June 4-7: Severe wx (Omaha tornado update)

[AirmaN]

Tornado warning issued about an hour ago (2:29 am) for Douglas County, NE...including the city of Omaha.

The reported tornado on the ground went approximately 2 miles to my south. The high winds and rain before the warning really caught me off guard...we may have lost a tree...

[KWT]

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
330 AM CDT SUN JUN 8 2008

IAC027-047-080900-
/O.CON.KDMX.SV.W.0186.000000T0000Z-080608T0900Z/
CRAWFORD IA-CARROLL IA-
330 AM CDT SUN JUN 8 2008

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 400 AM CDT
FOR CARROLL AND EASTERN CRAWFORD COUNTIES...

AT 327 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO
INDICATE A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING
WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. THESE STORMS WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE
EXTENDING FROM VAIL TO ASPINWALL...OR ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 25
MILES SOUTHEAST OF IDA GROVE TO 36 MILES SOUTHEAST OF IDA GROVE...
MOVING EAST AT 47 MPH.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR...
WESTSIDE...ARCADIA AND MANNING BY 335 AM CDT...
TEMPLETON AND HALBUR BY 340 AM CDT...
WILLEY...DEDHAM AND CARROLL BY 350 AM CDT...
LIDDERDALE AND CARROLL AIRPORT BY 355 AM CDT...

PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WINDS...FALLING TREES AND FLYING DEBRIS. MOVE
INDOORS AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF YOU LIVE IN A MOBILE HOME...
SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY BUILDING.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 AM CDT SUNDAY
MORNING FOR IOWA.

LAT...LON 4214 9535 4215 9531 4216 9529 4216 9527
4221 9511 4220 9465 4186 9464 4187 9529
TIME...MOT...LOC 0830Z 260DEG 41KT 4205 9515 4188 9512

$$

KINNEY

[snoopj]

I thought so - transmitting a exact warning isn´t that problem any more but a signal to set the folks under alert is a good step. But why are counties in the north of yours are relevant. S / SW counties would make more sense...
But the county-setting is an interesting thing for sure.

I choose the county north of me because I live close to the border. If a system is moving E or just slightly south of E, I could be affected. The counties S and W of me are far away from me.

I do the same thing. I live in the middle of a county and if it's hitting the county to the east, very, very rarely is it going to impact me on a personal level at the time of the warning issuance. I put a couple of county cushion on and that usually gives me adequate lead time to hear the tone, check radar, and keep an eye on the situation.

Living in Tornado Alley without a weather radio is plain stupid.

--j

[senorpepr]

Mayor, Residents Survey Millard Damage
Tornado Spotted In Millard

OMAHA, Neb. -- Storm spotters and radar indicated a tornado touched down near 136th and Y streets in Omaha at about 2:30 a.m. Sunday and Mayor Mike Fahey and residents were out at dawn surveying the damage.

At least one home sustained major damage in the area, and numerous trees were down. At 137th Street and Z Circle, Valerie Becker said her roof was blown off. Power was reportedly out to about 12,000 Omaha Public Power District customers.

The National Weather Service reported winds at 70 mph near 72nd and Grover streets at 2:35 a.m.

At 144th and Harrison streets, the Heartland Center for Reproductive Medicine had its lobby blown off. A doctor there told KETV NewsWatch 7 that they would open on Monday because all of the lab and exam rooms were untouched by the storm.

The Carquest retail store at 135th and Q streets sustained major damage.

There were reports that several homes were damaged in the Palisades Development at about 168th Street and Cornhusker Road. Three or four different homes had parts of their roofs destroyed and there were broken windows up and down the block. The side wall of a house pulled away from the house and a garage was severely damaged.

At 154th and Birch streets a house was damaged. At 147th Street and Chandler Road, a grain bin was damage.

Fahey said more city help would be arriving at about 9 a.m. in the areas hardest hit. A command center had been set up near the Millard Airport.

