Wednesday, February 6, 2008

The Power of the Wind

I'm sure by now everyone has heard about our horrible night of tornadoes last night. We here are fine, but north of us in Jackson, TN (the closest *big* shopping area to me) they weren't so lucky. Union University is in Jackson and was hit very hard. I was up there this morning and took these pictures through my windshield.

Metal power poles carrying main power lines. The next pole to the left (out of the picture) is poised to fall at the hospital if they don't relieve the pressure from these two soon!

Power pole into an eye clinic. See how it bent at the base?

This one crushed a gas station.

Regions Bank building lost it's roof.

On the other side of the road, in front of Union University, the Bancorp building.

Another picture of the Bancorp building. The metal thing that looks like a ramp is (was) the canopy over the drive-up teller windows. This was a brand new building!


This use to be a stand of beautiful trees in front of the university.

Behind the munched car are remnants of the Union University dorms.

The university is closed off by the police as there are numerous power lines draped around the campus. Fourteen students were trapped in the dorms, the last one rescued at midnight. Nine students are hospitalized. A UPS truck was picked up and thrown from the street onto the campus, where it landed upside down.

I understand that worse damage occurred further in on the campus, but you can't get there from here.

Stud Muffin and I, plus two scared dogs, spent part of the night in our storm shelter. We actually slept there for about an hour waiting for a tornado warning to expire around midnight. It was quite comfortable actually considering it is a steel box with bunk beds made out of plywood. The dogs curled up together in one doggie bed and Sassy started snoring immediately. Wish I had the camera for that picture! Stud Muffin says I snored too, but I don't believe him.

You know, tornadoes almost never happen in February and this is the second year in a row that they have. The news reported that the Memphis area had more tornadic activity last night than it had in 200 years. But, not to worry! Our President says there is no global warming, so I'm sure this is the end of it! He is the President, after all!

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

MIL here-----so glad you and my son and "grand doggies" are ok. Poor Sassy---she must be terrified of thunder.
good thing you and SM have a safe spot to go to in that kind of weather.....hope it's all over with now. Luv you guys!!!!!!!!

e4 said...

I can't really come up with anything insightful, so I'll just say "Wow!"

Glad you and yours are all safe and sound...

Lisa said...

Thanks, guys! I just got back from a drive around our property and am glad to say that only one tree is down crossing the road. I will have to consult with the Muffin to see how best to take it down. It's a biggie, and twisted off at the base, but it got hung up in the trees on the opposite side, so presents a challenge.

Just call me Chain Saw Annie!

Lisa said...

Wow! The force of nature is amazing. You all are in my thoughts. I'm glad you have a safe spot to weather the storm.

barefoot gardener said...

Wow!

Glad you all are alright.

Mama Tango said...

Good grief...I think this year is going to be one of "those" years when it comes to weather...up in our neck of the woods, we've had everything but tornadoes so far.

I'm so glad to hear you guys are safe with minimal damage. Prayers to those in Jackson.

sugarcreekfarm said...

Awe inspiring in such a frightening way. Glad you're okay!

Lisa said...

I'm glad we're okay, too!! Was up in Jackson again this afternoon and noticed that some insurance companies have set up Catastrophic Claims centers for people who have damage. So sad!

A lady I talked to today in Nashville had to pick up her autistic grandson in Jackson after his parent's house was completely demolished. He's staying with her in Nashville until his parents can sort out living arrangements. I guess the President is coming here tomorrow to look it all over and provide some cleanup aid.

Walter Jeffries said...

Wow Too!!! (or two!) Tornadoes are not something I want to mess with. We get heavy snow storms, blizzards, but we just hunker down and then dig out. A tornado is far scarier.