# Tornado warning.



## NorthernRedneck

We are out at camp. It's been windy and HOT. A weather broadcast just came on the radio saying we're under a tornado warning. The whole area is under the same warning. We are about 30 miles west of the area pinpointed as the center of where the storm is tracking. We did all we could do to batten down the hatches. Everything put away. All kids accounted for. But in reality we're in a freaking camper. No amount of prepwork is gonna save us from a tornado. The storm is tracking between here and home. So it's better to just hold tight here till it blows over.


----------



## pirate_girl

Wow Brian, I hope you escaped that.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

pirate_girl said:


> Wow Brian, I hope you escaped that.


Yes. Thankfully it just got windy. VERY windy. Waiting to hear if anything actually touched down. Tornadoes are very rare up here.


----------



## 300 H and H

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yes. Thankfully it just got windy. VERY windy. Waiting to hear if anything actually touched down. Tornadoes are very rare up here.



Glad to hear. They are not so uncommon down here in my area. 

Regards, Kirk


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Not far from us. This was yesterday.


----------



## pirate_girl

NorthernRedneck said:


> Not far from us. This was yesterday.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Funny thing is that there is no confirmation of anything touching down anywhere else. You'd think that if a tornado touched down itd be all over the news.


----------



## EastTexFrank

I'm in East Texas and they're not uncommon here.  We get all the alerts and warnings here but usually it's because the met guy thinks he sees rotation in the clouds on the Doppler radar.  The local fire brigades, both local and volunteer, head for high ground and act as spotters.  Doesn't work too good in the dark though.  The local news and weather crews are also out chasing storms, looking for tornadoes.   If one is spotted the emergency sirens go off.  I live 6 miles from town and I can hear the darned things from here.

We have 3 weather radios in the house and 1 in the basement that are all turned on during storms because we sometimes lose power during bad storms and lose the TV.  When they say to take shelter in a windowless, inner room and cover yourself with mattresses that's when we and the dogs head for the basement.  It's below ground and built like a bunker.  I also store lights, stoves, utensils down there along with a porta potti  and 2 more radios.  Basically, it's where I store all my old camping gear, everything you need to get bye for a while.  We can even cook a meal down there if necessary.

I've been too close to two of them.  Another one was on the ground, picked up and went over the house and touched down again about 5 miles away.  That was really scary as there was no warning at all.  The wind was gusting to 70 mph and then came this gust that didn't seem to quit for about 3 or 4 minutes.  You could draw a straight line from where it picked up to where it touched down that went right over our house.   Speak about a sphincter tester.  

I'm sorry NR, but I've seen too much mayhem caused by tornadoes to be caught in a camper during one.  Unplug and go ... just go in the right direction!!!!


----------



## NorthernRedneck

I hear ya. I've been close to one before (at camp btw).  It was 4 years ago. We had just spent a week there and were packing up to head home. I was bringing in the awning on the camper while my wife loaded the kids into the vehicle. I had just lowered the side arms and was about to roll it up when I looked up. The sky turned green. The wind calmed to nothing. Then seconds later it was like a freight train running through the campground. A 38' camper 100' from me was picked up and moved over 5 ft. 4 awnings were destroyed. 1 tent was flown 300' in the air and dropped in the middle of the lake. A 10x10 wood shed was picked up off it's foundation and moved 10 feet. Scary shit. Meanwhile my awning started whipping and I was picked up 5ft off the ground as I held onto the awning for dear life. That's as close as I want to get to one. It was over in less than 10 minutes. Calm before and calm after.


----------



## EastTexFrank

NorthernRedneck said:


> I hear ya. I've been close to one before (at camp btw).  It was 4 years ago. We had just spent a week there and were packing up to head home. I was bringing in the awning on the camper while my wife loaded the kids into the vehicle. I had just lowered the side arms and was about to roll it up when I looked up. The sky turned green. The wind calmed to nothing. Then seconds later it was like a freight train running through the campground. A 38' camper 100' from me was picked up and moved over 5 ft. 4 awnings were destroyed. 1 tent was flown 300' in the air and dropped in the middle of the lake. A 10x10 wood shed was picked up off it's foundation and moved 10 feet. Scary shit. Meanwhile my awning started whipping and I was picked up 5ft off the ground as I held onto the awning for dear life. That's as close as I want to get to one. It was over in less than 10 minutes. Calm before and calm after.



