And no, not in the fun, drinky kind of way.
If you’re living under a rock, on a mountain top, without tv or possibly in the wilds of Alaska, the South is getting hammered by tornadoes. They’re saying that this is likely to surpass the Super Outbreak of 1974.
I sat and watched Twitter pretty closely early this evening. I counted at least, AT LEAST, 5 tornadoes going through Tuscaloosa, AL. Countless more hit Birmingham. And you know what? I live due east, the direction the storm is heading.
At 8:30 a.m. this morning, high winds triggered tornado warning sirens here. Dude and I were two towns away for his CRCT testing (state testing, like the WASSL out West). The church we were at for testing had weather radios. Yes, plural. The weather radios went off, and I sat in a room of at least 20 adults who did nothing. NOTHING! We were in a room with floor to ceiling windows. I didn’t know it was the weather radio. I’d never heard one before. But, after several seconds, I did get up to investigate. And you know what? I CAN hear the weather radio! Luckily, it also was just going off for high winds.
At 8:30 a.m. this morning, more than 2 hours away from us, Barrow’s breeder, Jenny, had a tornado in her front yard. The same tornado went on to smash Chattanooga to bits. Eight hours later, a second, then a third, a fourth and a fifth tornado went through her vicinity. They were spaced out over a couple hours, but still. That’s a lot of angry weather!
This storm cell is ravaging much of the South. It’s leveled homes and businesses. It’s left many homeless, and at least 32 people confirmed dead at the time of writing. It seems that someone has p*ssed off the Weather Gods.
As the storm moves east, it’s condensing down and gaining strength. Tomorrow, the entire Eastern Seaboard will be under storm warning, from the Florida Keys to New York. Already Maryland and Pittsburgh have seen Tornado Warnings.
So, if you remotely pray, even just once in a while, please send out a prayer for those of us in the South. I don’t care which deity you pray to. Allah, Buddah, Odin, Ceredwin, Shiva, Isis, Ra, Jesus, Jehovah… I don’t care. Please just take the time to send out that prayer. Heck, if you’ve got some extra time, pray to all of them to make sure we have our bases covered!
Now, I’m going to take my dogs out to potty one last time before the storm gets here, make sure my phone is fully charged and prepare to lay low. I’ll check in with you when I can.
Holy cow! I’m a once-a-year kinda pray-er, but I’ll break that for y’all down in the South. Make it through the night safely, K?
Thanks, GD. I don’t think it mattered to whom anyone prayed to last night. It seemed to have an effect. The worst of it went around us, both N and S, and then reformed to the east. We made it through safely and that’s all that matters.
Keep us posted. I watched the weather forecast the other night and thought about how much I do not miss the weather in the South.
Lots of prayers headed South for you guys and Mrs. Mom too.
The weather is at Mrs. Mom’s door. I’m sure she can use those prayers right about now! Thanks!
Hope everyone is well over there! There’s several bloggers I’m worried about, too, that have been quiet over the various social networks since yesterday afternoon.
Lots of prayers headed your way!
Thanks Tiff!
Holy cow, that’s scary stuff. Please check in soon.
I’ve been hearing all about the tornados since yesterday and have been getting e-mail news alerts about how it’s hit the south. I hope you’re okay. Let us know how you’re holding up.
We’re good. The system sort of split apart and went around us, reforming much, much stronger just to the east. It was pretty hairy and a wild night! I’ll post about it after I get some sleep. Not much to be had last night. At least I have stories, right?
This must have been so terrifying! Glad to hear you’re okay.
It was! I still need to write up a post about it. I wonder if it was more terrifying because we heard constant reports about Alabama, so we had more time to dwell on it?
That is possible, although I’d find the unknown frightening too. Better to know how bad it can get and prepare for the worst.
I keep reminding myself that you can’t hide from an earthquake, but you can hide from a tornado. It’s keeping me from moving back to the other side of the country. Because during the storm, Alaskan blizzards and earthquakes out West looked like a cake walk. We’ll see how I feel at the end of tornado season next fall. I might have changed my mind by then.
Just wanted you to know chickee – I sent prayer out to you that night! Glad you are safe and sound!
I appreciate it! I will tell you all about the storm shortly.