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Posted by Cdog911 (Member # 7) on September 21, 2006, 04:48 PM:
Man, you guys know how I like to chase storms. Well, today the central and northcentral parts of Kansas have been besieged by rain, high winds, and to make it interesting, about a dozen small tornadoes. I was sitting at my computer watching the cells erupt and move right toward town and when I got up to run upstairs, the storm sirens went off. "Radar indicated tornado" south of town moving north at 45 mph.
Got the wife and daughter into the basement and started monitoring TV, radio, scanners and the like. When it was apparent that the cell they were watching would pass just east of town, out the door I went. When they said, "just east of town", they meant it.
I got to the easternmost street, three blocks east of my house, and I could see the scud clouds and tendrils hanging down out of the forming funnel cloud. That bad boy was smoking north and would quickly be out of sight, so I took only one very non-dramatic picture.
The two hangy-downs in the middle of the photo are the lowest portion of the as-yet-unformed vortex and they were spinning around at about five full revolutions a minute. What was really neat to see is that they're being pulled upwards into the cloud base as they rotate and even though they're being pulled in, new clouds continually form beneath them as the moisture is being drawn up and compressed. You can literally see scud clouds form from clear air and be sucked up into the cloud base in a matter of seconds. The farm you see is about a quarter-mile east of the street I'm sitting on and the cloud formation is about an eighth-mile further east of it. You can't tell it from the pic, but the wind speed at the time of the picture were about 60 mph from right to left.
Hopefully, this will be the last of our Kansas weather for this year and I'll maybe get an actual funnel next season.
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on September 21, 2006, 04:58 PM:
Like Bill Clinton said: "Where's Dorothy?"
Posted by Andy L (Member # 642) on September 21, 2006, 05:02 PM:
Kewl pic. I love storms. Ive seen a handful of tornados around here. Not nearly as many as you have, Im sure. Seems most of ours come at night. Gotta track em through the lightning strikes.
Ive tried to get my wife to go nader chasin for vacation for a week some spring, but she wont hear of it.
We didnt have much this year. We had one night of hell, I think it was March 11? We had 5 go within 5 miles of our house. And it was different from most. Normally they are moving around 35-50mph. These puppys were moving from 70-90 mph. Long ole night for dad standing gaurd. After that, we may have had one more storm. That was it. Pretty weak year.
Posted by Tim Behle (Member # 209) on September 21, 2006, 05:15 PM:
Sounds like we both spent the afternoon chasing things in the sky. I came into the Office an hour before quitting time to do some paperwork, and one of the Office girls told me that the boss wasn't feeling well and went home early. I said screw the paper work, and headed for the door.
I almost made it out when the other girl started yelling for me. She had the Department of Homeland Security on the phone, Seems a National Guard Helicopter on a training flight had just hit a line and crashed a few miles East of town.
I hit the highway and pulled in between a Sheriff's deputy and a DEA Agent. Needless to say we made good time in getting there. Pulled off of the highway right behind the Fire trucks and ambulances.
No loss of life, but I didn't get to hear how badly anyone was hurt. I don't know what was in that Helicopter, but they set up a perimeter of armed Agents 50' apart in a 300 yard diameter circle around the downed craft, and the Fire department and ambulance crews were under escort in and out.
Lucky for me, the wire belonged to a neighboring Utility, and it was down one pole away from where it crossed over our line.
I sure wish I could have gotten pictures, but my camera is in my regular truck, and I'm driving a loaner while it is in for repairs.
Posted by TA17Rem (Member # 794) on September 21, 2006, 06:13 PM:
I've seen a few tornado's. The one i remember the most was a F-4.
Posted by NASA (Member # 177) on September 21, 2006, 07:40 PM:
quote:
they set up a perimeter of armed Agents 50' apart
What agents? DEA, Sheriff, or National Guard? If DEA, it would seem self-explanatory huh?
Posted by Cdog911 (Member # 7) on September 21, 2006, 07:58 PM:
Perimeters are SOP in military aircraft accidents. In about '92,, Lisa and I were dating and I was off duty. Call came out for a helicopter down. I'd just gone through training on management of military air crashes, so off we went in my truck. OH-56 Scout went down while escorting three AH-64 Apache Longbows running nap of the earth. (35' off ground)
We got in with the rest of my EMS crews, two fire departments and a whole lot o' law enforcement and had one fatality and the second (navigator) with his right femur shoved out the back of his pelvis. Fort Riley, home of the Big Red One (1st I.D.) is only about thirty miles from my house and about twenty from this scene. Huey gunships retrofitted for firefighting and air-medical transport start landing around us while one of the Apaches circles us 300 feet up. Pretty intense.
As the last of the patients are being evac'd from the scene, about a dozen humvees and a half-dozen deuce and a halfs come roaring into the pasture we were in and in seconds, the place was swarming with infantry soldiers in full body armor, assault rifles, the whole nine yards. This full bird colonel climbs out of this hummer and tells me (EMS Incident Commander) and the local Fire Chief (RESCUE IC) that this scene is now HIS! Period. We're okay with that as we were done with what we needed to do. Soldiers start walking up to the few people that had taken pics and started confiscating cameras and ripping the film out. For two days and nights, they had investigators on that scene with light trailers, metal detectors, and the like. They collected every single scrap of wire, fuselage, plexiglass, etc. There was nothing left behind.
So, Tim, had you taken a picture, I'd bet you'd have lost your camera next. Sounds like your afternoon was more exciting.
Posted by TA17Rem (Member # 794) on September 21, 2006, 08:41 PM:
I have a pic. of a B-52, i'll have to have the wife move it over to my photobucket and then i can post it.
Posted by Cowboyvon (Member # 854) on September 22, 2006, 06:57 AM:
"chasing tornados"..... "love storms" ![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
What the hells wrong with you guys? I thought your suppose to hide or run from them..? Being born and raised in NM I haven't had the chance to see any up close, the only time I see them is when they make the news and are tearing things up just kinda thought it was a common sense to stay away from them ![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
Posted by Leonard (Member # 2) on September 22, 2006, 07:12 AM:
....what he said.
Posted by NASA (Member # 177) on September 22, 2006, 08:02 AM:
When I lived in OK, I used to do the same thing. We lived in Owasso which was the center lane of tornado alley. Whenever the sirens went off, or the TV had a "Tornado Warning", me and about 3 friends would grab some road food and our 8mm's and go chase them. Got some great footage of the destruction as it was happening. Had to run for it a couple of times, but mostly we were chasing and dodging debris. That was a while back when my life was more exciting than it is today.
Posted by TA17Rem (Member # 794) on September 22, 2006, 09:28 AM:
The F-4 twister i mentioned in other post i was'nt chaseing. I watched it as it went through town.
Posted by TA17Rem (Member # 794) on September 22, 2006, 04:47 PM:
some pic's http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/TA17Rem/B-52.jpg[/IMG]] 
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/TA17Rem/elevater.jpg[/IMG]] 
[ September 22, 2006, 04:50 PM: Message edited by: TA17Rem ]
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