AI
Thursday, June 02, 2011 5:16:41 AM
Twister's path longer than initially thought
Wes Johnson
11:00 PM, May. 30, 2011
The May 22 tornado ripped a path far longer than initially thought -- 13.8 miles -- according to the National Weather Service in Springfield.
NWS meteorologist Andy Boxell said initial search and rescue efforts limited how thoroughly weather service teams could explore the twister's track.
Joplin officials previously said the EF5 tornado was 3/4 of a mile wide and was on the ground for about six miles.
"As we had additional time to search the damage, we added to its length," Boxell said. "At its widest, it was just shy of a mile wide in the vicinity of Rangeline Road and 20th, east of the hospital."
Boxell said damage at St. John's Hospital might reveal how strong the tornado's winds were.
"We usually cap winds speeds for an EF5 at 200 mph plus, because at that speed most structures are gone," he said.
"This tornado has been handed off to the wind engineers to study. The hospital will be a major focal point because it took a direct hit."
Damage could reveal actual wind speeds, because there's still enough structure left to possibly leave clues behind.
Boxell said the two strongest EF5 tornadoes on record -- the 1991 Andover, Kan., twister and the 1999 Moore. Okla., tornado -- had radar wind readings of more than 300 mph.
He noted there have been four EF5 tornadoes so far this year, an extremely unusual number in such a short time frame.
Prior to this year's EF5s, there was one in Iowa in 2008, one in Greensburg, Ks., in 2007 and the 1999 Moore, Okla., twister.
Joplin city officials are trying to take photographs and collect evidence that might help weather scientists. As one example, officials have documented how a piece of wood moved with such force that it pierced concrete.
Ball lightning
The Joplin tornado began on the city's far west edge.
Rose Bellamy said she feared for her four young great-grandkids who were home with her when the wind began to howl.
"It was just a roar outside," she recalled. "I saw balls of fire in the back yard, big balls of red fire about the size of basketballs bobbing along across the back yard. I have no idea what it was."
She said a neighbor across the street saw similar balls of fire rolling down the street.
Boxell, the NWS meteorologist, said Bellamy's observation sounded similar to "ball lightning" -- orbs of electricity that seem to skip through the air.
"What caused it, we'll never know for sure," he said. "The power of the storm was certainly enough to cause some unusual weather events."
Copyright © 2011 www.News-Leader.com
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110531/NEWS01/105310333/Twister-s-path-longer-than-initially-thought [with comments]
===
After family's agonizing search for child lost after tornado, an answer
'It is better knowing'
10:31 AM, May. 29, 2011
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290381/After-family-s-agonizing-search-child-lost-after-tornado-an-answer [comments at http://www.news-leader.com/comments/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290381/After-family-s-agonizing-search-child-lost-after-tornado-an-answer ]
===
Tornado victim dies saving lives of others
11:00 PM, May. 28, 2011
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290436/Tornado-victim-dies-saving-lives-others [no comments yet]
===
Rep. Eric Cantor: Joplin tornado aid must be offset
The State Column | Staff | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Virginia U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor on Sunday reiterated his pledge [to] offset emergency aid to Joplin tornado victims, saying it was necessary.
“Congress will find the money,” Mr. Cantor said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” “And it will be offset.”
The Virginia Republican, who faced criticism from members of Congress representing districts impacted by the storms, said congressional lawmakers could learn from the disaster.
“When a family is struck with tragedy — like the family of Joplin … let’s say if they had $10,000 set aside to do something else with, to buy a new car … and then they were struck with a sick member of the family or something, and needed to take that money to apply it to that, that’s what they would do, because families don’t have unlimited money. And, really, neither does the federal government,” Mr. Cantor said.
The Virginia Republican’s comment comes as lawmakers are preparing to consider whether to appropriate federal aid to the state. A number of House members have called for federal emergency funding in the wake of the devastation caused by the Joplin tornado and President Obama traveled to the region on Sunday.
Copyright 2011 The State Column, LLC
http://www.thestatecolumn.com/articles/rep-eric-cantor-joplin-tornado-aid-must-be-offset/ [with comments]
===
Spring Disasters Bring Out FEMA's Best Response
May 28, 2011
http://www.npr.org/2011/05/28/136742745/spring-disasters-bring-out-femas-best-response [with comment]
===
Feds will pay for 90 percent of Joplin tornado cleanup
A massive tornado struck Joplin last week.
Tom Uhlenbrock/Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Kansas City Business Journal - by St. Louis Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, May 31, 2011, 2:55pm CDT
The federal government will pay for 90 percent of the cost of removing debris left in Joplin, Mo., by the May 22 tornado, Gov. Jay Nixon said Tuesday.
Nixon said he received word late Monday that the state application for federal financing of the expedited debris removal was approved by President Obama, who toured Joplin on Sunday. The federal money will help remove millions of cubic yards of debris from around homes, businesses and other buildings in Joplin.
