Reflections of the May 8 Storm: Final comments

As the storm gets further and further away in the past, some additional reflections.

1. Everyone should keep plenty of batteries on hand. As a habit I now buy a pair of CC or DD batteries every time I go out shopping.

2. The radio stations did an excellent job in covering the disaster. Both the Withers Group and Mississippi River Radio stations performed professionally and expertly in relaying life stories and perhaps some life-saving information.

3. The next time you hear sirens, forget about any debates on how far the activity is. Seek shelter immediately.

I'm going to start blogging regularly now on various things going around this stretch of wilderness I like to call Murdale. Hope you enjoy the variety.

Reflections of the May 8 storm, part 3 - the ride home

I decided to leave work around 2:00. I had WDDD on the radio. April and Wes were relaying reports of the devastation. This was the first chance I had heard how bad and widespread the storm was. There were power outages all over southern Illinois. People were in a panic. Some were cut off from family members and children. I had my own family members to worry about.

I took McCafferty to Chatauqua. There were two huge trees blocking the way. I manages to slowly get through that mess. At the corner, I made a decision. Instead of turning right then left onto Greenbriar, I'd go left further down Chatauqa to Tower Road. But when I got there it was much the same. Huge trees were blocking the area. Traffic was at a standstill. I had to detour over toward Sunset. Finally, I managed to make it to the other side of Tower to Old 13. There was no way in hell I was turning left toward Murphysboro. Instead I turned right toward 13.

The road was pretty clear. I could see a lot of downed power lines. I passed by Grandma's place and thought about going in. Instead I headed for home. The street behind me was blocked. I could not get into my driveway at all. There were fallen trees all over the place. Power lines were down. I had to park over by some nearby offices. I got to the alley and had an exchange with a lady who lived down the block. I told her I lived in the big white house on the corner. Her reaction was "ohh!" I didn't like the sound of that.

The driveway was totally blocked by a fallen tree which fell on top of the telephone line. I had to pass through my neighbor's yard to get to my back porch. A few large branches from next door ended up on the deck just missing the house. My garden trellis was totally destroyed. Several trees were down. I checked the house then went to check on Grandma.

Reflections of the May 8 Storm, Part 2

Chelsea took charge and suggested everyone go to the basement immediately. No objection there. About 10 of us were clustered in the basement. We could here objects hitting the building. About 15 minutes later we took a peek outside. There were downed trees all over the place. the wind had to have been blowing at a constant 60 miles and hour. There was some rain and it was blowing horizontally from the north.

A large tree blew down at the south end of the building. A gigantic tree was down behind the building across the street. Every once in a while a large branch would roll by. Some trees had fallen down in the parking lot. One fell very close to my truck. Another fell right on top of a parked car. Luckily there was no damage.

Employees were trying to get off campus but the area bordering Campus Lake was cut off due to flooding. The side streets leading to Chatauqua and Pleasant Hill were also blocked. For at least an hour after the storm hit, we were totally cut off. Pow er was out all over the place. I didn't realize just how bad it was until I tried to drive home.

To be continued.

"I've got a bad feeling about this storm"

Ironically, I spoke those words around 12:05 a.m. on Friday, May 8. It was about 13 hours later when the proverbial trees hit the roof! We had a severe thunderstorm warning issued late Thursday night. I decided to stay up a little later than usual and watch the storm roll in. I enjoy thunderstorms. And there was quite an impressive light show going on toward the northwest. But something just didn't feel right.

I called a friend to see if he was up. We talked about the approaching storm and that feeling I had. I remember those exact words above. I got off the phone around 12:20 and went to bed. That's when the hail started. It sounded like boulders were hitting my air conditioner. I decided it might be a good idea to have a pair of pants ready in case I needed to make a mad dash to the basement. Fortunately, that wasn't needed.

The next morning I drove to work as usual. A severe thunderstorm watch was in effect for our area most of the morning. As part of the Building Emergency Response Team, I had a handheld radio scanner on in my office. It seems like there were a lot of spotters out that morning. The first wave hit around 11:45 a.m. near the Cedar Lake area. A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for that part of the county. I looked at the weather radar and saw a strong thunderstorm developing and heading toward Crab Orchard Lake. No big deal.

Around 12:15 a wave of strong and quickly moving thunderstorms began moving across the area. Another severe thunderstorm issued. Then I heard spotters mentioning a tornado spotted near Ava. Still, no big deal. The storms moved through quickly and the wind started to pick up. Then I noticed something peculiar.

There seemed to be another storm developing across the Mississippi and moving from Randolph into Jackson County. I watched on radar as it gradually moved across the river. It seemed headed directly toward Carbondale. The wind started picking up. I went outside. I could tell the wind was gathering strength. At first it looked like it was coming from the south. Then, it started coming from the north. I went back inside and started to have that bad feeling again.

A tornado was reported near Elkville. I heard the sirens go off north of campus. No big deal. It's Elkville. I heard reports of downed power lines near Country Club road. I thought about going to the basement. Then the power started flickering in the hall. It was about 1:00 p.m. and that "bad feeling" I had around midnight had suddenly proven correct.

To be continued...