T’storms in these parts likely harmless
It’s been spring for more than a month, and Coeur d’Alene has seen five days (nonconsecutive) of 70-degree-plus temperatures. Average highs this time of year are in the mid-60s, with average lows just shy of 40 degrees. We are still not immune to cold weather extremes, however, as wintry conditions have visited in years past.
On May 6, 1950, the latest measurable snowfall was recorded in Coeur d’Alene when 2 inches fell in the area. Temperatures in the teens and lower 20s were also recorded across the Panhandle in early May 1954. Of course, it’s much more likely that we’ll be hearing more about thunderstorms than cold weather as the month progresses. An average of 2.21 inches of rain falls during the month of May.
Speaking of thunderstorms, many folks east of the Rockies have already had their fair share of severe weather. Wind, hail and tornadoes have caused damage from the plains to the East Coast. Storm chasers are gearing up for more intense action in the next couple of months, as tornadic storms really start to get fired up across tornado alley. This area includes Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, as well as areas of the northern plains and parts of the Ohio Valley.
The flat terrain of the central plains makes it a mecca for tornado chasing, an activity which I participated in during college, and somewhat during my early television years working in Omaha, Neb., and Evansville, Ind. Now, living in the Inland Northwest, where there is a dearth of tornadic and even just severe thunderstorm activity, I have to settle for chasing the occasional dust devil that might form on a hot, sunny summer day in a nearby dirt field.
I shouldn’t complain, however, as people who have endured the devastation of tornadoes, hurricanes, or even major earthquakes have probably wondered where they could relocate to find a safe haven from Mother Nature’s perils. It just so happens that we are living in such a place right now, according to Forbes.com.
A few years ago, Forbes.com did an analysis on the top 10 safest and the top 10 most dangerous places to live based on “occurrence” (not “potential”) of natural disasters. It seems we have a lot less to worry about in the Northwest when it comes to weather, than our friends in the other parts of the U.S.
A data-collection company based in Portland compiled weather and disaster information for 331 metropolitan statistical areas in the U.S., and Forbes used that information to determine what locales were the safest or most dangerous to live in. Honolulu, Hawaii, topped the list as being the safest. They are not prone to tornadoes, wind or hail. Though they potentially could be threatened by volcanoes, hurricanes, and tsunamis, incidences of these disasters over the last 30 years has yielded only minor damage and loss of life.
The No. 2 safest place was Boise . Spokane came in fifth, while five other Washington and Oregon cities made it into the top 10.
Where are the most dangerous places to live? Monroe, La., topped that list. Dallas came in second with several other Midwest cities and also Gulf Coast cities having top-10 rankings.
You can imagine that warm season storms such as tornadoes and hurricanes and the subsequent destruction, were ranked as more dangerous than cold seasons storms such as blizzards and ice storms. With the upcoming hot and dry summer season forecast to be ripe for dangerous wild fires, I’ll hope for more “rainy” rather than “stormy” days (especially the ones with dry lightning), and I’ll settle for catching up with some of those whirling nondestructive dust devils.