We're Not In Kansas Anymore...

My plan to begin blogging in earnest was delayed a bit by Mother Nature Thursday in the form of tornadoes. Yes, you read that correctly, TORNADOES, plural. You must understand, we do not ever have tornadoes in upstate NY - it is literally unheard of - so to have three tornadoes touch down in a period of 30 minutes on Thursday is truly mind-blowing. I'm beginning to think Mother Earth has joined forces with Mother Nature to teach all of us a HUGE lesson, but we'll save that issue for another post. Here's an excerpt that shares some NWS details:

"The National Weather Service confirmed that three tornadoes touched down in Chemung and Steuben Counties on Thursday. All were categorized as EF-1 (defined as winds between 86-110 mph). ... The third and most powerful tornado hit Elmira near 4:00pm with winds up to 110 mph. The tornado touched down near Route 352, then moved through West Elmira, into downtown Elmira, then Church Street. From there the tornado tracked southeast towards Jerusalem Hill Road, where it finally lifted. The total track length was nearly 10 miles long."

You can see images of the damage and read the entire article here.

Needless to say, our town has been filled the last few days with the endless whirrrrring sound of chainsaws and the smell of fresh sawdust and pine needles permeates the air. Neighbors who don't typically take time to socialize are uniting to help each other clear limbs and debris from their yards and streets. Several thousand customers are still without power as the utility companies work tirelessly to restore service; the last estimate stated 95% of customers will have power restored by midnight tonight. The damage to homes, businesses, cars and streets is severe; clean up and repair is, and will continue to be, a monumental effort for some time to come. Our town is devastated, yes, but "things" can be repaired and replaced. The most important and extraordinary fact that we must not forget is that no severe injuries or fatalities resulted from our storm. I am beyond grateful for this and I hope everyone else is too.

UPDATE 08/08/12: Satellite Image Depicting Path of Elmira Tornado 07/26/12
Once again, grateful for no serious injuries or deaths!


Source: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/bgm/WeatherEvents/Severe/july262012/ef1_elmira.shtml