Blizzards In America

On January 12, 1888, the weather in the west was mild, compared to previous weeks. Little did the people know that a massive cold front was in route and would be catastrophic to the people, their livestock, and the economy in the dekota and nebraska praries. The cold front would cause one of the worst blizzards for the region, killing close to 500 people. The factors that made the death toll so high involve the mild weather before the storm, the lack of technology for warning systems, and bad timing.

During the Dust Bowl many people and kids have suffered, many lost their home and their towns got ruined. One of the people who has suffered in the Dust Bowl is Ashton. When Ashton went to his school he was immediately pulled in by his teacher Mrs. Kam. He was then told that the entire middle east was affected by the Dust Bowl and that a black blizzard will hit very soon. Then the winds outside started to get faster, the windows getting hit by all the dust gathered from the storm, but luckily for the students the school was structured well and was firmly attached to the ground. Many of the students panicked, the teacher trying to comfort them. Ashton was the only one who thought about his family how the black blizzard will affect his

For millions of people living near the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of the United States, a team of weather experts in Miami were helping make a difference between another hurricane disaster and safe evacuations in the wake of the oncoming storm. These experts are trained to interpret data from satellites, weather stations and specialized computer equipment to give the public advance warning of hurricanes barreling toward any shores (Treaster, 2007, p. 26).

One fact that emphasizes this notion is that the Mexican Army encountered a sudden blizzard in route to Texas that began on the evening of February 13 and continued through the next day. The weather during this storm was severe enough to kill horses, mules, men and camp followers. However, the snowstorm did not extend into Texas. Two observers in Texas in 1836, William Fairfax Gray and Colonel Juan Almonte, both kept records of the weather in their journals. From their entries, information was gathered that reveals the weather at the time of the battle. A cold front arrived on the evening of February 25 that dropped the temperatures into the 30s. Prior to that, it had been "shirt sleeve" weather. It remained cold and rainy but warmed to nearly 60 degrees on February 29th. That night, a second cold front swept the region. The temperature gradually warmed over the next few days. It remained cool on March 6, but by March 8 Gray proclaimed "Fine weather". Any Texan should recognize this as a description of typical Texas weather (Texas A&M, 2016, N.P.).

Though most everyone has heard of the Dust Bowl, many people don’t actually know what it is. “When rain stopped falling in the Midwest, farm fields began to dry up” (The Dust Bowl). Much of the nation’s crops couldn’t grow, causing major economic struggle. "The Homestead Act of 1862, which provided settlers with 160 acres of public land, was followed by the Kinkaid Act of 1904 and the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909” (Dust Bowl). This caused many inexperienced farmers to jump on this easy start of a career. Because of this, farmers in the Midwest had practiced atrocious land management for years. This included over plowing the land and using the same crops year after year. In this way, lots of fertile soil had gotten lost. This helped windstorms gather topsoil from the land, and whip it into huge clouds; dust storms. Hot, dry, and windy, almost the entire middle section of the United States was directly affected. The states affected were South

In many ways people’s overconfidence was very costly for Galvestonians due to the fact that lack of attention, over confidence and hypocrisy from their authorities as well as the narrator himself weren’t taking seriously the warnings from the Cuban authorities as the book Isaac’s Storm suggests in page 19-20 “The bureau’s men in Cuba said the storm was nothing to worry about; Cuba’s own weather observers, who had pioneered hurricane detection disagreed.” And also the narrator himself got warned by his brother on how the wind has been irregularly high as it points out in page 19-21”It was capable of measuring velocities as high as one hundred miles an hour, but conditions had never come close to testing capacity, nor did any rational soul believe

Farmers came to the Great Plains is great abundance, as this was heavily encouraged by government land policies and cheap land that was readily available. One of these policies was The Homestead Act, which would provide free or inexpensive land to farmers. The ever-growing railroad industry also offered attractive deals to those wishing to move onto the plains. All of these incentives were very enticing at first for farmers, but when they arrived in their new land they were met with a few problems. This new environment was difficult and dry. The animal and plant life was strange to the farmers. Not only that, but the native inhabitants of this land were warlike. However, farmers soon adapted to their new environment by implementing a few solutions. Lack of wood was solved by sod houses and barbed wire. Windmills and dry farming techniques were used to overcome the lack of water, and new machinery was used for farming. But expensive machinery soon led to debt and this debt led to bankruptcy. Farmers were faced with the same issue as the cattleman and many had to sell out to corporate

