drills. I don't know how many have hit in SC this year. Oh....by the way...that is where I live. I do know many have come very close though most that hit here are smaller ones. The 1989 one was a biggie though.
I often dress up my yard in lots of yard decor but I am thinking of quiting. I love decorating my entire yard like my outdoor home but most stuff does not survive a season due to strong winds and I lose a lot of nice things. Even heavy stuff or stuff I stake down gets crashed.
I lost my old 100 year old oak last summer. Strong winds caused stress cracks to run all the way up. I found out though it looked healthy it was hollow and black ants had moved in as well as a spider that crawled out during removal I am sure I won't forget. Even my neighbors saw it and the tree men. The thing was HUGE! Guess it had a good diet of those black ants. We had also noticed no bird nest had eggs or babies and the squirrels had moved out. Not sure if it was the ants or spiders but that spider was large enough to eat baby birds. The men scared it might be some sort of mutation or poisonous killed it before I could get my other camera. The one I was using to document had picked that time to have a battery go dead.
We rarely get snow but we had one this year that cracked a small tree out back and took out the entire top. Weird because it was only a few inches but all snow. That is rare as well since most snow storms here turn to ice. I am sure some have heard of the crappy power problems and thousands (even the whole state) be without power for a week due to ice. Last time was just stupid since the ice only lasted one day. The one a couple of years before was the worst ice storm I ever saw and toppled many trees and power lines. I lost power a week then. The ice just stayed around for days and roads unpassable.
I am enjoying the sun and 70 degree weather we are having right now for as long as it lasts. Last year we had temps over 100 and by my temp thingy outside one day was 117 and it lasted a whole month. That hurt us bad since we are in a bad drought. I watered plants until they banned it so lost all I invested in yard plants, flowers and grass. The only good thing was no one had to mow their grass. At least this year we have had a few storms pass our way and more rain than ever. All is very green and the trees are in bloom already. I see people mowing their yards. I mowed mine once and it needs it again.
This weather is so unpredictable though. Rarely does the weather prediction at the first of the week for the entire week stay the same. It changes all the time. You can't plan anything outdoors for sure.
Never think a tornado can't happen to your area.I have seen a lot of stranger things these last few years. Even earthquakes though minor in the Southeast areas. We had one recently hit close to here. I did not feel it. It was low. Can't remember what the score was now but I was like, "Wow!" I'll have to look it up but I think it was a 3 point something.
Strange weather patterns develop all the time. Global warming I do not believe is the whole cause but the severity of the storms is increasing. We will have a quiet period when we will get comfortable and feel safe and that is when it will suddenly and violently change. We get unafraid of warnings and drills after a quiet time then we will be looking somewhere else when the unexpected hits. The middle part of our country seems to be taking a beating of all forces of nature lately. No where is totally safe though.
It's a good idea to have a storm preparedness drill and keep fresh batteries, canned goods and whatever else is on the list at hand. During the snow power outages many were sorry they did not have generators as their back-up wood or kerosene ran out and they could not get any. It is like a snow warning and everyone panics and you cannot find milk or bread at a store. You have to learn about generators and how they work though as a few burned down their homes or died of carbon monoxide poisoning. You need one big enough to carry the load or you will be regretting it later. I recently saw an ad for a company that came out and set up a generator for you and if the power went out it automatically came on. At this time I cannot afford it though.
I was raised in Va. Winter there was winter. All seasons were as they should be but I moved to SC over 30 years ago and the weather here was much milder with just an occasional bad snow storm of only a foot ( but in SC they panic at a dusting). I quickly saw how the highway department was no where near prepared or kept the roads clear like they did in Va.Few storms so they did not have no where near the equipment or supplies or manpower. People here seemed really ignorant of their winter driving skills and many wrecked not knowing how to drive on ice or snow nor did they have their automobiles properly equipped.
With the weather getting weirder and weirder we need to take a refresher course on all disaster drills and be prepared for anything. If I had the money I would build me an old fashioned fall out shelter that would serve me in any disaster. Nature made or man made. Keep it stocked to the point of hoarding. You can always change out food and water with what you normally eat and keep it rotated so it does not spoil.
Sorry...LOL! So much for my intended quick reply! One more thing. Our fast paced life depends too much on computers. If they should ever crash we would come to a standstill. I think we should always find ways to not depend on them so much and be prepared in such a case. Just think. No way to get money out of banks to pay for anything would be part of the worst. Don't bury your money in jars in the backyard but it gives you something to think about. In my youth we did not always use money but bartered for what we needed. There was always a way. Today they rarely do any of that...come to think of it....I don't think they do it at all. CC
|
200 Tornado's Already and it Isn't Season Yet
[
