at MadALwx
Taken after the AL Apr 2011 Outbreak; minutes away, off Hwy 72, West of Limestone/Madison County Line.
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AL Tornadoes 2013 (NOAA unofficial)1
(Red=TOR, Green=Hail, Blue=Wind)
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AL Tornado Density Plot (since 1950) TORREP for local area |
Tornado occurrence in Northern AL has been increasing significantly since 1995. Tornado strength is also increasing significantly. However, fatalities are decreasing, probably due to better forecasting, warning, and heightened public awareness.
1Disturbed Land Area represents track length and width of damage caused by tornadoes.
Current NOAA Tornado Tally (preliminary)
Official NWS data for the current year is released around May/Jun the following year.
AL Enhanced Fujita Scale Trend (official)
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Tornado Density (since 1995) Based on tornado occurrence and includes touchdown, midpoint, and lift. |
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Tornado Strength (since 1995) (white=none or EF-0, dark red=EF-5) Depicts strength (EF Scale) and includes touchdown, midpoint, and lift. |
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Local Tornado Density (since 1995) Based on tornado occurrence and includes touchdown, midpoint, and lift. |
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Fatalities
Of the 383 AL fatalities, 48 were within 20mi of Madison, AL. Feb-May are the worst months for AL, followed by Nov. The peak hours for fatalities are oddly between 3p-7p.
Fatalities and Injuries
Download TAD to use for your webpg.
Our Tornado Shelter
It was a culmination of this data, along with being tired of feeling helpless, that prompted the purchase of our
tornado shelter from Severe Weather Pods. The shelter is
engineered and tested to withstand an EF-5. We were well prepared for the 2011 Alabama Tornado Outbreak on 27 Apr.
Our shelter is featured here,
halfway down the page.
We were prepared for the 27 Apr 11 Outbreak. An EF-5 touched down minutes away, to our NW and NE. The blue arrow indicates our location.
This is the path of the Madison EF-2 tornado that went through Northern Alabama on 6 May 09. This prompted the purchase of our storm shelter.
Lesson: Usually, we have 15-17 minutes of warning that a supercell, capable of producing a tornado, is headed our way. With Monrovia having the highest tornado probability in our area, and historical models indicating an increase in tornadic activity in this region, it only makes sense to be proactive when it comes to storms in Northern AL. Sirens are great and they do save lives, but they can be falsely relied upon. When power is knocked out, they don't work. We use a Uniden BC346XT Scanner/Wx radio which allows us to listen to storm spotters, police/fire, EMA, and NOAA alerts. In concert with our Uniden, we utilize WAAY31 Weather Call.
Data analysis for graphs and maps courtesy of: Lee Persing from MadALwx.Tornado data courtesy of: NOAA.
Graph software courtesy of: jpGraph.
SlimAps Heatmap Studio was used to produce the maps. (link no longer available)
