A destroyed gas station in Menasha Wisconsin. ABC News/AP.
A destructive tornado has hit Northeast Wisconsin, causing major damage to Appleton, Menasha and Neenah. ABC News. The tornado struck southern Appleton before moving through eastern Menasha and Neenah before moving over Lake Winnebago. Many businesses and homes were damaged or destroyed and several injuries were reported.
Menasha was especially hard hit and was declared a disaster area, along with Neenah and Appleton. WBAY. Menasha was forced to close all vehicle traffic to the city and issued a curfew. Boil warnings for water are in effect and shelters have been set up for victims of the storm.
My Comment:
I don't usual cover local stories but this is one that affected me. I live in Northeast Wisconsin and grew up in he area affected in this storm and I have many friends and family members that were affected by this tornado. Indeed, I've been to that gas station that's destroyed in the picture attached to this post, I've bought minnows there for fishing. Thankfully, everyone I know appears to be safe and sound, but this was still a devastating disaster.
It's unclear how bad of a tornado this was. It was either an F-2 or an F-3 on the Fujita scale. I am guessing it was an F-3 due to the huge amount of damage done to houses and businesses, though probably not through the whole storm.
As bad as this tornado was, it could have been worse. The tornado's track moved east once it hit Lake Winnebago, which probably spared lakeshore Neenah from worse damage than it had. The tornado stayed out on the lake and turned into a waterspout, thus sparing the east side of Neenah from damage, aside from Doty Island.
Tornados aren't uncommon here in the Northeast Wisconsin, but they usually aren't on this scale. The worst tornado I have ever seen was many years ago, also in Neenah, and that was only an F-0, barely a tornado at all. That one was weak, but it was strong enough to rip tiles off of the roof of the house I was renting back then, along with utterly destroying my screen door. And that was an F-0! This storm was a lot bigger and it did a lot of damage. We aren't surprised by tornados here, but one this damaging is extremely rare, and not something I have seen in my lifetime.
I also don't recall a natural disaster in our region where travel was suspended like it is in Menasha. Even during previous tornados or our occasional blizzards in the winter, there is usually some form of travel allowed. But right now there isn't a way to get to Menasha. It's not like there is a good way to get there right now anyways, for me at least, because as of this writing I believe Highway 441 is still closed, due to disabled and damage vehicles clogging up the roadway as well as fuel spills.
I am thankful that it appears nobody was killed in this disaster. This storm happened around noon, and most people weren't home, which may have saved some lives. Still, folks know what to do when storms hit here so that might have helped things. I am extremely thankful that none of my friends and family were hurt in this disaster.
No comments:
Post a Comment