Amateurs Muster for Weather Emergencies

These twin twisters were spotted April 28 in Calvert County, Maryland. [NWS Archive]

NEWINGTON, CT, Apr 30, 2002--Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) teams activated or stood by to assist as severe weather struck several states in recent days. Hardest hit was Maryland, which experienced its first F5 tornado April 28. Four people died in Maryland, and damage in the town of La Plata was said to be extensive.

"It has been a wild 24 hours in Charles County, Maryland," said Maryland ARRL Section Manager Tom Abernethy, W3TOM. The storm badly damaged La Plata's business district, destroying--among other structures--the Charles County Chapter of the American Red Cross office and damaging the building housing the Charles County Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the storms over the weekend left pockets of devastation from Kentucky to Maryland. Tornadoes also hit Illinois. Heavy snowfall was reported in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Abernethy said Michelle Sack, N3YRZ--at work in the ICU at the LaPlata hospital at the time of the Maryland outbreak--broke into a SKYWARN net with the urgent announcement that she had observed a tornado only one-half mile away to the west heading directly for her location.

"She tracked and described the tornado until it struck her location and then continued to provide on-the-scene assessments," Abernethy said. Other amateurs--including some members of the APRSWXNET/Citizen Weather Observer Program (CWOP)--provided reports on severity and damage. In Charles County, Greg Jones, K3GJ, was able to report a 125-MHP wind gust just before he lost power, while Joe Sartori, WB3IUT, reported three-inch hail. Their reports were forwarded to the National Weather Service. In St Mary's County, JD Delany, WX3SMD, also observed high wind gusts.

Data contributed are available on NOAA's Forecast Systems Laboratory Display of Surface Data Web page.

Charles County ARES Emergency Coordinator and RACES Officer Mike Tackish, KA3GRW, activated the Charles County ARES/RACES team's emergency plan. "And everything fell right into place under his capable leadership," Abernethy said. Amateurs established a UHF command/control net while VHF tactical nets supplied communications for the hospital, which was left without telephone service or internal communication.

ARES/RACES also worked with the county's Director of Emergency Services, Donald McGuire. In addition to handling Charles County government's critical communications needs, amateurs provided communication at Red Cross shelters.

After an activation that lasted until 2 AM the following day, amateurs returned a few hours later to support damage assessment teams. Abernethy said amateurs were assigned to each damage assessment team to enable direct communication between teams in the field and the Charles County EOC. DAT operations continued throughout the day until all areas of damaged were assessed, Abernethy said.

A satellite image showing the tornado's passage over Maryland and into Chesapeake Bay April 28. [NOAA Image]

Amateurs specially trained in National Weather Service severe weather investigations also assisted NWS Meteorologist Barbara Watson of the Washington/Baltimore NWS office in its follow-up investigation of the storm. "The investigated path of destruction revealed this tornado had been on the ground for at least 24 miles across southern Maryland," Abernethy said. Rated as an F5 on the Fujita scale, the storm had a wind velocity of 261 MPH or greater.

ARES/RACES teams from Prince Georges and Calvert counties supported the Charles County ARES/RACES team's response. Offers of support came from other amateurs and ARES/RACES teams.

"Amateur Radio has once again proved to be of immense value to our community in time of disaster," Abernethy said. "With large areas of the county without commercial power and cell phones not useful due to overloading, Amateur Radio provided a communications bridge in the time of need until normal services were restored."

Abernethy commended the amateurs who responded for their cooperation and for "providing exceptional communications" to the community under very difficult conditions.

"This is truly an expression of the Amateur Radio Sprit at its finest," he said.

Elsewhere, Kentucky Section Emergency Coordinator Ron Dodson, KA4MAP, said severe weather struck Meade and Breckinridge counties April 28. The Wide Area Repeaters Net (WARN) and Meade/Breckinridge County ARES responded to assist both the National Weather Service and Meade County Emergency Management.

Dodson said a weather-spotting net opened around 4 AM on April 28 after a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the two counties. A few minutes after the net started, a tornado was spotted near Cloverport in Breckinridge County. "Spotters at Payneville, Rhodelia, Irvington and Custer were alert and watching the system, although visibility was severely limited by darkness and torrential rains," Dodson said.

A second report of a possible tornado west of Irvington was followed by damage reports east of the town. As a result of amateur reports, the NWS issued a tornado warning. After the system moved away, amateurs reported observations to the net. "Several injuries were treated at a triage station set up at the Irvington Fire Department," Dodson said, adding that several homes in the Irvington area appeared to have been damaged or destroyed. No major damage was reported in Meade County, although power was out in some areas.

Earlier this week, teams of NWS forecasters surveyed tornado damage in Charles and Calvert counties in Maryland. "This tornado was simply devastating and will go into the record books as the one of the worst of all time in Maryland," said James Travers, meteorologist in charge of NOAA's National Weather Service Washington/Baltimore forecast office in Sterling, Va. ARRL Maryland SM Tom Abernethy, W3TOM, and Ed Pace, N3HJA, accompanied Travers and Barbara Watson--the office's warning coordination meteorologist--in surveying the destruction. [NOAA Photo]

The entire area experienced high winds and heavy rainfall, with 2.5 inches in Meade County over the weekend. One fatality in was reported in Irvington.

Dodson said 11 amateurs participated in the response. Kentucky Baptist Disaster Services offered to assist.

In Missouri on April 24, tornadoes struck southeastern Missouri. Hardest hit were Butler, Carter and Madison counties. More than 100 homes were damaged or destroyed. ARRL Missouri Section Emergency Coordinator Patrick Boyle, K0JPB, said ARES teams and individual amateurs remained on standby to assist if needed during the recovery period.

"At this time, due to the severity of the damage, a gubernatorial declaration of emergency has been made; however, no communications assistance has been requested," Boyle said this week.

District Emergency Coordinator for District E Larry Anthony, WB0VAM, and New Madrid County ED Bill Piatt Jr, N0JHW, attended an emergency meeting of Missouri Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (MoVOAD) in Poplar Bluff to follow up on the storm response.

Floyd Sense, K8AC, notes that a tornado that swept through the Jackson Township, Ohio, area April 28 severely damaged the home of Jerry LaRocca, KF8EB, in Massillon. A story in the Massillon Evening Independent newspaper included a photograph of the damage to LaRocca's home and tower.

"Jerry and his wife, while in the house when the tornado struck, were uninjured," Sense said. "The home next door, about 50 feet away, was completely leveled."

Tornado damage in Butler and Carter counties in Missouri. [NWS Photo]

In Erie, Pennsylvania, Lee Williams, N3APP, reported that a line of severe thunderstorms that plowed through his area April 28 left a trail of destruction. The March of Dimes nine-mile walk was interrupted a half hour into the event. The Radio Association of Erie was providing communications for the walk on VHF when the severe weather hit. "SKYWARN was activated on the club's 146.61 repeater, and the event's net control was advised that a tornado warning had been issued," Williams said. The message was relayed to event organizers, and the walkathon was called off.

Williams said the NWS Erie office measured winds in excess of 63 MPH with heavy rain and hail. Among the structures damages were several buildings at the Erie International Airport, which also suffered a power outage that closed the facility for several hours. High winds also downed trees and powerlines, but no injuries were reported.

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