Happy Monday and welcome to another edition of Beyond The Forecast!
Some Bedford County residents were picking up the pieces this weekend after an EF-2 tornado ran rampant through the region. The images of the damage sustained to homes and trees in the area are truly heartbreaking.
Recommended Videos
I want to use the space of this newsletter to talk more about the storm survey and how this tornado formed.
One of the primary ingredients in the atmosphere that is needed for a tornado to form is wind shear. We can determine how much wind shear there is by comparing the surface winds to the stronger upper-level winds.
The wind shear creates a rotating column of air.
A thunderstorm and its updrafts are able to use that rotating column of air to create a wall cloud.
The rotating column of air will continue to build downward. If it makes it to the ground, it’s called a tornado. If not, it’s a funnel cloud.
So the tornado moved through and caused the destruction Friday. We were not able to determine the rating and wind speed of the tornado until after a storm survey was conducted.
The survey was done by National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists from Blacksburg on Saturday. They confirmed a tornado by looking at the damage swath.
You can compare the damage from downbursts and straight-line winds to what was seen in Bedford County.
The meteorologists examined the damage and radar data to estimate the maximum wind gusts. They say the tornado had wind gusts of 135 miles per hour, consistent with an EF-2 rating.
The storm was on the ground for more than six miles and was more than three football fields wide. Thankfully, it didn’t kill anyone but injured two people.
It was the eleventh tornado in Bedford County since 1950, per Reggie Roakes at NWS Blacksburg. Bedford County has been a relative hotspot for twisters in that time, along with Campbell, Pittsylvania and Halifax Counties.
Areas west of the Blue Ridge Parkway are not as prone to tornadoes, but they still happen!
If another threat of tornadoes materializes, we’ll be certain to let you know about it. We here at Your Local Weather Authority hope those affected by the recent tornado in Bedford County can make a quick recovery.
You can always get specific forecast details for your zone, whether it’s the Roanoke Valley, Southside, the Highlands or elsewhere around Southwest and Central Virginia, anytime at WSLS.com/weather. Know your zone!
In case you missed it, we’re posting great weather and science content on WSLS.com. Here are a few links from the past week to check out:
If you prefer your weather information delivered by social media, you can follow Your Local Weather Authority on Facebook and Twitter.
You can also keep up with me on social media. I’m on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, follow along!
-- Justin McKee