In response to Sunday morning's severe storms, the American Red Cross said it dispatched several teams of disaster assessment volunteers to the hardest hit areas to determine how many people need help and how much help they will need. A Red Cross hospitality center was opened at the Millard Bible Church at 14345 Y St. in Omaha, at 5:15 a.m. and will remain open until noon Sunday.

At 9 a.m., the Red Cross said it would open a shelter at Millard's Central Middle School, at 12801 L St. It will remain open throughout the day and into the evening as needed. Anyone affected by storm damage, loss of power, and/or flood damage is encouraged to visit the Red Cross shelter.

Mobile feeding trucks will circulate through the neighborhoods.

Sunday was expected to be mostly cloudy with thundershowers possible into the early afternoon. Residents of eastern Nebraska could see flooding. The National Weather Service office in Valley has issued a flash flood watch through the afternoon for parts of eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa.

[HarlequinBoy]

Sounds like it could be an EF2 depending on the extent of wall damage.

[HarlequinBoy]

NWS Chicago put out I think the largest severe thunderstorm warning I've ever seen.

[Bunkertor]

NWS Chicago put out I think the largest severe thunderstorm warning I've ever seen.

[tidesong]

Here's what *not* to do during a tornado warning....

Here's amateur video of the southern Chicago suburbs tornado:

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-32515

[x-y-no]

Here's what *not* to do during a tornado warning....

Here's amateur video of the southern Chicago suburbs tornado:

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-32515

They were lucky it lifted as it got close. If it had touched down again like it did several times earlier those people could have been badly hurt.

[senorpepr]

Omaha Tornado confirmed by Survey Team

A NWS survey team is doing a damage survey in the Omaha area today.

An early report from the National Weather Service Storm Survey Team indicates the Tornado first touched down near 156th and Giles and traveled northeast. The track was a quarter mile wide and continuous to the survey team’s present (11 AM) location near 137th and Z streets. EF1 damage was noted from 156th and Giles to 137th and Z. EF2 damage was indicated near 137th and Z.

The survey team will continue along the northeast path into the afternoon, and details will be added when they become available.

[senorpepr]

2:15 - 2:35AM SUNDAY MORNING TORNADO IN WEST OMAHA
A tornado was reported early Sunday morning in the Millard area of Omaha. There were no significant injuries reported.
Witnesses say the tornado dropped west of Wehrspann Lake southwest of Chalco and tracked northeast until it lifted off the ground in the area of 120th and Pacific.
Storm spotters and radar indicated a tornado most certainly touched down near 136th and Y streets in Omaha at about 2:30 a.m. Sunday.
At least one home sustained major damage in the area, and numerous trees were down. Power was reportedly out in a wide swatch of Millard.
At 2:15am, northeast of Gretna measured a wind gust of 63mph.
A Denise Horton in Millard said about 2:24 a.m., she heard the storm, opened a window and shingles started flying toward her. She said she closed the window, took her daughter downstairs and heard sirens go off four minutes later.
At 2:27am, police in Millard reported part of the roof was damaged at Wal-Mart. An employee at the Wal-Mart at 132nd and L Streets said she was blown off her feet as the storm hit. Carrie Jenkins, who works as a stocker at the store, said she had just come in the front doors, which face south, as a strong gust hit the front of the building. Jenkins said she heard what sounded like a train, so she turned around and went toward the door to look. "How stupid am I?" she said, laughing. The door opened and she was blown back into the store "past the cash registers." "It was like somebody had pushed me really, really hard," she said. She was not injured. Workers said a small section of the store's roof collapsed, apparently when an air conditioner shifted, dropping roofing down into the store and hitting one customer, who reportedly was not injured. After part of the roof collapsed, employees said they started smelling natural gas. Managers quickly moved the 30 or so employees and six customers to rooms in the back of the building. When the fire department arrived, all inside were told to leave the building. "So, we're out in the rain thinking there's a tornado out there," Jenkins said, "and we're trying to decide which is worse - blowing up or getting hit by a tornado."
At 2:28am, report of house damage at 136th and Y Streets. More reports similar at 2:29am. Tornado sirens go off in Sarpy and Douglas Counties.
By 2:35am, strong winds were reported from 120th and Blondo to 72nd and Grover.
Between 20 and 30 homes and businesses in the area were severely damaged in the storm, and structures with some damage likely will number more than 100, Assistant Omaha Fire Chief Joe Gibilisco said.
The worst of the damage looked to be on Birchwood Avenue and Jefferson, Y and Z Streets between 136th and 138th Streets, Gibilisco said.

