Suzie,
Fortunately we were west the worst ones. My step Father 60 miles due east got 4 tenths of an inch of rain and some light hail but not enough to do any damage. Many formed along a line that ran just west of him and then moved to the north east. About 20 miles east is where the real severe stuff started and kept rolling through. To the north of us and especially NE they kept popping up and caused some damage. Then a few formed in CO to the west but moved N-NE and didn't enter KS till at least 60 miles north of where I live. I was very fortunate this last week got another nice slow rain. In fact almost everyone around use got a half inch or more. I was talking to friends in Guymon and Boise City and like they said we were so close to the bad stuff several different days and I believe it was Tuesday night when it was straight west of us and had traveled straight east for miles and then veered to the SE and missed us with very heavy rains and large hail. That one in Woodward was terrible. My step Fathers sister lives in Buffalo and he talked to her several times and they had a severe storm move through in the afternoon before the one that hit Woodward and it went on up into KS and formed some tornadoes in KS. That is a common track for them. The Greensburg tornado traveled a similar track. Thanks for your concerns and yes I'm fine and heading out to work on cold frames when the light rain stops. I have some dwarf plants that need potted up into larger pots. Hope you, your family and everyone on this forum manages to escape the bad weather. I have a feeling there is going to be a lot more of it before it calms down. Depending on what the weather does and how I'm sitting with my gardening I hope to make a trip down to the Tulsa area and hopefully the OKC area around April 28th or the weekend after. But if there is the threat of severe weather or I'm tied up here with gardening chores I won't be going. Jay

Jay,
That is way too close for comfort, and I'm certainly glad you are your family weren't in the areas that were hit! You mentioned Greenburg, and I was thinking about that one last night. It's great that you got some nice rain, and hope that you get even more. We were very surprised to see 2 1/2 inches in our rain gauge Saturday morning. The rain from early this morning when the front finally came thru only measured a quarter inch or so, but it sure seemed like more when it was coming down.

Suzie

Jay;
I couldn't agree more. I doubt we're in for a freeze, but more storms coming. We were on the outer edge of the storm and received much nice rain and electric storms with a touch of golf-ball sized hail that lasted less than two minutes.

I have more tomato plants that need to hit the ground but now I'll need to pot them up. It will be a while before the ground can be worked. My luck I'll pot them, then plant them and we'll get flooded again.

It was sufficient to stimulate plant growth but no damage. My prayers are with the states above us and the counties that got hit the hardest.

bon

Jay, Al and I will be at the Fling that day, if you come the 28th, but home for the night. If your travel plans include our area, let us know. You know you are welcome here, and just like the motel, 'we'll leave a light on for ya'. I can send you home with some more flower pots. LOL

Carol,
I will send you an email. My plans are if I can get away to leave Friday after noon and be home by Saturday evening. I have a few things I want to do Saturday morning and knew you and Al were going to the Fling and didn't figure it would be handy to meet up on this trip. I do appreciate the invitation. Jay

Jay, You had so much bad weather going on around you and I was worried about you and your family. I'm glad everyone is alright.

It was too cold here last night--41 degrees at our Mesonet station in Burneyville, but only 45 degrees here. Yay! Burneyville may have gotten colder than your place did overnight.

If you're coming for the Spring Fling, I am so thrilled to death to hear that! It is always so much fun to get to meet one another in person.

Dawn

We showed a low of 33 for a few minutes Monday morning. They predicted a low of 37 and never issued a frost/freeze warning. Non frost on the windshields but a lot of things within 2 ft of the ground had frost. My covers on the cold frame were frosted heavy. I had a garden hose going up and over a cattle panel. The bottom two feet was frost then the rest of the way up the hose was heavy dew. I thought I made it out ok. And basically did. But did get a few leaves on the potatoes bit. I had closed the WOW's and left them closed as it hit 35 today and they said only 65-70 for a high. Instead we hit 80. You could tell they got a little hot inside the WOW. I opened them up this evening. It is supposed to be lows of upper 40's and 50's for the near future. I feel everything will rebound and be fine. The plants in the cold frames look ok. I had moved several out to the one I covered Sunday yesterday morning. The poly thinwall I covered it with is almost white and it seems to stay a lot cooler than the frames with glass or a clear covering. I could of ordered the same color for my lean to. Think I should have. I had ordered this to cover the frame I'm building and was told the tinted would work better and would get as hot. I will know more after I finish hardening off this set of plants in the frame. Jay

Thirty-three is kinda too close for comfort. I'm glad the plants mostly made it without damage, and hope the potatoes bounce back fast.

Does the poly thinwall that is almost white deflect some of the light so it doesn't heat up quite as much? That sounds kind of neat.

We have two warm days today and tomorrow, then some cooler ones again. Still riding the spring temperature roller coaster!

Dawn

I was about 1/2 mile from the tornado when it went through woodward. I'm ok, I was in a cellar. I'm sure you've all seen the devastation on tv. It was surreal, knowing what was going on a few blocks away and that a lot people didn't know as there weren't any sirens sounded until the tornado was already in town. Also, the tornado that traveled south of alva hit my friends property. Destroyed a grain bin, moved the barn down the road, some damage to the home, shattered the windows in her car, and carried one of her dogs off, which she later found.

Sheri,

I have been racking my brain trying to remember how close you were to Woodward. Based on your post, I'd say "too close". I am so glad you're alright, and feel just terrible about all the death and destruction that has hit your community. The images of the devastation have shown such incredible damage that it is hard to believe it happens in just about the blink of an eye.

I am glad your friend's damage wasn't worse than it was, and it sounds like it was plenty bad. All that "stuff" can be replaced, but lives cannot. I hope when you say she found the dog that you mean she found it alive and well.

You know, about those sirens....we always expect they'll go off and we'll hear them, etc. etc. but in the real world where we all live, tornadoes can literally form right over your house or your street and hit even before the NWS can issue a warning, or technology can fail us, as it appears it failed some people in Woodward that night.

Our older neighbors here tell me that they used to drag blankets down to their tornado shelters and just sleep there all night sometimes on bad weather days when they thought tornadoes were likely. They didn't have weather radios and 24-hour media or social media to send them warnings like we do now. We are luckier in a lot of ways than they were. I cannot imagine dragging a whole family down to sleep in a tornado cellar "just in case". I think my family would refuse.

Woodward sure has had its share of tornadoes lately. Maybe y'all will get a break for a while now.

Dawn