Being a born and raised native of Florida, I had my fair share of crazy weather. Whether it was the everyday torrential downpour afternoon thunderstorms or the dreaded yearly hurricane season. However, none of this prepared me for what I would encounter in my future that would make US history.
Just a few days after turning twenty-one I decided that I wanted to move out of Florida and try somewhere new. A small country town called Oneonta, just outside of Birmingham, AL is where I decided to call home. Now this town wasn’t known for much, other than football and their weather. The day I moved there I was welcomed with a horrific hail storm and the piercing sound of tornado sirens going off. I should’ve known then that maybe this town is not where I belonged.
Years had passed and it was springtime in Alabama. The bitter cold air was slowly drifting away and the flowers were starting to blossom. Sounds like the perfect time of year. Not so much, because what I quickly found out is springtime in Alabama is also tornado season in Dixie.
It was April 27, 2011, a day that still haunts my memory. Our town was expecting this day as a severe weather day. James Spann, the local weatherman had been preparing everyone for about a week now that this day had a high potential for tornadoes. I woke up that morning to a gloomy day outside my window and a bothered feeling in my gut. Turning on the tv, I knew I should see what was going on with the weather. The weatherman was on warning those
Living in Florida there are many things to be worried about from alligators, hot heat, and the most important hurricanes. The first hurricane I experienced was in the first two months of me living in Florida. I moved here from New York and I had no idea what to expect when I heard that a hurricane was coming. It was like nothing I had experienced before, seeing a tree pulled from the ground by only water and wind was a devastating experience that I was something I did not expect to see. After the hurricane, my dad went to the store and bought as much; canned food, water bottles, candles, flashlights and batteries he could find to make sure that just in case another hurricane hit we would be prepared. After the hurricane, I started to wonder about better ways on how to prepare for another hurricane. Especially, living in Florida there are
April was a month of destruction. The small community Center, Kentucky as hit by two EF-1 tornados within the short span of 10 days. Large hail and damaging winds downed buildings, twisted trees, caused severe hail damage, and even knocked over tombstones in the Asbury-Center cemetery. Team Rubicon a veteran-led disaster response organization and Christian Aid Ministries came to assist residents with the cleanup following the severe weather outbreak. (#7 PIC tornado damage)
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).
My family has lived in Brevard for seventeen years now. This small town is all I've ever known as home. There are aspects of Brevard that I've come to love. With a population of just over 7,000 people, it is very rare that you find yourself in a situation where you can't locate a familiar face. There is something comforting about the familiarity of it all; you know at least one person who lives on every street, you've made memories at every restaurant, park, and street corner. Still, there is an ugly side to this beautiful little corner of the earth.
Having lived in the southern coastal region of Texas I have seen many of the beauties that nature offers, but many of these beauties also bring complicated needs to those they effect. I've discovered the power and magnitude of lightning storms I've been entranced by the soft crashing of the waves on the coast but the most beautiful and perhaps the most devastating phenomena I have ever viewed are hurricanes. Hurricanes have swept through my home front on many occasions, these powerful giants drift through towns decimating all in their paths breaking trees, ripping roofs off houses, and bringing with them a flood like no other. The high water and gale force winds that comprise these natural wrecking balls can cripple families and in my community
The “Tornado Town, USA” article, published on May 26, 2016 by Maggie Koerth-Baker enlightens us about the menacing natural disaster known as tornado. The purpose of this piece, or how I viewed it, is to inform us about how tornadoes form and what their capabilities. Mrs. Baker, through her writing, pursues to better educate us on the terrifying and chaotic nature of a tornado. I believe Mrs. Baker exquisitely uses the logical and emotional appeal in order to hook and sedate readers into her writing.
