Tornadoes — just the word makes people panic, said meteorologist Chance Hayes.
Hayes, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service, presented “Storm Fury on the Plains” Wednesday night at the Bowlus Fine Arts center to a crowd of about 100 people. Many were interested in becoming storm spotters, the ground crew that watches the development of dangerous weather systems throughout southeast Kansas. Others were there simply to learn.
About storms, about hail, about tornadoes.
“I want you to know these cloud formations and the hazards they present,” Hayes told the crowd. “I don’t expect you to become a spotter for the county, but I want you to be a spotter for yourself.”
Hayes showed video clips of swirling clouds with anvil tops and imposing fronts that pour heavy rain and hail down upon communities. “If you see a dark forward flank of rain and hail, stay out of it,” Hayes advised.
The storm cells, as they are called, are huge. They cover miles and poke upwards of 50,000 feet into the atmosphere. It is this rise that causes the anvil-shaped head, Hayes said, as bubbling cumulus clouds hit the sheering winds of the stratosphere and are pushed flat and to the side.
Hayes said the storms that cause the most damage are supercells, “one storm all by itself with persistent rotating updrafts.” These storms are called mesocyclones, and these are the storms that spawn tornadoes.
“We’ve already had ten tornadoes in our jurisdiction,” Hayes said of the 26-county area he supervises. “And then by golly we got a blizzard and an ice storm.” Hayes said that’s typical of Kansas weather: fast and frequent change of conditions.
In Allen County, Hayes said, hail, wind and flooding are more problematic, causing far more damage than tornadoes. In fact, “flooding is the No. 1 killer of all severe weather,” Hayes said. A video showed the power of flooding, as a paved roadway was eaten away and within seconds became a raging stream. An audible gasp went through the audience when Hayes showed a video of a person being lifted up and tossed through the air, then slammed into the ground, during a high-wind event.
The best way to avoid the impact, Hayes said, is to know what’s coming.
JUST 50 years ago, Hayes said, the number of tornadoes reported was considerably lower than today. It’s not that there are more tornadoes, Hayes said. It’s just that now, thanks to storm spotters and radar, “I can guarantee almost every tornado is reported.”
The state records an average of 92 tornadoes a year — 50 percent higher than before such technology was in place.
Radars are the meteorologist’s most useful tool for tracking storms, Hayes said. You can see the same ones Hayes studies by going to the Weather Service Web site at www.weather.gov/wichita, he said.
There, you can follow a page designed as “one stop shopping,” Hayes said, with current radar conditions, hazardous weather outlooks, the current forecast and many more layers of information available through the click of a mouse. “It plots warnings as they are issued,” he said, and boasts graphics “designed for a specific region and relative closeness to storms.” In contrast, TV forecasts often use a broad stroke and issue a warnign to an entire county even though a storm might be localized. Still, Hayes said, “TV and radio are doing a much better job of disseminating information.” After all, he noted, “Weather sells.”
Hayes said the N.W.S. works closely with broadcast media to get the latest information to the public as rapidly as possible.
“We realize we have one common goal,” he said: keeping people safe.
As good as radars are, though, Hayes said, “the radar can’t see below 4,000 to 5,000 feet. That’s why we will always need people on the ground.”
Spotters are trained to know the difference between a truly hazardous storm and “scary looking clouds.” They know to look for a hook echo, an area where the storm is “rotating so rapidly it’s actually wrapping rain around the back of the storm.” It is this curl that can evolve into a tornado.
The N.W.S. watches for this curl on radar, and notifies counties who send out on-the-ground spotters. The spotters keep in contact with county officials, who then relay information back to the National Weather Service, so they can warn additional communities as necessary.
It’s one big cooperative effort that ensures most people never encounter a severe storm.
JUST AS dangerous as mesocyclones are “strong straight line winds” — linear storm systems with winds blowing 100-125 mph. Such storms “will knock everything down in its path,” Hayes said. “Trampolines become parachutes.” If you are facing such a storm, it is imperative to seek shelter, Hayes said.
If you’re out driving when you encounter a squall line, bow cloud or mesocyclone, Hayes said, point your car into the storm, as windshields are far more durable than the side windows of cars. Best, he said, is to seek shelter. If you are facing a tornado, “get out of your car. Cars don’t stand a chance,” he said. Hayes said to quickly drive 90 degrees fromthe path of the storm if there is no shelter available.
If you are indoors when a tornado or deadly storm strikes, try ot get to the lowest floor in your house, he said, and into a room with no windows. “Put as many walls between you and the storm as you can,” he advised. And be sure to have a whistle handy.
He showed video of one storm victim who had been trapped under 25 feet of debris for four hours while search parties moved on, oblivious to his screaming.
“You may not be able to scream, but if you can breath, you can blow a whistle,” Hayes said. That atypical sound would be noticed by searchers, he said.
Most important when dealing with severe weather, Hayes said, is to use common sense.
“Stay away from windows. When thunder roars, go indoors. If a road is under water, turn around, don’t drown,” he said, relaying the sayings designed to keep weather safety easily in mind.
And listen, listen, listen Hayes said, to radio, television, the Internet and the skies. Most importantly, he said, “use your eyes.”
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