I'm sure that's what the people were saying in 1921................just please don't hit 70 in Iowa or the world is doomed!
Monster tornado
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I'm sure that's what the people were saying in 1921................just please don't hit 70 in Iowa or the world is doomed!
$2000 in 1981 is over $6000 today. Think of the people you know today who don't have their own storm shelter or basement. How many of them do you estimate could come up with $6000 in time to start construction this spring?
You are probably right. They would have to forego a tricked out F150 in order to protect their family.
I'll be curious to know what safety precautions were taken...and what was followed.
i'd assume they were getting some over-time for some holiday expenses. kinda sad now.
FYI, in 2018 updated building codes started requiring FEMA rated storm shelters in new schools. So even though a school might have a designated storm area, there is a good chance it isn't a hardened shelter.
Also I know some were opposed to this because of cost increases to projects.
Also I know some were opposed to this because of cost increases to projects.
I measure barometric pressure at our house, especially in the early winter and Friday night in southern Iowa tied for the record low pressure. Whenever we get that, there are tornado warnings east and south.
Here is an awesome article on the shift of tornado alley into the dixie alley since ~1979
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41612-018-0048-2
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41612-018-0048-2
Seems like the big reason for the intensity of this storm was the difference in wind speed between the jet stream and the ground level wind, which created ideal conditions for tornadoes, and it was fed by the warm, moist air.
While FEMA concrete shelters for schools seem like a no-brainer, I saw a study that showed that 90% (or higher) of tornadoes happen at a time of day or time of year when kids are not in school. No one wants to jeopardize kids' safety, but sometimes, the money spent on the concrete shelters could be better spent on other safety issues and safer facilities.
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funding/grants for FEMA shelters revolves around how many people (schools AND surrounding houses) are within a certain distance of the shelter. Schools are a good location as they can typically use the occupancy of the building plus surrounding neighbors to obtain a good amount of funding and typically the space is constructed as dual purpose (maybe a practice gym, locker rooms or something else).
Yeah seems like they're either late afternoon or evening when pressure has built up.
That is true. And there are schools who have taken advantage of it. But administrators and board members during school board meetings have told me that there are tradeoffs and questions of logistics. Such as, what employee is responsible to make sure the shelter is open at 8:00 p.m. on a Sunday night? What small school can afford to have an employee on call after hours and make sure that employee is always close by? You add that cost, plus the higher labor costs to build the structure and the 25% match, that's why I said sometimes there are tradeoffs schools must consider and maybe better options to provide safety for kids.
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I agree wholeheartedly and if I were a betting man, most schools that have obtained funding for it, don’t staff them outside of their normal operating hours… with that being said though getting a nice chunk of funding from FEMA for constructing a dual purpose space could be a huge difference in a small school district from having a practice gym (or take your pick on a space) or not. I know of a few districts that have them in Iowa.
Sounds like they were sheltering in place and per story in the designated shelter area but it was probably not enough to withstand a direct hit from this powerful of tornado.
https://news.yahoo.com/planning-questions-emerge-tornado-destroyed-230426527.html
You are on the right path. Wind shear (change of speed and/or direction with altitude) is critical to storms like this. Add in helicity (really dumbed down the ability for it to spin relative to storm motion https://w1.weather.gov/glossary/index.php?word=helicity) and the lifted index (the ability for a parcel of air to rise https://w1.weather.gov/glossary/index.php?word=Lifted+Index) are just a few of the key components that are needed for major super cells like these.
Yes the climate changes Pope. Just don’t need to go back to the glacial period in Iowa.
