Hello everyone and thanks for blogging with me. We are closing out the work week on a rather steamy note and that looks to continue into the weekend before we get a little change in the pattern. We have a lot to talk about so lets get to it.
The tropics contiue to be on the active side with 4 areas of concern. Of course Bertha is still churning away and is now the longest lasting July storm EVER! Here is a map showing the other trouble spots…
Area 1 has the best chance for development and will have to be watched. 2 is running out of room and 3 is the system we were tracking a few days ago near Florida. If it stays off shore it could develop into a tropical system in the next few days.
We will be going into the weekend on a hot and humid note here on the homefront. Temps Friday and Saturday will likely hit the low 90s once again. The first chance for some scattered storms will come on Saturday with increasing chances for Sunday into early next week as a trough digs in across the lakes and Ohio Valley. This will put our area in a favorable area for some thunderstorm clusters diving in from the northwest. The GFS has been latching on to this scenerio for a couple of runs now. Below is a precip map from the GFS from late weekend and early next week…
Probably overdone so we will see how it all plays out.
Since we have been taking a little stroll through some of the big weather events in Kentucky history… I thought I would show you one that is likely at the top of a lot of lists. The Super Outbreak of 1974. An unbelievable outbreak of tornadoes over a 24 hour span in early April of that year. At least 148 twisters touched down during this time claiming hundreds of lives. These weren’t just your average tornadoes… 6 were rated as F5s, the strongest rating a storm can get. One of those hit the city of Brandenburg, Ky in Meade county (More on that later).
Take a look at the map below to see how widespread this outbreak was…
If you look at the map above… you will notice almost a doughnut hole sitting over eastern Ky. This outbreak happened several years before the NWS in Jackson opened its doors to serve this area. It was also a time when information was not collected as swiftly as it is today and a time when info never made it to the proper people. It has long been my contention that there were LIKELY several tornadoes that touched down in eastern Ky but were never reported. In all likelyhood these were rather weak and in isolated areas… hence the reason they were never reported. With modern technology… I guarantee if a this outbreak had happened this year… the number of tornadoes would have been much higher across the country because the NWS would have found each and every one of them.
Here is a sat pic from that day showing the multiple lines of tornadic storms….
As we all know… Kentucky was ground zero during this outbreak. Here are a couple of pics I have from an F4 tornado that came ripping through Richmond. These have a WOW factor to them!!!!
That is some incredible stuff right there my friends! Here is a copy past job from the NOAA super outbreak site that talks about the impact on Kentucky.
Between 3:40 p.m. CDT April 3 and midnight, at least 26 vicious tornadoes struck Kentucky– in the worst storm disaster in the State’s history. These tornadoes killed 77 persons, injured 1,377, and caused damage estimated at $110 million. Losses were sustained by 6,625 families, and between 1,800 and 2,000 of the State’s farms were damaged to some extent. The tornadoes affected 39 counties within a strip some 150 miles wide extending from north to south through the central part of the State.
The first storm (47) was the most severe. It touched ground 5 miles southwest of Hardinsburg (Breckinridge County) at 3:40 p.m. CDT and 30 minutes later slammed into Brandenburg (Meade County). This tornado, which had an intensity rating of F5 on the Fujita scale and a path 500 yards wide where it tore through Brandenburg, killed 31, including a number of children who apparently were playing outside after school.
Within an hour of the Brandenburg death and destruction, five other tornadoes (43, 48, 51, 52, and 59) touched down at locations ranging from Louisville (48) and Boone County (43) in the north to Simpson County (59) near the Tennessee border. The pattern of rapid development farther south and east, with individual tornadoes moving rapidly northeastward, continued into the evening hours. Tornado activity ended in the north-central part of Kentucky by 7:00 p.m. CDT. From then until midnight, activity was concentrated in the south-central part of the State.
