Water rolling in a circle in mid-air: February 28, 2011

2011 had eventful days where tornadoes touch down in the Chattanooga area. One of those days was February 28.  I left my work at 1:30 that day in order to get over to Lookout Valley High School to pick up my child when school let out at 2:15.  The drive over from Amnicola to the LV was a trying experience with wicked winds. Going around Moccasin Bend in between Lookout Mountain and the river was a huge down force.

I got in line behind other cars on Lookout Valley High School Drive. Unknown to me at the time, dismissal at 2:15 was delayed.  There was a possible tornado spotted nearby.

I found a video on YouTube that someone actually filmed the rain-wrapped tornado coming across Raccoon Mountain pumped storage station. This would be above the car line and a little to the north.  The video is embedded at the bottom of the post, but it was described by one tornado chaser as one of the best audio capture of tornadic activity.

Back to the parent line of cars waiting outside of the school, many parents, like me, did not know about the incoming tornadic storm. Suddenly, a fog descended upon the area. Rain and wind mixed rocked the cars. I saw the water rolling in a circle mid-air and then splashing with force onto the windshield. The water kept slamming down. And the car was rocking to and fro.

Suddenly, the fog and rolling water had moved on. I could see big tall trees lying on the ground.  At the time, I didn't know what I had gone through.I am thankful to the person who took this video. The sound, the wind, the water reminds me all over again that day.

Quite a rain storm today

When I left work this afternoon, wicked tree-bending winds combined with pea-sized hail and a hard cold rain created some interesting moments of trying to get to the parking lot for my son and I.

But as soon as we turned onto Amnicola and drove under the DuPont parkway overpass, it was gone.  Viewable in the rear-view mirror but very little where we were then on Amnicola.

I learn a lot from my son about weather and clouds and wind patterns.  Afterall, that's a major part of his course of study in college: environmental geology.  A mix between environmental science and rocks from the earth.  And he's good at studying it--still on the Dean's List despite those required science lab courses.

I said to him as we passed the Burger King and Wisdom Street, "Look at that cone-shaped cloud over Lookout Mountain."

Seeing the mountain at that point was easy; no rain blocking the view. Clear and crisp viewing.
He said, "That's not a tornado but it sure is a weird-looking wall cloud."

He continued, "See the shelf-cloud above it, but the wall cloud is a triangular shape. And this wind here keeps changing direction."

He was right about the changing directions on Amincola by the swamp: downforce, hard to the left and then to the right.  Very strange wind patterns.

As we crossed the bridge by the American Water tanks, I suddenly realized the impact of the wall cloud coming across the mountain and down towards downtown.

"Driving towards the wall cloud is not a good thing is it," I asked.

"Nope," was the reply.

We veered left at UTC and headed east to get away only to run into it by Warner Park.

Just glad to make it through to Main Street where, once again, nothing was happening but in the rear-view mirror.
Picture at UTC before we turned left down Third Street.