akt1985
Member
Although not a Hurricane or Tornado, today is the 50th Anniversary of the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald in Lake Superior in a storm.
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Hurricane & Tornado Anniversaries
- Thread starter Brice W
- Start date
Equus
Member
November 10 is also the 23rd anniversary of the Veterans Weekend tornado outbreak - I wrote a personal chronicle of my experience a couple of years ago
walkercountytornadoes.wordpress.com
Personal Chronicle: November 10 2002 Tornadoes in Walker County
The Veterans Weekend tornado outbreak of 2002 was one of the more significant and widespread second-season tornado outbreaks of the time. More than 70 tornadoes raked across the country from Ohio t…
walkercountytornadoes.wordpress.com
Lake Martin EF4
Member
Son of a bitch I got beaten to posting both the event and the song. Oh well
OTD 50 years ago...
"The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they called Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy..."
- Gordon Lighfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" (1976)
(Insert that one Modern Marvels episode that covers the sinking here)
And OTD 23 years ago, the Veteran's Day Tornado Outbreak. Someone should make a song about this one too.
(Insert media here)
OTD 50 years ago...
"The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they called Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy..."
- Gordon Lighfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" (1976)
(Insert that one Modern Marvels episode that covers the sinking here)
And OTD 23 years ago, the Veteran's Day Tornado Outbreak. Someone should make a song about this one too.
(Insert media here)
Kds86z
Member
November 10 is also the 23rd anniversary of the Veterans Weekend tornado outbreak - I wrote a personal chronicle of my experience a couple of years ago
Personal Chronicle: November 10 2002 Tornadoes in Walker County
The Veterans Weekend tornado outbreak of 2002 was one of the more significant and widespread second-season tornado outbreaks of the time. More than 70 tornadoes raked across the country from Ohio t…
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Double anniversary post...
The sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald has always fascinated and perplexed me and many others. The fact that there were no survivors doesn't help and only further shrouds the event in mystery, but one thing is certain - given the lack of a distress call, whatever happened to the Fitz happened very quickly. Captain Ernest McSorley's last known transmission to first mate Morgan Clark of the fellow cargo vessel SS Arthur M. Anderson was "We are holding our own." This was at about 7:10 PM. And then... nothing.
The most accepted theory is that a rogue wave or waves pushed the bow underwater, which then hit the bottom, causing the ship to break in two. The stern quickly followed, capsizing and sinking. This does make sense - the ship was carrying taconite ore pellets which are notorious for their ability to absorb water and become much heavier as a result. Earlier that day at around 3 PM, Captain Jesse Bernie Cooper of the Anderson observed on his ship's radar that the Fitzgerald passed "far too close" to a shallow shoal near Caribou Island. Samuel Pence, known as Historic Travels on YouTube, believes the ship sustained preexisting damage by grounding on rocks near Caribou Island, and that water was entering the vessel at the same rate it was being pumped out - this does make sense. Some of the ore could have absorbed the water, gradually making the Fitz heavier. Then a rogue wave or waves hit the ship, causing the bow to tilt forward and the heavier ore pellets to rush forward, effectively weighing the ship down.
Around 6:55 PM, about 15-20 minutes before the Fitzgerald sank, Captain Cooper and his fellow crew members watched helplessly as a massive wave engulfed their vessel stern first, working its way down the deck and eventually pushing the bow into the sea.
The Anderson, however, was still in sound shape save for a starboard lifeboat, and it withstood the waves. However, the same would not hold true for the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The crew members on the Fitz may have just assumed the ship was going to bob back up - and by the time they realized what was happening, it was already too late. A 1989 expedition found a door on the pilothouse open - was it open beforehand, forced open by a blast of air, or did someone try to escape? It's haunting to think about. One or two bodies wearing life jackets have been seen (but not recovered) at the wreck site. Surely some of the crew members were aware that sinking was a possibility, but I doubt anyone with even the quickest judgement could have accordingly reacted to what happened.
R.I.P. to the 29 men lost in the Edmund Fitzgerald tragedy.
We are still in 1975. During November 9-10, as a result of the same storm system that caused the Edmund Fitzgerald's sinking, a relatively minor outbreak of 19 confirmed tornadoes swept across several states. The official significant tornado count for the event is five F2's and one F3, though Grazulis lists seven significant tornadoes, all F2's. 26 injuries occurred during the outbreak, though there were no tornadic fatalities. The most injurious tornado (rated F1) injured 15 people in a mobile home park in Andrews, IN, and three more were injured by an F1 in Terre Haute. One person in Indiana was killed by a falling tree due to straight line winds. Seven people were injured by two separate F2's (rated F1 by Grazulis) in Iowa, and one person was injured by an F1 in Pennsylvania, though I strongly suspect the PA tornado was an F2. A mobile home was picked up, thrown 150 yards and obliterated, with debris scattered for two miles. Miraculously, a woman inside sustained only minor injuries.