"It's a miracle, when you look at it, that no one was (seriously) hurt," he said.

Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman toured the area this morning. He said after 11 a.m. that this is the worst damage he has seen in the series of storms that began on May 22 in terms of the amount of damage to homes and property.
Lt. Russ Zeeb with the Sarpy County Sheriff's Office estimated that between 30 and 40 Sarpy County homes sustained roof damage in the tornado. Between 40 and 50 residences have minor damage, such as fences and trees down, he said.

Most of the Sarpy damage is in a swath beginning at 154th Street and Giles Road, but damage was reported farther west, near 160th and Giles.

Zeeb said one Sarpy home could be a total loss.
The Omaha Police Department has set up a perimeter around the most severely damaged area. Officers were blocking access from Harrison Street to Discovery Drive, from 132nd to 138th Streets.

"We're limiting access because there are downed power lines and trees," said Officer Michael Pecha, an Omaha police spokesman.

Residents and people escorted by residents are being allowed in. Pecha said the closure also will help speed the cleanup effort.

Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey, who arrived in the neighborhood about 7:30 a.m., spent an hour surveying the damage.
In the Omaha area, 5,000 homes and businesses remained without power at noon Sunday, said OPPD spokesman Mike Jones . Downed tree limbs and debris hampered efforts to restore power to those customers, Jones said.

At the height of the outage, 46 circuits were out and 13,800 OPPD customers were without power.
Allen Krabbenhoft, 5071 S. 134th St., said his garage was blown away and eight storm windows were knocked out of the front porch of his home. He said he was awakened about 2:30 a.m.

"All I heard was a great big gust of wind and an explosion," Krabbenhoft said. He attributed the explosion to "the garage getting ripped off the foundation."

Considerable tree damage was done southeast of 72nd and Dodge Streets and power was out there as well. In addition, a large tree was blocking Pacific Street just east of 52nd Street.

Damage also was reported to a Carquest Auto Parts at 135th and Q Streets and to cars at Driver's Edge Auto Sales at 136th and Q Streets. The Carquest retail store at 135th and Q streets sustained major damage.

Deputy Nathan Kovarik of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office said some utility poles were down in the vicinity of 182nd and Q Streets, and 192nd and Adams Streets.

Joyce Berg, owner of Millard Car Wash at 5226 S. 132nd St., said the roof came off her business and a wall buckled. A gas line was broken in the process, she said.
144th and Harrison streets, the Heartland Center for Reproductive Medicine had its lobby blown off. A doctor there told KETV NewsWatch 7 that they would open on Monday because all of the lab and exam rooms were untouched by the storm.
In central Omaha, the storm knocked down limbs and some trees and power lines. Large limbs were down in Elmwood Park. Fallen trees blocked or partially blocked streets near 52nd and Pacific Streets, 68th Avenue and Farnam Street, Westgate Road near West Center Road, and the Rockbrook area east of 108th Street and West Center Road.
There were reports that several homes were damaged in the Palisades Development at about 168th Street and Cornhusker Road. Three or four different homes had parts of their roofs destroyed and there were broken windows up and down the block. This is probably where the funnel cloud began its touchdown as a tornado in Omaha.
An early report Sunday morning from the National Weather Service Storm Survey Team indicates the Tornado first touched down near 156th and Giles and traveled northeast. The track was a quarter mile wide and continuous to the survey team’s present (11 AM) location near 137th and Z streets. EF1 damage was noted from 156th and Giles to 137th and Z. EF2 damage was indicated near 137th and Z. The survey team will continue along the northeast path into the afternoon, and details will be added when they become available.
EF1...86 TO 110 MPH
EF2...111 TO 135 MPH
The next threat of severe weather in the local area is late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning for strong wind or moderate hail and Wednesday afternoon into evening into night for tornadoes, damaging wind, and large hail.
This was the second tornado event causing damage in Sarpy County in less than 80 hours (if one counts the very narrow swath of near EF0-like damage in Overland Hills and Carriage Hills in Papillion from the rotation from what had spawned the Ceresco EF1 tornado on Wednesday evening). This morning’s EF1-EF2 tornado which dropped into Palesadies at 168th and Cornhusker and tracked 154th and Giles and northeast into Douglas County around 142nd and Harrison where the worst damage was done at Birchwood Avenue and Jefferson, Y and Z Streets between 136th and 138th Streets and lifting back off the ground at 120th and Pacific.

