We all need to stay weather aware this Saturday because of the potential for a severe weather outbreak. A strong Pacific storm in the upper atmosphere will create a lot of twisting in the air, making it more likely for storms to rotate and produce severe weather, including tornadoes. I know that for some of you, just the mention of tornado makes your heart skip a beat and shoots your anxiety levels through the roof. I understand. Ive been there. I was terrified of tornadoes as a child because of one that went directly by my house as Hurricane Gilberts remnants spawned half a dozen tornadoes across San Antonio. So let me speak to you for just a moment: The odds of you crossing paths with a tornado on Saturday are very near zero percent. Take a look at these two maps. The first one shows our part of Texas highlighted in red. What does this mean? It means that if you live in the red area, you have a 30% chance of severe weather occurring within 25 miles of your home. While thunderstorms are likely, severe weather damage is not. Could it happen? Yes. Thats why we highlight the heightened risk. But is storm damage likely to happen to your home? No. The second map shows the probability of a tornado occurring within 25 miles of your home at this time of the year. At first glance, the map looks scary because were highlighted in the tan shade. What does the tan shade mean? Look at the legend. Theres a 0.2% chance of a tornado occurring within a 25 mile diameter of your home. In other words, theres a 1 in 500 chance of a tornado occurring within a circle thats almost 2,000 square miles. Ill take those odds. So please, stay weather aware Saturday, but try to relax! The best way to stay informed is to equip yourself with our ABC13 Weather app (abc13/apps). It comes with a built in weather radio, giving you instant alerts to your phone if your location is put under a weather warning. The best part? Its FREE! Youd normally pay $10 for a similar app. Well keep you informed whenever severe weather threatens, and hopefully this weekends system will blow through with no major consequences.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 20:04:49 +0000
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