The federal debris removal program is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency with help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. More information about the program, such as how residents and business owners can request debris removal, will be made available in the coming days, Nixon’s office said.
FEMA said it will determine the degree of destruction by using a combination of mapping and information from local, state and federal officials who have surveyed the damage.
“This 90 percent federal funding will be of great assistance as we work through the challenge of removing a vast amount of debris and rebuilding this community,” Nixon said.
Joplin could use specific types of help at this point — find out more here [ http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2011/05/31/joplin-financial-gifts-most-benefit.html ].
© 2011 American City Business Journals, Inc.
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2011/05/31/feds-pay-90-percent-joplin-cleanup.html [no comments yet]
===
Death toll from Joplin tornado is 134, officials say
Volunteer Mackenzie Finklea, of Quincy, Il., looks through a cookbook in a house destroyed by the May 22 tornado in Joplin May 31, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Sarah Conard
By Kevin Murphy
KANSAS CITY, Mo | Wed Jun 1, 2011 5:22pm EDT
KANSAS CITY, Mo (Reuters) - Missouri officials on Wednesday announced that 134 people died in the May 22 tornado that devastated Joplin, Missouri.
Last week, local officials put the toll at as high as 142, but the Missouri Department of Public Safety took over the deaths investigation and methodically accounted for all people reported missing.
The toll is subject to increase if any of the approximately 900 injured does not survive, said Seth Bundy, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety.
On Tuesday, the department reported that 146 sets of human remains, some from dismembered bodies, had been recovered. Bundy said all of those remains have been linked to the 134 confirmed dead.
The coroner has authorized the release of all deceased persons to their families, officials said. At of 1 p.m. local time Wednesday, 119 victims have been released.
The massive tornado cut a six-mile swath through the southwest Missouri city. It was the deadliest single tornado in the United States since 1947.
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon visited Joplin Wednesday to announce an initial $5.8 million investment to create temporary jobs for workers left unemployed by the tornado.
The program, which will be funded through the federal Workforce Investment Act, will employ more than 400 workers in temporary jobs to assist with clean-up and humanitarian efforts in Jasper and Newton counties.
(Writing and reporting by Kevin Murphy; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Greg McCune)
© Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/01/us-tornado-joplin-idUSTRE75076U20110601 [no comments yet]
===
in particular, again, from earlier/elsewhere in this by now extensive string -- (item linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=63682117
to tie in the latest, from Massachusetts -- (items linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=63793523 and preceding and following
Wes Johnson
11:00 PM, May. 30, 2011
The May 22 tornado ripped a path far longer than initially thought -- 13.8 miles -- according to the National Weather Service in Springfield.
NWS meteorologist Andy Boxell said initial search and rescue efforts limited how thoroughly weather service teams could explore the twister's track.
Joplin officials previously said the EF5 tornado was 3/4 of a mile wide and was on the ground for about six miles.
"As we had additional time to search the damage, we added to its length," Boxell said. "At its widest, it was just shy of a mile wide in the vicinity of Rangeline Road and 20th, east of the hospital."
Boxell said damage at St. John's Hospital might reveal how strong the tornado's winds were.
"We usually cap winds speeds for an EF5 at 200 mph plus, because at that speed most structures are gone," he said.
"This tornado has been handed off to the wind engineers to study. The hospital will be a major focal point because it took a direct hit."
Damage could reveal actual wind speeds, because there's still enough structure left to possibly leave clues behind.
Boxell said the two strongest EF5 tornadoes on record -- the 1991 Andover, Kan., twister and the 1999 Moore. Okla., tornado -- had radar wind readings of more than 300 mph.
He noted there have been four EF5 tornadoes so far this year, an extremely unusual number in such a short time frame.
Prior to this year's EF5s, there was one in Iowa in 2008, one in Greensburg, Ks., in 2007 and the 1999 Moore, Okla., twister.
Joplin city officials are trying to take photographs and collect evidence that might help weather scientists. As one example, officials have documented how a piece of wood moved with such force that it pierced concrete.
Ball lightning
The Joplin tornado began on the city's far west edge.
Rose Bellamy said she feared for her four young great-grandkids who were home with her when the wind began to howl.
"It was just a roar outside," she recalled. "I saw balls of fire in the back yard, big balls of red fire about the size of basketballs bobbing along across the back yard. I have no idea what it was."
She said a neighbor across the street saw similar balls of fire rolling down the street.
Boxell, the NWS meteorologist, said Bellamy's observation sounded similar to "ball lightning" -- orbs of electricity that seem to skip through the air.
"What caused it, we'll never know for sure," he said. "The power of the storm was certainly enough to cause some unusual weather events."