Fast forward to 2002. The deadliest and most violent day of the Veterans Day Outbreak would unfold. Tragically, 36 people were killed from November 9-11, 32 of them on November 10th. The most infamous and most violent tornado of the bunch was the Van Wert F4, though it was probably an F5. Homes and industrial buildings were leveled or swept away, grass was scoured, trees were debarked, vehicles were mangled, and wind rowing occurred. Four people were killed.
The two deadliest tornadoes of the outbreak were both rated F3, and each killed 7 people. One destroyed mobile homes and poorly constructed homes, and threw and mangled vehicles in the towns of Mossy Grove and Joyner, TN. Another tornado tracked 72.6 miles across Fayette, Walker, Winston and Cullman Counties in Alabama. Much like the Joyner tornado, mobile homes and poorly constructed frame homes were obliterated and vehicles were mangled, including a pickup truck that had its cab ripped from the frame.
Unfortunately, history would repeat itself on January 12, 2023, when a very similar tornado would strike in and around Old Kingston in Autauga County, Alabama. The similarities were striking - both were long tracked EF3's that killed seven people, and even the damage hallmarks were nearly identical to those seen in 2002 - right down to a pickup truck being destroyed in the same manner.
Nine other tornadoes ranging in intensity from F1 to F3 would kill 18 others before the outbreak finally came to a close.
The sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald has always fascinated and perplexed me and many others. The fact that there were no survivors doesn't help and only further shrouds the event in mystery, but one thing is certain - given the lack of a distress call, whatever happened to the Fitz happened very quickly. Captain Ernest McSorley's last known transmission to first mate Morgan Clark of the fellow cargo vessel SS Arthur M. Anderson was "We are holding our own." This was at about 7:10 PM. And then... nothing.
The most accepted theory is that a rogue wave or waves pushed the bow underwater, which then hit the bottom, causing the ship to break in two. The stern quickly followed, capsizing and sinking. This does make sense - the ship was carrying taconite ore pellets which are notorious for their ability to absorb water and become much heavier as a result. Earlier that day at around 3 PM, Captain Jesse Bernie Cooper of the Anderson observed on his ship's radar that the Fitzgerald passed "far too close" to a shallow shoal near Caribou Island. Samuel Pence, known as Historic Travels on YouTube, believes the ship sustained preexisting damage by grounding on rocks near Caribou Island, and that water was entering the vessel at the same rate it was being pumped out - this does make sense. Some of the ore could have absorbed the water, gradually making the Fitz heavier. Then a rogue wave or waves hit the ship, causing the bow to tilt forward and the heavier ore pellets to rush forward, effectively weighing the ship down.
Around 6:55 PM, about 15-20 minutes before the Fitzgerald sank, Captain Cooper and his fellow crew members watched helplessly as a massive wave engulfed their vessel stern first, working its way down the deck and eventually pushing the bow into the sea.
The Anderson, however, was still in sound shape save for a starboard lifeboat, and it withstood the waves. However, the same would not hold true for the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The crew members on the Fitz may have just assumed the ship was going to bob back up - and by the time they realized what was happening, it was already too late. A 1989 expedition found a door on the pilothouse open - was it open beforehand, forced open by a blast of air, or did someone try to escape? It's haunting to think about. One or two bodies wearing life jackets have been seen (but not recovered) at the wreck site. Surely some of the crew members were aware that sinking was a possibility, but I doubt anyone with even the quickest judgement could have accordingly reacted to what happened.
R.I.P. to the 29 men lost in the Edmund Fitzgerald tragedy.
We are still in 1975. During November 9-10, as a result of the same storm system that caused the Edmund Fitzgerald's sinking, a relatively minor outbreak of 19 confirmed tornadoes swept across several states. The official significant tornado count for the event is five F2's and one F3, though Grazulis lists seven significant tornadoes, all F2's. 26 injuries occurred during the outbreak, though there were no tornadic fatalities. The most injurious tornado (rated F1) injured 15 people in a mobile home park in Andrews, IN, and three more were injured by an F1 in Terre Haute. One person in Indiana was killed by a falling tree due to straight line winds. Seven people were injured by two separate F2's (rated F1 by Grazulis) in Iowa, and one person was injured by an F1 in Pennsylvania, though I strongly suspect the PA tornado was an F2. A mobile home was picked up, thrown 150 yards and obliterated, with debris scattered for two miles. Miraculously, a woman inside sustained only minor injuries.
