Close call with tornado

[timb]

Growing up in or near Pittsburgh we all knew that tornados don't happen in Western PA. Just too many hills or something like that. Couple of years back I had just left work when radio reports had a tornado spotted near the nuke plant 25 miles west and heading east. I was heading east, but by the time I got to the PA turnpike east of town the tornado was a whole lot closer than I cared for. Traffic heading east on the turnpike was apparently all listening to the same reports as I caught no one despite averaging over 85mph, but I did get passed occasionally. Reminded me of the famous old line (to sports car fans) printed in the original Datsun 240Z owner's manual... "Do not exceed 6000 rpm in top gear unless absolutely necessary" (visions of Godzilla on the loose).

Got home and asked the wife "did you hear about the tornados?". Her answer "No, where?". Me - "here, now!". We had radio and TV on but not much signal was coming through. Kept a close eye on the sky but all we got was very heavy (thick looking) rain, coming straight down, no wind.

Found out later the tornado had touched down less than a mile away on each side of us and we were on a direct track between those two points.

That was as close as I need to be to fill my card - and that was a relatively little one. Especially in "there-ain't-no-tornados-here-western-PA"!

Have friends stationed at Shepard AFB in Wichita Falls, TX. They have way too much fun with these things. You guys out in the alley can keep them. (but keep your head down).

Tim

 

[PBMAX]

Right after we moved into our new home in Feb 01, I was talking to Mr Langston who lives just 10th of a mile further down the loop. I was commenting on how nice their place looked, with the new look. He said thanks we just got it. It seems the Tornado that had touched down near by a couple weeks back had tossed their old mobile home into the barn. With them inside /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif. And this was not even a direct hit....... MAde me glad to have a basement to cower in /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.... at the new place.

Back in the late 90's we had an F5 go through Alabama devistating a lot of folks.
The one a rember most was my brother-inlaws PAl.... He said he'd just got home from work and sat down with a cool drink and turned on the news to check the weather, as it had been nasty all week. The next thing he remembers is waking up in the lawn with no thumb on one hand.... relizing what had happended /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

Mother nature is not one I'd like to be on the bad side of..................... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Poppa]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Anyone remember reading my favorite tornado story? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif )</font>

Oh My God!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I laughed so hard it hurt. I think mostly because I have often woke up due to some noise and been up out of bed and headed through the house with my wife yelling at me that she had just flushed the toilet and I should get back into bed. She knows how I sleep.

Luckily I have never gone so far as dragging her off the throne or grabbing the girls out of their beds.

ITS A JET!!! ROFLMAO!!

 

[Ozarker]

Back in the 60's I saw three tornados in one day in Kansas City. None of them actually went all the way to the ground but the winds from one of them blew two kids into a small lake in the city and they drowned. That same day a couple of tornados went through Topeka Ks and killed a bunch of people.

I live a long way from any public warning system so I have a weather radio. It gets the warning straight from the Weather service and it WILL wake you up at night. Best money I ever spent.

Actually, I have two of them. One portable......

I use to travel the Midwest as a sales rep. One evening I had just checked into a Motel in Leavenworth KS. The wind really kicked up as I was getting into the room and I tried to find a station on the TV to get a weather report. By the time I found a station and got the report a tornado had passed within about 1/2 mile of the motel I was in.

I ordered a CC Radio the next day so I could have a weather warning radio on the road with me. It is a good radio for getting AM stations a long way off and the weather warning part of it works great.