Portland, Oregon was a major shipbuilding site during World War II.  As many as 100,000 people were employed in the shipyards.  Thousands of people flocked to Portland, many of them African-Americans who had moved to the Northwest from the South.  The huge influx of people created a huge housing shortage.

Vanport City was a federal housing project built on 650 acres along the banks of the Columbia River north of Portland.   As many as 40,000 workers lived in the city of Vanport during the war.  After the war, layoffs thinned the population, but 19,000 workers still lived in Vanport City in 1948.

Despite the fact the Vanport City was on the largest river in the western United States, there was little concern about flooding.

The winter of 1947-48 produced heavy snowfall amounts in the upper Columbia River basin.  Warm temperatures that spring caused rapid melting of the snowpack, and rivers and streams quickly jumped their banks.  Despite the rising water, there still was no major concern.

On Sunday, May 30^th, a dike which supported a rail track on the west side of the housing development suddenly collapsed forming a crevasse.  The crevasse widened from six feet to sixty feet and then to 500 feet wide.  It only took two hours to flood the entire city.  The following day, the dike on the eastern side of town collapsed also, sealing the town’s fate.

There was almost no warning for the town’s 19,000 residents.  Twenty five people drowned.  The residents of the town lost all of their personal belongings, most escaping with just the clothes on their backs.  Ten thousand homes were destroyed.  Damage totaled $21 million.  Vanport would never be rebuilt.  The area is now a flood mitigation zone with parks and golf courses.

About Bill

Bill Murray is a forecaster for AlabamaWX.com, the official weather blog at Alabama’s ABC33/40. Get a daily dose of his weather history at www.twitter.com/wxhistorian. He is also one of the hosts at WeatherBrains, the weekly netcast that’s all about weather. Listen at www.WeatherBrains.com or subscribe through the iTunes Music Store. It’s free!

What would you say is the most important breakthrough in the tornado warning process?   You could go back to the nineteenth century and say the telegraph, which made advance warnings possible.  It could be Fawbush and Miller’s excellent, albeit lucky, tornado forecast at Tinker AFB in Oklahoma in 1948.  It could be the discovery of the hook echo on conventional radar.  It might be NOAA Weatheradio, which came to the forefront after the 1965 Palm Sunday outbreak.  It could be the proliferation of local television stations arming and equipping their meteorologists with the latest in radar and warning technology.

To me, the most important breakthrough in the tornado warning process has been the use of Doppler Radar.  The technology has really fulfilled its promise or greatly increased warning lead times.  Some would argue that there has been a higher false alarm ratio, but I think the tradeoff has certainly been worth it.

Thirty years ago, that promise was just coming to the forefront as a team of scientists from the National Severe Storms Laboratory prepared to attempt to intercept a tornado using their powerful experimental Doppler radar.  Conditions seemed to be right for the formation of tornadoes, and a team of scientists including Chuck Doswell, Joe Golden and Don Burgess prepared to try and capture a tornado on radar and in the field with an armada of instruments, video and still cameras.  The scientists at NSSL had been studying the use of Doppler radar in tornado prediction since the sixties.  The tiny farming community of Union City, OK will forever be known as the place that they found their quarry.

The Union City Tornado

As an F4 tornado tore right through the center of town, it was the most intently studied tornado until that time.  Research of the radar data from the storm would lead to discovery of the TVS – or Tornado Vortex Signature.   The presence of a TVS on Doppler radar data is a very strong indication of tornadic potential in a severe thunderstorm.   Researchers also discovered the telltale signature of a mesocyclone, or rotating thunderstorm, an important precursor to tornado formation.

About Bill

Bill Murray is a forecaster for AlabamaWX.com, the official weather blog at Alabama’s ABC33/40. Get a daily dose of his weather history at www.twitter.com/wxhistorian. He is also one of the hosts at WeatherBrains, the weekly netcast that’s all about weather. Listen at www.WeatherBrains.com or subscribe through the iTunes Music Store. It’s free!

Heatbursts are one of the most fascinating weather phenomena.  Sinking air from collapsing thunderstorms warms as it descends to the surface of the earth.  The result can be a heatburst.  These events cause dramatic increases in temperatures, desiccating drops in humidity and very strong winds.

On May 22, 1996, downdrafts from dying thunderstorms warmed as it reached the surface, causing a massive heatburst.  The heatburst, spread across much of southwestern and central Oklahoma during a six hour period.  The affected area was up to 150 miles wide and affected twelve counties with surging temperatures and damaging straight line winds.

The Oklahoma Mesonet showed early morning temperatures that rose from the 80s and into the upper 90s and low 100s in some places. Some temperatures between 11 pm and 3 am were: 98 degrees in Norman, 99 degrees in Washington, 102 degrees in Chickasha, 101 degrees at Fort Cobb, 100 degrees at Hobart, and 105 degrees in Ninnekah.

Wind speeds in excess of 70 mph were measured in parts of southwestern, central and south-central Oklahoma.  The resulting damage can only be described as devastating in parts of southwest Oklahoma, particularly in the Lawton and Marlow areas. An estimated ninety percent of houses and outbuildings in eastern Comanche and western Stephens Counties sustained damage. Power outages lasted anywhere from a few minutes to nearly three days in parts of Lawton. Over 27,000 customers were without power at one time. Downed power lines sparked grass fires throughout the region. Total damage estimates exceeded $18 million.

