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Originally Posted by 2KidsforMe
Wow, thanks for all of the info. That was exactly what I was looking for.
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Too many people classifly high winds and torrential rain with tornado activity when it isn't anything more than an scary thunderstorm that might be accompanied with flooding.
Tornadoes follow the path of least resistance: Highways and water.
Tornado Alley begins in the Gulf, travels trhough Texas to Oklahoma City, OK and thence to Tulsa. It follows I-44 to the MO state line where it either goes north on I-71 toward Kansas City or follows US 60 into Sprinfield. MO. Sometimes it detours into NW Arkansas or NE Oklahoma because of the big lakes there.
I haven't seen that many actual tornadoes in Illinois, but the high winds coupled with the heavily forested areas surely can leave a mess and the lasting impression of a tornado.
the sound of an oncoming train always preceeds straight-line winds that usually follow a tornado. The winds average 80mph or greater. These winds do more damage than the torrnado.because they are wide spread.
One year I lived about 15 miles due west of Sprinfield, MO., off US 60. The tornado hit SSW of Springfield between Nixa and Branson. I heard the "train" rusning down the tracks, but since I lived not far from train tracks I paid no attention. The straightline winds that hit my house drove a tree limb through a wall in an unused room. The ,large hail beat up my car pretty good, and sanded the paint of fwo sides of my storage shed. Trailors in a nearby park that were not properly tied down, were twisted like semi-trucks, blown off concrete tiers, awnings were ripped off, decks were wrecked and some had windows brosken. But it wasn't a tornado. Trees and power lines wee down all over the area for days. But it wasn't a tornadoe.
Weather is unpredictable. I believe the hurricane that hit Katrina is the worst in US history. It's possible but unlikely anything like F-4 or F-5 Tprnado would hit Chicago because [1] Chicago is 1000 miles from any coast. The tornadoe must have speed and strength to gain that much power. [2] Land fall and land travel slows it. Therefore there must be a source of water and sufficient air quality to regain strength. That isn't to say one could not follow the Mississippi and then the Illinois River to the Des Plains River that dumps into Lake Michigan. That's at least 300 miles. It is a long way for a tornado to remain active.and still have a F5 force. If that should happen Illinois would look like a war zone and Katrina would seem like a picnic in comparison.
I also lived in Chicago one year when the City had one of its famous rains. Buses were stalled in flooded underpasses. Stoplights didn't work, the fire, police and city crews were out trying to do something, and it took me nearly five hours to drive from Navy Pier to Berwin. Mothoer Nature's wrath on Lake Michigan is beautious -- as long as you are inside looking out and not in the mess.
I think Tom Skelling is the best forcastors in the midwest.
However, my source is a friend who has worked in flight Service at major US terminalss for more than 30 years. FYI: Fight Service manages small craft take-off and landing on short runways PLUS all air traffic when the tower is closed.
Having lived in Tornado Alley in both MO and OK, I much perfer the safety of the Illinois River.
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Wood didnt help....even gentle rubbing..lol
) three swirly monsters came to town....
!
....So I am now convinced that no land is sacred from the windy beast that travel's our airways..lol..
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