Reports that the weather would calm in the central US this month were highly exaggerated, as evidenced by the uptick in storm damage, injury, and death that the south-central US has been experiencing this past week.
Vickie Darnel, 64, of Poteau, Oklahoma was pronounced dead Sunday morning after her car was swept away by floodwater. Police believe she tried to drive through what only appeared to be a puddle, but was really part of a local river whose banks had flooded over.
That area in Oklahoma had numerous flash flood warnings with the 24 hours leading up to her death. The National Weather Service called it a ‘derecho’, which is a long-lived wind storm with rapidly moving thunderstorms along with it.
Derechos can dump inches of water within an hour and often have hurricane wind forces, not ideal for areas like Oklahoma which are not used to such intensity.
It’s not just the derecho hitting the US hard, though that is a big part of it. Over 200 preliminary reports of wind damage were reported over the weekend and continue to come in as the storms settle.
Damage ranges from minor inconveniences like lawn furniture across the yard to major issues, like frees falling on houses and objects coming through windows.
On Friday, Michael Birge, 38, of Scottsville, Kentucky died from his injuries after a tree fell on his truck. Not much is known about the incident, but it only takes one gust of wind to down a tree that is dying.
Small creeks and streams, like the one Darnel tried to pass, have been flooding over the past several days, but that doesn’t mean that the worst of it is over. As the runoff collects in larger rivers this week, they are expected to swell.
The Mississippi and other major rivers in the area have already seen substantial swelling this year, and it is expected to get worse before it gets better.
This weekend saw major hail for a number of US states as well, specifically, those that don’t often see ice falling from the sky – Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina all reported hail at some point in the past several days.
South Carolina seems to have gotten it the worst, with Whitmire reporting hale the size of golf balls falling from the sky.
Storms, wind, and rain are still expected in the coming days as the derecho, and other unrelated serious weather moves across the US. If you are in an affected area, take this weather seriously because it is taking lives.
