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Significant Tornado Events

CheeselandSkies said:
It's second only to the Super Outbreak of '74 as the event I wish we could go back and look at on present-day NEXRAD. I'd suspect it had to be something like 4/27/11 over MS/AL, with subtle forcing mechanisms out in the open warm sector and just the right (or wrong) amount of EML, to keep things from going up into a mess but yet allow multiple waves of tornadic supercells to fire and become sustained in a relatively concentrated area.
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So many historical events that you just wish you could visualize on radar.
 
Okay, opinion time: how gruesome is too gruesome when it comes to descriptions of tornado victims? I ask because I usually stay away from that in my articles for the most part (both out of respect for victims & their families and because it's usually not that important to the overall story), but unfortunately that kind of is an important part of what made New Richmond what it was. Obviously most killer tornadoes do frightful things to their victims, and I've studied + researched a bunch of them, but frankly I'm not sure I've ever encountered anything quite like New Richmond, especially on a large scale. It's not a topic I particularly enjoy getting into, but I think it tells us something about the incredible violence of the tornado.

I dunno, I sort of go back and forth on what to include and what to leave out. I'd be interested to hear what y'all think.
 
locomusic01 said:
Okay, opinion time: how gruesome is too gruesome when it comes to descriptions of tornado victims? I ask because I usually stay away from that in my articles for the most part (both out of respect for victims & their families and because it's usually not that important to the overall story), but unfortunately that kind of is an important part of what made New Richmond what it was. Obviously most killer tornadoes do frightful things to their victims, and I've studied + researched a bunch of them, but frankly I'm not sure I've ever encountered anything quite like New Richmond, especially on a large scale. It's not a topic I particularly enjoy getting into, but I think it tells us something about the incredible violence of the tornado.

I dunno, I sort of go back and forth on what to include and what to leave out. I'd be interested to hear what y'all think.
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I’d usually say “you can never be too gruesome” but this is real life stuff…so yeah…the respect thing comes into play…
 
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locomusic01 said:
Okay, opinion time: how gruesome is too gruesome when it comes to descriptions of tornado victims? I ask because I usually stay away from that in my articles for the most part (both out of respect for victims & their families and because it's usually not that important to the overall story), but unfortunately that kind of is an important part of what made New Richmond what it was. Obviously most killer tornadoes do frightful things to their victims, and I've studied + researched a bunch of them, but frankly I'm not sure I've ever encountered anything quite like New Richmond, especially on a large scale. It's not a topic I particularly enjoy getting into, but I think it tells us something about the incredible violence of the tornado.

I dunno, I sort of go back and forth on what to include and what to leave out. I'd be interested to hear what y'all think.
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New Richmond, Tupelo, and Jarrell probably involve the most gruesome stuff done to bodies by tornadoes I've read about, and you've touched upon them in some of your articles beforehand; so I suppose you could do it with New Richmond but in a manner that isn't too sensationalist. Describe the basics but don't go into excessively graphic detail. Yeah, it's a fine line but lots of journalists and true crime writers manage to walk it all the time (along with historians specializing in atrocities, warfare, genocide, etc.) so perhaps you could look to them for examples.
 
locomusic01 said:
I dunno, I sort of go back and forth on what to include and what to leave out. I'd be interested to hear what y'all think.
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I would say that, if it's unlikely that there are people alive who knew the victims personally, it wouldn't be insensitive to delve into. I don't think I'd get upset if I read a graphic description of a pirate ancestor being taken out, for instance.
 
MNTornadoGuy said:
Damage from the 1934 Bolton Australia tornado. This is probably the most intense damage I’ve seen from the continent.
View attachment 17487View attachment 17488View attachment 17489View attachment 17490View attachment 17491
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Do you have any more information on the date and location of this one? (And the photo source!)

BTW, when'd the non-US thread stop being used?
talkweather.com

Significant Tornado Events - Global Edition

Though not my favorite YT channel she's usually accurate in detail and though I haven't seen it yet, I'm sure some here will be interested:
talkweather.com talkweather.com
 
A Guy said:
Do you have any more information on the date and location of this one? (And the photo source!)