Bill Murray is a forecaster for AlabamaWX.com, the official weather blog at Alabama’s ABC33/40. Get a daily dose of his weather history at www.twitter.com/wxhistorian. He is also one of the hosts at WeatherBrains, the weekly netcast that’s all about weather. Listen at www.WeatherBrains.com or subscribe through the iTunes Music Store. It’s free!

A few weeks ago, I had the honor and pleasure of being a guest panelist on WeatherBrains podcast.  It was a very enjoyable experience, and I learned quite a bit while doing it.  I truly appreciated the opportunity to share the airwaves with all of the guys who do the weekly show and their featured guest Bob Baron.  Bob is a legend in the world of meteorology and is truly on the cutting edge of technology as it relates to weather tracking and prediction.  His company Baron Services is a leader in the industry.

Although I only managed to get one question into the conversation, I believe my question well represented Whatever-Weather and our goal of helping meteorologists find jobs and information.  The question (slightly paraphrased) to Bob was “Since you’re really on the cutting edge of technology and given how things are changing, as always, in the field, what do you think would be the best path or courses of study for the next generation of meteorologists?”  Even a seasoned meteorologist can take something away from his answer.

Bob said that most of what a meteorologist uses these days is really learned during on the job training.  For example, with newer technology such as dual polarity in radar systems, you learn as you go.  In order to keep up with the technology as it comes down the line, you must have a good background in meteorology.

That part of the answer was no surprise.  The second part, in my opinion, is the part to take to heart.

Bob explained that many in the younger generation of meteorologists seem to be missing “the people side of it.”  They are more concerned with what the technology can do and how cool the graphics (in the case of broadcasting) can be.  It becomes an issue of “weather driven graphics versus graphics driven weather.”   He’s right.

I’ve written before about the importance of communication skills as they relate to meteorology.  Chuck has blogged about learning the art of public speaking as well.  There is more to the people side than just being able to talk about the weather.  Meteorologists have to be able to simplify complex topics in a way that non-scientific minded people can understand them.  Mets need to go one step further and explain how those topics and the forecasts relate to the general public in every day life.

The courses suggested by Bob in order to better communicate with the public were communications courses, psychology, and marketing.  I would add to those sociology, political science, and public policy type classes since much of the issues meteorologists face become topics of debate in political circles.

If you are on the path to a degree in meteorology, I hope you take this advice from a legend in the field and strongly consider adding a few of these courses to your class load.  If you are already out in the field or the job market, taking one or more of these courses

You may have noticed a lack of blogging from me lately, but I hope that pattern is about to change.  I have been in the process of moving.  I moved from Saint Paul, MN to the Washington, DC metro.  I enjoyed my time in the Twin Cities, but it was time to jump somewhere where I would have more opportunities.  It also happened to be where my girlfriend accepted a job a few months back.

I left my PT gigs in Saint Paul and did the moving with the assistance of my friends.  I learned several things on the way to keep my moving expenses down as much as possible.  First, I decided I would be doing loading and unloading as well as driving my valuables the entire way.  I drove a 16 foot truck with a trailer that had my car on it on the back.  This was a bit stressful through the Appalachians, but in the end it probably saved me hundreds if not 1,000 dollars.  There are many options out there so it is important you look into all of them.  I would avoid posting your phone number or contact information on sites that say they need it to give you a quote.  If you give them your contact info they will spam you until you agree to use them or until you demand to be taken off their list.  I myself, am guilty of giving out my contact info to the wrong people.

I would advise checking out U-Haul, Penske, Budget, and any other truck rental place you can think of.  Another point of advice is to plan ahead.  If you fail to reserve your truck until a week before the price will be higher.  If you don’t have a vehicle or won’t need it at your new destination I would recommend trying out Pack Rats, or other moving boxes that are hauled across the country for you.

If you are moving a long distance and need a place to stay, I would recommend asking friends to see if they know anyone around a good stopping point for you.  My co-driver knew someone that was about halfway between Saint Paul and DC and it saved me the costs of having to buy a hotel room.  If you can’t find anyone that you or a friend knows, check out CouchSurfers.com or AirBnB.com.  These two options are both safe and generally cheaper than a hotel would be.

Moving is a scary and exciting time, but if you follow these and other frugal tips you can at least make it affordable.  Now that I’m here in DC I’ve joined the local AMS chapter and am looking into already becoming an officer.  I promise to report more about job hunting and weather related topics in the future.  Until then…

Sincerely,
Jacob Hamblin
hamblinj@gmail.com
www.linkedin.com/in/hamblinj

Vortex 2 kicked off this weekend!  Yes, it’s been a slow start, but this year looks to be more promising than last year as far as active weather on the plains.  Even with the long lull last year, they caught a great tornado in Wyoming toward the end of their season.  Let’s hope that this year brings more like that one – tornadic storms safely in large open areas.

In support of the researchers of Vortex 2, we have started a list of links to the blogs of those out in the field this year in our forum (Network).  We are highlighting our friend, Casey Burleyson’s blog, but looking for links to others.  If you are part of V2 or know someone who is, please take a moment to post a link to your or his/her blog about the project.

These online journals give us a chance to live vicariously through the chasers and give us insight into the glorious, or not so glorious, day-to-day activities that are a part of the project.  Readers, please keep in mind that the members of V2 cannot divulge the location of the chase for that day for many reasons including safety.  Please also show your support of the lucky ones who are taking part.

To all involved in Vortex 2, congratulations and good luck!