[brunota2003]

Well, I cannot say much about the ones in that video. Personally, I would of been right out there with them, being a storm spotter and curious/interested about the weather. However, when he said "I think it is time to go back inside." I would of definitely agreed and gone to my safety area.

[PurdueWx80]

EF-2 found in columbia county, wisconsin from large HP supercell on june 7th. this storm report is fascinating.

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
830 PM CDT SUN JUN 8 2008

...STRONG TORNADO FOUND IN COLUMBIA COUNTY EAST OF PARDEEVILLE...

THE NWS SURVEY OF THE STORM DAMAGE FROM SATURDAY AFTERNOON JUNE 7
REVEALED THAT A STRONG TORNADO...RATED EF2 ON THE ENHANCED FUJITA
SCALE...TOUCHED DOWN SATURDAY AFTERNOON IN COLUMBIA COUNTY.

THE STORM DAMAGE WAS EXTREMELY COMPLEX AND WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A
LARGE HP SUPERCELL (HEAVY PRECIPITATION SUPERCELL).

DOWNBURST STRAIGHT-LINE WIND DAMAGE CONSISTING OF NUMEROUS TREES
DAMAGED OR DOWNED EXTENDED FROM THE WISCONSIN DELLS THROUGH PORTAGE
INTO THE WESTERN PART OF PARDEEVILLE. THIS DAMAGE WAS CONSISTENT
WITH WIND GUSTS AROUND 60 MPH. THIS DAMAGE WAS ALSO FOUND ALONG AND
NORTH OF HIGHWAY 16 ALL THE WAY TO THE DODGE COUNTY LINE.

THE DAMAGE THEN BECAME WORSE IN THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN PORTIONS OF
PARDEEVILLE...WHERE WIND SPEEDS WERE LIKELY AROUND 70 MPH. THE RAWS
FIRE WEATHER OBSERVATION MEASURED A GUST TO 73 MPH AROUND THIS
TIME...JUST BEFORE 230 PM CDT.

JUST NORTH OF THIS DEVELOPING DOWNBURST OF WEST TO NORTHWEST
WINDS...A TORNADO FORMED AROUND 232 PM CDT 1 MILE EAST-SOUTHEAST OF
PARDEEVILLE...JUST SOUTH OF THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY P AND
PARDEEVILLE ROAD.

THE TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND FOR ABOUT 18 MINUTES ALONG A PATH 8
MILES LONG...AND APPARENTLY LIFTED ABOUT 3 MILES SOUTH OF CAMBRIA
AROUND 250 PM CDT. THE TORNADO TRACKED SLIGHTLY SOUTH OF EAST
DURING THE PERIOD.

WHAT WAS UNUSUAL ABOUT THIS STORM IS THE WIDTH OF WIND DAMAGE.
MINOR TREE DAMAGE WAS OBSERVED IN A 10-MILE WIDE PATH OVER NORTHEAST
COLUMBIA COUNTY IN THIS AREA...CONSISTENT WITH WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS
OF 60 MPH. TREES TO THE NORTH OF THE TORNADO TRACK WERE BLOWN DOWN
FACING WEST...WHILE THOSE SOUTH OF THE TRACK WERE BLOWN DOWN FACING
EAST.

