Update for May 1st, 2010

I started writing this blog about ten hours ago and it has been one crazy night.  I wanted to write an update since I have not updated my blog in a few weeks.

So what kept me from getting this blog update posted for so long tonight?  I was busy following the storms down south and taking care of video feeds.

While following the storms tonight, I saved two radar scan images from the Ashland, MS tornado this morning. This storm was just crazy looking on radar. 

Radar scans of the tornado in Mississippi
Radar scans of the tornado in Mississippi

The above radar images show a very powerful storm that moved over Ashland, MS.  I found the following storm report from the Memphis, TN National Weather Service office.

0246 AM     TORNADO          2 E ASHLAND             34.83N 89.14W
05/02/2010                   BENTON             MS   TRAINED SPOTTER

            DAMAGE FROM A POSSIBLE TORNADO EAST OF ASHLAND. LOTS OF
            DEBRIS IN THE ROAD. A TRAILER IS MISSING WITH PEOPLE
            UNACCOUNTED FOR. SPOTTER ALSO REPORTED HEARING FRIEGHT
            TRAIN SOUNDS WHILE IN STORM SHELTER IN ASHLAND.

That sounds pretty bad and at this time the area is under the gun again with another line of storms hitting them.

So, what else have I been doing?  With saving for school and paying off stuff, I won’t be chasing that much they year unless it is local chase with a few hundred miles from home.   I did get out on Friday for a local hail and lightning chase.  I drove up to the north of home to Sauk Centre, MN and watched the hail fall that covered the ground and did another lightning photo. 

I did get to finally do one of the shots I wanted to do for a few years now.  You have heard of Golf Ball Sized Hail?  Well, here is “Golf Course Sized Hail” with the green on the golf course covered in hail.

4/30/2010 Sauk Centre, MN Hail © Doug Kiesling
4/30/2010 Sauk Centre, MN Hail © Doug Kiesling
Cloud to Cloud Lightning © Doug Kiesling

And now onto our Saturday adventure.  Neva and I helped out Saturday morning to clean up a part of Highway 10 that one of her clients adopted.

We ended up picking up almost 50, yes FIFTY bags of trash in just about three miles of roadway which is really only mile but you have to remember their is the sides of the road and the center ditch that had a lot of trash in it.  We found some strange stuff and some nasty stuff but now that part of the roadway is a lot cleaner.  

Adapt A Highway cleanup on Highway 10, 5/1/2010 © Doug Kiesling
Adapt A Highway cleanup on Highway 10, 5/1/2010 © Doug Kiesling