Yea, those are the dangerous ones, the ones that sneak up ya.


----------



## FrancSevin

I've had several close encounters with those destructive creatures. Two notably.

I was about 10 years old in Blue Springs Mo near Independence, I got caught on my cousin's bike miles from where I was supposed to be. Got down in a ditch and locked the bike chain to a power pole. Locked my arms between the spokes and held on.

Seemed a smart plan at the time. 

Got covered in debris as I watch a supermarket explode about one block away. It then occurred to me that a power pole meant hot wires flying about. Luckily nothing bad happened to me. 

Until I got home. Me, and my parents, were so glad to be alive, but got my butt whooped just the same. 

Second time I was coming home from MO University St Louis. Nobody told us in the great hall that a tornado was raging outside. Came out after class to see major damage to trees and cars in the parking area. My '60 Chevy was OK. But as I drove home I went right into the funnel cloud just as it pulled the roof off my old grade school. So I parked the car and got down in a ditch.

After it was over, the fire department came by and stopped at what was formerly a large apartment building. And older woman was still sitting in her armchair, refusing to budge. Nothing of her apartment remained, not walls or furniture, but there she was. Screaming she wouldn't move as it was apparently the only safe place to be.

Never forget that night.

The roof of the school gym was found almost intact, about a mile North-East of it's original address, in an open park. Had it landed on houses, it could have taken out dozens of them by it's sheer size and weight.

That night made me a believer for sure.

My basement has a bedroom guest suite. It is also a bomb shelter. People kid me that the Russians are never gonna attack. About them, I ain't worried. Mother nature has a target permanently painted on St Charles county MO.

We see a tornado damn near every other year within blocks of my house.

We keep our guns and ammo there along with survival supplies, food, water, and our bugout stuff.

Don't mess with Mother nature and don't let her surprise you.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Yep. Don't want to mess with them. I remember holding onto that awning and actually lifting off the ground for a second. Then I high tailed it to hide in the shed. (like that would do any good)LMAO


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Here we go again. Under another tornado watch at camp. Funny thing is it's hot and sunny where we are. But just to the south of us it's dark and dirty looking.


----------



## Doc

Ut Oh.   Stay safe.  Stuff can be replaced.  People not so much.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Yep. We're safe. The storm passed south of us. We only ended up with about 5 minutes of light rain.


----------



## OhioTC18 RIP

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yep. We're safe. The storm passed south of us. We only ended up with about 5 minutes of light rain.


Glad to hear that Brian.


----------



## pirate_girl

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yep. We're safe. The storm passed south of us. We only ended up with about 5 minutes of light rain.



I like it when that happens.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

We definitely dodged a bullet yesterday. There was apparently goofball sized hail only 10 miles away.


----------



## pirate_girl

yep, they issued a tornado warning here about an hour ago.
sirens blaring.
went in the hall closet with the cat following me.
no damage that I know of so far, but they're getting it in Spencerville, Venedocia area.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Yikes. Stay safe.


----------



## Doc

Multiple tornado warnings here last night.   High winds and heavy downpour.  Power went out at 6:30 and did not come on until 10 this morning.   Whole house generator worked flawlessly but when power is out TV cable and internet are also out.   Generator does not help with that, dang it.   
Thankfully no tornado touch down around here.


----------



## FrancSevin

pirate_girl said:


> yep, they issued a tornado warning here about an hour ago.
> sirens blaring.
> went in the hall closet with the cat following me.
> no damage that I know of so far, but they're getting it in Spencerville, Venedocia area.



Lollie. If you don't have a basement or a cellar, the safest place is the bathroom IN THE TUB! 
If you have sliding glass doors on the tub, remove them from the room and crawl in with some pillows,


----------



## pirate_girl

NorthernRedneck said:


> Yikes. Stay safe.





FrancSevin said:


> Lollie. If you don't have a basement or a cellar, the safest place is the bathroom IN THE TUB!
> If you have sliding glass doors on the tub, remove them from the room and crawl in with some pillows,



I found my place for safety, inside a middle closet right next to the bathroom.
This happened last night guys. 

Places around here had it far worse, like Columbus Grove.

We did get 3.5 inches of rain and WIND, lightning like crazy.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Wow. That first picture looks like a funnel cloud coming from the left.


----------



## NorthernRedneck

Hey. It fits. Lol


----------

