Spared Once Again
Yesterday will surely go down in the annals of meteorological history as a bad day in the South. Many of us in Mississippi and Tennessee spent an evening ducking and dodging debris flung by a series of tornadoes that traversed our area. Some folks weren't lucky enough to get out of the way.
I sat there and watched the local weather and was amazed by the amount of accurate information modern technology has provided us. I remember another time when it wasn't so good. February 21, 1971 was a REALLY bad day in Mississippi. 117 people were killed and over 1200 injured when we had a violent outbreak of tornadoes that Sunday evening. We sat and watched WLBT channel 3's meteorologist Woody Assaf give us the 1971 version of technology which consisted mainly of eye witness reports and sheriff's departments throughout the Delta. The weather was so bad a family we had never met that was heading back home toward the Delta took refuge at our house. As the storms raged outside we sat glued to the TV anticipating Woody telling us we had merely minutes to live. I distinctly remember that family's little girl exclaiming, "SOME WATER HIT ME!" as she sat on the couch, looking up at the ceiling. My mother's response was, "It better not be, we just had a new roof put on this house!"
Woody Assaf was the only real authority on weather in our region. On weekends they let Judy Moon do the weather. Judy's main job was hosting the Saturday afternoon dance show, "Teen Tempos". A few years after the 1971 storms, channel 3 was showing storm damage in Canton, Mississippi following a tornado that passed through the city late one Saturday night destroying several homes and house trailers. They were interviewing some of the survivors and one elderly black lady said, "I watched the weather...Judy Moon didn't say NUTHIN' 'bout no tornado!"
I also know somebody that was living in the Delta when a tornado came through. They lived in a double wide trailer which is basically a tornado attractant. When things got really serious he went to the door and threw one of his shoes outside. I have no idea why, but they were spared from the carnage that took place all around them. Coincidence?
Trailers are certainly affordable housing for many people, but there is one thing you need to keep in mind when you're thinking about buying one. The weatherman always says, "If you are in a mobile home, leave immediately. Seek shelter in a sturdy building or lie flat in a ditch." When you're safer lying flat in a ditch during a tornado than in your home...that should tell you something.
I sat there and watched the local weather and was amazed by the amount of accurate information modern technology has provided us. I remember another time when it wasn't so good. February 21, 1971 was a REALLY bad day in Mississippi. 117 people were killed and over 1200 injured when we had a violent outbreak of tornadoes that Sunday evening. We sat and watched WLBT channel 3's meteorologist Woody Assaf give us the 1971 version of technology which consisted mainly of eye witness reports and sheriff's departments throughout the Delta. The weather was so bad a family we had never met that was heading back home toward the Delta took refuge at our house. As the storms raged outside we sat glued to the TV anticipating Woody telling us we had merely minutes to live. I distinctly remember that family's little girl exclaiming, "SOME WATER HIT ME!" as she sat on the couch, looking up at the ceiling. My mother's response was, "It better not be, we just had a new roof put on this house!"
Woody Assaf was the only real authority on weather in our region. On weekends they let Judy Moon do the weather. Judy's main job was hosting the Saturday afternoon dance show, "Teen Tempos". A few years after the 1971 storms, channel 3 was showing storm damage in Canton, Mississippi following a tornado that passed through the city late one Saturday night destroying several homes and house trailers. They were interviewing some of the survivors and one elderly black lady said, "I watched the weather...Judy Moon didn't say NUTHIN' 'bout no tornado!"
I also know somebody that was living in the Delta when a tornado came through. They lived in a double wide trailer which is basically a tornado attractant. When things got really serious he went to the door and threw one of his shoes outside. I have no idea why, but they were spared from the carnage that took place all around them. Coincidence?
Trailers are certainly affordable housing for many people, but there is one thing you need to keep in mind when you're thinking about buying one. The weatherman always says, "If you are in a mobile home, leave immediately. Seek shelter in a sturdy building or lie flat in a ditch." When you're safer lying flat in a ditch during a tornado than in your home...that should tell you something.
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