Tornados in the south

[Predator1]

I was just watching the 5pm news and saw the devistation all through the south. I hope all of you JCFr's down there are safe.

[VitaminG]

+1

they were just showing footage on the news here. Hope everyone and their families are okay

[JACKSONFREAK]

A friend of my girl friends lives in Alabama. Her small town was leveled. except for her house a neighbors house and the gas station and of all places a walmart at the edge of town. Schools, the business district, and 99% of the houses are gone. Not rubble where the house once stood. But gone. Just a slab of cement were the house used to be. Hundreds dead or missing. Or both. Casualties every where in the streets and yards. Her neighbor went back to his car for something but never made it. He was swept up with his house and dropped in the street then his house dropped about 200 yards away in a field. She's keeping us posted. Luckily her and the 5 kids are safe. Her hubby is a truck driver so he wasnt home but is now. People living in tents iin others yards, and grilling the food of the ones who have it. It's times like this you realize how precious life is and quickly it can be taken. But also sad it takes times like this for us to realize how precious life is.
Gil

[Newc]

We didn't get much here in West TN - nothing like Alabama. We lost some shingles and the trim under our tornado magnet, and our Woe Tree fell over.

Back in '96 I heard a brick house come apart as the trailer next door was slammed into it by a tornado. It's not a sound I'm likely to forget.

[Jayster]

In GA, we had some serious damage but it was small compared to AL. Where my 2 future sister in laws live, they were both directly in the pathway of the tornados. However everyone made it through unscathed, a few downed trees is all.... However Tuscalusa was leveled the whole town, fire trucks and police cars were 'airlifted' and emergency response was nil.

Hoping all of our other jcf bretheren are well

[dg]

I'm worried about Moshwitz. His page says he was last on here at 2PM on the 27th. Hopefully it's just a power or ISP issue. My sister-in-law taught at Bama up until a couple of years ago when she relocated. Her old house in Tuscaloosa got destroyed in a storm last week, and she's pretty sure the rest of the neighborhood got hammered this time. She's only heard from a couple of her friends down there so far. It's not good.

[Hellbat]

Moshwitz was having access problems in an update he posted then. Hopefully all is well with he. I think Alvin may be in the area as well? Good vibes being sent...

[Alvin_Wilson]

Moshwitz was having access problems in an update he posted then. Hopefully all is well with he. I think Alvin may be in the area as well? Good vibes being sent...

I'm here, bro. I live in Auburn, Ga, about 35 NE of Atlanta, near Athens. We only had some light rain and 10-15 mph winds.

[Hellbat]

Good to hear. My US Geography kung fu is weak, sorry.

[Robert Hendrix]

Y'know? I remember when I moved from West Texas to Raleigh NC 11 years ago, I joked with a friend of mine saying "at least I'm out of Tornado Alley now." I saw some pretty harry stuff growing up in the Texas Panhandle, I never expected to see that kind of devastation here unless it was from a hurricane. And the worst part is, people here aren't prepared for it.

[lerxstcat]

If you find a spot on this planet where no Earthly disaster will strike, that is where the asteroid will hit!

[Rsmacker]

I know that these tornados are seriously powerful, but what sort of houses are they in that area? When I went to the US years ago, I thought the houses were, um, well, not very substantial. Would solid brick houses, like we have over here, stand up to the wind better? I realise there'd be no roof left, or windows, and they'd take a battering, but there wouldn't be just a slab like mentioned above, would there?

What I'm trying to say is, if you live in a region plagued by tornados, why build a house made of paper? I know I'd rather spend a bit of money building a solid house, than be looking at a space where my life used to be, however high the odds were against being hit like that.

Some of those videos are fucking frightening though, it must be hell waiting for a storm to pass, knowing there's nothing you can do but wait and pray.

[PowerTube]

I'm originally from Fayette County, Alabama, about 35 miles from Tuscaloosa. Did you see the film of the tornado taken from the University of Alabama? That very tornado went right over my mom's house and then touched down a little further out on Highway 159. After it destroyed Tuscaloosa, it went on out and hit Birmingham.

I'm completely stunned at the devastation.

[JACKSONFREAK]

RS tornadoes are pretty indiscriminate about what your house is made of. Whether its brick stone or wood. It will be damaged or destroyed by an EF4 tornado. With brick you may have half a wall left or a section of the house. Debris is also a huge factor. a car or something else heavy caught up in the tornadoes winds will take out major parts of a house with ease. When i lived a bit north of here. I was out with friends when i storm rolled in. whe i got home after the festivities my complex was hit by a micro burst. Which is essentailly a small whirl wind tornado. Just lower speed winds and not a fully formed funnel. There are 13 buildings in that complex and all but 3 were inhabitable. luckily mine was ok. Debris started as a small branch from a tree then a cutter and a sectio of roofing then balcony furniture a piece of a roof. (not just roofing material but the actual roof framing and rafters finally hit the last building and ripped the whole roof off the biggest building in the complex. (one i used to live in prior) So its not just the winds and the swirling strength but the debris. the 300+ mph winds in an EF3 will rip anything apart and consume it like a hungry pack of wolves.
Just sayin.
Gil

[dg]

My sister-in-law's house in Tuscaloosa was all brick, as were all of her neighbors' houses. Doesn't matter. We had a much smaller F2 - F3 near here about 6 years ago that leveled about a quarter of a ritzy golf course community with mostly brick homes. Brick will hold up better to a point, but beyond that, nothing is going to stop these things from blowing stuff up like a bomb.