Copyright © 2011 www.News-Leader.com
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110531/NEWS01/105310333/Twister-s-path-longer-than-initially-thought [with comments]
===
After family's agonizing search for child lost after tornado, an answer
'It is better knowing'
10:31 AM, May. 29, 2011
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290381/After-family-s-agonizing-search-child-lost-after-tornado-an-answer [comments at http://www.news-leader.com/comments/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290381/After-family-s-agonizing-search-child-lost-after-tornado-an-answer ]
===
Tornado victim dies saving lives of others
11:00 PM, May. 28, 2011
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110529/NEWS01/105290436/Tornado-victim-dies-saving-lives-others [no comments yet]
===
Rep. Eric Cantor: Joplin tornado aid must be offset
The State Column | Staff | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Virginia U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor on Sunday reiterated his pledge [to] offset emergency aid to Joplin tornado victims, saying it was necessary.
“Congress will find the money,” Mr. Cantor said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” “And it will be offset.”
The Virginia Republican, who faced criticism from members of Congress representing districts impacted by the storms, said congressional lawmakers could learn from the disaster.
“When a family is struck with tragedy — like the family of Joplin … let’s say if they had $10,000 set aside to do something else with, to buy a new car … and then they were struck with a sick member of the family or something, and needed to take that money to apply it to that, that’s what they would do, because families don’t have unlimited money. And, really, neither does the federal government,” Mr. Cantor said.
The Virginia Republican’s comment comes as lawmakers are preparing to consider whether to appropriate federal aid to the state. A number of House members have called for federal emergency funding in the wake of the devastation caused by the Joplin tornado and President Obama traveled to the region on Sunday.
Copyright 2011 The State Column, LLC
http://www.thestatecolumn.com/articles/rep-eric-cantor-joplin-tornado-aid-must-be-offset/ [with comments]
===
Spring Disasters Bring Out FEMA's Best Response
May 28, 2011
http://www.npr.org/2011/05/28/136742745/spring-disasters-bring-out-femas-best-response [with comment]
===
Feds will pay for 90 percent of Joplin tornado cleanup
A massive tornado struck Joplin last week.
Tom Uhlenbrock/Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Kansas City Business Journal - by St. Louis Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, May 31, 2011, 2:55pm CDT
The federal government will pay for 90 percent of the cost of removing debris left in Joplin, Mo., by the May 22 tornado, Gov. Jay Nixon said Tuesday.
Nixon said he received word late Monday that the state application for federal financing of the expedited debris removal was approved by President Obama, who toured Joplin on Sunday. The federal money will help remove millions of cubic yards of debris from around homes, businesses and other buildings in Joplin.
The federal debris removal program is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency with help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. More information about the program, such as how residents and business owners can request debris removal, will be made available in the coming days, Nixon’s office said.
FEMA said it will determine the degree of destruction by using a combination of mapping and information from local, state and federal officials who have surveyed the damage.
“This 90 percent federal funding will be of great assistance as we work through the challenge of removing a vast amount of debris and rebuilding this community,” Nixon said.
Joplin could use specific types of help at this point — find out more here [ http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2011/05/31/joplin-financial-gifts-most-benefit.html ].
© 2011 American City Business Journals, Inc.
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2011/05/31/feds-pay-90-percent-joplin-cleanup.html [no comments yet]
===
Death toll from Joplin tornado is 134, officials say
Volunteer Mackenzie Finklea, of Quincy, Il., looks through a cookbook in a house destroyed by the May 22 tornado in Joplin May 31, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Sarah Conard
By Kevin Murphy
KANSAS CITY, Mo | Wed Jun 1, 2011 5:22pm EDT
KANSAS CITY, Mo (Reuters) - Missouri officials on Wednesday announced that 134 people died in the May 22 tornado that devastated Joplin, Missouri.
Last week, local officials put the toll at as high as 142, but the Missouri Department of Public Safety took over the deaths investigation and methodically accounted for all people reported missing.
The toll is subject to increase if any of the approximately 900 injured does not survive, said Seth Bundy, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety.
On Tuesday, the department reported that 146 sets of human remains, some from dismembered bodies, had been recovered. Bundy said all of those remains have been linked to the 134 confirmed dead.
The coroner has authorized the release of all deceased persons to their families, officials said. At of 1 p.m. local time Wednesday, 119 victims have been released.
The massive tornado cut a six-mile swath through the southwest Missouri city. It was the deadliest single tornado in the United States since 1947.
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon visited Joplin Wednesday to announce an initial $5.8 million investment to create temporary jobs for workers left unemployed by the tornado.
The program, which will be funded through the federal Workforce Investment Act, will employ more than 400 workers in temporary jobs to assist with clean-up and humanitarian efforts in Jasper and Newton counties.
(Writing and reporting by Kevin Murphy; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Greg McCune)
© Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/01/us-tornado-joplin-idUSTRE75076U20110601 [no comments yet]
===
in particular, again, from earlier/elsewhere in this by now extensive string -- (item linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=63682117
to tie in the latest, from Massachusetts -- (items linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=63793523 and preceding and following
Greensburg, KS - 5/4/07
"Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty."
from John Philpot Curran, Speech
upon the Right of Election, 1790
F6
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