gkrangers

Have there been additional survey details revealed yet? A wind designation or just "in excess of 200MPH" for now?

Why is there ONLY Busch Light? Barf.

Longer, more detailed PNS for Joplin out:

(Timestamp is off by an hour haha)

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPRINGFIELD MO

938 PM CDT MON MAY 23 2011

...JOPLIN TORNADO GIVEN A PRELIMINARY HIGH END EF-4 RATING...

* DATE...22 MAY 2011

* BEGIN LOCATION...APPROXIMATELY 3 MILES SOUTHWEST OF JOPLIN

* END LOCATION...1 MILE SOUTHEAST OF DUQUESNE

* ESTIMATED BEGIN TIME...541 PM

* ESTIMATED END TIME...550 PM

* MAXIMUM EF-SCALE RATING...EF-4

* ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WIND SPEED...190-198 MPH

* ESTIMATED PATH WIDTH...3/4 OF A MILE

* PATH LENGTH...7 MILES

* FATALITIES...116 REPORTED AS OF 3 PM MONDAY

* INJURIES...400 REPORTED AS OF 3 PM MONDAY

* BEGIN LAT/LON...37.06 N / 94.57 W

* END LAT/LON...37.06 N / 94.39 W

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SURVEY TEAMS RATED THE TORNADO THAT KILLED

OVER 100 PEOPLE IN AND AROUND JOPLIN AS A HIGH END EF-4 TORNADO.

BASED UPON SURVEYS COMPLETED TODAY...MAXIMUM WINDS WERE ESTIMATED

BETWEEN 190 AND 198 MPH. THE TORNADO HAD A MAXIMUM WIDTH OF 3/4 TO

ONE MILE.

THE TORNADO INITIALLY TOUCHED DOWN AROUND 541 PM NEAR THE

INTERSECTION OF COUNTRY CLUB AND 32ND STREET. ADDITIONAL SURVEYS ARE

EXPECTED TO BE CONDUCTED TO FURTHER DEFINE THE STARTING POINT AND

INTENSITY AT THIS LOCATION.

DAMAGE BECAME MORE WIDESPREAD AS THE TORNADO CROSSED MAIDEN

LANE...CAUSING SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO NEARLY ALL WINDOWS ON THREE

SIDES OF ST JOHNS HOSPITAL AS WELL AS TO THE ROOF. THE TORNADO

FURTHER INTENSIFIED AS IT DESTROYED NUMEROUS HOMES AND BUSINESSES TO

THE EAST AND NORTH OF THE HOSPITAL. THE HIGHEST RATED DAMAGE IN

THIS AREA WAS TO A CHURCH SCHOOL THAT HAD ALL BUT A PORTION OF ITS

EXTERIOR WALLS DESTROYED AS WELL AS TO A NURSING HOME. WINDS IN

THAT AREA WERE ESTIMATED AT 160 TO 180 MPH.

THE TORNADO CONTINUED TO DESTROY OVER 100 HOMES BETWEEN 32ND AND

20TH STREETS. THREE STORY APARTMENT COMPLEXES HAD THE TOP TWO FLOORS

REMOVED...OTHER TWO STORY COMPLEXES WERE PARTIALLY LEVELED. A BANK

WAS TOTALLY DESTROYED WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE VAULT. A DILLONS

GROCERY STORE ALSO HAD SIGNIFICANT ROOF AND EXTERIOR WALL DAMAGE.

LASTLY...THE EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR WALLS OF A TECHNICAL SCHOOL...A

MORTAR AND REBAR REINFORCED CINDER BLOCK BUILDING...FAILED.

THE TORNADO CROSSED RANGELINE ROAD NEAR 20TH STREET. THE MOST

INTENSE DAMAGE WAS NOTED JUST EAST OF THIS INTERSECTION WHERE A HOME

DEPOT WAS DESTROYED BY AN ESTIMATED 190 TO NEARLY 200 MPH

WINDS. IN ADDITION...THE CUMMINS BUILDING...A CONCRETE BLOCK AND

HEAVY STEEL BUILDING...HAD ITS STEEL ROOF BEAMS COLLAPSE. SPORTS

ACADEMY AND THE WALMART ALSO SUFFERED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE.

THE TORNADO CONTINUED TO MOVE EASTWARD ALONG AND SOUTH OF 20TH

STREET DESTROYING NUMEROUS WAREHOUSE STYLE FACILITIES AND RESIDENCES

THROUGH DUQUESNE ROAD. WINDS IN THIS AREA MAY ALSO APPROACH 200 MPH.

THE TORNADO CONTINUED TO DESTROYING NUMEROUS HOMES BEFORE WEAKENING

AS IT TURNED SOUTHEAST TOWARD INTERSTATE 44. SUBSEQUENT DAMAGE

SURVEYS WILL BE REQUIRED TO DETERMINE THE SCOPE OF ADDITIONAL

REPORTS ALONG AND SOUTHEAST OF THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY 71 AND

INTERSTATE 44.

The path length will likely be longer than reported thus far... since there were reports of damage on I-44 as the storm passed through.

Doesn't sound like it would be terribly surprising to see it rated EF5 after further analysis. Certainly a candidate.

im pretty sure i'd make a post on my last 1% of iphone power even if it meant i couldnt call my family but eh. to me, the fact that a weather nerd was seemingly just sitting and talking about the couplet about to pass over him might tell a larger tale of this event. it's easy to imagine the worst, so i guess we'll just have to hope for the best for now.

Yeah, I kinda hope they were tuned into their GR2AE from the basement and not just chilling on the porch.

The hurricane parallel to this event is something like Charley in 2004. Everyone knows about the potential (or they should), warnings are in effect, but the rapid ramp up into a beast catches people off guard. I really can't think of a worse set of circumstances for Joplin unless it would've hit at night.

Yep, it dropped and maxed right across the city. Probably little time for them to enhance the wording.

Oh, cool-- I guess the times are dynamically generated, even when quoted-- so disregard my comment.

Indeed.

Easy EF5, right?

Absolutely incredible!

Wow.