Welcome to Meteorology Matters, the podcast where
we try to break down the big weather events affecting
us all. We really aim to cut through the noise
and focus on what's important. And today, well,
we have to talk about the recent severe weather
outbreak across the Central U .S. It's been devastating.
Truly devastating, especially the events in Kentucky
and Missouri. We want to try and understand,
you know, what happened before, during and after
these tornadoes. Exactly. And if you want to
keep digging deeper into weather like this, you
should definitely follow meteorologist Rob Jones.
He's on Instagram as meteorologist. Right. And
on TikTok, he's TV meteorologist. And don't forget
YouTube search for Rob Jones hurricane. That's
where you'll also find the Meteorology Matters
podcast playlist. Yeah, lots more content there.
Okay, so let's start with the impact. The sheer
scale of this. Yeah. It's immense. It really
is. The reports coming in suggest more than two
dozen weather -related deaths across the Central
US. Just terrible numbers. Looking at Kentucky
first, Laurel County was hit incredibly hard
by a tornado on Friday. Yeah, the reports are
at least 19 fatalities there and 10 serious injuries.
And the really worrying part is officials saying
that number, the death toll, it could actually
go up. Three people were apparently still in
critical condition on Sunday. And the physical
destruction. Hundreds of homes damaged, vehicles
just tossed aside. We heard from Zach Wilson,
a resident there in Kentucky. His parents' house
was ruined. Oh, that's awful. Yeah, and he talked
about trying to salvage valuables, you know,
the irreplaceable things like pictures and papers.
It really brings home the personal side of it,
doesn't it? Beyond the statistics. Absolutely.
Then if we look over at St. Louis, Missouri,
the impact was also, well, substantial. What
were the figures there? Five reported deaths
and 38 injuries. And the property damage... Over
5 ,000 homes affected in some way. Wow. 5 ,000.
Yeah. City inspectors have been out condemning
structures that are just unsafe. The mayor's
asked people to steer clear of those damaged
areas. It's still dangerous. Understandable.
And the tornado itself in St. Louis, do we know
much about its characteristics? We do, yeah.
It looks like it started in Clayton, traveled
at least eight miles. Eight miles. And the winds.
Estimated peak winds hit 150 miles per hour.
That's incredibly powerful. It is. And get this,
the maximum width was estimated at about a mile.
A mile wide? Goodness. Yeah. And its path actually
took it through parts of Forest Park, even near
the St. Louis Zoo. Just shows how indiscriminate
these things are. Exactly. And tragically, it
wasn't just those two areas. Scott County, also
in Missouri, took a direct hit. Oh, no. Another
tornado there killed two people, injured several
others, and, again, destroyed multiple homes.
It was just a widespread event. It sounds like
it. And were there other impacts besides the
main tornadoes? Yes, definitely. The whole system
was massive. There were reports of tornadoes
up in Wisconsin. Wisconsin, too. Mm -hmm. And
significant dust blown around in Illinois, even
affecting Chicago. Really? Dust storms. Yeah.
Connected to the strong winds with the system.
Yeah. And then further east, tragically, two
deaths in the Virginia suburbs near DC. How did
that happen? Falling trees brought down by the
winds associated with the storms moving through.
It just highlights the very dangers from a large
system like this. It really does. So with all
this destruction, the big question is about warnings
and preparation. Were people alerted? Well, it's
important to point out the National Weather Service,
or NOAA as we often call it, they did issue alerts
over the weekend. They warned about, and this
is their phrase, a multitude of hazardous weather
across the U .S. So not just tornadoes? No, not
at all. Thunderstorms, large hail out on the
plains, heavy mountain snow in the west, even
dangerous heat down south. It was a complex setup.
Right. And for Kentucky and Missouri specifically,
the area is already hit. There were continued
warnings about thunderstorms even after the tornadoes
had passed, which, you know, poses huge problems
for communities trying to recover. Absolutely.
You're already dealing with devastation and then
more storms threaten. Exactly. And St. Louis
Fire Chief Dennis Jinkerson gave some really
important advice. What did he say? Basically
urging people with more weather coming to find
a safe place before it hits. Don't wait. Good
advice. Yeah. And he even suggested something
quite commendable, asking people whose homes
were safe to maybe invite neighbors over if their
places weren't secure. That community spirit.
That's really something looking out for each
other. Meanwhile, in Kentucky, Governor Andy
Brashear said survey teams were expected, I think,
Monday to start assessing damage. That's for
the federal disaster aid process. Exactly. To
get that ball rolling. And it just shows the
scale. Some of the state roads that were closed,
maybe two dozen of them. It could take days to
reopen them. Bays just underlines the disruption.
It does. And you know, when we see events like
this, it's always helpful to step back and look
at the broader picture of tornadoes in the US.
