Let's visit..... (Loma: tornado, best, property)

[Reziac]

I once saw a little bitty tornado at Belgrade. For whatever reason there's a weather barrier along Airport Road (which curves along the SE boundary of the airport) -- when the airport is fogged in, the fog ends at the road just like a curtain. The road is clear, the airport invisible. (I lived right down the way on Tower Road for 7 years, so I got to see this a lot.)

Anyway one day I was driving into Belgrade on the frontage road, and I see this little tornado coming along Airport Road -- when I say "little" -- maybe 300 feet high and 100 feet across at the top, about 30 feet across at the bottom (not just a big dust devil, as it had the coherent structure of a real tornado, and was carrying a good load of cardboard boxes, gravel, and sticks) .. it's following the curve of the road just like a car, moving at about 10mph. So I came to where Airport Road crosses the highway and stopped to watch it -- right in its path like a dummy (was more interested in gawking than in running away, evidently!) It comes up to my car, goes around the front of my car, and continued across the highway and up the road on the other side! Very weird.

I love thunderstorms too -- with big lightning and thunder fit to crack the windows. We don't get 'em very often in SoCal and my tenant thinks I'm crazy cuz I sit out on the porch and watch 'em!!

[FiveHorses]

There's nothing quite like a good tropical thunderstorm... you've just never see walls of water come down the same way anywhere else. They're pretty impressive.

It's funny, but tornadoes are the one weather event I just can't get my head around. It's actually limited where in the country I'm willing to live. Yes, I know they can happen anywhere, but statistics prove they do happen more often in some places than in others.

Actually, perhaps I need to give some thought to sueing MGM or whoever it was that made the original Wizard of Oz movie..... Obviously, I never have recovered from the swirling witch in a tornado scene.

[seven of nine]

Hi neighbors! I had to leave the porch to do that pesky thing called MAKE A LIVING
But here I am and the pie is coming out of the oven, coffee all around. Now I have to tell you that growing up in the southeast I saw a few nice tornadoes. Not the Oz kind usually just very low clouds that do not have a real distinguished funnel but it is in there. Lost cows and a house in one. The scary ones are at night, lots of silence then here comes the train! The eastern prairie looks ripe for this type of activity but I guess the lack of real warm air mixing in must prevent it. Although the locals tell me of a few here and there. Fantastic clouds and storms. Hey it snowed today! Spring is not quite here.

[Broz]

Bkack skys to to the west... Looks like we will be getting hit here in a few hrs. Hope the high wind, hail, and tornado'd pass around. Like to think we will all be safe and our property will not be torn up. I guess I don't like the storms they can really tear some stuff up...

[seven of nine]

Yes you are getting a combo of a storm from the pacific and the cold front from Canada. Tough going, be prepared! Good to hear from you.

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by FiveHorses

There's nothing quite like a good tropical thunderstorm... you've just never see walls of water come down the same way anywhere else. They're pretty impressive.

It's funny, but tornadoes are the one weather event I just can't get my head around. It's actually limited where in the country I'm willing to live. Yes, I know they can happen anywhere, but statistics prove they do happen more often in some places than in others.

Actually, perhaps I need to give some thought to sueing MGM or whoever it was that made the original Wizard of Oz movie..... Obviously, I never have recovered from the swirling witch in a tornado scene.

Or a Minnesota hailstorm. Hail the size of grapefruits. Goes right through the roof like a cannonball. We once stayed in a lakeside cabin that had hailstone holes all over the roof -- each one about 5" across.

Oklahoma City is the tornado capital of the world. If you draw concentric circles around OKC, and push the whole mess slightly north, that's a good tornado risk map. You need flat ground and colliding air masses to generate a really good one.

I can deal with the flying witches -- it's the flying monkeys that get to me!

[seven of nine]

Originally Posted by Reziac

Or a Minnesota hailstorm. Hail the size of grapefruits. Goes right through the roof like a cannonball. We once stayed in a lakeside cabin that had hailstone holes all over the roof -- each one about 5" across.

Oklahoma City is the tornado capital of the world. If you draw concentric circles around OKC, and push the whole mess slightly north, that's a good tornado risk map. You need flat ground and colliding air masses to generate a really good one.

I can deal with the flying witches -- it's the flying monkeys that get to me!

Oh yeah, with you on the flying monkeys, especially when they have Toto. I always starting crying at that one.
BTW big risk here for the hailstorm. Seen some of the aluminium buildings with past damage. Yikes, that is why you have insurance.

[Broz]

Originally Posted by seven of nine

that is why you have insurance.

I pay a lot of insurance but I feel it is pretty much useless. I have a 1K deductable and unless you have a catastrophic failure you will loose in the long run if you use it. This was the last one I used it on. I collected about 1500 and by the time I had this cleaned up and back to normal I spent 3500. Then they cancelled me because the home was for sale and no one lived there. Once you have been cancelled your rates will sky rocket. I would have been long ahead if I would have never turned it in. I had just completely remodeled this home including new roof, soffits, gutters, siding you name it. I was here in the dark with a saw in the rain and hail tarping it to protect the inside from water. I think I will let you guys have the storms.... I hate them




Good new!! We ducked the ones last night!!! I'll drink to that please pass the coffee pot... Hope everyone else made it out ok too.

.

[Broz]

Sad day, just learned 13 or more twisters last night just north of us in Kirksville. One dead several injured.. Prayers go out to them and family...


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[jimj]

Originally Posted by Timberwolf232

We used to get some big tornadoes when I lived in CO. It's pretty cool to watch them come out of the funnel clouds and go up and down. I was lucky enough to see this, without having them do any more damage than break a medium sized tree in our yard when I was little.

A biker friend of mine that lives in Oklahoma had an F4 tornado destroy his entire property, except the shed his heritage softail was stored in. He swears that God wants him on a motorcycle!

I don't remember ever seeing a tornado in MT. Lots of dust devils and thunderstorms though. (I love storms)

Hey all, thought I'd drop by for a bit... There was a tornado in Kalispell a couple of summers ago, it destroyed the horse arena south of town on hwy 93 down by the MHP office. That was one heck of a day with many vertical wind shears and extream downbursts that flattend many of the grain fields off hwy 206. After living in the south we knew to take shelter under the house but our neighbors thought it'd be cool to sit out on their porch and watch the storm... Thankfully no one around here was hurt but there were some injuries at the arena.
Hope all are doing well, rickers, glad to here you're up and around again! As summer is predicted to be here as of this weekend (80 degrees predicted) we're gonna have to revive the CD float idea here soooooon!!!!