Thursday, May 26, 2011

Tornadoes

I have always known that we get tornadoes in MN.  Every year without fail we get them.  But had you asked me even a few months ago which state is most known for them Oklahoma or Kansas definitely would have topped my list.  After all they are a part of tornado alley.

"Tornado Alley is a colloquial and popular media term that most often refers to the area of the United States where tornadoes are most frequent. Although an official location is not defined, the area between the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains is usually associated with it"

"The core of Tornado Alley consists of the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, eastern South Dakota, and the Colorado Eastern Plains"

But then I read something on MSN that surprised me.  The #1 state for tornadoes in 2010 isn't even a part of tornado alley.  Perhaps it's because those areas are flatter and more open that those tornadoes get bigger and can travel farther causing more destruction (don't quote me on that I'm just speculating) that I alway thought that those places had more tornadoes.  Perhaps it's because as a whole they have more tornadoes combined in that area than other places.  Whatever the reason, I never would have guessed in million years that Minnesota topped the list.  Yep, that's right, Minnesota.  The top 4 states that had tornadoes in 2010 were:

#4: Oklahoma: 70
#3: Kansas: 80
#2: Texas: 87
#1: Minnesota: 137

137?!  That's 50 more than the next state.  I did not realize that we had that many tornadoes here last year.  They have already begun this year, with the most recent being May 22 and causing major destruction in North Minneapolis.

With the recent damage that has been caused here and down south, all of those affected are in my thoughts and prayers.

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