a dark and stormy night

[etat]

It's a coming a bit of a storm.  Lots a lightening, hard blowing rain and just a bit ago I had hail the size of nickels on my front porch.  I sure hope it doesn't mess up too many roofs and that's the truth.  Here's the forecast for our area.

  
   URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
   SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 637
   NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
   710 PM CDT WED JUL 14 2004
  
   THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
   SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
  
          EASTERN ARKANSAS
          THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL
          NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI
          WEST TENNESSEE
  
   EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING FROM 710 PM
   UNTIL 100 AM CDT.
  
   HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70
   MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
  
   THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES
   NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 50 MILES NORTHEAST OF TUPELO
   MISSISSIPPI TO 40 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF JONESBORO ARKANSAS.
  
   REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
   FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
   PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
   WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
   WARNINGS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
   TORNADOES.
  
   OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 633...WW 634...WW 635...WW
   636...
  
   DISCUSSION...AREA WIND PROFILES AND INSTABILITY DISTRIBUTION SUGGEST
   THAT STORMS WILL BUILD WWD ALONG SWD-MOVING COLD FRONT CROSSING W
   TN/NE AR LATER THIS EVENING.  POTENTIAL WILL EXIST FOR HAIL AND HIGH
   WIND GIVEN RELATIVELY STEEP LOW TO MID LEVEL LAPSE RATES AND VERY
   MOIST BOUNDARY LAYER.
  
   AVIATION...A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT
   TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60
   KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 550. MEAN STORM
   MOTION VECTOR 29025.

Just got through watching a lightening storm too. It was off quite a ways but was sure lighting up the sky.
  

[Ron Wenrich]

We had a tornado about 10 miles S of us.  Tornadoes are pretty rare in these parts.  It pretty well destroyed one of those new developments that are sucking up the good farmland.   I wonder how the old houses fared?  They said a couple of old farmhouses had minor damage.

My daughter is at camp about 3 miles S of the tornado damage.  My wife called to see how the camp fared.  Just a little wind, but lots of rain.   Didn't even knock leaves off the trees.  

I drove through the storm before it spawned the tornado.  There was a band of black that came right down to the ground.  Lots of rain, but little wind.  

On Monday, we had lots of rain as well.  In southern NJ, they had 12 inches of rain and broke 5 dams.     Reports were that it was worse than most hurricanes.

[Roxie]

I'm within a mile of the Maryland border and we are beginning to think we're in Tornado Alley!  I've lived in this area all my life and we've had storms....but we've had as many severe storms the past two months as we would have in two years.  Will the person that moved the jet stream, PLEASE put it back!!   :D