The climate of the Great Plain's region is windy and dry; winds reached speeds up to 70 mph. Scientists believed that drought which caused the dust bowl to take place occurred because it happened same time as La Nina event in the Pacific Ocean. Frigid surface temputures of the ocean decreased the amount of moisture entering the jet stream and directed it south to U.S., where it hit The Great Plains.before this, The only thing that kept the soil on place is its vegetation, which is thick grass that doesn't need ,uch rain to be sustainable. The land of the west had experienced drought from 1931 to 1937 which turned out to be much worse then it would because of human interference.railroads were built throughout the United States in late 1800s. In 1862 government promised free land to anyone who moved to the prairie for five years.land that was free was an excellent profit reason for a move, while the railroads helped the migration. They planted crop and farmed. Between 1909 and 1932 more then 30 million acres of land were plowed. It seemed like a huge profit for the farmers to plow so much land, yet they ignored one moment, that the land those years lost its main protection, the grass. All plowing they did turned crucial causing the black blizzards. In 1920s people came up with new, fast, and effective ways of getting crops, they had new equipment and the work was much more efficient. Most of farmers couldn't afford such

The individuals in the Southern Plains did not acknowledge the dust storms as a threat, and continued to plow up the grass that held the soil together. A book by Donald Worster titled Dust Bowl: The Southern Plains in the 1930s, offered vivid descriptions of the effects of dust storms. One example was of a “small town printer [named] Nate White…” who was unable to see and “it was as if someone had put a blindfold over his eyes.” (Doc. A). The citizens in the Southern Plains had experienced the dust storm’s effects but, “ignored the radio warnings, went about their business as usual, and later wondered what had hit them” (Doc. A). In the 1930s, the Great Depression caused the wheat sales to drop due to unemployment in the east. Farmers then

During the late 1920s farmers had rick and great soil up until the dust bowl which was when a whole city known for farming was covered in a blanket of black and nasty dust. When this first occurs people thought it would blow past within a few weeks but that never happened. As more and more dust storms came to the area people began to wonder if it was worth it to stay in a farming town that was no longer ok for farming. The population of the city dropped by 59% over the 7 year span which is insane to think considering that the population was small to be gain with. After a long 7 year battle with the weather and Mother Nature the sky's opens up and begs in to spray water and in that moment they knew it would all be

Did you know that some dust storms could be 10,000 feet high? These are the storms faced by the people in the Southern Plains. During the 1930s, America was hit by the Great Depression. Many Americans lost their jobs and were forced into poverty. The Southern Plains were considered to be hit the worst by the Depression. The plains were cornered by the Depression and the Dust Bowl. The Dust Bowl, especially, caused agricultural failures, economic failures, and destroyed the fertile lands of the plains. The Dust Bowl was caused by the overuse of soil, dreadful weather and temperature, and the lack of developed farming system.

Between 1930 and 1940, the southwestern Great Plains region of the United States suffered a severe drought. Once was great farm land for many settlers in the great plains became a desolate wasteland, which became known as the Dust Bowl. To make matters even worse the government passed the “Homestead Act” which helped move farmers and settlers into the central part of the U.S once the Native Americans were removed. Most of the settlers farmed their land or grazed cattle during the time which resulted in the loss of crops and loss of livestock because the horde conditions. Another result of the Dust Bowl was farms farming dry land on the Great Plains which led to the systematic destruction of the prairie grasses in the ranching regions, overgrazing

It is vital for the survival of mankind that we respect and understand the severity and danger of natural forces and weather conditions. Although advances have been made in the predictions and warning systems of the National Weather Service, or NWS, we must be vigilant in our efforts to always respect what is coming. It is also imperative that we learn from the mistakes we have made in the past and grow from them. One such piece of literature which can help to do this is "Storm Warnings: The story of the a Killer Tornado", by Nancy Mathis, which depicts an amazingly horrific incident where mankind was not prepared for what was coming. The following is understanding of the events that took place on May 3rd, 1999, which showcased an amazing, and terrible, spectacle of tornadoes in Oklahoma. Furthermore we will delve into what has changed since this to better our understanding of upcoming weather related dangers as well as planning for said forces of nature.

The Great Hurricane of 1938, or known to many as the Long Island Express, was known as one of the most disastrous hurricanes to hit New England. It wasn’t the high winds, heavy rain, and high waves/storm surge that gave this hurricane its title in history. The Great Hurricane had a fourth deadly weapon; the element of surprise. It was the beginning of September, a time where many packed up their summer clothes, boarded up their houses, and left to return back to the real world leaving their summer homes behind. When symptoms of a storm approached New England, many locals convinced themselves and others that it was just the normal “line storm” which occasionally comes in September. It wasn’t until Sept 21 that people realized the so-called

For instance, the author declares, “…residents of the United States have a lot of warning before a hurricane.”(Perry, page 49, paragraph 3) Although some may not be fortunate enough to have a warning, most U.S. citizens receive a warning of a hurricane days before it strikes. This is very unlike tornados, however, for people in areas where tornados often form never know where or if one will form. Scientists can identify types of conditions that can possibly form a tornado, but they cannot be one-hundred percent sure until it actually forms. This is one of the two major differences between hurricanes and tornados. The other is the cost and damage each natural disaster causes. According to Perry, “Each hurricane can cause billions of dollars in damage.” (Page 49, paragraph 1) Luckily, few hurricanes hit the U.S. yearly. On the other hand, tornados cause much less damage, yet many more hit the United States every year. All in all, hurricanes and tornados are significantly different when contrasting their damage and warning