DALLAS (UPI)
-- Forecasters used the anniversary of last year's deadly North
Texas twin tornadoes to issue a warning Wednesday for the public
to keep their guard up even through twister activity across the
nation is below average so far this year.
Two tornadoes
struck March 28, 2000, one tearing through downtown Fort Worth
and a second cutting through residential areas of nearby Arlington
and Grand Prairie. Five people were killed and damage totaled
$450 million. Six office buildings and 1,700 homes were wrecked.
Sheets of
plywood still cover thousands of windows where glass was shattered
in the 37-story Bank One building in downtown Fort Worth, a reminder
of the 158 mph winds that struck the city shortly after 6:11 p.m.
as the homeward-bound rush hour was winding down.
Weather experts
and Fort Worth officials believe there would have been more fatalities
if the Fort Worth twister had struck when downtown buildings such
as Bank One were filled with thousands of workers, or even later
in the evening.
"An
hour earlier would have been during rush hour with a lot more
people in the streets and offices," said Keith Wells, assistant
emergency management coordinator for Fort Worth and Tarrant County.
"Later in the evening, more people would have been in restaurants
and theaters."
Tornadoes
have struck other urban centers in recent years, notably Nashville,
Tenn., and Salt Lake City, Utah, but they are very rare, according
to tornado experts.
Many Fort
Worth residents recalled where they were night of the twisters.
Attorney
Walt Fortney, who was recovering from minor surgery at home, watched
television coverage of the tornado that hit the Bank One building
where his 35th-floor office was located.
"I had
five windows and it blew in two of them, and fortunately they
did blow in, otherwise I would have had stuff all over the street,"
he said. "I did have stuff down the hall. The ceiling fell
in and it was wet, damp, and dirty."
Fortney said
about 10 people were working in the office, but no one was injured.
About 70
Americans are killed by tornadoes and 1,500 people are injured
each year. An average of 1,200 twisters cause more than $400 million
in damage.
This year's
tornado season began March 1 and experts at the National Weather
Service, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
are concerned that below average twister activity so far this
year may make people complacent.
At the time
of the North Texas tornadoes last year, there were 177 twisters
recorded across the nation by the end of March. So far this year,
only 49 have been recorded, which is below the three-year average
of 77 by the end of March, according to the NWS.
"While
it is certainly gratifying to see so few tornadoes so far his
year, we must remember that the severe storm season is just entering
its more active period," said Bill Proenza, director the
NWS southern region. "Traditionally, the most prolific tornado
producing months are still ahead of us, and in fact tornadoes
can occur any time, any place. So, we always have to keep our
guard up and be prepared."
The season
in "tornado alley," from Texas up to Nebraska, usually
runs from early March through May, although southern states usually
have another season in the fall. Tornadoes have hit all 50 states
but they are most common in the Plains states.
Texas leads
the nation in tornado fatalities and damage, largely because of
its size. Texas is followed by Oklahoma, Kansas, Florida, Nebraska,
Iowa, Missouri, South Dakota, Illinois, and Colorado, according
to NOAA records.
Dan McCarthy,
warning coordination meteorologist for the NOAA Storm Prediction
Center in Oklahoma City, said there is no way to make long-range
predictions of tornado activity for a season because weather patterns
change so quickly.
McCarthy
said when severe weather is forecast it is time for people to
pay attention.
"When
a tornado watch is forecast, you should have a radio or television
on to keep abreast of any changes, which could occur within a
hour's time, and when you hear a tornado warning, you should immediately
take cover," he said.
McCarthy
also offered some sage advice when monitoring tornado activity.
"To
get advanced warning, know what the counties are to your west,"
he said. "When that county is issued a tornado warning, you
should take note because your county maybe the next one that is
warned."
The storms
that produce tornadoes usually move from the west to the east.
The NWS also
offers the following safety tips:
-- In a home
or building, move to a basement shelter.
-- If basement
shelter is unavailable, move to an interior room or hallway on
the lowest floor and get under sturdy furniture.
-- Stay away
from windows.
-- If caught
in a vehicle, get out, seek shelter or lie flat in a ditch or
depression.
-- Watch
for flying debris.
-- In a mobile
home, leave and seek shelter.
Sometimes
tornadoes will develop too fast for the NWS to issue a warning
so they urge the public to be alert for the signs of a twister
development, such as dark, greenish skies, large hail, and a roar
that sounds like an approaching train.
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