Tornados Ravage South; at least 280 dead

[OttoVonBismarck]

Jesus... yeah this sounds like the one I mentioned earlier that tore through Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana back in the 30s or so.  I think the death count from that one was over 600 after all was said and done.  Hopefully this one doesn't approach that figure.

That's probably the Tri-State Tornado. The thing about that one was it happened before there was any real professional weather service that gave good tornado warnings, and most (maybe no?) cities had tornado sirens. Xenia, OH, which was hit by a tornado of at least F5 intensity* in the "Super Outbreak" of the early 70s didn't have any tornado sirens at all prior to that incident...one of the first things they and other communities in the region did afterwards was put some up.

The Tri-State Tornado was reportedly so lethal not just because of a lack of warning system, but also because many of the people in those communities who tended to be fairly familiar with tornadoes had no idea it was a tornado. Apparently it was so wide it didn't have the stereotypical appearance of a funnel cloud, but it just looked like a "roiling cloud wall" that came and destroyed everything in its path. Because it lacked the distinctive appearance of the funnel cloud and was moving an estimated 50-60mph (average tornadoes might have 150 mph wind speeds in the funnel but they are travelling around at 15-30 mph, so if you're a good distance away they are actually relatively easy to avoid.)

*The original Fujita scale's creator had theoretical rankings above F5, and he actually surveyed Xenia, OH after it was hit by the F5 and he said it was the most physical destruction he had seen a tornado create and he speculated it could have been "greater than F5." Since F5 essentially is given out if the tornado causes "complete destruction" it's kind of a logical fallacy to suggest any ranking could be higher..complete destruction is complete destruction, and that's why the Enhanced Fujita scale now in use doesn't have any speculative/theoretical categories.

[jimmy olsen]

280 dead 
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42794539/ns/weather/

[Caliga]

Yes Otto, that's the one I was thinking of.

[Caliga]

MULTIPLE TORNADOES ON THE GROUND RIGHT NOW MOVING THROUGH LOUISVILLE.

head for the hills
run for your lives

[Caliga]

Churchill Downs has taken some heavy damage.

[garbon]

Damaged barns? Aaaahhh!

[jimmy olsen]

MULTIPLE TORNADOES ON THE GROUND RIGHT NOW MOVING THROUGH LOUISVILLE.

head for the hills
run for your lives

I was very confused to see this updated. I thought that a mod edited my Joplin thread at first.

[Caliga]

Damaged barns? Aaaahhh!

But that's where they put the horses.

[garbon]

Damaged barns? Aaaahhh!

But that's where they put the horses.

Possibly more humane than a halal slaughtering.