A 2 MILE WIDE SWATH OF MORE SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE WAS EMBEDDED...WHERE
WINDS WERE ESTIMATED IN THE 70 TO 90 MPH RANGE...OR EF0 TO EF1
DAMAGE. THOUSANDS OF TREES WERE UPROOTED OR SNAPPED IN THE FIRST 4
MILES OF THE TORNADO TRACK FROM 1 ESE PARDEEVILLE TO 4 ESE
PARDEEVILLE.

WITHIN THIS AREA...AT TIMES SEPARATED BY 1 MILE OR MORE...WERE AREAS
OF EVEN STRONGER DAMAGE WITH SPEEDS OF 100 TO 120 MPH...INTO THE
LOWER END OF THE EF2 RANGE. EVIDENCE STRONGLY SUGGESTS BRIEF
MULTIPLE VORTICES WERE LOCATED WITHIN THE MAIN TORNADO. SMALL
SWATHS OF DAMAGE WERE FOUND WHERE NEARLY ALL TREES WERE SNAPPED OR
UPROOTED. OTHER DAMAGE IN THESE SWATHS INCLUDED BARNS
DESTROYED...WELL BUILT HOUSES WITH ROOF DAMAGE AND WINDOWS BLOWN
OUT...AND A COUPLE DOZEN LARGE POWER POLES SNAPPED. THESE SWATHS
WERE OFTEN JUST 100-200 YARDS WIDE AND LONG AND DID NOT SEEM TO
FOLLOW ANY LOGICAL PROGRESSION.

ONE OF THESE SWATHS DESTROYED JUST ABOUT EVERY WHITE PINE TREE IN A
GROVE OF 4000-6000 TREES ON ONE CITIZENS PROPERTY 3 MILES
EAST-SOUTHEAST OF PARDEEVILLE NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF PARDEEVILLE
ROAD AND HIGHWAY SS. MOST OF THESE PINE TREES WERE SNAPPED RIGHT
NEAR THE GROUND LEVEL.

NEAR THE END OF THE TORNADO TRACK...A BARN WAS DESTROYED AND A GRAIN
SILO SHEARED IN HALF 3 MILES SOUTH OF CAMBRIA. BEYOND THIS
LOCATION...ONLY STRAIGHT LINE WIND DAMAGE OF ABOUT 60 MPH WAS
EVIDENT TO THE DODGE COUNTY LINE.

BROAD ROTATION WAS INDICATED BY THE DOPPLER RADAR SEVERAL MILES
ACROSS...WITH AN EMBEDDED INTENSE CIRCULATION. THUS...A TERM
SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS A...MESOCYCLONE ON THE GROUND...PROBABLY
OCCURRED. THE MULTIPLE SMALLER VORTEXES WERE EMBEDDED WITHIN THIS
LARGER CIRCULATION.

$$

CRAVEN/KAPELA

[HarlequinBoy]

The Chicago burb tornadoes had a maximum rating of EF2. I saw a pic of one of them though, and it was indeed HUGE looking.

[senorpepr]

EF1 and EF2 Tornadoes Hit Portions of Omaha Metro 6/8/08-Updated

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY
745 PM CDT TUE JUN 10 2008

..A SECOND TORNADO CONFIRMED IN OMAHA SUNDAY MORNING

DATA COLLECTED FROM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SURVEYS ON
SUNDAY...MONDAY AND TUESDAY...AS WELL AS RADAR DATA...INDICATED TWO
TORNADOES OCCURRED IN THE OMAHA METRO AREA EARLY SUNDAY MORNING.

HERE ARE THE SPECIFICS OF THE FIRST AND STRONGEST TORNADO...

