Around 6:00 pm a message was shouted out all across town on the city's siren system, telling us that there was a storm coming toward us that had a history of delivering tornadoes. They instructed everyone to seek shelter and that it would be over in about 30 minutes.
So we went outside to have a look, as did nearly everyone else in the neighborhood. Okies would rather stare a tornado down before they head for the cellar. The sirens went on at least 10 times, maybe more, but there was very little wind. The sky was dark, and in a short while we saw the wall cloud pass overhead, followed by a funnel cloud.
Down the street, an elderly gent brought out a lawn chair out and sat down facing west.
"When he goes in, I go in," I reasoned. He's probably seen a lot of these things and I trusted his judgment a lot more than the weather service, who didn't deem it important enough to update their radar maps online. Because we don't have TV, we rely on our computers for news.
Soon, another announcement was made, telling us that a tornado had touched down out at 6th and Country Club, which isn't far away. The wind suddenly hit us. The man took his lawn chair indoors and everyone else followed suit. All the while, the sirens were blowing. Then everything turned dark and deathly still. All we could do was listen and wait, and I felt like I was in WWII England, waiting for the Blitzkrieg. That's nerve wracking!
Later, after it was all over, we learned that the closest touchdown was at the university, only three blocks away. Immediately after the sirens went off we began to hear the sirens of emergency vehicles. That went on the rest of the evening. I heard the last one just a few minutes ago. The city trucks are still driving around, answering calls.
This is a link to the Stillwater News Press, where there is a short article and video.
I hope I never go through that again.
Oh, I forgot to mention that our house was in the middle of a flash flood last night. Our driveway is covered with debris, but we're lucky that our house is up off the ground a good two feet.
Can we have a little boredom now? Seems like the past two weeks have been one thing after another.
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UPDATE 11:12 am, Thursday:
We've learned that another one touched down just a couple of blocks on the other side of us. We were surrounded!
14 comments:
Wow. I get worried when I see 'tornado watch', I don't know if I could be as calm if it were that close! Glad you were spared, both during the flood & the tornado! Here's hoping this summer is a little boring for both of us :o)
Wishing a very boring day! ;-)
So glad you very safely off the ground and out of the tornado's path!
Nature can really show her power... makes me wonder how folks can deny global warming.
So happy that you were spared but sorry that you were scared for your life.
I bet you were just hoping that it was the Rapture!
I know this sounds odd, but I'm dying to see a tornado! Just a small one. Maybe a waterspout on our harbor. We had one touch down on the harbor two summers ago, then hop over our house (and the hill behind our house) and touch down again a couple of blocks away. It was a NY tornado (small), so no real damage besides some downed limbs and such. I missed it by about 1 minute.
But I'm glad you're safe.
Christ. I'm glad you're okay. Cue the boredom.
I had to LOL when I read what you said about Oklahoman's wanting to stare down the tornado before they go hide from it. It's true, and I still do it. What's worse? I have now learned to stare down hurricanes. Yepper. After living in Florida, Virginia, and North Carolina I have been in half a dozen or so hurricanes of the category 1 to 2 flavor. Don't get me wrong - I have the utmost respect for Mother Nature. But I think that is why I want to watch her do her magic! Talk about putting one in one's place! I have cooked dinner on the barbeque outside during one hurricane in Virginia, slept through one where the water came up to my front door in Florida. In yet another, I rode it out IN A BEACH HOUSE ON THE OUTER BANKS OF NORTH CAROLINA! It was freaking amazing. As a scuba diver I would consider it an honor to be eaten by a shark. As a lover of nature I would also consider it an honor to be carried away (literally) by mother nature herself. Call me an adventure junkie.
OK, no mail, please. Those that don't know me won't know that half of that was tongue in cheek. You get to figure out which parts weren't. :)
Piccini: I wasn't at all calm. I was a babbling, giggling idiot. I just sounded calm writing about it because I'd worn myself out being terrified. LOL.
Merisi: Thank you. So far, so good.
Susan: We go through tornado watches every spring and every autumn. In the 10 years I've lived here, the sirens have gone off only twice (not counting last night). I normally think us to be safe, but I'll be less smug from now on.
Badger: That would have been nice, wouldn't it? ;)
Earl: You're effin' crazy! I do admit that when I was younger it would have been fun to go on one of those tornado tours. I just don't want to lose my home!
Bob: From your lips to God's ear.
Debi: Yep, you're an Okie! But I'm the same way with these things. They both fascinate and terrify me, which is probably as it should be.
Man - that's too close! We get them here, too, but Detroit is in a bowl, like Stillwater, and it's rare for one to hit us. I'm glad you guys were safe and hope you have good weather from now on. One of those is enough to last a lifetime, IMO. Still, like others have said, I'm fascinated by wild weather and like to watch it. I'm still trying to get a good photo of lightning!
Micah has gotten some good photos of lightening around here. I'm never fast enough. Neither is our camera.
My husband's 96 yo grandmother lives pretty close to campus, and we were nervous. Glad you guys were safe. And like you, I'll be happy to make it a week without going into the hidey hole.
Thanks Kelly. Yeah, being locked in a closet with a nervous cat is not my idea of how to spend an evening.
A tornado it's something really scary, but... It's so beautiful, but better to see something like that in photo or video and to be FAR!
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