At the turn of the century, technology was hitting a booming time. Electricity, railroads, and telegraphs were still somewhat new in world. With all of this new technology man has still yet to master any of it; weather forecast included. At the turn of the century, the weather forecast in the United States was operated by a branch of the government known as the Weather Bureau. It was their job to predict the weather, including hurricanes, so that the navy can bypass the storms. To maintain funding, they Bureau would refrain from making predictions of hurricanes unless granted permission from
Growing up in small-town Pflugerville, I never imagined what life would be like outside of a "country" area - until I moved to Killeen, Texas. Killeen is a town full of hot-headed, military, city-slickers that clog up the highway like ants. Often, I think of times when I was younger - looking up at the clear, blue, open skies; the smell of fresh-cut grass always awakened my senses. Now, I look up and I see wires, buildings, cars, and smog. They always say "There is no place like home," and in this case, there are no two places that differ more than my hometown and the town I live in now. The speed of life, the buildings, and most of all, the crime rates are all very new to me. The world is like bowl of fruit, sometimes the taste of each point on a map can differ as greatly as apples and oranges.
“Storm Country” by Paul Crenshaw is about his own childhood growing up in Arkansas which is in the heart of tornado alley (Crenshaw, 2004, pg. 203). He explains his encounters with tornadoes and the memories that this remarkable but destructive storm left. Paul Crenshaw explained his story about a tornado in a descriptive way which gave life and meaning with every sentence. After I was done reading I started to think about my own experiences with storm watching during the day and even at night. I agreed with every point he made about the mesmerizing moment of when a storm hits by relating it with my own points about storms.
I still remember the day clearly. It was an 85% chance of heavy downpours on June 7th 2015. It was the first time I could remember that I actually wanted rain. I genuinely wanted anything that could procrastinate the arrival of my first cabin full of campers.
Alright Alright, It's memorial day and it is still 1000 degree with no end in sight. This may be the end of the world and we all cook to death... who knows. As I cannot convince any of my buddies to get out of there air conditioning safety bubbles, I sit inside too contemplating what to do. Being inside seemed to be the only option for myself and I wasn't too thrilled. It was time for dinner and as the food was cooking I looked at my phone to see my weather app and the snapchat weather people inform me that there was rain coming. As Zimmerman was just getting hit by rain, people south of me were running from tornados which actually seemed pretty entertaining and better than sitting inside bored.
The first memorable experience happened on April 27, 2011 when a catastrophic tornado tore through the city of Tuscaloosa, destroying thousands of homes and ending multiple lives. The whole city
The first mistake the Jacksonville’s weather bureau made was to call all extra relief workers and coast guards from New York and New England down to Florida to prepare for the storm. While looking out and protecting Florida, they took many needed hands from the northeast, which was hit harder. Their second mistake, a more important one, was to assume this storm was another typical Cape Verde hurricane because it began to veer northward. Those storms were known to curve away from the tropics at first opportunity and head north for colder water where it would soon die off before hitting the US. It followed this specific course by the Bermuda High currents, “a mass of dense dry air that dominates the weather in the North
This just shows how weather can affect people's moods. At first the storm seemed exciting; getting to leave work and school early sounded like a good thing. However, throughout the day, little things happened that made it no longer be so exciting. And eventually, that excitement was gone and it was replaced by
At the time of responding to this question it is perfectly timed, as finally we have some lovely weather after the extended winter caused by a cold and wet spring. So sunshine, blue skies and starry nights along with higher temperatures are finally with us in the south west. Some Brits will have already made plans to seek warmer weather and the almost guaranteed sun with warm breezes that come with booking a holiday in hot spots. Over the years I have had some pretty fabulous holidays overseas and in the UK and have a few photo’s and fond memories to draw upon. These days with a combination of a husband with a dislike of flying and dogs who we don’t wish to put into kennels, our holidays tend to revolve around our homeland and what treasures we have found too. From child friendly and latterly teen friendly holidays, to romantic getaways and action packed outings we have covered a huge array of accommodations, activities and explored some fantastic places. I can relate to all of the suggestions that precede the Ciao! Question: where will you be going and which products will you take with you?