OK, what's the general context? Well, on average,
the US gets about 1 ,200 tornadoes a year. It's
a lot. 1 ,200, right. But there was some interesting
research back in 2018. It suggested a potential
shift. A shift in what way? In where the deadliest
tornadoes are happening more frequently. Moving
a bit away from the traditional Tornado Alley
Plains towards the south, which is often more
densely populated, that raises different kinds
of risks. I see. That's a significant finding.
And what about the timing? When is tornado season
usually? It varies a bit. For the southern plains,
think May into early June typically. But down
on the Gulf Coast, the season can peak earlier.
More in the spring. And Kentucky. Yeah. Has it
seen major tornadoes before this? Obviously this
was terrible, but historically. Sadly, yes. The
deadliest one on record for Kentucky was way
back in 1890 in Louisville. A huge loss of life
then. 1890. And more recently, people will remember
the devastating tornadoes in December 2021. That
wasn't that long ago, and it caused mass fatalities
too. So Kentucky's definitely vulnerable. It
is. And this latest event brings up another difficult
issue that's been talked about quite a bit. Staffing
challenges at the National Weather Service at
NOAA. Ah, yes. I heard something about that.
Staffing cuts. That's right. Pretty significant
ones. Over 560 employees lost. due to actions
under the previous administration, apparently.
Over 500. That's a lot for a critical service
like weather forecasting. It is. And the office
in Jackson, Kentucky, the one that covers many
of these areas, just hit so hard. It's one of
several that are short -staffed. And what does
that mean, practically? Well, for one thing,
it means they aren't routinely operating 24 seven
anymore. That sounds risky, especially with severe
weather. It certainly raises concerns, but it's
really important to highlight the dedication
of the folks working there. OK. Despite being
short staffed, the meteorologists at the Jackson
office saw the severe weather outbreak coming.
They knew it was serious. So what do they do?
They made the call. They brought everyone in
for the overnight shift anyway. They knew they
had to be there to issue warnings and support
the local emergency managers. Wow. So they stepped
up despite the limitations. Absolutely. We heard
from a NOAA employee who wanted to stay anonymous
basically saying the staff knew they had to bring
everyone in. It was about saving lives with those
warnings. That's incredible commitment. Really
speaks volumes. It really does. And the union
that represents these employees. What's their
take? Their representative made it clear that
even with the staffing shortages, the accuracy
and the timeliness of the warnings issued for
these tornadoes were not affected. OK, that's
reassuring. The warnings got out effectively.
Yes, which is a credit to the skill of the staff
they do have. So are steps being taken to fix
this staffing problem? Well, NOAA has announced
some opportunities. About 155 spots for meteorologists
and other specialists to transfer into understaffed
offices, including Jackson. So that's a start,
at least. It's a positive step, yes. But the
underlying concern, it seems, might still be
there. Meaning? Meaning the same NOAA staff member
warned that if these shortages persist long term,
we could see more offices having to cut back
hours. Which could lead to? Potentially, yeah.
Missed forecasts or maybe just increased burnout
for the forecasters who are there, especially
with things like hurricane season coming up.
That's a huge workload. That's a really sobering
thought. Burnout is one thing, but missed forecasts.
Exactly. And it's not a new concern, either.
Former directors at the Weather Service have
actually warned in the past about staffing levels.
Dang one. Warning that inadequate staffing could,
tragically, lead to needless loss of life if
forecasts or warnings are compromised. So these
aren't just operational issues. They have...
real -world, potentially life -and -death consequences.
That's the core of the concern, yes. Okay. So,
wrapping this up, we've talked about the absolutely
devastating impact of these recent tornadoes,
particularly in Kentucky and Missouri. Yeah,
the human cost, the physical destruction. We've
looked at the warnings that went out, the preparations,
the advice given. And the community response,
too, like the Fire Chief's suggestion. Right.
And then this critical context of the challenges
facing NOAA, the National Weather Service, with
staffing. Mm -hmm. the dedication of the staff
versus the resource constraints they're facing.
It really leaves you with a question, doesn't
it? As we potentially face more severe weather
events, maybe more frequently, maybe more intensely.
Yeah, what's the right balance? How do we ensure
that the dedicated professionals doing this vital
work have the support and the resources they
truly need? What level of investment is necessary
to protect public safety effectively in the face
of these powerful forces of nature? That's the
question to ponder. A really vital point. And
just a reminder for everyone listening, if you
want to stay informed and explore more about
the science behind weather, do follow meteorologist
Rob Jones. He's on Instagram. TV meteorologists.
And on YouTube, search for Rob Jones Hurricane.
You'll find his channel and the Meteorology Matters
podcast playlist there, too. Lots of great info.
Thanks for tuning in to Meteorology Matters.