Fast forward to 2002. The deadliest and most violent day of the Veterans Day Outbreak would unfold. Tragically, 36 people were killed from November 9-11, 32 of them on November 10th. The most infamous and most violent tornado of the bunch was the Van Wert F4, though it was probably an F5. Homes and industrial buildings were leveled or swept away, grass was scoured, trees were debarked, vehicles were mangled, and wind rowing occurred. Four people were killed.
The two deadliest tornadoes of the outbreak were both rated F3, and each killed 7 people. One destroyed mobile homes and poorly constructed homes, and threw and mangled vehicles in the towns of Mossy Grove and Joyner, TN. Another tornado tracked 72.6 miles across Fayette, Walker, Winston and Cullman Counties in Alabama. Much like the Joyner tornado, mobile homes and poorly constructed frame homes were obliterated and vehicles were mangled, including a pickup truck that had its cab ripped from the frame.
Unfortunately, history would repeat itself on January 12, 2023, when a very similar tornado would strike in and around Old Kingston in Autauga County, Alabama. The similarities were striking - both were long tracked EF3's that killed seven people, and even the damage hallmarks were nearly identical to those seen in 2002 - right down to a pickup truck being destroyed in the same manner.
Nine other tornadoes ranging in intensity from F1 to F3 would kill 18 others before the outbreak finally came to a close.
akt1985
Member
TH2002, I was about to ask if there was any severe thunderstorms and tornadoes assoociated with the Edmund Fitzgerald system as temperatures were mild when the captain on the ill-fated voyage left Superior, Wisconsin that day.
On this day in 2022, Tropical Depression Nicole (formerly Hurricane Nicole) was dissipating inland over the Southeastern U.S., ending the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which produced 14 named storms, 8 hurricanes and 2 major hurricanes, the least amount of activity in the Atlantic since 2018.
Also on this day:
2020 - Tropical Storm Eta, a previously powerful major hurricane that struck Central America was approaching its final landfall in Florida.
2015 - Tropical Storm Kate was approaching hurricane strength, and would become the 4th and final hurricane of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season. Kate would peak as a Category 1 hurricane
2011 - Tropical Storm Sean was nearing extratropical transition, Sean was the 18th named storm and counting an unnamed tropical storm from earlier in the season, the 19th storm and final storm of the 2011 Atlantic Hurricane season.
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Here's an excellent video about the disaster (runtime 1:52:33) that I highly recommend watching whenever you have the time to do so:
In addition, today marks the 85th anniversary of the 1940 Armistice Day Blizzard, which wrought havoc across much of the Midwest. The same system had earlier (famously) brought down the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, and during its rampage across the Midwest it killed 154 people, sank three Great Lakes freighters, and caused a train collision.
Prior to the event, winter storm forecasts for the Midwest were made entirely in the Chicago Weather Bureau office. After the storm, it was found that this produced a major workload for forecasters, who were unable to accurately forecast the event. Subsequently, winter weather forecasting responsibilities were spread out to several more offices in the region, which led to notable improvements in forecasting accuracy.
CheeselandSkies
Member
@TH2002 Shipwrecks are another area of interest for me from childhood, particularly the stories of Titanic and Edmund Fitzgerald. I've been watching Sam (Historic Travels) and Mike Brady (Oceanliner Designs) for quite a few years now.
As for November 10, 2002, it was one of the more impressive tornado outbreaks of recent record when I really got into keeping current with severe weather activity in my late high school/early college years. I believe it wound up ranking among the top three deadliest outbreaks of the 20-aughts along with 5/4/2003 and Super Tuesday 2008 and affected a nearly identical geographical area as the (what was at the time only) Super Outbreak, complete with distinct northern/Ohio Valley (Van Wert) and southern/Dixie (TN, AL) modes, albeit somewhat less prolific.
As for November 10, 2002, it was one of the more impressive tornado outbreaks of recent record when I really got into keeping current with severe weather activity in my late high school/early college years. I believe it wound up ranking among the top three deadliest outbreaks of the 20-aughts along with 5/4/2003 and Super Tuesday 2008 and affected a nearly identical geographical area as the (what was at the time only) Super Outbreak, complete with distinct northern/Ohio Valley (Van Wert) and southern/Dixie (TN, AL) modes, albeit somewhat less prolific.
Lake Martin EF4
Member
OTD 3 years ago....
Nicole dissipated, ending the 2022 AHS.
Nicole dissipated, ending the 2022 AHS.