BTW, when'd the non-US thread stop being used?
talkweather.com

Significant Tornado Events - Global Edition

Though not my favorite YT channel she's usually accurate in detail and though I haven't seen it yet, I'm sure some here will be interested:
talkweather.com talkweather.com
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It occurred on 11/7/1934 apart of a large tornado outbreak in South Australia and Victoria. It completely destroyed a farm and killed one person when they were thrown 40 meters and trapped under debris. Pieces of three-ply lining boards were reportedly found 6 miles away from the property. Unfortunately Trove doesn’t have any local newspapers so the only information available is from newspapers in Melbourne which don’t have too much detail about the event. It occurred near Bolton Victoria.
 
tornado examiner said:
I’d usually say “you can never be too gruesome” but this is real life stuff…so yeah…the respect thing comes into play…
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Juliett Bravo Kilo said:
New Richmond, Tupelo, and Jarrell probably involve the most gruesome stuff done to bodies by tornadoes I've read about, and you've touched upon them in some of your articles beforehand; so I suppose you could do it with New Richmond but in a manner that isn't too sensationalist. Describe the basics but don't go into excessively graphic detail. Yeah, it's a fine line but lots of journalists and true crime writers manage to walk it all the time (along with historians specializing in atrocities, warfare, genocide, etc.) so perhaps you could look to them for examples.
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SHA said:
I would say that, if it's unlikely that there are people alive who knew the victims personally, it wouldn't be insensitive to delve into. I don't think I'd get upset if I read a graphic description of a pirate ancestor being taken out, for instance.
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Thanks for the feedback guys! That's pretty much in line with how I see it. I'd been thinking about it for a while, but I came across a couple of new accounts recently that really drove the point home. In one particularly hard-hit area of New Richmond (probably best not to read further if you're at all squeamish) it wasn't clear at first how many victims there were because the bodies of both people and horses were essentially shredded to pieces and strewn about together. One account that's seared into my brain is from a man who searched through the splintered wreckage of his brother's home and reported finding only scattered "fragments" of the family. The only body that was even somewhat intact was his brother's young son, who was found the next day in a pile of debris multiple blocks away. Another man was reportedly only able to identify his wife because he recognized a part of a hand that was still wearing her ring.

Like I said, aside from maybe some isolated cases here and there, I'm not sure I've ever encountered anything quite like New Richmond on almost a city-wide scale.

On a slightly less horrific note, this account of the Herman, NE F4 is one of the better descriptions of a multivortex tornado I've ever seen from this era:

I01FDyz.jpg


Also, this was.. interesting? I've seen a few accounts that mention damaged railroad tracks in Herman, but I think the reporter might've gotten a bit fanciful here lol

ntsHHdq.jpg
 
locomusic01 said:
Okay, opinion time: how gruesome is too gruesome when it comes to descriptions of tornado victims? I ask because I usually stay away from that in my articles for the most part (both out of respect for victims & their families and because it's usually not that important to the overall story), but unfortunately that kind of is an important part of what made New Richmond what it was. Obviously most killer tornadoes do frightful things to their victims, and I've studied + researched a bunch of them, but frankly I'm not sure I've ever encountered anything quite like New Richmond, especially on a large scale. It's not a topic I particularly enjoy getting into, but I think it tells us something about the incredible violence of the tornado.

I dunno, I sort of go back and forth on what to include and what to leave out. I'd be interested to hear what y'all think.
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I agree with SHA on this one (very likely nobody who knew the victims personally are even alive so it wouldn't be insensitive) - but also think you could get away with describing them as, say, "torn in two" like in the older articles but not going into more detail.
 