The Louisville tornado (48) touched down at 4:37 p.m. CDT one-quarter mile north of Standi ford Field. It was witnessed by National Weather Service employees at the Weather Service Forecast Office. This storm was on or close to the ground as it traveled through 10 miles of residential property in the metropolitan area. It widened and increased in intensity as it moved northeastward. In the eastern 3 to 4 miles of the metropolitan area its maximum intensity was F4. Three deaths were attributed directly to the tornado. Three others were reported killed by heart attacks. A total of 225 injuries were reported in Louisville and Jefferson County.
Pulaski County, in south-central Kentucky, was struck by three separate tornadoes during the evening. The first of these (74) touched down near Mt. Victory at 7:55 p.m. CDT and moved into Rockcastle County before lifting. This storm killed 6 and injured 30 in Pulaski County. One death and 10 injuries were reported in Rockcastle County. The second tornado (73) moved into southern Pulaski County shortly after 9:00 p.m. after killing 2 and injuring 16 in eastern Wayne County. The storm hit Alpine at 9:2O p.m. CDT and caused 29 injuries in Pulaski County. The County apparently was struck by Kentucky’s final tornado of the outbreak (64) between 11:30 p.m. and midnight, as the storm moved from Piney Grove Church near the Russell County line through Nancy and Bobtown to Level Green (in Rockcastle County).
Killer storms also were reported in Boyle, Clinton, Franklin, Hardin, Madison, Nelson, Simpson, and Warren Counties.
I have a busy day ahead of me Friday but will try to post sometime later in the day. If not… I will certainly give you a little update on Saturday.
Take care.
That second picture from Richmond was taken when I was a Junior in college. Looks like that was taken as my parents farm was hit. Their farm is right next to the now Acres of Land Winery. They lost 2 barns, fencing and cattle during that tornado. When I was 2 (1955) they lost their home to a tornado on the same farm. They moved in 1990 closer to Richmond city limits.
Wow, I never saw those pictures before. I couldn’t reach my parents by phone and came home on the week-end to devastation that year. How interesting to see. Thanks, Chris.
I’m first!! Gotta keep tradition
Crystal, I went to kyweathercenter.com like Chris said I’m so glad I was missing you guys like crazy My husband is almost as glad as i am Going camping this weekend so you all stay safe and cool
firefighter go to kyweathercenter.com it works and just post your comment it works.
Trying to pack to go camping and typing at the same time it works twice sorry
Hey gang, how is everyone this late evening? headed to bed here just checking in those tornado pics are awesome. Thats stuff I dont care to live through again, even though I was only 2yrs. old when those twisters came blasting through I remember my parents and grandparents talking about it…SCARY STUFF !!! hope everyone gets the kinks worked out to post their comments..
Sharon. Your family has been through 2 tornadoes in Richmond? I saw those pics and I said to myself, well nevermind what I said. Did fayette county stay dry during this outbreak?
Thanks Chris…powerful pics.
Yes, MarkLex. In those 2 tornados everything that they owned was destroyed. Once in 1955 and once in 1974. My baby bed was ripped on two but luckily we were not at home or I would not be on this blog. I spent a spring break in college (74) picking up barn lumber. Dad has about 160 acres of land that joins the winery. He’s 83 and still farms.
I well remember the day of April 3, 1974. I believe that was the longest day! I can remember my family and I standing outside most of the night watching the sky when the lightning would flash. I was a scary night. I guess that I have been fascinated with storms ever since. Thanks, Chris, for the pics. That’s the best way and safest to look at tornadoes.
the system in the carribean has a more interesting track today on the models northeast toward texas/la coast by early to mid week, gfs brings the tropical moisture into ky by late week when another front moves in. stay cool!
Awesome pics Chris…were do you dig this stuff up??
94(central Caribbean) and 96L(SE coast) are both looking better today with 94L having a better shot at development.
http://hurricane.accuweather.com/hurricane/satellite.asp?region=car&anim=1&type=ir&basin=atlantic
These pictures are really something Chris thanks so much!!!!! Randy great hurricaine site.
