Greg Carbin, a meteorologist at NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla, informed this year may set records for tornadoes and tornado-related deaths. He added that they are only halfway through the tornado season and we have already seen 111 tornado-related deaths, making this the deadliest tornado season since 1998. Harold Brooks, a research meteorologist at NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory, told that there have been more than 100 tornado-related deaths during a single tornado season in the U.S.
Meteorologists at NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center say this winter’s and early spring’s unusually turbulent weather may be to blame. According to Carbin the storm track over the last three months was very active across the Rockies and into the East Coast. This active storm track lends itself to more severe weather events, including tornadoes. He opined that another contributing factor is this year’s early start to the season. A total of 87 tornadoes struck the Tennessee valley and Midwest over a 24 hour period starting on Feb. 5, resulting in a total of 56 deaths.
NOAA informed that the tornadoes this season are also touching down in highly populated areas, thus increasing both the number of fatalities and the number of eyewitness reports of each tornado. It should serve as a reminder that tornadoes can strike anywhere at any time.