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locomusic01 said:
Thanks for the feedback guys! That's pretty much in line with how I see it. I'd been thinking about it for a while, but I came across a couple of new accounts recently that really drove the point home. In one particularly hard-hit area of New Richmond (probably best not to read further if you're at all squeamish) it wasn't clear at first how many victims there were because the bodies of both people and horses were essentially shredded to pieces and strewn about together. One account that's seared into my brain is from a man who searched through the splintered wreckage of his brother's home and reported finding only scattered "fragments" of the family. The only body that was even somewhat intact was his brother's young son, who was found the next day in a pile of debris multiple blocks away. Another man was reportedly only able to identify his wife because he recognized a part of a hand that was still wearing her ring.
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I've just been reading a few books on certain disasters - a few famous structure fires among others - and passages as or more graphic than what you wrote there are pretty common.
 
A bit random but some of these pics from Data of Kane and Niles-Wheatland I find incredible, and for whatever reason didn't wind up in Stormstalker's article:

Kane forest damage aerials. I wish there were color photos of these. You can just make out the direction the trees have been uprooted and rowed. About as complete a blowdown of forest as you're gonna get:

Screenshot 2023-02-02 at 12-43-56 Storm Data - Google Books.png

Damage from Wheatland, PA. This angle of Yourga Trucking reminds me of what Vilonia 2014 did to the Dollar General; more or less ripping the entire steel frame off the foundation and windrowing it into a pile of scarp. Also the scoured asphalt from the parking lots is crazy too:

Screenshot 2023-02-02 at 12-43-25 Storm Data - Google Books.png
 
Juliett Bravo Kilo said:
A bit random but some of these pics from Data of Kane and Niles-Wheatland I find incredible, and for whatever reason didn't wind up in Stormstalker's article:

Kane forest damage aerials. I wish there were color photos of these. You can just make out the direction the trees have been uprooted and rowed. About as complete a blowdown of forest as you're gonna get:

View attachment 17509

Damage from Wheatland, PA. This angle of Yourga Trucking reminds me of what Vilonia 2014 did to the Dollar General; more or less ripping the entire steel frame off the foundation and windrowing it into a pile of scarp. Also the scoured asphalt from the parking lots is crazy too:

View attachment 17510
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I wonder if there is any other funnel photos from May 31, 1985 outbreak
 
Juliett Bravo Kilo said:
A bit random but some of these pics from Data of Kane and Niles-Wheatland I find incredible, and for whatever reason didn't wind up in Stormstalker's article:

Kane forest damage aerials. I wish there were color photos of these. You can just make out the direction the trees have been uprooted and rowed. About as complete a blowdown of forest as you're gonna get:

View attachment 17509

Damage from Wheatland, PA. This angle of Yourga Trucking reminds me of what Vilonia 2014 did to the Dollar General; more or less ripping the entire steel frame off the foundation and windrowing it into a pile of scarp. Also the scoured asphalt from the parking lots is crazy too:

View attachment 17510
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I spent quite a while trying to track down the originals, and when I couldn't, I ended up forgetting about them. I'll probably put them in when I update the article eventually. Re: the Kane photos, that's the area the former Forest Ranger I interviewed was talking about:

In the southeastern corner of the county, the damage path began as a thin, barely discernible strip of broken branches and limbs along Route 948. Within minutes, it had transformed into a nearly mile-wide swath of utter desolation. The tornado very quickly reached what may have been its peak intensity as it moved into the Tionesta Scenic Area, where it produced what one former Forest Service official called “the most complete destruction of forestland” he’d ever seen.

Violent winds rushed inward toward the heart of the vortex, dislodging and splintering entire tracts of old-growth forest. Even mature sugar maples, known for their robust wind-resistance, were cut down with ease. Trees fell in a distinct convergent pattern, with those along the line of convergence toppling in the opposite direction of the tornado’s travel — a signature only seen in the most violent of storms. Researchers studying the tornado’s devastating impact on the Tionesta Scenic Area later estimated that more than 99% of trees within the damage path were either broken or uprooted.
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Pretty disappointed I wasn't able to find any quality photos from there. The satellite imagery is pretty striking:

kane-full-path-satellite.png
 
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