U.S. Experiencing Freaky Weather, Earthquakes over Christmas Holidays
By Steve Almasy. A county in northeast Mississippi was getting hammered by thunderstorms on Christmas, with some areas receiving 10 inches of rain with more on the way, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Friday.
Monroe County residents can expect 2 to 3 more inches of rain after some people in the northern part of the county saw 10 inches since 6 a.m., meteorologist Jim Branda said.
Many roads are flooded and some people are dealing with rising water in their homes, Sheriff Cecil Cantrell said.
“We’re just a mess here. It’s a really serious situation. We’ve got all our deputies out. We’ve got all the fire departments out. I wasn’t expecting this.” Cantrell said. “It’s raining so hard now you can’t see. It’s a terrible situation. I hope the good Lord lets it stop raining for a while.”
Other towns in the South were dealing with similar pain. (Read more from “U.S. Experiencing Freaky Weather, Earthquakes over Christmas Holidays” HERE)
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Earthquake Swarms Rattle Nevada
By CBS News. A series of more than 30 earthquakes that rattled the Reno area over the past two days occurred on the most significant fault structure in the area, and scientists are monitoring for potentially bigger shock waves to follow, experts said Wednesday.
The quakes began Tuesday evening and continued into Wednesday morning. The largest — a magnitude-4.4 late Tuesday — shook homes and businesses in a 300-square-mile area near the Nevada-California line.
No significant damage was reported.
Graham Kent, director of the Nevada Seismological Lab at the University of Nevada, Reno, was at home when the biggest quake hit and described it as “quite a jolt.”
I was basically right on top of it,” he said. “In scientific terms, it was a 4.4. But for us, it was one heck of a kick in south Reno.” (Read more from “Earthquake Swarms Rattle Nevada” HERE)
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2 Tornadoes Hit Northern California on Christmas Eve
By Maneeza Iqbal. Two tornadoes touched down in Northern California Thursday afternoon — one in El Dorado County and one in Stanislaus County, the National Weather Service said Friday.
NWS determined a tornado touched down in El Dorado County through video evidence it received. They first got reports of the tornado at 3:15 p.m. KCRA viewers reported seeing the tornado just after 3 p.m.
A tornado warning was issued for southwest El Dorado County and northwest Amador County as the storm moved through the area and expired at 4:30 p.m.
The thunderstorm that produced the tornado was moving east at about 20 mph, threatening El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park, Rescue and Shingle Springs. It’s unlikely the tornado was on the ground the whole time. As the storm moved east, it is more likely the tornado hopped up and down from the cloud.
The tornado traveled through western El Dorado County from Folsom Lake to Cameron Park — a 5- to 8-mile path. (Read more from “2 Tornadoes Hit Northern California on Christmas Eve” HERE)
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15 Killed as Tornadoes Rip Across Southern US Days Before Christmas
By Katy Galimberti. On a day when many were putting final touches on holiday plans or traveling, destructive tornadoes struck the southeastern U.S. as severe storms rattled the region.
At least 15 people were killed on Wednesday as a result of the storms in Mississippi, Tennessee and Arkansas. Eight people died in Mississippi and six died in Tennessee, officials in both states said.
In Pope County, Arkansas, an 18-year-old woman was killed when a tree crashed onto her home. Four other people in the house survived, according to CNN.
A 7-year-old boy was killed in Holly Springs, Mississippi, while in a car with his family. At least 40 people throughout the state suffered injuries.
Northern Mississippi suffered some of the worst damage due to a tornado with an exceptionally long track, according to the National Weather Service. If confirmed to be continuous, its 150-mile-long path could be the longest for a December tornado in the Mid-South, the NWS office at Memphis, Tennessee, said. (Read more from “15 Killed as Tornadoes Rip Across Southern US Days Before Christmas” HERE)
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