LOCATION...FIRST TOUCHED DOWN WEST OF GRETNA NEAR 232ND AND WEST
ANGUS ROAD AND TRAVELED EAST AND NORTHEAST BEFORE MERGING WITH THE
SECOND TORNADO JUST EAST OF 132ND AND WESTWOOD LANE.

ESTIMATED TIME...TOUCHED DOWN AROUND 210 AM...AND MERGED WITH SECOND
TORNADO AROUND 225 AM.

EF-SCALE RATING...EF2

PATH WIDTH...0.25 MILES AT WIDEST POINT

PATH LENGTH...11 MILES

INJURIES...3 KNOWN

FATALITIES...NONE

TORNADO NUMBER ONE STARTED JUST SOUTHEAST OF 232ND AND WEST ANGUS
ROAD...ABOUT A MILE WEST OF GRETNA. A GARAGE WAS DEMOLISHED AT THIS
POINT...SUGGESTING EF1 DAMAGE. THE TORNADO MOVED EAST NORTHEAST AT
45 MPH...AND PRODUCED ONLY SCATTERED EF0 DAMAGE IN GRETNA WITH TREE
AND SHINGLE DAMAGE NOTED. THE TORNADO CONTINUED NORTHEAST TO NEAR
156TH AND GILES ROAD BY 220 AM. EF2 DAMAGE WAS NOTED JUST SOUTHWEST
OF 156TH AND GILES WITH MAJOR ROOF DAMAGE TO ONE HOME. THE TORNADO
THEN TRAVELED NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH...ACROSS THE MILLARD AREA...THEN
MERGED WITH THE SECOND TORNADO NEAR 132ND AND WESTWOOD LANE.

THE AREA THAT WAS HIT THE HARDEST WAS IN THE VICINITY OF 137TH
STREET AND Y STREET...WHERE EF2 DAMAGE OCCURRED. A FEW HOMES HAD
ROOFS COMPLETELY BLOWN OFF IN THIS AREA. IT THEN HIT THE
WALMART...SAMS CLUB...HOME DEPOT SHOPPING AREA AFTER IT CROSSED L
STREET JUST EAST OF 132ND STREET.

SPECIFICS FOR TORNADO NUMBER TWO...

LOCATION...FIRST TOUCHED DOWN JUST SOUTHWEST OF 204TH AND Q
STREETS...AND TRAVELED EAST NORTHEAST TO NEAR 132ND AND WESTWOOD
LANE WHERE IT MERGED WITH TORNADO NUMBER ONE. THE DAMAGE PATH
CONTINUED EAST NORTHEAST FROM 132ND AND WESTWOOD LANE NEAR 114TH AND
SHIRLEY STREETS.

ESTIMATED TIME...TOUCHED DOWN AROUND 212 AM...AND LIFTED AROUND 227
AM.

EF-SCALE RATING...EF1

PATH WIDTH...0.25 MILES AT WIDEST POINT

PATH LENGTH...9 MILES

INJURIES...NONE KNOWN

FATALITIES...NONE

TORNADO TWO FIRST TOUCHED DOWN JUST SOUTHWEST OF 204TH AND Q
STREETS...AND PRODUCED EF1 DAMAGE TO ROOF AND DECKING ON ONE HOME.
THE TORNADO PRODUCED MAINLY EF0 DAMAGE AS IT MOVED EAST AND PASSED
JUST SOUTH OF LAKE ZORINSKY AND SOUTHEAST OF OAK VIEW MALL...BEFORE
LIFTING NEAR 114TH AND SHIRLEY STREETS. MINOR STRUCTURE DAMAGE...
TREE DAMAGE AND LIFTED SHINGLES...COMPRISED MOST OF THE DAMAGE WITH
THIS TORNADO.

FOR A SPECIFIC MAP AND DAMAGE PHOTOS... SEE http://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/OMAHA

ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE
EF0...65 TO 85 MPH
EF1...86 TO 110 MPH
EF2...111 TO 135 MPH
EF3...136 TO 165 MPH
EF4...166 TO 200 MPH
EF5...201+ MPH