Marsha so glad you are here.Chris do you see any good chance of rain in the next week??
O.K. who turned on the SANAU ??? and forgot to shut the door….UGH ! its hot….
Chris, thanks for the update. Lord knows my garden and yard could use some rain!! And thanks for the story and especially the pics of the tornados. I was not born yet, however my dad lived in Berea at the time and I have heard many stories from him and my grandparents about the tornados back then. Stories about it ripping the second story off of one of the schools down there, and a story about a barn being picked up, all of the hay in it being sucked out, and the barn being set back down, turned around completely 180 degrees, perfectly back on the foundation, and the owners having to cut a new door in it because the doors were now against the bank behind the barn. Just thought I’d share that little story. Thanks Chris!!
I second those who want to see more about the “dusting” of Feb. 4-6, 1998!
I remember the April 3, 1974 tornado outbreak very well … in Frankfort, hail the size of softballs fell before the first tornado hit. My brothers and I were outside picking up the largest hail stones to save in the freezer when we heard and saw a HUGE tornado in the eastern sky. We didn’t have a basement, so we huddled in our garage while my Dad stood by the door and watched where the tornado was going. It turned out to be over 5 miles away from our neighborhood, but I remember that Dad thought it was much, much closer because of its huge size! I know several families in the Frankfort community who were forever changed by the events of that day. I was 13 then. As an adult, I have always insisted on owning a house with a basement and the sound of strong wind will send me there in a heartbeat! I’ve never seen the meteorological maps of that day, although I’ve heard incredible stories of the random violence of those storms. Thankfully, it’s a weather day that has not been repeated to date and I sincerely hope that it isn’t, although the good thing to come out of all the destruction was a warning system for tornadic storms. Thanks, Chris, for all that you do to keep us apprised of current, future and past weather events!
Wow!!! I remember the superoutbreak of ’74. I was five years old and We took shelter in the cellar of my grandma’s house and watched a tornado take the roof of our hay shed. It was not a fun night. Thanks for the historical info on weather chris. Keep it coming, I love this stuff.
Wow! Chris! Those storms still look impressive! I remember that day very well, as I was working at one of our local radio stations, and the station manager sent me home to McCreary County bo try and get me there before it got bad. I remember a small tornado coming up the hollar beside our house as I was turning into the driveway. A lot of good people lost their lives that afternoon and evening in KY.
Haven’t had a chance to comment for a couple of days, so I wanted to comment on the storm of 93, also. That was a really big one, too! But it was more fun to watch! 😉 We went to the local Walmart to get our girls some boots and it had started to snow. OUr local forecast called for 1-3 inches, and just kept updating with more and more!
When it was over, we went out and built the biggest snowman we could the next day! That thing was there well after the snow had melted off the ground!
Well, I guess you are making the big move this weekend, so, I hope you all have safe travels, and not too much hassle trying to get into a new home, and get settled.
One more comment and I will hush, I promise….these tropical areas of development that you have pointed out, seems like they are just blossoming all at once. Do you think this is goig to be the trend for the rest of the hurricane season, or is this just happenstance? I will be looking for an answer at some later pint! Have a good weekend, Chris, and everyone!
Looking forward, as always, to the next update!
I’m in the Bahamas, and I’ve been watching this Low for a while now. Just as I have disregarded it as it not impacting us, it flairs up again. Although it is still unlikely it will impact me, it may impact travel for my campers.
Yea Marsha! Glad you’re here!
chris: blast from the past part 3, snowstorm jan 94.
I must be the oldest buzzard on this blog. 🙂
Tropical Depression 3 has formed off the SC coast. It is expected to parallel the NC Coast as a minimal Tropical Storm and then move out to sea.
http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/flt/t3/loop-vis.html
What a WONDERFUL site to see our favorite weather guy!!!!! SURE MISS YOU ON KYT. GOD BLESS YOU I PRAY THIS WAS WHAT YOU WANTED cause it’s not the same without your fun,smile,& light-hearted morning start to our day